Shoes and sandalls

I have some pretty strappy Crocs sandals which I bought cheap at a designer outlet a few years ago. I wear them a lot at home. They are ideal for walking the dog in the rain because the water just flows straight through them. The dog loves them too. In fact, he chewed through some of the straps but OH just glued them together again. Don't wear them to any posh events though.

I tried one local shop today. Not much in my size, 41, as sale has been going 3 weeks. I did try some Gabor moccasins which were beautifully soft leather but wrong colour. I have now ordered some Gabor slip ons and some skechers from John Lewis, will be delivered to my local Waitrose tomorrow. Fingers crossed.

I was recently told by a podiatrist that I had good feet!! I have always gone for comfort, so it must have paid off. Shame the rest of me isn't as good

For sandals try Cotton Traders. An array of styles and colours, all wide fitting, and particularly good value in their sales. Very comfortable, I must have about 10 pairs!!! Sale price averages at about £12. Also their lightweight walking shoes are good, you hardly know you have them on.

Never had an uncomfortable pair of Hobbs or Clarks shoes.

Birkenstock, FitFlop, Dr Martens, Crocs. Ruined my feet with heels and now, after by bunion surgery, only wear the above shoes.

I very rarely wear heels being slightly taller than DH. I mostly wear Birkenstocks or Josef Seibel shoes or sandals Both are a little expensive but last forever,and are comfortable

I bought a pair of beautiful shoes from Hotter SO comfortable I don't know they are on. I am on my feet a lot of the day (specialist nurse in a hospital so not in uniform but have a non-uniform clothes code to follow) and they look really smart

Shoes are a feminist issue!
Interesting to read this thread and find that nearly all of us have converted to comfortable footwear over the years. It does annoy me when I see women dressed in smart suits for work with impractically high heels (think The Apprentice). It's as if they are willingly shackling themselves and making themselves inequal in the workplace. To my mind, it can be compared to foot binding in olden day China. Rant over!

M0nica I do think some foot problems are inherited (mine are and I have been wearing orthotics on and off - for a few years due to teenage vanity - since I was a child)

I don't really care what they look like as long as they're comfortable these days although there are limits!

I remember going shoe shopping with MIL and the difficulties she faced - and she always had sore toes because her shoes were always a bit too small.

Jalima and size 8 is still difficult to find for I-want-those shoes I've needed size 8 since about 11 years old - I remember being sent off to senior school in 1959 in women's army surplus shoes, bought from the back pages of the Sunday papers!

I always had difficulty finding fashionable comfy shoes - those 2 adjectives just didn't seem to pair up in shoe shops. Things have improved somewhat and I had some lovely leather moccasin-style shoes from BHS before they disappeared from the high street. My comfiest at the moment are fitflops but the styles are sometimes a bit naff. I have some Clarks' 'Mary Janes' that I wear in the winter as well as a pair of their ankle boots. I would give the world (well, almost!) to go into a shoe shop and have a choice among shoes I like, shoes that are comfortable and shoes I can afford, rather than take it or leave it

DB Wider Fit shoes go up to a larger size than 9 I think David1968.

My MIL took a 9 in the days when women were supposed not to grow above a size 8.

I'm a woman with size 9 feet, and all I can say is: "Hotter, Hotter, Hotter!" You can order by post and thus try them at home. Over the years I've been very impressed with their customer service, as has DH. I'm 67 and I don't think all their styles are "frumpy". (But each to their own.) I recommend these!

Had to smile at mrsmopp comment of the days of shoe polishing being long gone. I was doing this very thing to my hillwalking Boots last week when my GD queried the practice. When I explained to her the benefits in terms of comfort and longevity (had them 50 years) she listened but looked somewhat unimpressed. I daresay modern ones are able to be thrown in the washing machine. Progress indeed!

Yes! I machine wash my [so far!] 3 pairs of Skechers all the time, on the daily wash programme, in a mesh bag.

I don't like Hotter shoes - I'm 86 and still think they are frumpy.

Last year I bought John Lewis black suede 'Made for comfort' flats, they did everything it says on the tin - this year from the same range I'm getting a pair of black patent 'snakeskin [to go with a Per Una bag from Oxfam...£2] ...and with a bit of luck they will see me through almost any occasion apart from a wedding...[god forbid, I would of course refuse any occasion where I need so-called smart footwear!]

Delighted to hear about Vionics; physio has told me I need to wear supportive insoles for fallen arches, but it could be great to wear shoes which don't need them as they're already supportive. Any other brands with that, folks?

That is interest Barleysugar - I found that varca are so flat that they make my plantar fasciitis worse. Podiatrist taught me to stretch the muscles in my calves which cured it quite quickly

Sketchers for trainers and hotter for shoes. I have got a pair of Gabor evening sandals which are really comfortable.

I also have lived in Fitflops during the summer, but recently, after seeing my daughters, I bought a pair of Crocs . No, not the clumpy clogs, but a pair of toe posts with silver sequinned straps. So pretty, lovely and squishy to walk on and not quite as heavy looking as some of my Fitflops. Worth looking at the website as they now do some really pretty ones.

Hmmm,food for thought then Chris as I have been wearing mine literally all the time I am on my feet! I had better try to wean myself off them a bit then, but I find them soooo addictive!

Have been wearing skechers for 2 years at work and at home. They are so comfy. In one way they have ruined my feet I can't wear anything else now, just wearing proper shoes for more than 2 hours and they rub and hurt. My feet have got so sensitive now. Chiropodist said just like wearing slippers 24/7 not good to wear all the time.

I discovered ShoeZone recently and have yet to buy a pair of boots or shoes from them that aren't perfectly comfortable. Not to mention cheap as chips!

I have two pairs of shoes from Irregular Choice. I had one pair for my son's wedding, the other were a treat to me. The heel isn't high. I am usually in flats so anyheel takes some getting used to. I would love to get a pair of Dorothy red sparkly shoes with just a little kitten heel.

I have funny feet - my toes don't go into a ice pointy arch shape but are broad and spaced out (especially my big toe to the next toe) . For decades I have bought size 6 shoes then stretched the toe space as much as possible but they still rubbed my little toes (and a 6.5 or 7 was no use as they slipped up and down on my heels). I found a lovely pair of shoes in Evans in their sale. They were a size 5 but wide fitting (EEE). My daughter persuaded me to try them on and it was bliss! No sore little toes or rubbing and they didn't flop up and down on my heels either so no need to clench my toes to keep the shoes on. I have found lots of lovely shoes now in EEE fittings so have splashed out on several pairs!

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barefoot,sketchers,real swedish clogs(not those crappy plastc/rubber etc)
was born crippled/after correction mom only put me in really good quality shoes/gm put me in clogs at age8.

tell your dc and gc not to wear crap shoes you will pay for it in the future.
and no we were poor, mom gave up things to keep me in good shoes.
i am 60 and have no foot troubles.i wear quality boots and have heels i wear that are gorgeous but fitted properly.

www.troentorpsclogs.com/

www.tessaclogs.com/

in uk you probably have better access to good clogs than i do /

Lined ugly Crocs for winter too are great!