{This is a sponsored post in partnership with FRANKiE4 Footwear}

Oh shoes. How I love you. You can totally change the look and feel of an outfit, you are a great way to add a pop of style personality, oh, and you always fit no matter how much Christmas fun we’ve all had…

Or do they? Pregnancy, that wonderful thing that can change so much about our bodies, can also make shoes harder to find!

THREE WAYS PREGNANCY CAN IMPACT YOUR FEET

• The Relaxin hormone and and increase in body weight can cause your foot to broaden and flatten, causing some women to go up a foot size!
• Once again, the good ole hormone, Relaxin (which is a god-send during birth!) can cause joint instability and decreased muscle strength with can make you slightly more unsteady on your feet (this is 100% me!)
• Changes to your foot (see above) can cause chronic pain as the body goes out of alignment. Sore back, hips and knees are very common, especially late pregnancy.

Also, just generally bending in the middle to do up a pair of shoes is just becoming that little bit harder too!

Luckily for us pregnant women (and also everyone else not pregnant) FRANKiE4 Footwear are all about creating beautiful shoes that not only look good, but are built to support and nurture our feet. Here are just some of the things they are doing to help support our soles as we grow a human;

•  the FRANKiE4 Functional Footbed aims to counter the instability caused by Relaxin, by increasing the foot’s contact with the ground, providing even weight distribution and extra stability
• the FRANKiE4 patented Custom Fit Pack provides the tools you need to create the best fitting shoe at any stage of your pregnancy and beyond (I’ll chat more about this later with my ELENA trainers)
• Adjustable fits with many of the sandals means that FRANKiE4 Footwear shoes will fit at any stage of your pregnancy, no matter what your feet decide to do.

 

I’ve been very lucky to be wearing a few of the fabulous pairs of FRANKiE4 Footwear shoes throughout my pregnancy (and before that too) so wanted to share some of my faves, and also chat about some of the features that MAKE these great shoes perfect for baby-mumma feet (and everyone else’s too of course!)

SLIDE / SANDAL OPTIONS

These are the SANDY slides (in the white croc colourway). I was immediately drawn to them because of the adjustable strap across the feet. I have quite a narrow (but long) foot, so being able to secure my foot into these slides, but also literally slide them on, put them right at the top of my list for summer.

The adjustable strap also makes them useful if you’re finding your foot growing in pregnancy. The upper and lower lining are both leather, so nice and soft to wear and the custom footbed is designed to support your foot through everyday wear. I have been LIVING in these and I can see me not taking them off all summer.

ALSO TRY…

 

TRAINERS

I LIVE in trainers most of the time anyway, so to have a cool pair to rock that is extra-supportive of my feet during pregnancy is like winning the shoe-lotto! The ELENA trainers I’m wearing not only have a gorgeous detail with the silver stripe, they come with the FRANKiE4 Footwear custom fit pack, which means you can adjust the inner sole to get the fit perfect!

Usually I wear the full inner sole in my FRANKiE4 Footwear trainers, but in the later stages of my pregnancy I’ve taken out the full inner and just added the half. It still gives me some awesome cushioning, but also allows for a little more room for my foot. The other awesome thing about the ELENA (like the NAT, and others) is that the laces are optional, so you can pull them out and just have a slip-on shoe again!

ALSO TRY….

 

FLATS

Sometimes there’s nothing better than just being able to slip on a shoe and walk out the door. Ballet flats are always a classic, and I love the slight elevation in the lovely ELiZABETH ballet flats in Orange Leopard I’m wearing. They feel much more supporting on not only my soles, but the rest of my joints. I don’t feel the jarring that can come with the usual flatness of a ballet flat.

Pregnancy can be a hard time physically, so it’s so cool to know we have someone in our corner at least helping look after our feet! This is my third child in fives years so I’m definitely feeling it. Flat shoes (no heels for me atm) are the way to go and I’m just so happy FRANKiE4 Footwear are providing options that not only look awesome, but feel great too.

Did you also know, FRANKiE4 Footwear offer FREE SHIPPING AND FREE RETURNS to New Zealand?

It just takes the pressure off ordering online right?

If you’re still unsure of fit, you can also book in for a free virtual fit session with their Online Shopping Assistant.

BOOK IN HERE

If you’re expecting, know someone that is or even if you aren’t and just love a good shoe, make sure you head over to the FRANKiE4 Footwear website and check out the amazing range of shoes for every foot (and every style personality too!), and then, because we all know I love a good shoe, make sure you come back and tell me which ones you love the most.

Until Next Time, In Love & Style Always,