shoe shopping for the podiatrically challenged

[swan_tower]

I have bought a new dress for the World Fantasy banquet. I am sitting here trying to remember the last time I bought a dress that wasn’t a historical costume I paid somebody to sew for me.

I am failing.

As long as I’m on a roll of doing things I haven’t done in hmmmm let’s be conservative and say ten years?, I think I should also get new black heels. And this is where I turn to you, O internets, because I don’t like high heels (but I recognize their uses), and if there is any maker of heels who makes some I would actually like, I want to know about them.

My criteria are as follows. Each one should be footnoted with the caveat that I know I may not be able to get what I want, or at least may not be able to get all these things in one shoe. But I might as well try.

1. Not too high of a heel. You may recall I had ankle surgery less than three months ago. My ideal would be maybe 1-1.5″; anything above 2″ is Right Out at present. And in general I prefer lower heels, because . . .
2. Padding beneath the ball of the foot. I can and do use inserts to help with this, but it annoys me that we have an industry built around providing something I think the shoe ought to provide in the first place. I end up with a lot of foot pain if too much of my weight is on the ball of my foot for too long; it’s like my body is saying “we stopped doing this shit when you quit ballet at the age of eighteen, and aren’t going to put up with it anymore.”
3. Arch support. Does this even exist in high-heeled shoes? If so, tell me, because my god do I need it. I have stupidly high arches, and wearing shoes that don’t support them gets painful quite fast.
4. Allowance for a high instep. A lot of those strappy shoes put straps right across the top of my arches, which, as mentioned before, are quite high. Result: I feel like my foot’s being cut in half by my shoe. This one’s more of a stylistic thing than a characteristic I’m likely to find in a specific shoe manufacturer, but as long as I’m describing what I want, I ought to include everything.

Is there anybody who consistently makes shoes that match this description? Or even parts of this description? I could go to the store and try on shoes randomly until I find something that works, but I’d like to be more targeted in my shopping if possible. Seven years of dancing on pointe left me with an absolute lack of tolerance for badly-made or ill-fitting shoes, and a desire to avoid spending hours trying things on if at all possible.

Originally published at Swan Tower. You can comment here or there.

Comments

[choirwoman]

Everything that Ecco makes fits me (wide toes, narrow heel, no tolerance for heels, absurdly high instep). I know they make dressy shoes too, though I only have their basic Ecco Soft, comfortable sandals, and ankle boots.

[mme_hardy]

You're in the Bay Area, aren't you? I have found awesomely comfortable and becoming (though non-cheap) shoes at http://www.footwearetc.com/ . Their salespeople are usually able to help if you list podiatric requirements.

edit: Ecco, BeautiFeel, and Naot have all made me very happy in the past. I have a pair of Naots I wore for something like 7 years.

[ducened]

I'm rather fond of Easy Spirit. You can search their website by style and heel height. I also have high insteps/arches forever and I often have good luck with them (though disclaimer: I usually buy flats).

I also like Ecco's shoes.

[eiriene.livejournal.com]

I have a pair of awesome heels from Beautifeel, which I bought specifically at The Shoe Buckle (http://theshoebuckle.com/). Basically, The Shoe Buckle specializes in treating people with podiatric problems, or in my case, very weak ankles. The shoes were pricy, but they're gorgeous, and they do not hurt AT ALL. I can wear them for hours. I consider them an investment that I'll probably use for the next ten years.

Now granted, you're not going to want to go to NJ for your shoes, but I suspect that there's probably a specialty shoe store somewhere near you, that can do the same thing.

[findabair.livejournal.com]

My go-to brands for comfortable heels are Camper and El Naturalista. Not sure if they cover all your needs, but the heels are reasonable in height and the soles are cushioned. I have these from Camper (http://www.camper.com/en_NO/women/shoes/agatha/camper-agatha-21847-001). I have high arches myself, so the strap isn't ideal, but it works because they are otherwise very comfortable.

[sillylilly-bird.livejournal.com]

Wow. Except for the ballet part, we have very similar feet.
Super high arches? check.
Super duper high insteps? check. [yes, i had to special order wide Danskos because I can't get my feet into the standard width ones because my instep stops entry in its tracks]
Bonus!WIDE? check.

I live in Birkenstocks and other super comfy supportive type shoes and haven't worn heels since my salsa days.

I have a pair of low/flat El Naturalistas - I quite like them.
Are you looking for a simple pump style or sandal?

Dansko makes some pumps that look quite comfy for dress shoes.
Earth, Wolky, Josef Seibl, Romika are comfy depending on style.

Checking out the Camper site, I saw 2 styles that could go dressy and yet have a very low heel.
SINUOSA 21670-013
SINUOSA 21620-001

[chomiji]

I have not bought dressy shoes from Hotter USA, but I have bought both casual shoes and office-friendly flats from them. I think some of the dressy ones look attractive, and the site bills the dressy shoes as having "pillow soft underfoot cushioning."

They are a British brand that just expanded into the U.S. a couple of years ago. (I have hard-to-fit feet and am constantly trying to find brands that are both attractive and comfortable.)

[lowellboyslash.livejournal.com]

Clarks have served me fairly well in the past; you might also want to try a multi-brand ergonomic shoe store like The Walking Company, if they have one near you. I have a pair of Abeo shoes right now that I like (and allowing the in-store person to upsell me on insoles for them was a good plan).

[genarti]

Agreed, on the Clarks, but I don't know if they'd work for you. I have high arches and fairly high insteps, but I don't demand a lot of arch support (and in fact am always startled when I get it) so I don't know if this would fit your requirements or not. They do do fairly low heels that I find comfortable and non-teetery, though.

[xahra99.livejournal.com]

I second Camper. They used to have at least a five-year guarantee. Bought a pair for my sis when she was working as a runner 'cause she'd go through shoes in a couple of months. They lasted for two years-and then she got a new pair free once they wore through. Super comfy. And they make awesome steampunk style boots.

[preraphaelite.livejournal.com]

Orthaheel and Vionic (vionicshoes.com) are literally the only companies (they operate as one: "vionic with orthaheel technology") that I have ever. ever. found. that actually have actual not-kidding-around arch support in formal women's shoes. They are really quite good.

If you find anything else that ends up fitting your requirements, for the love of god please post about it. As a person who needs to wear fancyish shoes to go to court fairly regularly, but simply cannot wear shoes without significant arch support, I find myself pretty stressed-out by only having one business that can supply me workable work shoes. WHAT IF THEY EVER CLOSE.

[misslynx.livejournal.com]

Dansko, while mostly known for their clogs (which have awesome support and are very popular with people who need to be on their feet all day), also make some heels... The look tends to be more on the casual side than you're probably after, but there may be one or two styles that would work for you. Something like these (http://dansko.com/Womens/Footwear/Styles/Heels/Bess/Black%20Kidskin/), maybe? I can vouch for the comfort and support of Dansko's clogs and sandals (plus they're really solidly built and will last for a long time), though I haven't tried their "girlier" options yet.

Some of Fluevog (https://www.fluevog.com/)'s styles are reasonably supportive too (and look amazing), but they vary, so you'd need to try them on or at least read the reviews of individual styles online to be sure.

[adrian-turtle.livejournal.com]

You may want to consider Naot, if you have moderately narrow feet. Their shoes only come in one width, which (of course) they call "medium," but they acknowledge that it's almost as narrow as what most brands call "narrow." They call their 1.5 and 1.75" heels "flat" and "low-heeled," but they do sell them. And they have good arch support and padding, and I really wish they came a tiny bit wider.

Aravon also makes comfortable dress shoes. They're a sub-company of New Balance, so they know how to do arch supports, proper soles, and a reasonable range of sizes. They have a higher toebox than Clarks (which I need to keep my feet from cramping up), but unfortunately it makes them look a little less elegant.