Vintage for the un-petite

[Reenie]

Hi guys,
I need some help!!

You guys all look so fab and I have been gleaming bits of info from you all for a while now- make up and hair tips are great!

My problem is my feet- what to do with wide size nines (42 euro)? I have quite a few nice dresses now, i can do the make up. still ahving a dilemna with he hair but i just cant find anything nice to go on my feet, and it ruins everything without the right shoes....or jacket,.,, and thats a whole other problem, i dont knowwhat goes with what.

i love the femininity and glamour of the 40's and 50s, but i just dont think i could pull it off cuz i feel so huge and you all look so cute and confident. style down to a T.

If any of you canhelp me out- the summer is approaching and i want to wear my daydresses with pride, not be embaressed cuz all i have for shoes are ballet pumps. !

thanks!:eusa_doh:
xxx

 

[Fleur De Guerre]

I hear you on the big feet, apparently some women are finding over here that they have suddenly gone from an 8 to a 9 due to Eurpoean sizing - I've worn 42s that were marked an 8 before, I won't pretend I understand!

If you head on over to www.torrid.com you'll find some great shoes, load of vintage inspired ones, and they are all wide fit. I especially love the white and black bow wedges on this page - http://www.torrid.com/store/nodePage.asp?LS=0&RN=1028

If you measure your feet you may have luck at Remix - www.remixvintage.com as they do shoes up to a UK9, but I wear them in a 9 and I'm usually an 8 so you have to be really sure. If you do want to try a pair of Remix wedges, don't order from them direct as you will be charged loads of customs/VAT, get them from a ovely fella called Colin at www.johnsonshoes.com - he makes them up and seels them over here, and he just returned from America with 6 suitcases full apparently, so he should be well stocked!

 

[LadyDeWinter]

Hello Reenie, I am definitely un-petite. I am 6 '' tall and I take UK shoes size 9. I once ordered the Boulevard shoe from remix, they fit true to size and they are very comfortable. I also ordered the Oxford Velveteens from dancestore.com. They are comfy too. Of course, I will propably never get an original pair of shoes. But I don't mind. As I said, there are some nice repros.

 

[Tourbillion]

Hi, I am also 6' tall and wear a size 10.5 to 11 in US shoes. So I too am "not petite".

The remix shoes were perfect in the 11, and I've been lucky enough to buy some vintage shoes (mostly wedges).

Also, with summer dresses, espadrilles are perfectly appropriate, and many women wear them with vintage (unless the dress is really fancy). I noticed that my grandmother wore a lot of flat sandals (with socks!) with her summer dresses in vintage photos, so if you can find photos of ladies vintage sandals, you can get an idea of what people wore with what.

I also ordered some saddle shoes from saddleshoes.com you can check them out, they ship to the UK or EU. and saddle shoes are perfect for casual looks too. It seems strange to me to wear them with a dress, but lots of girls wore them to high school with their cotton dresses, or wool skirts.

The big problem is finding nice shoes to go with suits or evening dresses. However the baby doll pumps at Remix would work perfectly, likewise check out the Aris Allen swing shoes (especially the oxfords and the rugcutters) at www.dancestore.com, they might be available in Europe too.

There are also strappy wedges out today that look like vintage ones and they are available in bigger sizes, they are also appropriate for day dresses. They might be less expensive that Remix or Aris Allen shoes too.

Last but not least, you can check the clearance section, last season round toe pumps with platforms and thick heels were the rage. I bought a pair at Target for about $19.99. I know you probably don't have Target near you, but the shoes are pretty good replicas of the baby doll shoes (like the ones on remix's site, but about $100 less).

 

[Reenie]

thanks so much for your help, those saddle shoes were really nice and i think i might have to order some for my boyfriend! I like to coffee and cream ones....
yum

 

[Sweet Polly Purebred]

I'm in the same boat, wide 9's .. and now that I'm in Europe it's so confusing.

TUK aren't really vintage but they do some nice, affordable vintage inspired dress shoes that are true size 9 with ample width.