Aetrex Jillian Braided Quarter Strap Sandal

Because some of these are built on European lasts, where one EU size covers two US sizes, and Aetrex doesn't explain that anywhere. A band is one size written as two.

So pick the band your size falls in. A 7.5 takes the 7.5 - 8. A 9 takes the 9 - 9.5. You aren't choosing between two sizes.

Other styles are listed as single US sizes, half sizes included, and on those you order your normal size. Which way a style is listed is Aetrex's decision about that last, not a signal about how the sandal fits.

If you're a 5 or a 5.5, four of the sandals we stock go that small: the Vania, the Gabby, and both Jillians. The rest start at a 6.

No, and they don't need to in the way a closed shoe does. Aetrex makes one fit and says their shoes are built to accommodate all widths. On a sandal the straps are the adjustment: let them out for a wider foot, take them in for a narrow one.

Where that has a limit is very narrow feet and very high insteps. If the strap runs out of travel in either direction it's the wrong style, not the wrong size, and we'd rather sort that out on the phone than through a return.

No. Aetrex publishes that their sandals, wedges and cork styles have non-removable footbeds, so there's physically nowhere for an insert to sit. Anyone telling you otherwise is guessing.

If you wear a prescribed orthotic every day, call us at (704) 846-0301 before you order. Sometimes the built-in support is genuinely enough for a sandal you'll wear a few hours at a time, and sometimes it isn't. We stock plenty of footwear with a removable insole and we'd rather put you in the right thing.

Aetrex lists plantar fasciitis, flat feet, heel pain, bunions and metatarsalgia among what their sandals are designed to help relieve, and a shaped arch with a cupped heel and a small heel rise is the standard first thing to try.

Note the wording, which is theirs and ours both: help relieve, not treat. A sandal isn't a treatment. If your heel pain is new, severe, or getting worse, get it looked at rather than buying a sandal and hoping. And if it's worst on your first steps in the morning, the more useful question is what you're wearing around the house, which is a different conversation we're happy to have.

Often, for two reasons. Adjustable straps let you take pressure off the joint instead of a fixed upper pressing on it, which is Aetrex's own argument. And some styles have what they call a bunion pocket, straps routed to leave a void over the bunion rather than across it.

Not every style has one, so don't assume. Quick facts above says so if this pair does. If bunions are the reason you're shopping, call us and we'll tell you which of the sandals we stock is cut for it.

The sandal doesn't, but your foot might. If you've been in flat sandals or flip-flops, a shaped footbed with real arch support will feel like something is pushing up under your arch, because something is.

Wear them a few hours a day for the first week and let it settle. Aetrex's own advice is to set the straps before the first full day rather than after it. If it still feels wrong after a week, that's information, not stubbornness. Bring them back.

Only one of these is built for it. The Jillian Sport is injected EVA the whole way through with no leather in it, and Aetrex says it's light enough to float. That's the one for the lake.

Everything else, including the faux-leather Gabby, is not a water sandal. Aetrex publishes no water clearance for them and recommends a protective spray suited to the material instead. Soaking leather, or a cork midsole, is how you shorten its life. Quick facts above tells you what this pair's upper is.

For the leather styles these are Aetrex's own instructions: wipe with a soft damp cloth for everyday marks, and for anything worse use three parts water to one part mild detergent, applied in gentle circles. A leather cleaner for stubborn spots.

The Jillian Sport is the exception. It's a single piece of EVA and you can rinse it under a tap.

Whichever pair you have, keep it out of the washing machine and let it air dry at room temperature rather than near a heater. The footbed is the part that suffers if you cook it.

Call us. We run a comfort guarantee: if they don't feel right, we'll make it right with an exchange or a refund. A sandal you wear two hours at a time takes longer than a week to tell you the truth, and we'd rather you wore them properly first.

Aetrex also warrants against manufacturing defects for six months. If a strap or a sole fails in that window, tell us and we'll deal with them so you don't have to.

Yes to both, and with sandals trying them on is worth more than usual, because whether a strap sits right on your foot isn't something a size chart can answer.

We're at 924 Park Center Dr, Ste 101, Matthews, NC 28105, open Monday to Friday 10 to 6 and Saturday 10 to 4. There's an Aetrex 3D scanner in the store: twenty seconds, both feet, free, no obligation.

Call (704) 846-0301 and you reach our fitting team, not a call center.