Never worn
Millie at My Mom’s Blog says that her feet have become bigger over the years.
I have been wearing an 8M for years and now I measure an 8 1/2 W. Apparently NOTHING stays the same, as we age the hair gets thinner, we gain weight, get wrinkles, we need stronger lenses for the eyes and the FEET GET BIGGER. says Millie
I suppose it happens to everyone as they grow older. As far as I remember, my feet have always hurt. When I was little, it was quite common for doctors to decide that you had flat feet and to prescribe orthopaedic insoles to be put in awful-looking shoes. Sandals were also forbidden in summer.
I was a nice obedient girl until I turned 14, my feet were just the same shape as earlier and I said that I wouldn’t put those awful shoes on any longer. In those days, you wore pointed shoes with a little strap across the foot. Those shoes hurt like hell, but I put up with them because I wanted to look like everyone else.
I went on wearing high heels and whatever shoes were trendy and good-looking. Then, some years ago, when I was in my fifties, my feet started hurting so badly that they wouldn’t even stop hurting when I was lying in bed. As I once told a friend, they just felt like the Little Mermaid’s, except there was no Prince I was enduring this for!
Sneakers
A rheumatologist declared that I had to lose weight and that it would solve my problem, but unfortunately that is more easily said than done. I started buying tennis shoes or sneakers and have never stopped ever since. But my feet kept on killing me. Winters were pretty bad, but summers were unbearable as my feet would get swollen with the heat.
Eventually a fellow sufferer gave me the address of a podiatrist who, she said, produced miracle insoles. And miraculously indeed, he made me a pair of insoles, which, added inside TBS sneakers helped relieve my feet. He then suggested that I start wearing cotton or woollen socks and that did it. No more pain, no more swollen feet, and these days I can walk every day for a couple of hours.
I have given up wearing “smart” shoes and I wear my sneakers absolutely everywhere.
As I once told my daughter, even when she gets married, I’ll wear sneakers at the ceremony!
The brown shoes in the photo were bought a few years ago and have hardly been worn. I took the second photo last year in the underground and you can see the ground beneath my sneakers
On a daily basis, I upload quite a lot of photos onto my flickr account, but I choose one a day, which I blog at My Daily Snap… revisited
Since I found out that the reason my feet have been hurting is because I have been wearing the wrong size shoe, I’ve been throwing out loads of shoes. I do have one pair that aren’t to bad as long as I don’t have to walk too much.
I am now the proud owner of a pair of Brooks sneakers but have yet to find a comfortable pair of dress shoes.
The search goes on.
Comment by millie garfield — May 6, 2006 @ 4:14 am
Claude, I am glad you found relief for your feet. Recently my foot/ankle problem was diagnosed as
a torn tendon. I had to wear a boot cast for about 3 months last summer then I went into a lace up
shoe with a prescription orthopedic insert. When I dress up I wear a low heel
pump if I will not be on my feet. The shoe I have found that works
for me is made by SAS. Sorry to say they don’t sell them online.
Comment by Chancy — May 6, 2006 @ 5:21 am
How wonderful you’ve reached an effective “under-standing.” Walking is such a pleasure and I’m so happy to hear you can finally enjoy it in comfort!
lucybigfootd
Comment by golden lucy — May 7, 2006 @ 6:18 am
I know what you mean about those pointed-toe shoes. I have relatively small feet with short toes (a college friend once wrote, “Yours, ’til your toes grow longer.”) I seldom ever wore toeless shoes or dressy sandals, because my toes never stuck out the holes. I thought that must look terrible. My feet slip down toward the toes and the pointed shoes were the worse. Running up and down stairs, in and out of studios, etc., stepping over cables, it’s a wonder I didn’t fall, break something, or kill myself.
Then, when I wore spike heels for dress, nights out … I look back and think I should have had my head examined. I still have a dressy black suede spike heel pair. Why on earth am I keeping them?? The things we women do for the style of the time, or fashion. Well, I don’t wear them any more; quit some time ago.
I am so happy that in recent years women have thumbed their nose more at convention, including shoes, by wearing what is comfortable and fits, first and foremost. That’s one of the things I found attractive about Calif., here in the U.S., was the more casual life style. Seemed to have spread elsewhere quite some years ago, but not really sure how far i.e. various European countries.
I agree with Chancy about SAS. They are really comfortable for long periods on my feet, walking; have some. My favorite brand presently, depending on the style, is Munro. Another one is Clarks. Know the first one can be found on the Net, probably the other one, too, as well as at some dept. stores.
Hope you’re able to find some comfortable attractive dressy shoes, Millie.
As for socks, I’m with you Claude, re the cotton, but seems to be harder and harder to find much selection at local store. Only a select few of the artifical blends are acceptable. Guess I may eventually have to search the Net.
Comment by joared — May 7, 2006 @ 8:29 am
Oh Claude, one of the worst things to have is sore and aching feet. I’ve had them on occasion. I have learned long ago to forego style for comfort. I don’t think I can even wear high heels anymore. I use to wear a lot of different styles, and had way too many shoes, but not anymore. You’re right….nothing stays the same. One thing I do know…if your feet are in pain….the rest of you doesn’t feel good either. Take care.
Comment by Joy — May 8, 2006 @ 12:52 pm
here in new york city, women of all ages continue to wear shoes designed for
discomfort. gave that up some time ago. but i’m sure all those years of high heels did me no good.
sneakers are wonderful. still hoping to find flat shoes that tie that look
wonderful with a long skirt. wanted to get to the little mermaid story but could
not?
Comment by naomi dagen bloom — May 8, 2006 @ 1:08 pm
I also was one of theses little girls with “flat feet” and strange ugly shoes.
Again one of those underground links between our lives…
Why didn’t you tell me earlier?
Wear Mephisto and your own daughter won’t be ashamed of you! (I do, all the time) and you’ll walk ten times as much so you’ll upload so many more photos for me to look forward to.
Comment by Sylvie Brod — May 13, 2006 @ 9:18 pm
[...] They were my first pair of shoes that looked normal, since in those days, I was still wearing prescription shoes that both felt and looked awful. On the photo, I am crouching between my uncle Henry and my aunt [...]
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