Tieks by Gavriel, these little flats with a teal bottom, that kind of remind you are Louboutins shoes because the teal is a statement, it’s not meant to match. As a wedding photographer, I heard all about these when they came out. Everyone was getting them and loving them, while I hated flats in any way. They hurt my feet, I couldn’t walk far in them, and breaking them in was the worst. I finally caved and I am in love with these little shoes. I also figured from a person who doesn’t splurge much, all my fellow travelers might enjoy a review of these shoes.
Who are these useful for?
The most useful these shoes are for are the working professional, especially those that have to walk a lot at work or to work. These are very elegant flats that work with any professional outfit.
These are exceptionally great for a traveler though as well. These little shoes fold up to be very compact which makes them very easy to travel with. I love traveling light and that usually means any dressy shoes get left at home when I am traveling. These take up almost no room when packing so it makes it easy to bring them along. They are perfect to dress up any outfit and so comfortable, I will talk more on that later!
The compact travel bag these come with make them perfect to toss in a purse or bag for a day out when you give up on your heels and need something more comfortable. I have been bringing these almost everywhere for me and I love them.
Ordering & Sizing
There are so many colors of Tieks it was a bit overwhelming to decide but I went to my go-to plain black. It matches everything and for the price, these shouldn’t just be a novelty purchase. They come in an adorable and compact package I just love how cute it is. In the box are the shoes, a reusable shopping bag, and a storage case for them for caring around.
This was the hardest part of the experience for me because I wear a 7.5 and Tieks have no half sizes. They said if you have wide feet to size up so I did originally, however the 8 seemed quite large.
Their customer service is so amazing and they sent me the 7 to try as well to decide. The 7 was a tiny bit tight when I got them but I went with that size. After breaking in, they stretched some and that was the correct size. They shipped both very quickly so it was an easy process to decide.
Breaking Them In
These shoes are real leather so they need a break-in period for sure. They do stretch and mold to your feet during the break-in period. One thing I would suggest is to make sure your toenails are cut short until I did this it was putting a lot of pressure on especially my big toe. It did make an indention where my big toe was and rubbed a little of the lining off. Tieks sent me moleskins to put in there and I have had no problems since. I wore them for short periods for a bit because they cut into the top of my foot in the beginning but after about a week that stopped. The first few longer hikes my feet did get tired in these for sure but now after a couple of weeks breaking them in, I can wear them all day with no issues.
Comfortability
On trips: I’ve taken these on a few trips with me already so far, a few times to the mountains, and on our trip to Colorado. These were great for nights out in Colorado to dress up my outfit and looked better than my normal converse. We walked all over Colorado Springs, over a couple of miles, and my feet were just fine in them.
Everyday: I’ve worn these for very long days working from client meetings to content creation, to different outings. My feet have been just fine in them all day. If it’s a particularly long day where I haven’t sat down at all, they will start hurting a bit, but would with almost any shoes. I usually hate flats because they slip or fall off, these do not. I don’t even notice I have them on and can walk around and do anything I need.
2 Months In
My only issue with them 2 months into wearing them is I am rough with shoes. The toes of the shoes needed a bit of polishing as they were getting scuffed. They are so wonderful they send you a prepaid label to send them off to get them polished and looking like new. They are back with me now and looking just as good.
I realized in the few days they were gone getting polished how much I fell in love with them. I have been wearing them almost daily for work and I hated having to go back to my heels. These are so much easier to wear and so much more comfortable. I also didn’t have them for one trip to Vegas and trying to fit other shoes in my suitcase that looked nice took up so much room. The shoes I brought were not even close to as comfortable either. These are my go-to travel & work shoes now.
Are they worth it??
They are pricey, I agree. I never thought I could justify $175 on flats. However, I have plenty of boots I have justified the same price for. I do think they are worth it, but only if you travel a lot. I’m sure there are plenty of comfortable flats for just being around the office. However, these are invaluable for travel. Almost all airlines have high baggage fees now, and I love packing light. These make it easy, my one trip without them we struggled fitting everything and to stay underweight having to pack bulky dress shoes. If I had these that trip I would not have any problem. I will update again after I have had them longer on how they are holding up, but for now, I would 100% recommend and would re-purchase. Buy your own here https://tieks.com/. This is not sponsored, all opinions are my own.
See other reviews: https://theburksandbeyond.com/laladaisy-review/
