To think it's not unusual for a woman to have size 42+ feet ...

[bricka]

... and yet so many shoe ranges only go up to a size 41! Why is that? I've had problems buying shoes ever since my early teens. I rarely own more than 2 pairs at any one time, because finding shoes that I like, and which fit, is so difficult. If size 42 (or more) isn't unusual, then there must be a big untapped market out there.

@ParanoidGynodroid I'm on my way back from Amsterdam right now - with two new pairs of US size 11 shoes which both fit and are pretty. Happy days :)

Yay for the Netherlands 🇳🇱 @MrsHamlet !

...though you do say they were American size shoes, so it looks like the US are probably better than here at catering for ladies who are more generous of foot. So yay them, too. 🇺🇸

I'm a 9 or 10 (44 or 45) and I loved platforms and glittery heels and boots when I was young and loved clubbing (late 90s). I used to get stuff from shops that catered for drag queens. Felt quite depressing. Now I'm middle aged and a Mam I wear trainers and whichever flat shoes I find. Diechman sometimes have some bigger sizes but they're never pretty or feminine. More practical and sturdy.

Just to add to the confusion, they're a Canadian company, @ParanoidGynodroid
They're not your ordinary, boring shoes, for sure.

What make are they @MrsHamlet , if you don't mind my asking?

This shouldn’t have to be an argument anymore. It’s standardized. It’s the shops not abiding by any standardization that causes headache… and foot pain. A 42 is 270mm. A UK “unisex adults” size 9 is supposed to be for a 270mm foot. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoe_size

I get that it has slightly to do with the size of the last for the shoe design, but not that much. There should be a size for you that’s 270mm, period. But UK shops can’t seem to decide what it should be called - I’ve seen charts claim it’s a 9 for men and 8.5 for women, which is why one woman claims her feet are crushed by size 8s. And then way too many shops claim this size is an 8 for women.

So. For example, see image, Clarke says right on their website, “42, size 8, 263mm.” Feck off, Clarke. If it’s not 270mm, it’s not a 42. You have to get a size 9 “43” from them before you get a size that will fit 270mm of your foot.

What a fecking malarkey. Can you tell I’m sick all the way down to the feet of all this random shoe size shite? Just use the 40/41/42/43 system, and use the standard millimetres they represent, you shoemaking bastards.

@ParanoidGynodroid john Fluevog. They're not for the faint of heart!!!!

I’m just under 6’ due to old age shrinkage and a size 9. A PROPER size 9. None of this pretending with. Size 42. It’s a 43 or nothing for me.

Next, converse, hotter, sketchers, some American brands, Dorothy Perkins, lands end… long tall sally…

getting a 9 wide is getting harder. Next has dropped the wide on most styles and only offers an 8W on many it seems. :(

I know many women who are size 8, 9 and a few 10s.

My 13 Yr old DD is 6' & her feet are 10.5 or 11.
I can only get her mens shoes.
Luckily she loves her trainers & DMs.
But one day she might want sandals or something pretty, & we just can't get them.
I am a size 8 & can sometimes find it difficult to get shoes in my size too.

It's not foolproof but I tend to order in the size of the country the brand is from. E.g. use the UK sizing number for Next and the US number (2 sizes higher than the UK equivalent) for Nike. ASOS has its own brand of shoes and they are printed with US sizing on them.

JDWILLIAMS sell lots of different brands and are v detailed in their sizing. Sell 9s and 10s and extra extra wides, and prices v reasonable.

The Sketchers shoes will be too big. Their size 7.5 is size EU40.

Me too. It's super depressing. I'm starting to find even Simply Be's wide fit shoes are becoming narrower.

I worked in a couple of Nordic countries.

I loved shoe shopping there as I was one of the smaller shoe sizes at 41.

I just couldn't believe there were stores with racks of female shoes that went up to size 46.

I’m an 8 (42), my daughter (15) is an 8.5, she wanted docs, had to buy 9s! I’m 5ft 6.5 she’s 5ft 7

I really struggle with sandals. I’m an 8 but very wide feet. I got docs this year, unisex ones x

Thanks @MrsHamlet his shoes look amazing! I'm too old for some of them, but some fantastic funky boots there I'd love. I found a site with 50% discount and got excited!... But it was in the US. 😩
Will keep an eye out for some in Amsterdam 🙂

@ITriedToStopSwearingButICunt You'd be AMAZED at the people who wear them... we are definitely not constrained by age! If you're in Amsterdam, do go in and try some on. The staff in the stores are really happy to make suggestions and let you try whatever you like and there's no pressure at all. I was in there 2 hours the other day :)

It's an 8. Not crazy. Not massive. But many manufacturers who used to class a 41 as a 7, now class it as an 8.

It's not unreasonable to want to be able to find an actual size 8 on the high Street- after all, over the past 30 years, dress sizes have changed, so why not shoes? My vintage size 12s fit my size 8 daughters!
I'm a UK 8 - 42. It used to seem unusual way back when I was at school in the 80's, but not so much these days. I do have wide feet at the toe too, which is the hardest bit to fit as my heel and ankle are slim.
But I do have a happy collection of footwear - Saltwater sandals, Skechers trainers and ankle boots. My favourites are Rocket Dog Jazzin sneakers - I must have had a couple of dozen pairs of them in many patterns! Joules wellies are a great fit, and Irregular Choice boots for my Steampunk outfits. Vibram 5-fingers barefoot shoes for sports, and even a beautiful ivory lace pair of heels i bought for my wedding a couple of years ago from Light In The Box.
Sadly I can't pop into a high street shop and find a good fit - even Evans and Hotter aren't a good fit as their wider fit is great for my toes, but baggy around the heel, and Clarks wide-fit simply isn't wide enough. I don't want a boring black court shoe, I want something bright and funky and though I had to do a bit of a search, I find them 😊

Size 9 (43) here! I have to wear mens trainers and have very few shoes, just as well I'm a doc marten kind of a girl!!

Well here's your wake-up! We do!
There are also men that wear only a size 6 or 7 (manshape's best man was a size 7 and he is over 6' tall!)

8 and a half here 👋🏻

It is for this reason I spend most of my life wearing trainers!

Absolute pain in the arse!

YANBU

Have you tried Otto and Ivy?

I love how many people are commenting on the thread to say they are also fed up with this! There are lots of us out there!

size 43 / UK 9 (just over 5’9” tall) here and have been since I was 12. Remember being in tears shopping for school shoes back in the 1990s because no one made the trendy Kickers that I so desperately wanted in anything remotely like my size. I also hated how all the shoes on the display were so small and then when mine were eventually brought out (from the boys section inevitably) they looked like ugly great clown shoes.

it has got better over time but still hard. M&S don’t go above a 42. John Lewis say they have some size 9 online but having ordered multiple pairs I have realised they are a 42 - not a size 9 and way too small!

I usually buy mens trainers but they are too wide for me and my feet end up swamped in them.

I hate shoe shopping.