happy feet

[dchenes]

Anybody who has ever heard me tell stories about buying shoes knows that I have short, wide feet that are mostly shaped like a Teva sole. To wit, most women's dress shoes are too narrow in general, and when I'm not falling out the back of the heels, the toes are too long. So for the most part I can't wear anything without a square toe unless I'm willing to be in pain. Which, thank you very much, I'm not, any more. And I really don't like heels all that much, because standing up in them for any length of time is almost guaranteed to hurt.

I have a pair of slingback, square-toed, black, elastic-fabric semi-dress shoes with short chunky heels, which I've been wearing the heck out of, to the point where they're starting to come unglued. So I wanted to replace them, and to that end, stuck my head in DSW while whuffle and I were out running errands. (OK, I know that knitting is popular these days, but who in the hell wants boots or clogs with knitted uppers, in October, in New England? They'll never be the same once they get wet, and they won't dry out until April.)

Anyway, the point is, whuffle and I went through the clearance racks after I had nixed several possible candidates. She found me a pair of black pumps with pointed toes and 2" heels that don't hurt to wear. I'm not falling off the sides (they're wide enough), or off the heels (they're long enough), or forcing all my weight into the balls of my feet when I walk (there's room in the toes), and they're about as stable as the Rock of Gibraltar. On top of which, I think they make my feet look sexy, and with feet the shape mine are, that's awfully difficult. I find myself in the position of having a pair of closed-toe dress shoes I actually love. I would be scared about that, except that this particular style of shoe is discontinued, so it's not as scary as it would be if I could still get them reliably. (And since they're discontinued, they only cost $23.)

Comments

I have much the opposite problem.

[cuilean.livejournal.com]

Most mens' shoes come in three widths: E, EE, and EEE. That is to say, big, huge, and Grand Canyon.

On the other... foot... I wear a 10B. If I buy or rent a typical pair of men's dress shoes, the two flaps of leather between which the laces run overlap. (I'm not a cobbler... I don't know the proper name for those pieces. )

So far, I'm reasonably happy with my Rockports for daily wear, and I special-ordered a couple pair of Bostonians (one black, one cordovan) for really dressy occasions.

Alas, the most comfortable shoes that I own should not be worn to work. I have not yet grown out of wearing indoor soccer shoes, even fourteen years since I started wearing them. ;D