Dress with trainers or other clumpy shoes

[StepAwayFromCake]

I need orthotics in my shoes, so I end up mostly in trainers or similar. In winter, if I want to wear a dress or skirt I can wear it with boots (minimal heel, high-sided), but boots are far too hot in summer, so I end up in trousers all the time.

Are there any styles of dress that I could wear with trainerish shoes?

I'm 50, tall, size 16/18. (Hoping to get to 14/16!).

To give you an idea, these are the shoes I'm wearing right now:

I recently invested in some orthotics this Spring, I really suffer with shoes to wear in the hot weather at the best of times but this year I was told no more flip flops or ballet shoes! So I bought these pumps from Ecco, expensive but comfy and they accommodate my orthotics brilliantly.

Ecco, Hotter and Asics have been recommended to me as good makes for accommodating orthotics.

Trouble is, I have flippers wide feet, especially at the toes, so dainty ladies' closed shoes rarely fit me. Hence the Clarks men's shoes I am wearing today.

Do you wear your Eccos with dresses?

Chelsea boots look nice with dresses. have a look at the Toast website, they tend to pair their dresses with flat clumpy shoes and boots. I'm wearing my Chelsea boots with coloured tights and striped socks - the dress is black.

Step I wear them with pretty much everything, shorts, jeans, knee length dresses!

Denim skirt or dress?

I'm going to have to reframe decades of dress-prejudice! I've never been a confident dresser, and I just cannot imagine wearing clumpy shoes with anything other than long trousers.

I remember when the DMs with tea dresses style first came in (when was that, 1980s?), and I thought "Yes! this is for me - no need to strangle my toes in ballet pumps or heels!" But when I tried it on I thought it looked awful.

What about socks? I can't go sockless, so would it be socks and bare legs (No! Aaaargh! The horror!) or flesh tights, or socks over tights, or what?

Or maybe I should say the hell with "what goes?" And "how do you wear this?" and embrace being 50, and wear purple:

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat that doesn't go, and doesn't suit me,
And I shall spend my pension
on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals,
and say we've no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I am tired,
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells,
And run my stick along the public railings,
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

Except that 50 is not old. It's just my body that's showing a bit of wear and tear.

I have to wear orthotics and was advised by my chiropodist that Birkenstocks are okay in the summer. I've been wearing them and haven't had any problems.

Primark do trainer socks that are totally hidden under trainers, think they are £2 for 5 pairs!

Could you get away with these style shoes?
I think the chunky T-bar style look great with skirts and dresses.

That was a mean trick nc4now - i don't tend to click on daily mirror links!!!

I wear some casual summer dresses with plain white plimsolls. Proper trainers I don't like with them but a basic plimsoll is okay.

I don't have orthotics, but wear dresses or skirts with trainers or brogues a lot in summer. My preferred style is a midi, so on me st 5ft 6 between knee and mid-calf, and I wear the invisible sock things mentioned above, although I don't care if they show a bit. (Today I'm in a leopard print midi dress with black chunky brogues) In winter I wear Chelsea boots, black leather Stan Smiths, or occasionally biker boots, with opaque tights and much shorter skirts. I don't own any heels or what would be classed as "nice" shoes, they're just not my cup of tea.

My feet are small and wide, and I actually got perfect black Chelsea boots in Ecco last year after a recommendation on here - I had never been in the shop before and while a lot of the stuff wasn't for me, I thought they had quite good selection of what I'd call "basics" which were nice, Chelsea boots, knee-highs etc, for those of us with "problem feet".

Oops!! Sorry

I meant this... www.schuh.co.uk/womens/red-or-dead-leather-jade-black-flat-shoes/1373307020/

You are forgiven

They do look nice! I shall have to go try them with my orthotics (no point mail order).

I really like a knee-length (or shorter) dress with an a-line skirt and trainers.

Teenagers who live near me seem to like bodycon type dresses with trainers but you might not want to copy their style.

I like bodycon very much. Just not the teen version. Teens rarely have enough body to con. My kind of bodycon would have built-in Spanx! Foundation garment boning. Plus a bit of structure around the bust and shoulders. No Lycra tubes for me.

I like things that have a bit of swish and a bit of wiggle. Mind you, I tried on one of those bizarre linen dresses the other day. A sort of shift with peculiar square bits inserted below the waist, so it draped and poked out weirdly. Certainly had swish, but no wiggle. I'll try and find a pic.

It was a bit like this one, but with short sleeves, closer-fitting on the bust, and no pockets. Longer, too. Below the knee.

I wanted some white sneaker type shoes for this summer and initially I was going to get Supergas but was persuaded by the shop assistant to try on some white leather Ked sneakers.

They're so comfortable and quite wide in the foot. I've worn them with skirts and I think it looks OK. A teen commented on my 'great sneakers'. .

What about superga? Look okay with many skirts and dresses, but not too narrow fitting?

I wear Superstars - they are wide all the way down to the toe bed but don't need my orthotics in them

I wear Ecco sandals in summer and again don't need the orthotic due to the shape of the foot bed

can you get away with a more maxi skirt and trainers?

I found that I lifted out of my Superga when I added a (relatively small) insole. I ended up getting blisters because the back of them cut into the wrong bit of my heel, and have them laced v tight across the front. Worth trying though, they are certainly wide.

Those keds are lovely.

The blogger doesmybumlook40 wears a lot of trainers with dresses. Have a look at her website.

Here