Chanel Classic Ballerina/Ballet Flats // WEAR & TEAR

My very first pair of designer shoes were the classic Chanel Ballet Flats in lambskin, beige with black toe cap. I loved them right when I tried them on in the boutique and knew I’d go back at some point to also get them in black lambskin with the patent black cap toe (which I did like a month ago now).

Sizing

I’m a regular size 38 (european size) when it comes to shoes. Depending on the brand, sometimes I do have to get a size 39 if they are really small but that’s usually only with sneakers. Most of my shoes are just a regular 38. 

If you’re new to Chanel shoes, or their ballet flats actually, they offer two different versions. There is a more narrow fit and a wide fit so if you have really skinny feet like I do, that’s brilliant. If the ballet flat is the wide fit version, the sole on the bottom will say “38C”, so they’re marked with a C. The narrow fit version on the other hand is just a regular “38” with no extra letter. 

My beige pair is a narrow 38 which fits my feet absolutely perfect. It’s honestly like they made them just to fit my awkward feet. When I went to buy my black pair, they only had a 38C but the SA told me that it’s a barely noticeable difference between the two version so of course I got them (because I’m stupid and I didn’t want to wait). I do regret getting the wider pair because lambskin stretches pretty easily and my beige pair fits so amazingly that I definitely can tell that the others are just a bit more loose.

I know a lot of people want to know which size to go for if they are between sizes. I recommend trying your regular size and half a size up. They do stretch a bit, especially lambskin and calfskin so if you’re a 38 like me, and the 38.5 is just a little loose, go for the 38 because with wear, they’re going to get bigger and if they’re already a tiny bit loose in the beginning, it’s best to stick to the smaller size. 

Comfort Level

I heard a lot of mixed reviews on this when I did my research before buying my own pair. Some people say they are uncomfortable, other say they are very comfortable. I honestly recommend to try a pair in the boutique if you can and walk around a bit to see how you feel.

For me personally they are super comfortable. I’ve always wanted a pair of classic ballet flats because they go with so many different outfits but for years and years I just couldn’t find any that didn’t hurt my toes. All the ones I tried either had a cap toe that was too hard or too narrow so that there was a lot of pressure on my toes and lead them to hurt. Another thing I was struggling with was just poor quality. They usually have the trim stitched on the inside in a way that the trim rolls up at some point and causes rubbing which then obviously lead to blisters mostly in the back of the shoe.

I tried the Chanel ones on in store and immediately was like “Yes, these are the ones.” I didn’t even think twice about it and I didn’t regret it once. The first two to three times I wore them they were still a tiny bit hurtful but after that the lambskin leather had already been broken in and they got so comfortable. I remember walking around in them the entire day in hot climate and they didn’t hurt at all. I honestly couldn’t believe it.

A brilliant feature that I noticed when I was home is the way they are stitched in the back on the inside of the shoe. It’s like I was saying earlier about the trim rolling up at some point and then rubbing on your feet but that is not going to happen with the Chanel ballet flats. Because first of all, the leather from the inside is stitched OVER the trim so obviously it can’t roll up. And also because in the back the leather is somehow flattened down so it can’t rub on your heel. It’s hard to explain but I hope you’ll be able to see it in the photos. It’s absolutely brilliant. Thank you to whoever thought of that.

Comparing my beige and black pair, I would say that the black pair is a tiny bit more uncomfortable though. I think that it’s the patent cap toe that makes the shoe just a bit harder and stiffer in the front which again puts a bit more pressure on my toes but not as bad as it used to be with other brands ballet flats.

If I had to recommend just one pair, comfort wise, I’d definitely say get an all lambskin or calfskin pair from Chanel like the classic beige and black like mine or the all black quilted version.

Wear & Tear

Let’s start with saying that both pairs had been taken to a cobbler, not for bad wear & tear reasons but because their ballet flats are all leather which means the sole is too. If you know about shoes, a leather sole is not the most practical. It doesn’t have the best wear and also it tends to be very slippery especially when you first get these. So I decided to get a rubber sole put on the front part just to minimize the wear and to be able to wear them to work (we have a tile floor which is extremely slippery with leather soles).

Since I had the beige pair a bit longer and wore them more often, the wear on these is a lot more noticeable. Especially on the light colour you can see it a lot quicker than you would on black. I have a few black marks around the shoes as well as a few little scuffs on the toe cap. I also just noticed that I only really have actual scuffs on my left shoe but not too much on the right (what does that say about my walking?). 

The most wear that you can tell is that the shoe starts to wrinkle which solely has to do with the fact that the lambskin is extremely soft but I personally don’t mind that too much. You can especially see the wrinkles in the back as well as on the inner sides of the shoe. Also, the beige leather stains extremely quickly. I’ve always been someone to take great care of their things, even shoes and so I never thought I’d have that much problem with beige leather shoes but damn, I do. I have no idea where those black marks come from or how I might be able to get rid of them. Let me know in the comments if you have any suggestions though!

The only other wear I can see is the gold “CHANEL” lettering on the inside is rubbing off quite quickly which does actually bother me a bit because I think it looks cute but there is nothing I can really do about that.

My black pair on the other hand does still pretty much look new. I don’t notice any scuffs on the leather nor on the patent leather cap toe. I think overall these are going to hold up a lot more. First of all, black shoes are a lot easier to maintain and the patent cap toe is a lot more durable than the soft lambskin is.

But again, they do start to wrinkle already which is a bit less noticeable on the black colour. Other than that I have no scuffs on this pair yet and I personally think the wear on black is going to be a lot better because of the dark colour. On my black pair, the wrinkles are more noticeable on the front though rather than the sides.

You can see, the back of the shoes still look pretty good, not as wrinkled as my beige pair is but I think that’s solely due to the fact that I haven’t worn them as much yet.

Overall, I do love them both but like I said, I prefer my beige pair for the comfort level and the versatility since the black ones do look a bit more dressy with the patent cap toe. I just wish the beige ones would hold up a bit better but I know for a fact I’m going to repurchase them once they look completely trashed.

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