Real stories · Kind to aching feet

The lightweight sandals that finally gave my aching feet some arch support

I'm 67, and my feet — my arches especially — ache something awful by the afternoon in summer. Flat little sandals give you nothing to stand on, and by teatime I'm wincing. I'd even been to the chemist for insoles, but they never fit into anything you'd actually want to wear.

What I wanted was a proper summer sandal with real arch support that didn't look like something off a hospital ward. I'd started to think I'd simply have to choose: ugly and comfortable, or pretty and sore.

Then I found the Pellora sandals from a British label called York Boutique — lightweight arch-support sandals, in the summer sale. I chose the white, and hoped for the best.

They've been a revelation. The footbed is contoured and actually supports the arch, there are two straps you can adjust to get the fit just right, and they're so light I forget I've got them on. It's like walking on a little cushion.

Like walking on a cushion — and light as anything. My feet have stopped aching.

Supportive sandals like these, I assumed, would be fifty pounds. But York Boutique sells direct, so they were just £24.95 in the sale. For the difference they've made, I'd have paid far more.

A friend asked what they were on our walk, because I wasn't hobbling for once. They come in four colours — white, beige, black and blue — and in sizes 3 to 9.

If your feet ache in the heat the way mine did, do have a look while the sale's on. The Pellora is rated 4.6 out of 5 by more than 300 women, it's £24.95 in the summer sale instead of £50 — half price — and the middle sizes always seem to go first.