Don't Let Sore Feet Ruin Your Big Day

Surprisingly, or maybe not when you consider how peoples’ feet differ, many Brides find it harder to find their perfect wedding shoes that their prefect wedding dress. Unlike their wedding dress, unless they pay a fortune for a bespoke service, their wedding shoes cannot be altered to fit them.

Having comfortable feet is one of the most important elements of an enjoyable day so finding a pair of wedding shoes that you not only love to look at but also love to wear is vital to having a fabulous Big Day!

Photographers say they can tell when a Bride has sore feet - and you don’t want your wedding photos being ruined because you are focusing on the pain in the balls of your feet rather than smiling for the camera!

So the first thing to consider is what colour you need. If you have a bright white wedding dress you need bright white shoes, otherwise they will look dirty against your dress. There are only a few styles of wedding shoes that are available in white as standard, however don’t despair, satin shoes can be bleached to bright white which increases your options greatly. But remember you will need to allow time for your shoes to be bleached once you have chosen the style in ivory, which can take up to 3 weeks.

If your dress is diamond white or ivory you should be fine with most of the ivory shoes, although some brands, particularly silk ones, can be quite creamy, so not so good for light ivory dresses. It is advisable to take a swatch of your dress fabric with you when looking for your wedding shoes just to make sure.

If you have a champagne, or pale gold dress you may be happy with ivory shoes, it is a personal preference, however many Brides choose to have their wedding shoes dyed to match. 98% or wedding shoes are dyeable so you will have lots of styles to choose from but again you will need to factor in the additional time for the shoes to  be dyed and you will definitely need a swatch of your dress fabric to be used for the colour-matching.

The next factor to consider is heel height. Sometimes there are issues that dictate you must have a small heel. Do you need to be careful of how high a heel you choose because your Groom is close in height to you? Or perhaps you are tall and your wedding dress does not have much leeway in terms of length? There are lots of lovely kitten heel wedding shoes and even some pretty flatties now available, but remember your posture won’t be as good if you wear flat shoes, even a tiny kitten heel will help you to stand taller and straighter - you don’t want to slouch on your wedding day!

Of course this can work the other way and you choose a high heel to bring you closer to your tall Groom or to raise you up so that you don’t need your dress hem altered. Remember if you need a really high heel choosing one with a platform will mean they aren’t really that high in terms of you wearing them - but they will lift you up that extra bit you need (for whatever reason). If you look at the heel and then take off the height of the platform that will give you the “true” height in terms of wear.

Whatever you do don’t choose a high heel if you are not used to them! They may feel fine in the shop but I can guarantee you will quickly have aching feet and your photographer won’t be happy (neither will you).

So we know what colour and the heel height, what next? Do you need a wide fit shoe? If so this can restrict your choice of shoes, however if you visit a specialist wedding shoe shop they should be able to help you find a pair of shoes that aren’t officially wide fit but suit your foot - this is an issue they are dealing with more and more as our feet get wider!

Eventually we can consider the style of your wedding shoes. Do you want peep-toe, round-toe or points? Do you prefer an ankle strap to give you confidence you won’t loose your wedding shoes walking down the aisle, or are you happy without or with a sling-back? Do you particularly want a wedge heel, as you know you find these very comfortable? Do you want diamante or pearls or maybe lace to match your wedding dress?

Sometimes you can try on lots of wedding shoes that fit your style criteria perfectly but in the end you plump for that pair that are nearly perfect but has the padded lining throughout the shoes as well as the added padding under-foot because you know you will be comfortable throughout your Big Day with those.

So in short the best way to make sure you don’t let sore feet ruin your Bid Day is to visit a specialist wedding shoe shop where you will be able to actually try on lots and lots of wedding shoes in a huge range of styles and a range of sizes so that you can find a pair that fits well as well as looking gorgeous!