I received a voicemail last week- my dress is in a month ahead of schedule. While I am excited about it, I haven’t called the shop back yet because they want me to schedule my first fitting. For which I need my shoes. Which I don’t yet have.
I posted earlier about what I am looking for in regards to shoes, and when I was in Cleveland, decided to take a trip to my local shopping bazaar (read: mall) with my mom and try on every red shoe in sight that was even remotely close to what I was looking for.
First stop was Nordstrom’s. First, that store really does have phenomenal customer service. As you may have noticed in my last post, most of the shoes that I really like are closed in the back. Turns out that I absolutely.can.not.wear.those.shoes. There is a reason why most of the heels I own are slingbacks or strappy sandals. Stephen, the most understanding and patient salesman ever, carefully explained to me why those shoes will not work for me. I have narrow feet- not only does this mean that it is narrow by my toes, but it also means that my heel is narrow. So me heel will consistently fall out of gorgeous D’Orsay heels, unless they either come in narrow or comfortably fit in a size 9.5 instead of a 10.
::sighs:: And there are such pretty shoes out there.
MAXSTUDIO Savannah
Why can’t you be a slingback or a strappy sandal? You would have been perfect, but you have that darned heel issue. I (surprisingly) even liked the bow in front.
Nine West Jojus
Gorgeous, but there is no way that you will work.
I also learned that Nina shoes don’t have enough arch support for me, and that Kenneth Cole Reaction shoes tend to pinch me in awkward places.
Wicked Rich, you are gorgeous, but I see where you get the “wicked” in your name. You pinched my feet in the 30 seconds I walked around in you, leaving deep red marks that lasted much longer than you did on my feet..
You, Kate Spade’s Elisabeth, are a very pretty shoe, but are just too expensive.
I have combed the recommended online stores (thanks for the suggestions!), and am still having trouble finding what I am looking for. I had already planned to get custom ballroom shoes, since Mr. Dahlia and I have been taking dance lessons and really enjoy them, and tanya2s suggested in my earlier post that I check out http://www.bestballroomshoes.com. Turns out, you can also get shoes made with a rubber soul instead of suede- so I could order two pairs of shoes through them, one with a suede soul for dancing, and the other with a rubber soul for ordinary wear. At the same time, I hate to risk ordering custom dance shoes that might not fit, since they are non-returnable.
Does anyone have any other suggestions for places to look? And how early do you really need to go for dress fittings? It seems that as the holidays draw closer, the number of red satin or silk heels will increase. Do I really need to go in for fittings 6 months in advance, or will 4 months be sufficient?
Did you think about dyeables?
This isn’t going to be helpful in terms of what stores to look in, but if you are drawn to shoes with a closed back, have you considered looking for some with a closed back and small ankle strap to hold your foot in place? This will be useful for dancing as well so your foot won’t slip out of the shoe.
Whoa!!! Hold the phone, m’lady. 
I have the same problem AND the same addiction to D’Orsay shoes.
I’ve found that I can use Foot Petals Heavenly Heelz, they keep my feet in place. And I can continue to wear the Best. Shoe. Style. Ever.
Just my $0.02! 
http://www.footpetals.com/cgi-bin/footpetals/prod.html?mv_arg=Heavenly%20Heelz
I started 2 months in advance and had 3 fittings. I would think you have plenty of time unless your seamstress has a really tight schedule.
Also, they may not want you to come in right now… but just want to schedule your future appointment(s) so there aren’t scheduling conflicts as the wedding approaches.
GL with your shoe hunt!
If you really love the D’Orsay/closed-heel shoes, don’t rule them out yet - try cross-referencing with Zappos or the manufacturer to see if you can get them in narrow, or alternately, load up the interiors with Foot Petal products, or other peel-and-stick cushions…I have a pair of Steve Madden pumps that are just a teensy bit too big, but with the addition of foam inserts at the ball of the shoe and along the back of the heel, they stay on just fine!
you have plenty of time for fittings. i bought my dress in september, it came in january, and i got married on march 5th.
i’d avoid dyeables for your shoes — the bleed out a bit, and i’d hate for them to start turning the bottom of your (white?) dress pink/red.
Like others have already said, you have plenty of time. I ordered my dress in January and it came in August. I actually went in to “visit it” when it came in :), but didn’t have my first fitting until the first week of October. I had one more fitting a week later and then I picked up my dress today at lunch! YAY!!
As the holidays roll around, you’ll definitely have more red shoes to choose from.
Glad to hear my ballroom shoe advice was at least of some help! I agree that you need to be careful with sizing– I ordered my first pair too small and had to sell them and buy another (which were slightly too big, but I used the Foot Petals heel strip to fix the difference… I was NOT going to buy another $100 pair of shoes!). Perhaps you could find a cheaper non-custom shoe on the site, plan to wear it for something else, and just buy it to compare sizes and fit. Then at worst you’ll only have wasted SOME money, not a lot.
And you absolutely do not need to start your fittings 6 months in advance. Even if you need some major reconstruction, if you give your seamstress warning 4 months should be fine. Heck, my seamstress wouldn’t even schedule a first fitting until 3 months out, saying it would be too soon to know if my figure would change (and I wasn’t trying to lose or gain weight at the time, either).
ok i don’t think my search results came up but i looked just for red sandals and found tons of strappy back/backless red shoes at endless.com! (best thing is shipping is overnight and negative $5) good luck.
go to http://www.zappos.com
i got some really cute ones on there…red!
http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/31392007/c/594.html
Plus they ship out that day!
The “Marissa” shoe from David’s Bridal, and they can dye the shoe your favorite red (as long as you have a swatch) for you. Only $55, it’s peep-toe with a slight heel (about 2 1/2″) and has a little bling too. http://www.davidsbridal.com/accessory_detail.jsp?stid=2211&prodgroup=169
just found these online at nordstroms, very cute!
Thanks for all of the great tips and suggestions! I will definitely check out the Heavenly Heelz.
If you have other suggestions, let me know!
have you seen these by Nina?
http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/28258715/c/77659.html
I’m completely in love with these http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/24052985/c/83905.html
for my wedding and I’m trying to convince myself I could wear them all day despite having exactly the same problem with narrow heels!
D’Orsay’s are just sooooo glam, nothing else compares!
Okay, I have the same problem as you… I have a narrow heel and EVERY single pair of shoes digs into the back of my ankle. EVERY ONE!!! So I know your pain. I love closed heeled shoes also… and I have a solution for you. I buy Dr Scholl’s heel inserts. I put them in every single pair of closed heeled shoes I own that are not sneakers. I’m talking loafers, heels, anything.
http://www.drscholls.com/product.aspx?prodid=32
And for only like $3 or $4 at wal mart or target, I can wear just about any shoes I want.
My earlier post didn’t show up for some reason, but try shoebuy.com. Search “red” they had a couple of cute ones (and a cute red flower purse1), plus FREE shipping, FREE return shipping, and NO tax!
Good luck!
I went to my first fitting 2 months before the wedding and everything. 6 months seems to be too early.
For dyeables, have you tried:
http://www.bluetuxshoes.com/store/index.php?cPath=1
You and I seem to have pretty similar shoe tastes, so I looked around and found a couple cute pairs:
Vaneli Larinda
Kimel Ace
Charles by Charles David, Affair - I love these, but you probably want at least a heel strap
NO OH MY GOSH THESE ARE PERFECT! You must buy those.
I couldn’t get my comment to go through before - I think my link was too long, so I’m trying again. I think these are the perfect shoes for you:
Good luck!
How about these? http://www.bananarepublic.com/browse/product.do?cid=38006&pid=524723&scid=524723002
I saw some today at Zara; alas they don’t have a real website, but there was a peep-toe pump with a bow and a sandal with a closed heel, both in red satin. I loved them, but they are too high for me!
am I doomed cuz I have the exact same problem where I slip out of all high heels i have and it’s the main reason i avoid wearing heels…I’ve tried many different brands of those heel inserts (dr. S, foot petals, etc) and none of them have worked - my heels still slip out! HELP! does this mean only narrow shoes will work for me? (I’ve never really worn “narrow” shoes) Any ideas out there?
Ms. Dahlia, Detroit/Cleveland
Age and Occupation: 24, PhD Student
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, IT System Administrator
Engagement Date: December 31, 2006
Wedding Date: May 2008
Blogging Since: September 19, 2007
Venue: United Methodist Cathedral & historic downtown hotel in Cleveland
About Me: I enjoy cooking, dancing and swimming. I am a geek and apply game theory to my everyday life. Winter is my favorite time of year, especially when spent curled up with good coffee and a book by Madeleine L'Engle.
I’m only heard that you should start your fittings 2-3 months in advancs…you have plenty of time! I’m getting married at the begining of April, and I don’t plan on starting my fittings till after the new year.