Shapen Fleur – an elegant derby barefoot shoe for a modern woman who doesn’t want to make bad compromises regarding foot health and fashion.
Shapen is a Slovakian brand of barefoot shoes. Mia, a founder of this brand, started toying with the idea of launching her own barefoot brand back in 2016. At that time, the choice on the market was poor. A lot of barefoot footwear looked too sporty and they were not suitable for business fashion. She wanted something more. And so Shapen, a brand of more elegant barefoot shoes, was born.
So far, Shapen released five different models of their shoes. Tulip ballet flats, Poppy closed-toe sandals, Ivy chelsea style boots, Fleur all-year derby shoes and Lily open-toe sandals. Tulip, Lily and Poppy shoes are the most appropriate for narrow and medium wide feet, but Ivy and Fleur models are wider and they fit great also to my medium-wide feet.
As you can see, all their shoes are named after plants. As I’m reviewing Fleur here (flower in French), its was obviously to me that I need some flowers on the photo too 🙂
♥Get 5% discount on Shapen with my affiliate code BOSENOGICE5♥
1. General
- Brand: Shapen
- Model: Fleur
- Colour: Powder
- Tested on: woman, medium-wide feet, 26.3 cm long and 10 cm wide (10.3 cm between metatarsal heads), low instep, skinny ankles with narrow heel, fin-shaped foot – see my how to measure guide and foot type
|Made in EU|Adult|Leather|Ship to EU|
2. Material characteristics
2.1 Upper
Fleur shoes are available in five different colours. I usually choose just black or navy blue as a colour for my elegant shoes, but this time I decided to choose this beautiful Powder colour, which works great with a lot of different clothes too.
The upper is made from a combination of patent leather in the back and soft smooth leather in the front part.
I was worried that the patent leather could be a little sensitive and my fingerprints will be visible on it, but it’s not. I find them also easy to clean. I just wipe the dirt off with a damp cloth.
The heel part is reinforced with an extra layer of leather with an added pull tabs at the top.
Shoes have thin round laces in the matching colour with the rest of the shoe. You can also buy decorative ends for the laces. I decided to add gold tones to my powder colour.
They are available also in silver colour. You can choose what works the best for you. All the instructions on how to put them on the laces you can find here.
2.2 Lining
The shoes are lined with leather. At the heel part there is a Shapen silver brand logo printed on the insole.
The insole is not removable, but you can also buy wool insoles for the days when you need extra warmth in them.
2.2 Sole
The outsole of Shapen shoes is 3 mm thick. They have inserted 2 mm thin foam which makes them more pleasurable to walk.
Therefore, the total stack height of the shoe is around 5-6 mm.
The sole flexibility is really good in both directions. I’m also satisfied with the ground feeling in them.
Mia informed me that the sole of some other colours could be slightly less flexible at the beginning than those in powder colour. But she also told me that the sole softens with wear.
Also check my video for the close-up and to see how they look on my feet.
3. Sizing information
3.1 Length
Fleur shoes are available in sizes 36-43.
My feet are 26.3 cm long and I decided to choose size 41. According to their current size chart this is 26.8 cm of internal length, which means only 5 mm space for me (not optimal).
At the time, when I was choosing the shoe size, Shapen had different internal lengths for Fleur shoes on their website and for size 41 it was written more than that. But when I got them I noticed that there is definitely less space in them and I’m glad that Shapen made corrections to their values now.
I usually have in all my shoes 10-12 mm space in front of the toes, so I find shoes a little bit too short for me and next time I would definitely choose size 42.
I also measured the internal length of the shoe with Plus12 and I got 26.9 cm which is very similar, so the shoes are true to size.
Keep in mind that if you plan to wear shoes with an inserted wool insole, it will also take away about 4 mm of internal length.
3.2. Toebox shape & width
Shoes have a great foot-shaped toebox with a gentle slope towards the little toe, which works great for Greek foot type (second toe is the longest). They alsowork good for Egyptian foot shape (the first toe is the longest), but with a more gradual slope toward the little toe.
Shoes have a shape of a “fin”, which means that they are narrower at the heel and they gradually widen at the front part on both sides. The shape works for my “bean” shaped foot really well as my big toe is curved away from other toes, which means I need some extra space at the inner side too. But they also widen on the outside, which makes them suitable for other foot types too.
The width of the shoe in size 41 is 10 cm, but there is more space than that inside the shoe. They are ideal for medium and wide feet.
The toebox is wonderfully shaped with plenty of space above your toes all the way to the end of the shoe.
3.3. Fit around the instep, heel and ankle
Shoes fit the best to narrow and average wide heels and ankles. The fit over the instep is perfect for me and I have a low instep. But those with even lower instep can still find them too deep. In this case I recommend using an insole for adding some volume. The laces allow great fit to an average height instep too (the eyelets will be a little bit further apart than mine are).
4. Comfort
Shoes are made from soft leather and the shoes are really comfortable to wear. At the beginning I was worried that the edge around the ankles could rub me, but this was never the case for me.
But one thing did bother me on the shoe at the beginning. In the front segment, where the leather is creasing, that part of a leather was pressing on my foot when I walked. At first, I could feel it all the time (but it was not painful), but after some time of wearing them, this stopped bothering me. The leather look creased at that part, but it doesn’t feel uncomfortable anymore.
5. How to wear them?
Fleur shoes are designed so well that you can pair them with a lot of different clothes and styles. They look great with trousers, dress or skirt.
Patent leather at the back definitely makes them look even more elegant. Also, using decorative ends on the laces can add even more special look to them.
They work great with jeans too and they will add just a little bit of an elegant touch to your outfit.
I’m glad that I decided on this neutral nude colour as it really works great with a lot of my clothes. As the shoes come in five different colours, I’m sure every woman can find a colour for herself.
6. Price & where to buy
You can buy Shapen shoes on their official website. Full price for Fleur shoes is 109€.
Shapen has given me a special discount code just for my readers (not affiliated).
You can buy Shapen Fleur with 15% discount with code “BOSENOGICE” (valid until September 30th 2020).
7. Shipping info
Shapen ships worldwide. Shipping costs depend on the shipping country. You can find shipping rates here.
8. Where are they made?
All Shapen shoes are handmade in Slovakia under fair working conditions. Their materials are carefully chosen and all originated from Europe.
9. To sum up
Shapen Fleur are the shoes that I wanted years ago when you could only find barefoot shoes looking like sneakers. But now we have so many amazing options. And Fleur is a wonderful option for an elegant shoe.
Made in attractive colours which won’t look clowny on you even if you wear big size as I do. You can go to any business meeting in them with pride.
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