Tieks by Gavrieli
noun [teeks]
Fabulous, luxurious, foldable ballet flats
Starting at $165
Hello, lover!
But Ange, you must be saying as I did when I saw the price tag, why would I want to pay $165+ for flats?!
First of all, Oprah does. And you know if Oprah is doing something, that means it’s more than good enough for the rest of us, am I right? (Put it out of your head that Oprah could afford to buy up all the Tieks in existence and just stick with me for a second…)
I’m sensing you want some more concrete evidence that Tieks are the fabulous, foldable, absolutely-ideal-for-travel shoes they claim to be.
Good news. I tried them out so I could help answer just that question.
Savoring the moment
Opening my Tieks was an event!
I waited several days with the nondescript white box sitting on my desk so I could really savor the process of digging into my new luxury shoes. Before I even made it to the shoes, I was smitten by the adorable turquoise box – tell me what girl doesn’t get a little fluttery about a turquoise/blue box — wrapped with a cute flowery bow.
Not sure if it was designed to be a cat headband, but that’s the first thing I thought of…
Don’t be fooled – she is a slave to fashion
More than just shoes. The Tieks aren’t the only thing you get in the blue box, y’all. They come with a handful of useful accessories like clips to pin up the ends of your pants for the walk home. I would’ve saved the backs of many a ruined pair of work pants in NYC if I’d only had these.
There’s also a bag to store the heels you’re inevitably going to shed after a couple of hours – dancing at a wedding, milling about at a cocktail party with Oprah – whatever. You just plop the villainous high heels in the bag, slide on your Tieks, and go on your merry Gangnam-style-dancing way.
More than just shoes!
So many choices! The hardest part of this whole process was choosing from one of 39 available colors, so I phoned a fashion friend – my BFF La La La Lauren – to help me choose from the rainbow. I never in 100 million years would’ve chosen an animal print without assistance – I have a nagging fear of ever resembling a Jersey Shore cast member – so naturally I was leaning toward sophisticated, grown-up black or grey. That’s me, always living on the very edge of fashion risk-taking.
Under Lauren’s tutelage, I ultimately decided on the giraffe Tieks. (It’s faux giraffe, just in case you were wondering.)
Turquoise soles = the perfect shoe to wear on a Turquoise Holiday?
The other comfy but not cute flats I’ve been traveling the world with need to be replaced every 3-4 months while Tieks take three days and 150 steps to craft out of leather and possibly some sort of Elfin shoe magic.
Beware: Tieks are compact and thus easily snagged by little sisters!
Versatility. I have a strict 3-shoe rule when traveling long term: a pair of flip-flops, a pair of athletic shoes and a pair of close-toed flats. This means I have to select those three pairs very, very carefully. The close-toed flats have to be casual and comfy enough to wear on a walking tour but dressy enough to attend a dinner with the former South African president. (Yes, that happened! If only I’d had Tieks then, I wouldn’t have had to hide my shoes under the table all night!) I love that I can wear my giraffe Tieks anytime or any place and they fit in.
Comfort. The most important aspect of any shoe for me is comfort – regardless of price. Tieks have a split, non-skid rubber sole and are made of that soft, hand-stitched leather. The turquoise split sole makes them easily foldable and flexible, molding to the shape of the foot.
I wish I’d known about Tieks when I was living in NYC – they are absolutely the perfect commuter shoe.
Love Tieks sassy branding!
Who wears Tieks? Well, obviously Oprah and I have Tieks in common now, among so many other things — but also big city gals with public transit commutes, anyone who travels for business or pleasure and stylish ladies who put a lot of mileage on their tootsies.
Interested? Get started at Tieks.com – the only place to buy these travel friendly shoes. And check out Tieks on Facebook, too. Happy shopping!
***
No cats or giraffes were harmed in the making of this post. Thanks to Tieks for sending the shoes. I’m a fan!
I’ve never even heard of Tieks before! They look super comfy (and cute!), though. I tend to just wear whatever shoes are my bulkiest (usually some sort of boots) for the trip I’m going on to save space in my suitcase.
Camels & Chocolate recently posted..Photo Friday: Semaphore Hill, Panama
I do that, too – always wear the biggest ones like the tennis shoes or boots. But on the off chance I don’t have to bring either of those, I can see Tieks being a perfect shoe to wear when going through security – easy on and off!
I didn’t know about these, but now have been seeing that turquoise sole all over the place! Great variety, glad you went with the giraffe print. Super cute and neutral. I’m also a sucker for cute packaging. Love ‘em!
lauren recently posted..Some things I bought last week
I know – I had no idea how widespread Tieks adoption had become! But I see so many gals I know wearing them.
Those shoes are adorable! I have a four shoe rule but we’re basically in the same line of thought, haha. Do you think Tieks would get dirty or rip though?
Ashley of Ashley Abroad recently posted..The Art of French Cheese Eating
They definitely won’t rip – they’re so, so durable & sturdy! I do worry that the lighter colored ones could get dirty, so you won’t catch me wearing mine anywhere muddy or nasty!
These shoes seem like they would be really great for traveling. However, I just can’t imagine paying that much for a pair of flats.
Although, I’m pretty cheap when it comes to shoes. I’ve only spent over $100 on shoes twice in my life, and both times it was on leather riding boots.
Just got mine last week – I went with the grown up metallic pewter (though I had my heart set on Ruby Red) and absolutely love them as an around the town all event shoe. Planning to use them as dancing shoes at my wedding, so they’re being put to good use already!
Reserving judgement on “best travel shoe ever” until I actually travel in them, but I wouldn’t mind a little more arch support if I’m going to be doing a ton of walking.
Jashshea,
I wondered about the arch support in the shoes. I have high arches, so I can’t imagine that they would work for me.
I have very, very high arches and haven’t had a problem with the arch support at all. I supposed everyone’s different, but it hasn’t been an issue for me.
I might just have to try them, but first I need to save up some money.
Giraffe print?! How cute!
Kieu ~ GQ trippin recently posted..India: Travel Costs & Highlights
I own tieks. They are very cute… But after wearing them for a couple of hours I had bad pain in my heels. I even ended up going to a doctor and had to wear sport shoes for three weeks. Next month I tried to wear tieks again and same thing happened. The soles are so thin than you can feel the payment. I’m surprised that people are not complaint about these shoes. They offer no arch support and are very light like a shell. If you feet feel good wearing them very likely later you going to develop feel ailments. Save some money and buy a good quality Italian shoe. It might cost you more but at least you will not end up wearing granny shoes till the rest of your life. Of course every person has different feet too. But you need to know the risks associated with wearing shoes like tieks.
Sorry about typos, as I was typing on my phone.
I am assuming that these can’t be worn when the ground is wet? Big downfall for Minnesotans who deal with rain and the spring thaw … which is often perfect flat weather!
I’ve worn them in wet conditions with no problem. You just need to care for them as you would any leather shoe…
I am wondering how they are holding up. I am considering purchasing a pair, but worried about the durability. Have read many blog reviews about opening the pretty box and wearing them a week, but how about now? Any update?
I’m wearing mine right now, actually! They’ve held up perfectly. I did get my giraffe ones quite dirty in Morocco but wiped them clean no problem once I got home. Now I’m the proud owner of a red pair, too. Can’t complain…
I wore my metallic pewters Saturday for a quick jaunt to the mall. When I got back outside, we’d had a freak snowstorm and I had about 1.5 inches of heavy wet snow to slog through to get back to my car. Most flats would dissolve in that scenario, or at least get spotty/ruined. My tieks were completely unaffected (and luckily I had a pair of show boots in my car so that I could clear the snow off the car). This made me love my Tieks even more!
Thanks very much! Ordered my first pair today.
What do you use to protect the giraffe leather? And any recommendations on cleaning product or technique? Mine are getting a bit gray…
I just wipe mine with a damp cloth. Mine got a bit gray in Morocco but the cloth did the trick!
haven’t done anything to protect them, though I don’t wear them in super wet conditions if I can help it!
I am planning a 2 week trip in Italy where I will be walking all day. Do you think these would be a good choice for a lot of walking? Thanks for the advice.
I wouldn’t hesitate to wear mine, though if I were you I’d buy them and wear them around a bit before deciding. Every foot is different!
Hi I’m from singapore and I’m interested to have a pair of teiks but I don’t know where to get it from here. Anybody have any idea where can I get it here near singapore or order from the us? Big thanks.
You can only get them from http://www.tieks.com. I have 8 pairs now and I love them.
BTW, if you need more arch support or any more padding, there is room for a foot pad or an orthotic arch support.
Hi Pamela, You can only get them directly from Tieks, and they can ship internationally. At least that’s what their website says.