These shoes weren’t made for walking

by Collette McColgan

Shoes

My name is Collette, and I am obsessed with shoes.

I’ve always had a problem with shoes, largely down to the fact that my feet are short, wide and high. Add arthritis-related issues on top of that, and I never really stood a chance.

I’m a size one. Yes, that small. I sometimes have to get a two, when my feet are too wide or high for a one, which is pretty tragic. All the shoes above are children’s shoes.

I’m obsessed with shoes, but I don’t particularly like them – I actually hate shoes. I wish I could just wear sneakers all the time (or no shoes at all), but there are some occasions when that’s not acceptable… apparently.

I have so many pairs because in my head I’m forever looking for that perfect shoe: a shoe that looks like a grown-up’s shoe, that doesn’t absolutely slaughter my feet. If I can fit my insoles in it as well, then that’s a bonus. But my search is destined for tragedy.

Because children’s shoes are designed for children (shocker). They’re not really built to last as long as adults’ shoes are  because it’s assumed that a child will grow out of them. I consider myself lucky if I can get more than a few months of regular wear out of a shoe before it falls apart. Many good shoes have fallen to my limp and weird pressure points. Good shoes that shall never be forgotten.

I just wish there was a shop that actually made shoes in a size below a three – proper shoes, not necessarily with bows and butterflies all over the sides – that didn’t cost a ridiculous amount of money.

Then again, I suppose I have been spoilt with children’s shoes and how cheap they are, which has perhaps made me reluctant to spend more than £20 on a pair of shoes I know I’ll only get a handful of wears out of, but it doesn’t really feel like a saving when you have to buy them so frequently.

It’s New Look’s teens section that has been my saviour. While there are still a few styles that I think look a bit young, it always has a few gems that can get me out of a sticky shoe-related situation (increasingly this type of situation is a wedding as I get older).

You know, it’s sometimes overwhelming trying to be so fashion forward.

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(Any opinions expressed in Collette’s blog are not necessarily shared by Arthur’s Place. Nothing that you read in Collette’s blog constitutes medical advice.)