Difficulty finding dress shoes that fit and are comfortable

Well . . . maybe my feet are too narrow, or I am used to shoes that fit well right away, but I have had a heck of a time looking for a pair of dress shoes.

After a several day trip involving Nordstrom's during their anniversary sale, Clarks, Aldo (yes, you did read that!), Johnston & Murphy, and DSW, . . . I have not found a pair of leather soled shoes that feel comfortable enough to buy. This is after trying a pair of Jack Erwins that were a half size too big but that almost fit with insoles.

I have tried the mythical Allen Edmonds Park Avenue, a Bruno Magli (? spelling) that was in the high $200's, some black toe cap from Aldo, a black toe cap from Calvin Klein for $80 at DSW, the Melton from J&M, John Nordstrom's $175 dress shoe (that one and the Melton felt the best of the aforementioned, actually). None of them felt "good", although the Nordstrom's at least didn't feel terrible. The Calvin Klein actually felt quite comfortable, but was clearly not a high quality shoe.

For the record, the Aldo stitching above the top of your foot where the toe cap meets the rest of the shoe digs into your foot. As such, I strongly disliked that one.

I can understand that a cork-soled shoe takes time to mold to your foot, and that the leather upper of a shoe does mold to your foot over time and stretches a bit, but I honestly don't want to buy a pair of shoes that simply doesn't feel good or fit reasonably well (ignoring how the sole feels).

I am left with, as best I can tell, several options -

1) Figure out which high quality pair fit the best, assume that with gradual wear and break-in that they will eventually mold to my feet and feel good
2) Stick to my black tasseled loafers for now and wait for Clarks or Ecco to come out with a balmoral toe cap in black
3) Buy a pair of Ecco toe cap bluchers
4) Buy a pair of the Calvin Klein's
5) See if Bostonian or Florsheim has something decent and play mail order roulette

I have to assume that I'm missing something. How unusual is my experience, and what have you all tried and done?

I have narrow feet, and finding dress shoes that fit is a real chore. The only pair I have that fit well and are comfortable are a pair of Ecco's. My Allen Edmonds don't fit well at all, and any shoe they make that fits my heel and instep crushes my toes.

There is a place around here that sells Aldens. I'm going to try those out sometime.

My last stab at a dressy black shoe (after having tried the above) - Ecco Cairo cap toe tie. A blucher, but at least the lines are simple and the sole is thin. The toe doesn't look too square to my eye. And I will say that the repetitive seam of the cap toe looks visually interesting. Their other cap toes looked less formal (Dublin, Edinburgh).

I am a 12AA & I have only used A &E & Alden or I had them made. Its a tough situation to have but all the shoes I have are still going strong after 30+years so over the long haul I can't complain.

While I don't exactly have any good advice, I can sympathize with your plight in shoe fit. I have sort of the same issue as you. I have a relatively low instep and narrow heel compared to the width of my foot at the widest part and my toes..... although my toes are not long, my foot is just wide at the toes and the ball of my foot. I often struggle with a loose fit in the instep and heel, while the length and width at the toes is okay..... and if I try to size down or go narrow, I will either crush my toes or squeeze the widest part of my foot. On top of everything else, I don't like to buy cheap shoes. The shoes I buy, I want to be recraftable and last me for years and years. This makes getting the proper fit all the more critical..... and can be a time consuming and expensive endevour.

For a black dress shoe, I didn't look too much past Allen Edmonds. I tried many sizes in the Park Avenue and also the Harrison cap toe balmoral in the 333 last. With both, I ended up with 11E's (which is a half to full size down in length and a size wider in width compared to my Brannock size of 11.5D to 12D), although the 11E's are not what I would call a "perfect" fit. They fit very comfortable, but the laces have to be tightened to the point that the vamp is closed completely. It's still a snug fit, but not ideal. If I really wanted to get fussy, I could put tongue pads in, but I don't. A little looseness in the vamp/instep area is going to have to be okay so that the shoes can be a perfect fit everywhere else. I tried 11.5D, 11D, and I even tried on 10.5E at the AE store, before I ended up with the 11E's. At the store, I tried the 11D's and actually took them home because I thought that they felt the most comfortable, only to find that they were too narrow at the ball of my foot and squeezed my foot too much in that area. I took them back and got the 11E's.

Don't be too discouraged. Many guys go through this process. Finding the right shoe fit is a never ending battle it seems at times. Coupled with the fact that there are shoes and boots out there that I WANT to fit my feet so badly because of how they look, only to find that they don't fit as well as I would like.

Ben

I am close to average/D width, so I suspect I have an easier time than men with more narrow or wide feet, but I also find it difficult to find a perfect fit. My simplistic advice is to keep increasing the shoe size (length) and width until you find something comfortable enough to wear, meaning something that does not constrain or hurt your foot even if it feels slightly too big at first. Keeping in mind that your foot changes in size from morning until the evening, so something that feels good at 9am may be painful at 5pm. When trying on shoes, I make it a point to not wear thin socks, so that I will not to buy something that is too small.

Carmina Simpson cap toe is a great narrow last.

I'm a little surprised you narrow footed fellows aren't loving the Park Ave. I have the Strand which is made on the same last and found the fit to be so narrow that I needed to go EEE

Thought I'd post some random shoe pics (inspiration - http://dappered.com/2013/07/the-best-looking-mens-dress-shoes-under-200/)

Calvin Klein's Carlton (this is one I tried at DSW - it's the only dress shoe I tried that actually felt good)



Aston Grey's Hunter Oxford (also comes in black)



Calibrate's Tiberio



Banana Republic's James monk strap



Calibrate Cusano monk strap

Bit the bullet and ordered a pair of the Calvin Klein's Carltons in black last night. At this point, if/when I get a brown or burgundy, it'll probably be a double monk or brogued shoe (or both). The above Cusano is really tempting, although I can't quite tell what color belt would go with it . . . chili?

I practically live in dress shoes, since it's a requirement of my profession. I've had about every brand made and several years ago tried ECCO and I won't even look at another brand. They fit very well and are easy on my feet. I beat the crap out of my shoes, but I find ECCO to be the most durable shoes I've ever worn. My first pairs were made, I think, in Denmark or somewhere in Europe. Now, like almost everything ECCO is made in China.

I thought about another pair of Eccos (I have a pair of boots by them, and currently use a pair of Seawalkers frequently) but they didn't have a dressy cap toe that I liked. The Edinburgh and Cairo were options, but I wanted 1 pair of cap toed dressy looking Balmorals. The Eccos just didn't look dressy enough to my eye.

The Ecco Atlanta wingtip, on the other hand, is a serious contender for my next pair of brown shoes . . . too bad they don't make a reddish brown monkstrap with broguing.

I love Alan Edmonds shoes. they fit me great and the quality is awesome

I have a pair of ECCOs and they're marginal quality at best. The shoe stays together and is comfortable, but the leather is of inferior quality and creases really badly.

I find Alden's to be the most comfortable "dress" shoe - but you'll want to find a pair with crepe soles or commando soles, as the rubber provides shock absorption not found in purely stacked leather. The commando sole isn't as clunky and depending on the model of shoe, doesn't stick out or take away from the "dressy" aspect of the shoe. Alden's aren't inexpensive, but they last a really
long time (10+ years of daily use if cares for properly) and the steel shank in the sole, provides a lot more support than Allen Edmonds, Ferragamo, etc.

They shouldn't be uncomfortable when you try them on (especially the crepe soled Alden's) but to experience the real magic of Alden's, you're going to have to wear them about 20-30 time. Magic turns into disbelief after about 100 wears. As a long distance runner, the comfort of the shoes I wear from day to day are of extreme importance. I like Alden's so much and they're so good to my feet/legs - I wear them daily.

The challenge is finding the right size/last if you don't have an Alden dealer within driving distance, but the hassle is worth it

Try Herring Shoes. Excellent English shoes. They last a lifetime keeping their shape and quality.
Excellent service and delivers the world over

http://www.herringshoes.co.uk/index...MkcuBWw.2&utm_referrer=https://www.google.it/

Well, I went for a drive to check out what I thought were Ecco Atlanta wingtips, and ended up with . . . a different black dress shoe. I stopped by a Walking Company store, just to see what they had for walking shoes (and wondering if they had brown wingtips or something interesting). Well, what they had didn't inspire me . . . except that their house brand Abeo makes a black toe cap oxford. They market them as having built-in orthotics and "biomechanical design". It wasn't a bad looking shoe, although they looked like corrected-grain to my untrained eye. I then made the mistake of trying them on.

Short story - they are easily the most comfortable dress shoes that I have tried. The insoles are nice and cushioned, the arch feels good, and . . . well, that's about it. They won't win any awards from pretty much anyone for looks or quality, and the tan stitching is . . . I'm not sure how I feel about the tan stitching. But they felt good enough that I bought a pair and plan on returning the aforementioned Calvin Kleins. I figure that if I'm going to go with "disposable" shoes that I should go for the ones that feel really good. As I am still looking for a job on Seattle's Eastside, I bought them for $150 rather than waiting for a bigger sale.

The fact that the stitching looks like a J&M Melton is kind of cool, actually. Not nearly as shiny, either.



On a different note, the Ecco Atlantas weren't nearly as comfortable as my Ecco Seawalkers, so the last shoe on my "will probably buy at some point" would be Nordstrom's Calibrate Cusano double monk above. I figure that if Dappered.com likes them, they can't be all bad. Then I need to figure out what kind of belt would go with that . . . chili? I have a black belt from the Torino Leather Company on the way, so these shoes (and another Lorenzo Cana tie in purple) complete my charcoal suit/dress shoes & belt ensemble.

Except that I lost my black leather driver's/golf cap. If I can't find it, I shall have to order another one . . .

As I have grown older, my shoe size has increased. Gravity, I guess.

if you are interested in AE read up about their lasts and which will fit you best. If you can visit a outlet store and try then on. If not call a store and ask for the size and style you are looking for. They will find your shoe and ship to you from anywhere in the country. They will also give you great pricing.

The difference between lasts makes a shoe fit to it being you favorite pair of shoes.

The fifth Ave, and park Ave both run long and narrow.

The infamous shoe are now laced (bar lacing, with odd number of eyelets I went with the horizontal pass under eyelet #2 per "that website").

Thanks to this subsection of B&B, not only have I started browing various style blogs and actually paying attention to something called "bar lacing", but I have now actually gone to a website specifically devoted to shoelace tying. Yes, I am now completely insane. I forget the name, but it's the first one that pops up on Google search for shoelace tying with bars and has far, far more information than I dare to contemplate about shoelacing.