[Stepping Out] What kinds of Barbie shoes can a Pure Neemo wear?

 

Hey, this is Samantha here. Welcome to Stepping Out, where I talk about one of my favorite things, SHOES.

Recently I had someone ask about what kinds of shoes will fit us Pure Neemos.

Good question.

Today I'm going to focus mainly on Mattel brand shoes.

Why?

Because for most people, they're pretty easy to get a hold of.

First up, and I'm pretty excited about this:

Mattel's StarDolls shoes WILL FIT Pure Neemos PERFECTLY!

There are the dolls shown above, as well as clothing packs that come with shoes such as these:

They fit great, slip on and off easily and are very stylish.

Next up, I'll talk about Barbie shoes.

First off, a LOT of Barbie shoes won't work.

For example:

The shoes from the Barbie Basics generally don't fit, they're too slim.

Hi! Madoka here! I'm helping Samantha out! Hehe!

Which is sad, because they're awfully stylish.

But a lot of other Barbie shoes WILL fit:

One of my favorites are these tennis shoes. They have been made in tons of different colors and pretty much all fit. It's not hard to find a nice color to match almost any outfit!

Barbie boots, on the other hand, are often a problem, and usually are too tight.

This style of boot, however, fits nicely, and sometimes if you cut a slit up the back of the boot, they will fit quite well without anyone being able to tell that you cut a slit there!

Bad news when it comes to Barbie high heels though... a lot of the new ones don't fit. Much like the Barbie Basics shoes, they're just too thin. What can I say, we Pure Neemos have fat feet. :(

Now, select ones will fit, mostly from older Barbie sets (like the ones pictured below)... but don't be fooled, even ones that look EXACTLY like these will sometimes not fit. You really don't know until you try them on...

But... how does one do that?

GO TO A DOLL SHOW!

They happen all over, all the time, and often sellers will be there with collections of old Barbie clothes and shoes... and you can try them on, pair by pair. :)

Something that is usually a safe bet, though, are Barbie flats. They almost always fit, and they're pretty cute too! This also counts Ballerina shoes, which tend to fit quite nicely, but are sometimes hard to stand in.

Don't be afraid of shoes with bits like this either... I mean, you'll have to use your best judgement, but usually, especially if the plastic is bendy, they will fit. These particular shoes fit splendidly!

Another type of Barbie shoe that fits wonderfully are the hightops!

If it looks like a Converse, chances are, unless they change the mold, it's going to fit great!

As for other Barbie shoes... well, it's really trial and error... some work, and other ones that look exactly like them don't. All the shoes pictured below work wonderfully... but if you look at the style of the red shoe in the second row from the left, that style of shoe often doesn't work... so it's really a "try it on" kinda deal. Again, get yourself to a doll show! It's the best way to really try these things out! Or buy yourself a cheap lot of Barbie shoes on ebay... but be prepared to face some disappointment that way... it's always better if you can just try them on!

Now, these shoes with the imprints on the bottom, I can only assume came from a very specific Barbie... I don't know who she is... but her shoes fit great! So if you find shoes with funny little pictures on the bottom, try them on! You get stylish shoes AND a stylish shoe tread!

Finally, I'd like to talk about this style of shoe... what is seemingly Mattel's favorite style to include with Barbie accessory and clothing packs these days. The shoes are high-heeled and often over the top in design (always very fashionable, never everyday) but they almost always fit! If they have slits up the back, you can usually wear them! I've gotten many of these shoes and have been able to wear every pair. I can even stand in them! Remember though, it's only this style of high heel... the style like the Barbie Basics one I showed you earlier, will not work.
These kinds of shoes, pictured below, FIT GREAT!

Now, as far as I know, these aren't Mattel... about 8 years ago, there were Card Captor Sakura dolls released here in the US... and they had great clothes and shoes that fit us Pure Neemos perfectly.

Here are 4 pair from different dolls... I'll do a search later and try to find a picture of one of the dolls to share... but at the moment, I could only find the ones that were made in Japan.

Anyways, I hope this helped you out at least a little.

And remember, all the shoes I've tried on from the Barbie Basics sets DON'T WORK.

But generally, the ones from the clothing packs do.