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YOU GUYS. I am fucking excited about this post today. As y’all probably know, I’ve been obsessing over wedding shoes on Offbeat Bride since George Bush was in office… but a reader recently requested a post of (get this!) comfortable walking shoes. WALKING SHOES! For daily wear! This is amazing, because here’s a little secret: I can’t really walk in heels. Platforms I can handle, but despite my love of pumps, I grew up barefoot and worked at a Birkenstock store in college and seriously? I can’t walk in heels.
So today I’m doing my same shoe post style thing, but it’s all about comfy shoes you can actually walk to work in. For the purposes of this post, I’m ignoring the low-hanging fruit like Chucks, Toms, Docs, etc. We’re going to look for shoes that are a bit more structured, but still comfortable as hell. I’m also not going to touch on Fluevogs because seriously that’s a whole different post.
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Secrets from a high-end shoe store: How to find, fit, and maintain comfy shoes (and no, there are no unicorns)
I used to think everyone's feet hurt at the end of the day. This is not true or, at least, it's less true than you... Read more
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OK here’s a question for you all. What stores actually carry these brands?
I live in West Virginia and we don’t have much in my town (Sears, Belk, Elder Beerman,JCPenny). I’m close enough to Pittsburgh to go “big city shoppin”. I have stupid shaped feet (wide at the ball, narrow at the heel) and really want to try some of these on…..
What stores actually carry these brands?
ZAPPOS!
There’s a reason I almost always link to shoes on Zappos: They have FREE SHIPPING and FREE RETURNS!
http://www.zappos.com/shipping-and-returns
As an added bonus, when you buy from Zappos through an Offbeat Empire blog post, you help financially support us. 🙂
Belk (at least the one near me) has a *great* shoe department – they might not have some of the more obscure brands but they should have Clarks and a couple other good “comfort” brands. I’m a recent (temporary?) transplant to the South, and one of my favorite things is probably Belk’s shoe department. 🙂 Good sales too.
If you have a Dillard’s they usually carry Clarks and more ecco’s. That said selection is usually more limited, and they don’t support this awesome site. Still, if you need to get measured or worry a lot about fit trying things on can be priceless.
Love love love all these shoe recs! Also, for more great comfortable stylish shoes (incld. many of the same brands), the blog http://barkingdogshoes.com/ is worth following for regular updates.
I second the shoutout to barkingdogshoes.com. it’s a whole blog dedicated to finding comfy shoes. they don’t always highlight the cutest/funkiest/prettiest shoes, but its a great way to find comfort brands and find real life advice about shoe and foot issues.
just wanted to thank you Ariel (oh she who introduced me to the concept of Fluevogs); i’m currently on a hunt for shoes that are cute-enough-to-wear-to-xmas-dinner, don’t-look-silly-with-jeans, and will help out my recently-self-diagnosed plantar fasciitis.
those green maryjane-style ones are adorable, and some of the other colors are fabulous!! totally the sort of thing i’m looking for!!!
now to save up the cash……
Love your choices, especially the El Naturalista mj. Did you know they somehow get tea tree oil into the sole so it smells all clean and nice?
Aahhhhh, Ariel, I <3 this post! You have figured out my shoe style!!!
.. love it!
i love shoes and i love your designs too .. i want to buy some of your collection.
Man, I keep coming back to this post to drool.