Okay, I’m female, and I know it’s supposedly odd that I don’t like shoe shopping, but damn, I’ll tell you why.
I have big, wide feet. And they hurt if I wear even the most modest heel. So where are the dressy looking flat shoes? I’m tired of automatically being shown plain loafers when I ask for non-heeled shoes.
Is it that there isn’t enough of a market for such shoes? I’m not cheap, I’d pay well. My job as a baker keeps me on my feet all day, I buy SAS work shoes and never have a bit of trouble. The shoes are expensive by my standards, but they last forever almost.
This pitting hardly registers on the pit-o-meter, I know, but I just came from looking at three stores and came up dry. A salesman at one said there was no demand for what I was looking for.
This might be your problem, rather than wanting a flat heel on a dressy shoe.
I can think of five places downtown where you can get perfectly gorgeous flat shoes made of buttery leather, from Italy, but none of them come in larger widths.
I had to give up all my heels because of back problems. I hate shoe-shopping, too…mostly because I don’t like spending money. I splurged on some Bjorn loafers, but that’s just what they are: loafers. There are some flat pretty mary janes out there. I love mary janes as dress shoes, but I would think they’re not everyone’s taste.
You can get what you want to an extent but there are limits. My 5’11’ daughter inherited my big feet (I’m a 13 E) and wears a women’s size 11 Wide (she calls them her “duckfeet”) . Although Ferragamo (as an example) makes larger sizes in very stylish flats like these beautiful size 11 flats, getting it in wide is a bit more difficult.
Most women with large, wide feet (and some money) generally go the upscale euro-clog route for attractive stylish footwear that fits. The only caveat is that these are usually well made, and orthotically sound, but they’re expensive at around 100 - 200 a pair depending on the brand, and the look is not as “girly” as some women want.
Not really, because they don’t carry anything wider for women than a C (usually). I wear a 7WW in SAS, BTW. I so feel your pain. I also have a high arch. Shoe shopping is hell.
I couldn’t find SAS on Zappos.com, but they do have lots of wide shoes.
It’s the only place I ever do shoe shopping anymore. With free shipping, 365 days to return the shoes, and free return shipping, it’s a decent deal.
Glad to see I’m not the only one with shoe problems! I generally wear a 9W, or thereabouts.
I hadn’t actually gone to Payless, Antigen, and this town is full of them, being as Topeka is their hometown. One of the hospitals has an education center named for the mother of the founders of Payless. I can always give them a look. Thanks to Profane and astro, I’ll look at the links.
I’ve bought a couple pairs from Just Wide Shoes. They have some variety, and pretty darned good service. Also, try Foot Smart, my favorite shoe site. (And they have wonderful foot creams, something you’d appreciate in your profession.)
Astro’s right about the clogs. I started wearing Birkenstocks 5 years ago & have completely spoiled my feet for anything else. Now even sneakers kill my feet. I can’t imagine wearing those uber girlie dress shoes with pointy toes. <winces in pain> I’m all about the roomy toe box.
Seeker74, thanks for the links. The Foot Smart one especially has some neat looking things. I’ve never bought shoes online, or from a catalog thought, but I may give these a whirl. I really liked the style of that pair from your second post.
I feel your pain, only opposite. I have VERY narrow heels. So narrow that my feet typically come out of regular width shoes, especially dress shoes. It drives me nuts. And very few stores carry narrow-width anymore, even department stores. So I either have to wear shoes that are tied so that my heels can be plastered into the shoes, or I have to spend beaucoup money at a specialty shoe store to get narrow width. I’ve had this problem since I was a small child, and it doesn’t get any easier.
My favorite was Pappagallo, but they don’t seem to exist anywhere anymore.
[QUOTE=Elza B]
I feel your pain, only opposite. I have VERY narrow heels. So narrow that my feet typically come out of regular width shoes, especially dress shoes. It drives me nuts. And very few stores carry narrow-width anymore, even department stores. So I either have to wear shoes that are tied so that my heels can be plastered into the shoes, or I have to spend beaucoup money at a specialty shoe store to get narrow width. I’ve had this problem since I was a small child, and it doesn’t get any easier.
/QUOTE]
You stole my post. I too have very narrow feet, and I think it might even be harder to shop for narrow than for wide. At least, I often see a W on boxes when shoe shopping - I NEVER see an N. I wear a 9.5AAA - my feet are about as wide as a standard 7. For a while my solution was to buy shoes that were too small. This didn’t work out for pretty obvious reasons. Now I tend to do most of my shoe shopping at a very nice local shoe store (Alamo on N. Clark in Andersonville if you’re in Chicago). They have really great service and the salesman will not allow me to buy shoes in too small a size. Yes, it’s a lot more expensive than shopping at Payless, but the shoes are of a higher quality and last longer. And they fit! To me, it’s worth the money. (I also have flat feet, and cheapo shoes are not usually good for them.)
I heard that Nordstrom carries more narrow shoes, but when I went there looking for work shoes, I learned that most of their narrow stuff is in the strappy sandal variety. Frustrating, since it’s less important that strappy sandals be narrow than loafers, since my feet aren’t going to flying out of a shoe that has a thong between my toes anyway. Besides, it’s winter, I don’t need strappy sandals now anyway!
[imagine rant about stores selling things totally inappropriate to the weather and not all of us are off taking cruises in warmer climates here.]
BTW, Elza, it’s not as important with sneakers, but I’ve discovered that New Balance carries their full line in narrow. I’d never had narrow sneakers before, but the difference is really noticeable.
Ooh - I’m in Chicago usually several times a year, so I’ll have to make a stop at this store. Finding narrow shoes is the bane of my existence. My husband asked why I rarely wear dress shoes and always wear loafers, or in the summer, sandals that slip on, so I can wear them like flip flops, and it’s because finding dress shoes that don’t fall off my feet is damn near impossible.
I blame my narrow heels for breaking my hand at my wedding - I changed into ballet slippers I’d bought on eBay for the reception, and my heels kept slipping out of them. At one point, while I was going up stairs, my heels came out, I lost my balance and caught my foot on the top of the stair and went flying. For some reason, I figured wearing these shoes for four hours shouldn’t be a big deal. But it was - and I ended up with lots of fun visits to the orthopedist because of it.
Nice to know I’m not the only one who has to deal with this! It seems like it’s MUCH more difficult to find narrow shoes any more - I see the wide ones everywhere, but never see narrow unless it’s at an expensive specialty shop.
Let me know when you’ll be in town and I’ll take you shoe shopping. They don’t have a lot of fancy dress shoes, but they do have lots of great, high quality stuff appropriate for working in the office. I too hate shoe shopping, but when I think I might be able to find something that fits right, I find it a much more pleasant experience!
I hate shoe-shopping, too…mostly because I don’t like spending money. I splurged on some Bjorn loafers, but that’s just what they are: loafers. There are some flat pretty mary janes out there. I love mary janes as dress shoes, but I would think they’re not everyone’s taste.
