Real stories · Loafers with proper foundations

Winter pavements had me walking like I was carrying soup — these ended that

Loafers with proper foundations under them — that's what these are, and my feet and I have been waiting years for the idea to occur to somebody. Winter pavements and I have history: wet leaves, slick cobbles, that one uneven stretch outside the butcher's. I'd started doing the careful walk. You know the one — small steps, eyes down, like a woman carrying soup.

And the smart shoes were the worst offenders: pretty on top, nothing underneath.

Then I found the Velisanne from a British label called York Boutique — a classic penny loafer on a proper chunky cushioned sole, with real arch support built in. Smart on top; sturdy, shock-absorbing foundations underneath.

The difference is in the walking. The cushioning takes the impact out of every step and the arch support holds the foot properly in place — which is why a full morning of errands no longer ends in the aching feet I'd quietly accepted as standard — and that deep-tread sole grips wet pavement like it means it. The careful walk has been cancelled.

Cushioning, arch support and a sole that grips the wet — which is why I crossed the cobbles by the market at full speed for the first time in years.

I'll be honest: at £39.95 I hesitated. Then I counted what the aching-feet afternoons were actually costing me — the lift home from Sandra, the skipped second errand, the plans quietly trimmed — and the hesitation didn't survive the count. They're half the usual £80, and I did check the safety net first: a fortnight to send them back, free delivery.

Sandra delivered the verdict outside the market, watching me stride over the cobbles she knows I hate: 'you're walking like you've somewhere to be.' I had. Everywhere, in fact.

If you've been doing the careful walk too, do have a look before the pavements turn properly wintry. The Velisanne is rated 4.6 out of 5 by more than 270 women, comes in six colours, in sizes 3.5 to 9 — and at half price the black goes first.