Category: children,

When I first heard the word Stretchlace and how it created slip ons out of any shoes, I was intrigued by the hows.

I visited their website and kept looking at the images, the laces didn’t look any different, it didn’t change the look of the shoe or how the model wore the shoes, so how did these actually work?

The creator of Strechlace (Jamie Montz) originally developed the laces to help her three boys learn to tie their shoes. How many parents here can relate to that?! This is one of the most trying lessons to teach as a parent. What seems like an easy concept, can end in tears and frustration. Even when they do master the skill, there will be moments when they will struggle, their laces will come undone during an important game and they will panic.

Stretchlaces are just that – they stretch. When they came in the mail, I wasn’t sure if there was a trick to them and I am going to be honest, I kept looking for instructions in the box. I expected them to have a loop somewhere or that they would need to be threaded differently in your child’s shoes. I can be quite honest with you, I had to google to make sure all that I had to do was thread them and then tie to them to ensure they are tied properly on your child’s feet.

After they were tied, because of the stretchy material in the laces, it gives the shoes that extra room for your child to slip the shoe on and off. That was the real magic, it is the extra give in the laces that allows the shoes to come on and off easily.

As most children (and adults), already like to slide their shoes on and off, we know the damage this causes to our shoes (or our walls as they ricochet off your child’s feet when they wont slide on!). Shoes with regular laces are not meant to slip on and off, the stretchy material in these laces changes that.

Here is what I loved the most:

• The stretchlaces look identical to regular laces! This is so important for younger children, who don’t want to look different than their peers.
• They are easy to thread through the shoes and once on and tied, you can forget about having to re-tie the shoes.
• The company offers fifteen different colours, allowing your child to express themselves and to better match their shoes.
• The company also offers nine different lengths of laces, which allows people of all ages to benefit from the laces.

I didn’t list it here because only time will tell, but I do have a strong suspicion that this will actually increase the life span of my son’s shoes. He breaks the backs on them quite frequently (I am also guilty of this as I don’t untie my shoes to take them off) because he turns them into slip ons, when they were not meant to be. I suspect because of the extra give in the front of the shoes, this will not happen anymore.

What I also noticed (and can fully appreciate), is how many adults would benefit from these laces.

Adults that may have any type of mobility issue which can make it difficult to bend, pull and tie, would benefit greatly from these laces – once they are tied to fit their feet, they will no longer struggle with these actions. I also noticed how Jamie mentioned that it also benefits those who suffer from swollen feet (right here!!), parents who have their hands full all the time, and those with special needs.

The Stretchlace is reasonably priced, with prices starting at $9.99 and can be purchased on their website.

Want to learn more? Visit the Original Stretchlace website and make sure to follow Stretchlace on Facebook and Instagram.

Disclosure: I received the above mentioned products in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.