Olly Shoes in the Retail Round Up Series

Olly's has locations across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, and Ontario. If you are withing driving distance of a store, take the kids to check out their OllyScan. An OllyScan is a patented, computerized measurement system that takes a picture of your child’s foot and measures it at 6 points to determine their size.I also love that they have a link for School shoes right in the top of the website.

When shopping online, unused purchase can be returned by mail within 30 days.  Olly has a reward program called Olly's VIP members where members get an additional 10% off.

Here is the Olly Story from Founder, Katherine Chapman:

"OLLY Shoes began as a result of my own challenging shopping experiences with my family. As a mother of three kids that ranged in age from newborn to seven, I found it extremely difficult to find shoes that fit my kids properly. My goal was to create a shoe store that made footwear shopping fun for kids - and easy for their parents. OLLY Shoes was born in 2001 and has received an overwhelmingly positive response. We offer a wide variety of athletic, casual, seasonal and specialty footwear, as well as unique accessories and gifts. Come see why parents who shop us consider OLLY the best one-stop kid’s shoe store in the business. We look forward to serving you at OLLY!"

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Here are a selection of great looking school shoes I found while browsing their site:

School Issue Semester
Who doesn't want to rock these blue suede shoes?  These are great looking saddle shoes for boys. They are available in navy suede, brown oil and dirty buck.

Price: 44.95

School Issue Scholar

Basic boys's school oxford shoe.
Price: 54.95

Jumping Jacks Tutor

Perfect Mary Janes's for girls.  Available in navy and black.
Price: 59.95

Puma GV Spedial Jr

Basic girl's sneaker in white; perfect for PE.
Price: 49.95

New Balance KX624

Basic boy's sneaker in white, perfect for PE.
Price: 39.95

Lands' End Swimwear for Kids

As an affiliate with Lands' End, I recently had the opportunity to participate in an event to learn more about their swimwear. The Lands' End kids swimwear is rated as excellent using a relatively new rating designation for sun protective textiles and clothing, called UPF or Ultraviolet Protection Factor. This means it blocks 98% of harmful UV rays.  The fabric is quick drying so it is comfortable in and out of the water. And even better, the color is fade resistant so it will look good all summer long.  They carry the kids swimwear in extended sizes including toddler, plus and husky for most items.

"Have you ever tried to wrestle a toddler back into a wet one piece tank style swim suit? Skip the drama and opt for the tankini suits for young girls. Having separate pull on bottoms make trips to the rest room much easier."        Uniform Mom

For girls, you will find a wide variety of styles including tankini tops and bottoms, bikini tops and bottoms, swim mini's, skirted one pieces and basic tank suits.  Suits are featured in four different collections:

• ShoreSide collection feature red, white and blue colors with a nod to a nautical theme.
• Saltwater Taffy collection features bright colors, ruffles and fun prints.
• Coconut Cove collection features floral appliques and sequin details in summer colors.
• Smart Swim features the best value suits.

I bought my daughter Lands' End swimwear last summer. She swam almost everyday, sometimes twice a day at summer camp.  It held up all summer long through our beach vacation at the end of the summer. Here's the swim outfit she picked out (this turquoise blue is her favorite color) and I ordered for her for this summer:

The boys swim trunks are offered in solids colors, color block styles and prints.  They feature cargo pockets and a comfortable elastic waistband for pull on simplicity.  Boys swim Ts come in solid colors and color block styles, as well as some in fun graphic prints.

"Have you ever burned your toes on the hot sand?Yea, me too. I wish we had water shoes when we were kids."   Uniform Mom

I also loved learning about the kids new water shoes and sandals.  Water shoes are quick drying and lightweight.  They are made for kids to wear playing in and out of the water.  They have styles with and without toe protection. They are great for summer camp.  These water shoes are easy to slip on and off because of the "rip grip and bungee adjustability".   They are also are perfect for beach play. The traction sole and cushioned foot bed would making walking over broken seashells a breeze.

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Everybody in! Take 25% off Regularly Priced Kids' Swim merchandise at Lands' End now through April 15. Plus, Free Shipping on orders over $50!

Examples of School Uniform Policies

As a reader of this blog, your child likely attends a school with a uniform policy or a uniform dress code. Most school's now post their policy online on the school's website or the PTA website.  Please take a minute and add a link to your school's written policy.

In the comments below, share with us:

1. What type of school? Public, Private, Charter, Parochial, etc.
2. Where is the school located? City and State & Country if you are outside the US.
3. URL Link to the school's written policy:

(image used with permission from Microsoft)

Schoolbelles - Retail Round Up Series

Schoolbelles is a family owned business. They state that their “passion for uniforms is a legacy handed down since 1956 by our founder, Mary Carroll. Today, three generations have continued her tradition of manufacturing and providing high quality uniforms with great service for reasonable prices.” 

They work with over 1000 schools and organizations and have a team of representatives to assist with creating a uniform program. They are one of few uniform suppliers that operates their own sewing factory in Cleveland, OH to maintain quality and inventory levels. They offer a guarantee on their premium line of uniforms that items will hold up to 180 days of wear.  They are based in Cleveland with store locations across the mid-west.

Ohio Cleveland Cincinnati  Fairlawn South Euclid Toledo

Illinois Bridgeview Chicago North Michigan Madison Heights Westland

Indianapolis, Indiana Taylor Mill, Kentucky Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

They offer a full catalog of premium uniforms for all sizes (preschool through adult). They also carry value line items that work well with most dress codes. They are currently undergoing a redesign to evolve with the changing market. I will update this post after they launch their new website later this year.

Vintage School Uniforms

I recently submitted a post over at Vintage Shopper.  It explores the British origins and history of school uniforms, how they came to be popular in the US, and how to wear and how not to wear a retro school uniform look today. 

• Did you know the origin of school uniforms originated in the U.K.during the reign of King Henry VIII?
• Did you know that Bill Clinton suggested that schools adopt uniforms in his 1996 state of the union speech?
• Did you know that a 2013 study conducted by Lands' End and the National Association of Elementary School Principals found that 49% of U.S. public schools have a school uniform policy in place or plan to implement one.

I invite you to check out my post over at Vintage School Uniforms.

Gap Inc - Retail Roundup Series

The Gap, Inc. is an American multinational clothing and accessories retailer. It was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. It is the largest specialty retailer in the United States with over 2550 stores in the US. In additional to the Gap stores, the company operates 4 other brands: Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime, and Athleta. The Gap offers free shipping on orders over $50 and free returns on all orders.

GapKids carries a line of school uniform items.  If you've read a few of the posts from last summer's Best Bets series, you may have noticed that the regular retail price of the GAP uniform items tend to fall at the top the charts. However, if you're a smart shopper, you can score these items for deep discounts.  Last fall, I bought a few basic polos for may daughter for 5 bucks each off the clearance rack. 

Girls Bottoms

Girls uniform pants are offered in 5 styles: trouser pants, boot cut, skinny and capri and ponte styles. The shorts are offered in two styles, the traditional bermuda short as well as a shorter flat front style.  They also carry fold over yoga pants which would work for PE class and leggings.

Girls Tops

They carry short and long sleeve polos in several colors (white, blue and navy).  They carry a no-iron long sleeve button down, long sleeve oxfords, short sleeve peter pan blouses, and a ruffle shirt. The cable knit cardigans are offered in navy and white and the v neck cardigan in gray and navy.

Girls Dresses

The polo dress is a classic drop waist pleated style and offered in gray, navy, pink and red. The pleated skirt is offered in two styles: a GapShield and a more casual ponte knit. They offer two jumpers: one in Gapshield fabric with a shirred empire waist style and another straighter style in ponte knit. They sell  three packs of knit shorts that a can be worn under the jumpers, skirts or dresses.

Girls Outerwear

They also offer several jackets. A ponte navy blazer, a hooded fleece coat, a peplum coat and a rain coat.

Boys Bottoms

Boys uniform pants are offered in 3 styles: flat front, straight, and pleated pants. They carry a dress pant, as well as a wide-wale cords. The shorts are offered in three styles, the flat front, pleated and cargo.  

Boys Tops

They carry short and long sleeve polos in a nice variety of colors.  They carry a no-iron long sleeve and a short sleeve button down, as well as long sleeve and short sleeve oxfords. The v-neck cardigans is offered in several colors and mock zip cardigan.

Boys Outerwear

They also offer several jackets. A knit blazer, a knit peacoat, and a rain coat.

Clean Up those old School Shoes with Mink Oil

© Rene Shonerd 2014

My daughter's everyday school shoes had seen better days. They have navy leather uppers, but the toes were almost white with scuffs and wear.  They look like they needed replaced. I had been looking unsuccessfully for navy shoe polish as I was out shopping over the holidays.

While cleaning up after the holidays, I came across a very old container of mink oil. I had used it on odd occasion to clean up and shine up my leather shoes. I've had the same container when I was in school and somehow it's traveled with me for numerous moves yet spent years in the bottom of a box in the closet.

I figured I couldn't do anymore harm to those school shoes, so
I found an old cleaning rag and rubbed a small amount of the mink oil into her shoe.

It worked like magic.  I couldn't get over the difference.  I grabbed the camera before I did the other shoe, so I could show you the before and after shot. See how the show on the left is all discolored, but the one on the right looks like a new shoe again.

The directions read as follows:

Remove all excess dirt. Apply with a clean cloth, especially around seams and stitching. After five minutes wipe off excess and polish. Prevents drying, cracking and salt stains. Recommended for all smooth leather and vinyl. May darken certain leathers. Do not use on Suede of Nubuck.

It did actually work that easy. I rubbed it on paying special attention of the areas showing the most wear. The dry leather soaked in that oil bringing back it's color and shine. I plan to spend an evening this week sprucing up my shoes, my husband's shoes, and my handbags. Since its not a stinky spray that you need to use in the open air, you can do it indoors while watching a TV show. I am definitely going to keep that container handy and use it much more regularly with my daughter's shoes.

The brand I have is so old that I cannot find it listed online, but I found Kiwi Mink Oil Conditions & Waterproofs Leather 2.5/8 Oz. available on Amazon. It is inexpensive. I recommend you add it on to your next order.