Home ˃ Reviews ˃ Brand Reviews ˃ ZlaTush Ballet Flats – Review

ZlaTush Ballet Flats – Review

ZlaTush is a brand of handmade barefoot shoes that caught my attention when I was searching for a beautiful ballet flats that would fit my foot. Shoes are wonderfully soft and I can easily forget that I’m wearing something on my foot at all. And this is how a barefoot shoe should feel like.

Zlatica started to make barefoot shoes as a hobby and she was a self-taught shoemaker. Later on, when this became her job, she invested a lot of her time into further education and fulfilled her skills, so her handmade shoes now become a luxury piece of shoes.

Why luxury? Zlatica describes this so well on her website why handmade shoes as hers can be called luxury. People usually forget how much work is put into making one shoe. From choosing the materials, thinking about design, etc. Even communication with customers is a part of it.

At first, I decided to get only one pair of her shoes, but I loved the design so much that I decided to get one more colour, so I can wear it with more casual clothes too.

Disclaimer: I bought both ballet flats with a discount in exchange for a review. But as always, 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: ZlaTush
  • Model: T-strap ballet flats
  • Colour: Rose Gold and Pearl Blue
  • Tested on: woman, medium-wide feet, 26,3 cm long and 10 cm wide, low instep, skinny ankles

2. Material characteristics

2.1 Upper

Zlatica makes different styles of ballet flats and after consulting her I decided to try T-strap model which looked really nice to me and it was definitely something I would love to wear.

The upper in ZlaTush ballet flats is made from a soft leather. Zlatica has a lot of different colours to choose from. From regular colours to a lot of different metallic shades. Therefore, you can just go for a classic black or brown colour or you can choose something more special as I did 🙂

I wanted to try something new and I decided to choose Rose Gold and Pearl Blue colour.

Rose Gold ballet flats are made from a leather with a more textured finish on the top.

Pearl Blue leather have a smooth finish. It looks blue in the shadow, but on the sun a beautiful pearl shade pops out.

For closing the shoes a metallic buckle is used in the colour that works well with the upper.

2.2 Lining

The inside part of the shoes is lined with a really pleasant-to-touch smooth leather in the front part.

And suede leather at the back.

2.2 Sole

The outsole is 4 mm thick. The total stack height with a leather upper is around 6-7 mm.

The sole is really flexible in any directions you want with a great ground feeling.

3. Sizing information

3.1 Length

ZlaTush shoes can be made on their standard last or completely according to your foot tracing. When you place your order, you need to send your foot tracing to Zlatica and she will see if your foot fit her last or not. You can also check the size guide here.

If not, you can go for a custom shape which look slightly different – those ballet flats are made with a visible frame seam as you can see on the photos below from ZlaTush.

My foot fit good in ZlaTush standard shoe last in size 41 with inside length of 26,9 cm, which give me 6 mm space in front of my toes. Toebox is really roomy, therefore my toes can fully spread, but for a proper big toe movement while walking you need 10-12 mm, therefore I’ll choose bigger size with internal length 27,4 cm for my next pair. I recommend that to you too.

3.2. Toebox shape & width

Shoes have great foot-shaped toebox with plenty of space above my toes too. The height above the toes is around 18 mm and it doesn’t lower at the end of the shoe; therefore your toes don’t feel squeezed anywhere.

Their standard shape fit my foot with the longest second toe excellent, but probably for those with the longest first toe with a significant drop down to the little toe a custom size will be a better choice.

Also those with narrow feet should go for a custom size. But Zlatica is really helpful and if you are in doubt, she will help you to make a perfect choice for you.

3.3. Fit around the instep, heel and ankle

When you are making an order, you need to send Zlatica all the measurements needed to make the shoes perfect for you. Although my foot fit their standard size, the length of the straps and the heel width is adjusted to fit my shallow foot and skinny ankles perfectly.

Because the straps of the ballet flats hold your foot really well, you can easily forget that you are wearing anything at all.

4. Comfort

Ballet flats are one of the most comfortable ballet flats I’ve ever tried. They feel comfortable and so secure on my foot. I feel like I’m wearing sneakers. Who would thought that elegant shoes can be so comfortable, right 🙂

5. How to wear them?

Rose gold colour is something unique and is really appropriate for special occasions. I would wear it with elegant trousers or with cocktail or evening dress for a wedding or some other special event. With jeans it’s just too much of everything and it doesn’t work well for me.

Pearl Blue is more ordinary colour and it works great with more casual clothes and jeans too.

The design of this ballet flats is really great and you can make them work for different occasion just with choosing the best colour for your taste.

6. Price & where to buy

You can order your ZlaTush shoes on their official website. All detailed instructions for ordering and how to measure your foot you can find in the section How to order.

Full price for ballet flats is 115€ for sizes 36-40 and 123€ for sizes 41-45. For special colours (metallic, etc.) the price is different; 122€ (sizes 36-40) or 130€ (sizes 41-45).

7. Shipping info

ZlaTush shoes ships worldwide. Shipping cost depend on the shipping country. For Slovenia shipping costs are 8,58€.

8. Where are they made?

All ZlaTush shoes are completely handmade by Zlatica Tušková from Slovakia. Everything is done by hand. She chooses the material, design the shoes, do all the sewing etc. As Zlatica says on her website: “With them you buy part of my self, part of my life.

9. To sum up

It was January when Zlatica contacted me for the first time. Over our messages I felt instantly connected with her and I felt that she if a woman with a great heart who really puts so much love and energy into making these barefoot shoes for us.

I really appreciate handmade shoes. So much work just for you. When you get a flawless product on your doorstep, you see her respect to you, her customer. And with Zlatush shoes you will not only receive her shoes, but also a part of her heart.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*