A Letter From Michelle — The Janina
A Letter From Michelle
Your feet have changed over the years. So why are we still expected to wear the same uncomfortable shoes?
On why a flat shoe is not a comfortable one, the six things I would not compromise on, and why they are $59.95.
A woman told me last winter that her feet had betrayed her. She was half joking. She had brought in the flats she wore for years, and they no longer fit the foot she had.
Nobody warns you about that part. Feet widen and flatten, and shoes you trusted for a decade start pressing at the sides. So you buy flats, because flats sound kind. Most are a thin sole with a lining glued on top, and by three in the afternoon you know it.
So look inside one before you look at it. The footbed is contoured — a shape under the arch instead of a flat board. That is the whole shoe. The rest is the part other people see.
Six things I would not compromise on.
The toe is rounded, with room where feet have widened
I will be straight with you: these are not made in a wide fitting. What they have is a rounded toe with a high, soft front, so nothing presses across the knuckles of your toes. If you stopped buying narrow shoes years ago, this is the shape you were looking for.
“The rounded toe is what caught my attention. I don’t care for narrow shoes anymore, and I really like the roomy look of these.”
Barbara K., FrederickThe footbed is shaped, and the heel is low
Your arch rests on something instead of hanging over a flat board, and the cushioning under it is generous rather than a token layer. The heel is low, with just enough rise to keep you off the heel bone. And the shoe is feather-light, which you notice at the end of an afternoon.
“Wore these to the farmers market with my daughter. The low heel and strap across the foot are just the sort of practical details I look for these days.”
Joanne P., LancasterOne strap, one button, and your heel stops slipping out
The strap crosses the instep on a single covered button, which ends the curling of toes to keep a shoe on. It is one button and one position, not a buckle with holes, so a very high instep may find it close.
“Those little round buttons are adorable! They remind me of the Mary Janes I wore years ago, only with a more grown-up look. 😊”
Nancy R., BloomingtonStitched the whole way around, on a real sole
Pale stitching runs right around the edge, which is most of what keeps a comfortable shoe from looking medical. Under it is a black sole with grip.
“I especially like the stitching around the front and the sturdy black sole. They look nice with my everyday pants without being too dressy.”
Elaine T., RoanokeFour colors, and only one of them is black
Green, brown, red and black. The black is there for the days you want it. But the green is a soft muted shade that sits beside denim and cream, and the red is a proper red.
“I chose the green pair to wear with my jeans and cream sweaters. It’s such a pretty, muted shade of green. A nice change from my usual black shoes.”
Darlene M., HendersonvilleUS 4 to US 12, one price
Nine sizes, and not one priced above another, which ought to be unremarkable and is not. If you stand at either end of that run you know how seldom both ends get made.
“I started with the green because the color caught my eye, then decided to order the brown too. Both work beautifully with the clothes I already have. I like having a little variety.”
Marilyn W., StauntonThe Janina, against what else $60 buys
| Most $60 comfort shoes | The Janina | |
|---|---|---|
| The footbed | Flat, with a thin layer of foam on it | Contoured, so your arch rests on something |
| The toe | Tapered, because it photographs slimmer | Rounded, with room where your foot is widest |
| The strap | Elastic, or nothing across the foot at all | A strap on the instep with a covered button |
| The sole | Thin and glued, with no stitching | A black sole, stitched around the whole edge |
| The color | Black, or black with brown | Four — green, brown, red and black |
| Sizing | Stops at US 10, if you are lucky | US 4 to US 12, every size the same price |
Why we are clearing them out now
The Janina was $199.95, and that number was for a contoured footbed, stitching run the whole way around the edge, a strap on a covered button and a sole that is built rather than glued on. A good deal of shoemaking for something whose whole job is to disappear on your foot. But the store turns twenty this year, and my daughters Julie and Amy are both at the counter most days now, which is not something I let myself count on in 2006. We wanted to mark it by handing something back to the women who kept those doors open, so they are going out at just under a third of what they were.
And the honest reasoning. Comfortable shoes get sold to women our age as though we had agreed to give something up, in colors chosen so that nobody looks twice. I have never accepted that, and I am not going to start now. A shoe can hold your arch and still be one you are pleased to see by the door.
★★★★★4.8 out of 5 — from 3,369+ reviews
$199.95$59.95
20th Anniversary Sale — Save 70%
- A contoured footbed, not a flat board
- Feather-light — almost nothing to lift
- A rounded toe with room at the front
- A strap on a single covered button
- Pale stitching around the whole edge
- A low heel and a black sole with grip
- Four colors — green, brown, red, black
- US 4 to US 12, every size one price
- Free UPS shipping · 30-day money-back guarantee
Every color and every size the same price · while sizes last
One more thing, and then I will let you go.
Put on the flats you reach for most, and stand in your kitchen for ten minutes.
If you shifted your weight, it was not your feet. It was the board underneath them.
Do the same in these. If you shift at all, send them back inside thirty days.
Go and pick your color.
With love and gratitude,
— Michelle · The Hayes Family Hamptons
PICK YOUR COLOR — $59.95 →This is a personal letter from Michelle Hayes, co-founder of The Hayes Family Hamptons. Customer reviews are quoted as written. · Free UPS shipping · 30-day money-back guarantee.