This is Becca reviewing the black patent leather shoes (this review is a total revision I'm making on April 15). As I am frequently the worst nightmare a pair of dressy high heels can have, this review may be unusual. I own other pairs of Walking Cradles, so my positive feelings are no surprise to Walt or me.

They arrived in a sturdy shoebox packaged in another shipping box. The shoes were wrapped in tissue paper and had a nice piece of thin cardboard keeping the two wrapped shoes separated. The finish is at least as good as a couple too-expensive pairs I have sitting idle in the back of my shoe closet because they never broke in for me.

After my experience with my too-expensive soon to be forceably retired patent leather heels, I was worried about these. Both shoes responded well to a bit of gentle breaking in - not at all unusual for me. Another reviewer's comments on the thin padding was on my mind, but for me, the wonderful fit molds to my feet without making me wish for more padding (I'll say more shortly).

The instep area has an overlapping sewn seam instead of a glued seam. Walt likes how they seem to be more durable than glued seams.

Since we live in the country and I am extremely carefree in my treatment of so many of my high heels, these have already been subjected to conditions most shoes may never see.

The sewn seams collect dust, and can be a challenge to clean if gotten muddy. A damp cloth and toothbrush work fine if the mud is still wet, but will be a challenge if the mud dries.

The lack of excessive padding makes it easy to simply rinse these shoes out (a garden hose works perfect) with no worries about water damage. They dry out quickly if worn in water - a frequent happening for me - I lay them over in front of a fan after initially drying them inside with a hand towel. So far the insoles are holding as tight as new, and the gorgeous finish looks absolutely brand new.

The seeming lack of padding doesn't make the soles seem thin, they have nice sturdy soles where the ground underneath can't be easily felt. Finally I feel like I own a pair of patent leather heels again! My size 12 to 13 feet don't look big, and I always love the compliments I have received the few times I've worn them in public.

Here's an update on June 8, 2018: These shoes are impressive! I feel so good wearing them and the compliments never hurt. I think they have broken in to perfection. They haven't been my every day pair, but they see very frequent use.

My faith in Walking Cradles is still strong. These shoes and a pair of Walking Cradles ankle boots definitely hold up well enough that nobody could guess the rough use they have seen!

Maybe I've been lucky, but Walt and I both are very impressed with the quality and how the two pairs I mentioned plus a couple of other Walking Cradles pairs fit and hold up for the money.