Continuing with last week’s theme of writing about shoes, but in a slightly more timely manner, I’ve got another shoe review for you all today!
Royal Vintage Shoes‘ fall “Spice It Up!” collection has just arrived, and since I had pre-ordered my top picks, a big box-o-shoes arrived on my doorstep a little over a week ago.
Of the 5 new styles for fall, I ordered three—the “Greta” side button shoes (more on those in a moment!), the “Alice” cut-out oxfords, and the “Aspen” fur and velvet boots.
I got the Greta shoes in green to replace my much-loved (and unfortunately totally destroyed) green Chelsea Crew oxfords. Obviously they’re not an exact replacement—the Greta shoes are a bit more on the olive side, which is both a plus and a minus. They go better with some of my wardrobe (they’re a near-perfect match for this hat!) but will clash a bit with other true forest green things.
For construction and comfort, though, the new shoes are a run-away winner. The faux-leather uppers of my old oxfords had begun to crack, and they tended to dig into the top of my foot where the stiff synthetic material bent. The Royal Vintage Gretas have an entirely leather upper, so while I’m still breaking them in a bit I’m not having any of those issues—in fact, I don’t believe I ended up with any blisters at all from my first wear! As with all my other Royal Vintage shoes, I find that the heel is well-balanced for walking and the footbed has a nice bit of cushion to it. Another nice perk of Royal Vintage shoes is that they ship with some spare parts—these came with replacement heel taps and two spare buttons.
And speaking of buttons—one of the fun things about these shoes is that they close with functional buttons! Royal Vintage recommends getting a button hook to fasten your shoes, but I neglected to buy one and was still able to manage the buttons by hand. They’re mounted on the smallest bit of elastic and there’s a hidden elastic gusset in the instep, so there’s a little slack to get them closed and the top of the shoe has a tiny bit of give for comfortable walking.
All in all, I’m quite happy with my purchase and I’m sure I’ll get lots of use out of my new shoes in the fall and all year round!
1940s olive green tilt hat: Modern Millie
Pink rhinestone earrings: Gift from my husband
1940s aqua ribbons-and-flowers print dress: Etsy
Aqua belt: Strap from one of my reproduction flexiclogs
Green 1930s style side-button shoes: Royal Vintage Shoes “Greta”
A note: I used to be a brand ambassador for Royal Vintage Shoes—I no longer am, and do not receive any incentive to purchase or wear these shoes. I’ve reviewed them on the blog because I want to share my honest opinions with my readers!