As a woman who really loves shoes, it's comes as a surprise, even to myself, that I don't have a closet overflowing with all the latest foot fashions. They are such a fun item...all the colors and styles....but rarely in my budget for indulgence so what usually happens....I find myself in a crunch time decision of needing a pair of shoes....for tomorrow! That was the way it happened the other night. I was scheduled to attend a training seminar on Friday and on Thursday afternoon, I knew I would need a decent pair of shoes to wear. I knew I would never be able to clomp around in heels all day, so a nice pair of dressy flats were in order. So simple. Those little cuties are EVERYWHERE. But here is the kicker....I wear a size 11.
Having a difficult shoe size is nothing new to me, I've been dealing with it for as long as I can remember. As a child and a teen, it was a different challenge....my foot was long and incredibly narrow. Have you ever heard of a AAAAA heel? I distinctly remember a pair of shiny black slip-ons with those five "A's". My parents would always begin a shoe expedition with the admonition..."It's not necessarily what you like, but what we can find to fit."....and my foot was so much longer than all my friends who were wearing size 5,6,7.....I was in an 8 before I was 16 years old. My precious Aunt Mary always reminded me that I simply had a "firm foundation"....I've tried to remember that over the years and it DOES make me smile to think about her.
My wedding shoes were a size 8.5 and three years later, after the birth of my first daughter, I had graduated to a size 9. Most Moms will relate to the prediction of a new shoe size for every child. It's true. My feet just grew longer AND (thankfully) a little wider. I was thrilled to find a "B" width or "medium" was working out just fine. If I could have stayed at a size 10B, I might have been happy, but nooooooo......nurses wear the most comfortable of shoes and so I practically live in clogs, tennis shoes or the "official shoe of South Carolina"...the flip-flop. Not only did my feet grow longer, but they so enjoy being able to stretch out and spread across the lay of the land inside a clog, that they are now wide across the toes. I can't win!
Remember those cute little flats I was describing earlier? I found them....adorable little black and gray plaid with a fake buckle across the toe. The sample size 5 was fabulous......and look! They have one in a size 11! Unfortunately, it looked more like a small canoe wrapped in a stadium blanket. UGG! I searched four different shoe stores before running out of time.....I was stuck with wearing the heels. Thankfully, I spent most of the seminar sitting down. Tolerable. What is it with shoe designers? Do they think that any foot larger than a size 9 is only suited for construction boots? Asking the shoe store staff if they have this way- too cute, chestnut colored, reptile textured pump in a size 11 will either bring you a blank stare, or the whole crocodile.
This is not to say that I've NEVER found a pretty pair of shoes for my humongous feet....there IS one store in our town that not only stocks a really attractive selection of shoes, but they specialize in sizes 10, 11, and 12. Of course, they have a section of the store devoted to shoes that come with their own pole and strobe light. I give them a glance, just for the giggle of it, and then move to the "Mother-of-the-Bride-ish" wall of sparkles and silk. It's the store that provided the shoes for my daughter's wedding and for that, I'm grateful, but for everyday wear.....well, we lovingly refer to this shop as the "Bling-Bling Shoe Store" for a reason.
I love Winter but when it comes to footwear....it is a difficult season for me. Spring will come eventually and I will happily pull out my wonderful selection of flip-flops, paint my toes with hot pink polish and let my toes spread out even more so that I can be just that much more frustrated NEXT Winter.
Happy Shopping!
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Hey Kath, Thanks for commenting over at my blog ;) And you're right, opposite sides of the spectrum. In fact, after the birth of both my sons, I actually hoped that my feet would get bigger. But I think they actually got smaller! Thank goodness for flip flops right. They are indeed my footwear of choice. My husband wonders why I try to wear them into late October. But I don't need to tell you. You know why!
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