Ladies Leather Sandals in South Africa: A Buyer’s Guide

Ladies leather sandals are the easiest shoe to buy badly, and the easiest to buy well once you know what matters. Leather sandals are the easiest shoe to buy badly. They look almost identical on a screen, the price range is enormous, and the difference between a pair that moulds to your foot and a pair that gives you blisters is not visible in a photograph. This is what to actually look at.

The footbed matters more than the strap

Most people choose sandals on how the straps look. The footbed is what decides whether you can still wear them in February.

A genuine leather footbed absorbs moisture and slowly takes the shape of your foot. Within a few weeks it holds a faint impression of your arch and toes, which is why an old pair of good leather sandals feels better than a new one. A synthetic or bonded footbed cannot do this. It stays exactly as moulded, which means your foot does all the adapting.

Straps: stitched, not glued

Look at where the strap meets the sole. If it is glued, that join is the first thing to fail, usually in the heat and usually without warning. Stitched straps can loosen but they announce it first, and they can be repaired.

Full grain leather straps stretch slightly over the first few wears and then stop. Split leather and bonded leather keep stretching until the fit is gone.

Soles for South African conditions

A sandal spends its life on hot paving, gravel and grass. A leather sole looks beautiful and wears through quickly outdoors. A rubber or composite sole under a leather footbed gives you the comfort of leather where your foot touches and the durability of rubber where the ground does. That combination is what most well made South African sandals use.

Sizing leather sandals

Take your normal shoe size and expect roughly a half size of give as the straps relax. A pair that feels marginally snug across the instep on day one is usually right. A pair that feels perfect in the shop will be loose by the end of summer.

Your longest toe is not always your big toe. Measure heel to longest toe on a sheet of paper rather than guessing, particularly if you are ordering online.

Where sandals sit next to vellies

People often buy both, for the obvious reason that South Africa has a long summer and a short one. If you want the same leather construction in a closed shoe, our ladies vellies and unisex vellies are built the same way, and the veldskoen page explains that construction in detail.

Caring for them

Wipe dust off rather than washing. Feed the leather with a cream a couple of times a season, particularly the straps, which dry out fastest. If they get soaked, dry them away from direct sun and never on a heater, because leather that dries too fast goes hard and cracks at the flex points.

Our sandals

The current range is on the sandals page. It is deliberately small: we make to order rather than carry deep stock, so what is listed is what we can deliver. Free delivery on orders over R200, anywhere in South Africa.

Frequently asked questions

How should leather sandals fit when new?

Slightly snug across the instep. Leather straps relax by roughly half a size over the first few wears, so a pair that feels perfect on day one will usually be loose by the end of summer.

Are leather sandals better than synthetic?

For longevity and comfort, yes. A leather footbed absorbs moisture and moulds to your foot over time. Synthetic footbeds hold their shape, which means your foot does the adapting instead.

How do I stop leather sandals from smelling?

Let them dry fully between wears and wipe the footbed occasionally with a barely damp cloth. Most odour comes from moisture trapped in a synthetic footbed, which is one more reason to choose leather.

Can leather sandals be repaired?

Stitched sandals can usually be restitched or resoled by a cobbler. Glued sandals generally cannot, which is the main practical argument for checking the join before you buy.

What is the difference between Moses sandals and ordinary leather sandals?

Moses sandals, sometimes called plakkies, are a simple flat design with wide crossing straps and minimal structure. Ordinary leather sandals usually have a contoured footbed and more support.