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Tikki Shoes Aster – Review

We love Tikki shoes. They are one of the best barefoot shoes for kids on the market and this new Aster model is just another perfection from Tikki.

All my three kids wear or wore Tikki sandals as slippers in school and kindergarten. They are awesome sandals, really soft and durable and we absolutely love them.

When Tikki launched their new Tikki Aster model in bigger sizes, I immediately ordered one for my youngest son. They were so great that I couldn’t resist to buy another one for my girl too. And since then they wear them all the time.

Disclaimer: This is a non-sponsored review. All opinions expressed here are my own and I don’t receive any compensation if you choose to buy some for yourself.

1. General

  • Brand: Tikki
  • Model: Aster
  • Colour: Blue Mint (size 24N) and Stardust (size 29N)
  • Tested on: boy (feet: 14.6 cm long and 6.5 cm wide), girl (feet: 17.9 cm long and 7.3 cm wide)

2. Material characteristics

2.1 Upper

Tikki shoes are made from a premium quality vegetable tanned Nubuck or Velour leather and are available in different colour options.

My girl immediately picked this lovely pink colour with a lit bit of a glitter on a velcro strap named Stardust. For my son I choose a beautiful Aster Blue Mint model.

Our Aster Stardust shoes are made from Velour leather and Aster Blue Mint shoes from a Nubuck leather.

The velcro straps of an Aster shoe are different colour as the rest of the shoe, but they match really well with the main shoe colour. In fact, the strap gives the shoe a unique and special look. There is also a little yellow Tikki sign stiched on the velcro strap, but it is not disturbing. It acctually looks really nice and it works well with the rest of the shoe.

Heel cuffs are lightly padded to give your kids a comfortable feeling while walking and keep the form of the shoe.

I have to mention that after two months of wearing them I noticed that our Aster shoes in blue mint colour became just a little bit lighter. But we really exposed them to all conditions you can imagine. My little boy wears them every day and everywhere; in woods, playing in the sand, he ever tested them in puddles when mum was busy outside 🙂 Vegetable tanned leather and this wet conditions are probably not the best combination, which resulted in this slight colour change. But I really don’t mind, as this is just how it is with kids and shoes.

On the picture below you can see how the shoes look today after two months of non-stop wear. I just cleaned them a little bit.

2.2 Lining

Shoe lining is a part of the shoe that is in a direct contact with the skin, especially if the shoes are worn without the socks. As Tikki states it is important that both the sole of the footwear as well as the lining are processed with healthy, non-allergenic substances. And I could not agree more. As Tikki matters about the health of our children, their shoes have a chrome-free leather lining.

The insole is glued to the bottom of the shoe and therefore it is not removable.

2.3 Sole

The outsole of Tikki Aster shoes is made from a super flexible 3 mm thick anti-skid rubber. The insole thickness is about 1-2 mm. Therefore, the total stack height of the sole is approx. 4-5 mm.

The shoes have a special sole that is curved upwards in the front part. This makes the shoes more durable and protect them from damaging.

3. Sizing information

3.1 Length

Tikki Aster shoes are available in sizes 19N-29N. Tikki has different size charts for different shoe models. Their size chart gives you the inside length and width of the shoe. We have a size 24N and 29N and both shoes are true to size according the length.

My youngest sons’ feet are 14.6 cm long and I chose a size 24N with inside length measurement of 15.8 cm. This gives him a 12 mm space in front of the toes. My daughters’ feet are 17.9 cm long and I choose their biggest available size 29N with an inside length of 19.1 cm.

3.2. Toebox & width

Aster shoes have a great foot-shaped toebox for little feet.

Shoes are a little bit wider than listed in the table. Tikki explained to me that in the size chart measurement of the shoe last are given, not the width of the actual shoe itself as the width of the shoe is really hard to measure. For example, their Aranya sandals are made on the same last, but with the Aranya sandals they measured the actual inside width as the model made it possible.

As I said, the shoes are wider than listed, but I won’t say they are appropriate for super wide feet, but they work well for medium-wide feet.

On the picture below you can see that there is enough space inside my sons’ shoe for his toes to spread.

How is the width of the Aster shoe comparable to the other barefoot shoe brands?

On the picture below you can see a comparison with Beda Boty shoes and Vivobarefoot Primus Bootie shoes.

Tikki Aster shoes have a similar width as Vivobarefoot shoes, while Beda Boty shoes are wider than Tikki. Tikki in Beda have more square shaped toebox, whereas Vivobarefoot Primus Bootie toebox has more significant slope down towards the little toe.

3.3. Fit

Aster shoes have a velcro strap that allows great adjustment to different foot volumes. They work well also with skinny ankles.

My daughter has a low instep and skinny ankles and she needs to be a little bit more careful when putting on her shoes. At the beginning her shoes were to lose at the ankle when she put them on by herself. But I showed her how to do it and she manages to make a good fit by herself now.

4. How to wear them?

Tikki Aster shoes are made to fit to a lot of different kids styles. My kids wear them to just anything they have. Little girls can wear them with a dress too.

5. Price & where to buy

Tikki shoes can be bought directly from their website. Full price for Tikki Aster model is 44.05 € for sizes 19N-23N and 48.81€ for sizes 24N-29N.

6. Shipping info

Shipping costs depend on the shipping country and the number of items you order. For example, for our country shipping cost are something in between 10.36 € and 31.19 €. For orders over 250 € shipping is free of charge for any country in EU.

7. Where are they made?

Tikki shoes are handmade in Timisoara, Romania by footwear crafters Maria and Adrian and their team.

8. To sum up

And here they are. Directly from kindergarten, after playing in sand and running around the grass and mud. They need a little bit of a cleaning, but otherwise they hold up very well.

As usual Tikki didn’t disappointed us. They made a great job again. Tikki Aster shoes are made perfectly and I can’t wait to get them in junior sizes too. They are awesome shoes and we will definitely buy them again.

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