I wear a uniform to work and standards require I wear all leather black 1 to 2 inch heels with all black soles and stitching, no buckles, designs etc. So that already eliminates half of the shoes on the market. Then add in the the amount of time I will be spending walking or standing in them, and the effects of a pressurized aircraft cabin, long walks through airport terminals and the prospects look dismal. Air travel is quite rough on the average pair of shoes and they only last about 5 to 6 months. I refuse to spend more than a hundred dollars on a pair of shoes that won't be around longer that my last tub of sour cream. Plus, there is always the possibility that the shoes that felt great in the store and walking around the living room will make you miserable out in the real world and you can no longer return them.
My latest pair of shoes I am retiring are a size 7.5w, Easy Spirit Quotas. I think I paid around $53 after taxes. They get a 5 out of 10 for style, 9 out of 10 for comfort, and 1 out of 10 for durability. There were at least 3 times scrambling around a security checkpoint looking for the heel tip that came off of the shoe. Then there was that time walking through the employee parking lot wondering why my shoe felt so funny, noticing the tip was missing and searching between parked cars for it and then beating the tip back into the heel on the bus while the driver was giving me dirty looks. After the first time the tip came off I meant to super glue them on but I totally forgot until the next time it happened. The deal breaker was when the interior stitching started pulling apart and was visible on the outside and the sole and upper were beginning to separate as well. I knew it was yet again time to find another pair.
The Easy Spirits were quite comfy though. This was my first pair of wide shoes. I don't have very wide feet but I did inherit a bunion on my right foot from my grandmother so the extra room was great. They had more cushion on the inside than most shoes I tried but I did add a Dr. Scholls gel ball of foot cushion thingy because the cushion seemed to deflate after a few weeks of wear. I could tolerate wearing them all day without switching to flats and they didn't create any new corns or callouses. If only they had held up longer I would have purchased them again.
So last week, I began the hunt for another suitable pair of pumps. I struck out at Macy's. Too high, too ugly, ill fitting, you name it I found it. Everything but what I wanted and now needed because the wear and tear was becoming visible to the average human eye under normal lighting conditions. I checked at Marshalls, Ross, TJ Maxx, I even became desperate enough to go to Payless just in case I could find and interim shoe for cheap until I found "The One". A few days ago I tried DSW. I never find what I am looking for there but a friend and I were passing time on a layover so we perused the selection. No pumps, but I did find a great pair of ballerina flats by Me Too that I can wear in flight. Hopefully that will make my next pair of pumps last longer and my feet hurt less. These flats were special, because the have an element of stretch right in that bunion area that make them perfect of my feet! Most ballerina flats cut into my foot right under my big toe and are not worth changing out of pumps. Plus, they have a really spring-y rubber-y sole. A little pricey for something I will cram into a flight bag, $50, but I think they are gonna be worth it. I went back to my hotel room and looked online for a pair of Me Too heels with the same stretch feature. No such luck, but I got started on the Zappo's website and decided that when I got home I would order all of the shoes I thought may work, order them in two sizes and take advantage of the free shipping both ways. Never got around to it though.
Yesterday was another round of shopping. I was determined to find the shoe for me before my next trip and I was running out of time! I tried Famous Footwear to no avail and decided to make a drive to a local outlet mall. I hit another Famous Footwear, Easy Spirit, Nine West, and Bass. Almost found something at Nine West but they didn't have my size. Next, Rockport. Found a shoe something with an Addidas insole something. It was kind of ugly but I was getting desperate and tired. They felt really good walking around, and they came in wide. The cost was $89 plus tax, sold. I walked back to the car and decided to stop at Rack Room Shoes and see if I would be fortunate enough to find something better.
I walked in and was ignored by the first employee I encountered. Normally, that would have been a deal breaker because I like to get good service, even if it just means saying "hello" when I walk in the store. This time, it was different. I was fed up with going through this ritual and I wanted to come away with a pair of shoes I could live with for the next 6 months or so. Then, there she was; Judy. The brand is Soft Shoe by Medicus. Cushion-y, attractive, on sale, perfect! They even had wides! I tried them on and fell in love. The only down side was that I couldn't take advantage of the buy one get one half off since they only had one pair in my size. I know the true test will be when I get to work in them but for now, they are just right.
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