Sandals - Where to find the holy grail?

Sandals are a can of worms. Hands down, it is the shoe with most problems attached to it.

You think I'm exaggerating?

Ha.

Let me count the ways:

* because you wear them on your bare feet, with no buffering sock to offer succor, they need to be pain-free.

* because their construction needs to allow for ventilation they hold on to your skin with straps, multiplying potentially painful points of contact: they can hurt in the back of your heel / on your insole / / on the big bone before your toes begin / on the tender skin of your baby toe... And this is discounting for cullouses, warts, and other feet ailments.

* because all feet are different and sandals have - what else? - open toes - your feet need to be held firmly within the boundaries of the shoe, not sliding out if too narrow, not stuffed if too wide.

* because all of us look better with some elevation, a heel is highly desireable, but a heel that needs to be walkable and pain free (see reasons above).

* because all of us look better with longer legs, an ankle strap that visually cuts off your leg is better avoided.

Ah - and this is where we run into problems.

Even a cursory glance over store offerings will reveal that the overwhelming majority of designs feature a high ankle strap. Here, if you don't believe me, is the shape that rules most stores (this one happens to be from ASOS):

Nothing can be worse if you have anything but model-perfect stems. This, ladies, is a leg killer for those of us who have short/er legs. If this is an affliction you don't suffer from - stop reading now. You are in luck and will look good in anything.

But for the rest of us a holy grail of a summer sandal needs to have the cute look and heel of the specimen above but without the offending strap. We want a sporty sandal (sporty is the look of the moment) with a manageable block heel, in good color, with a padded footbed, comfortable and soft straps (because the sandal of the moment is all about one or two thick straps) but without that ankle-cutting-band. We want a smart look but without the pain.

Does that wonderbeast exist?

I've looked and looked and here is what I found. Just for you ladies.

DREAM:
Balenciaga:

Alexander Wang:

WISH:
Tahari, as usual, has a wearable option:

WANT:
ASOS I:

DUNE, a UK brand:

ASOS II: