Show shoes

Hi Noel,

Having had experience walking and standing on hospital floors
(concrete!) for 12 hour shifts I’ve found that the only type of shoes
that work for me are Naots. The pair I have now are black lace-up
oxfords, over a year old, look new, are soft as glove leather but
sturdier, and are now my general everyday walking shoes. Love 'em!
Not cheap, but here for the long haul! I’m not associated with the
company in any way, but gosh, I love them! BTW, I’ve been the
Birkenstock route as well - great shoes, but I can’t keep the cork
soles on them! The insoles on the Naots are removable cork beds so
you also get remarkable support. Good luck!

Best,
Sue/Vancouver

Noel, the Stones had it right: what a drag it is getting old. I’m
about to buy another pair of Dansko clogs to keep my feet happy. Or
happier, anyway. A health care friend of mine says that Dansko clogs
are what surgeons wear in the operating room where they’re standing
for a couple hours at a time. What I like about Dansko is that the
thick sole is some kind of durable, resilient rubber. Better, I
think, than those “white athletic shoes” which don’t have enough
structure to support your feet. Between a pair of Danskos and those
rubber matts, you should be in better shape for the next show :slight_smile:

Barbara

PS If you get a pair of Danskos, please do let me know how you like
them.

Hi Noel,

I have a pair of Boho-elegant black leather almost-flat sandals made
by Stonefly. I bought them for for doing shows at Arts Benicia,
where the floors are cement. They have a gel pack in the heel! They
aren’t perfect-- obviously, they won’t work outdoors in “weather,”
and
they don’t completely keep my back from aching–but they’re the best
compromise I’ve found. I wear them with black “hose” (usually silk
socks), so they don’t really read as sandals, but my feet can breathe
and they’re easy to slip off for a rest.

I did a quick search, and this was the closest I could come to what
I have:

http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/12781383/c/5291.html

Mine are slides and more elegant, but I bet these would work.

Good luck!
Lisa Orlando
Albion, CA, US

Well, Noel, ugly is relative!

Crocs.com

The beach or cayman come in a variety of bling, bling colors. You
will feel like you are wearing your most comfy slippers wherever you
go. I’ve been wearing them for several years now and wouldn’t do a
show without them. More and more artists are using them (and
matching outfits to go with bling, bling).

Try a pair and get beyond ugly! My first pair are now bald (beware
of bald as they are deadly on wet surfaces…I should throw them
out). To shine them up use armour-all and they will look like new.

Donna:)

I’m on my feet a lot at school, usually cement floors. After years
of knee damage playing tennis and now knee replacement good shoes
are essential. I wear Dansko (loafer style and sandals) but just
found Masai Barefoot Technology (MBT). The latter are very pricey,
nubuck athletic style, look fine with work clothes and casual. They
have thick, rocker soles with varying hardness and make you align
your body for less stress on joints. I’m doing a show wearing them
for the first time this weekend.

Guess I'll speak up. My Birkenstocks are the only thing I will wear
for shows or any other occasion that keeps me on my tootsies. That
includes hours in the kitchen, which has a ceramic tile floor -
just like working on concrete! They're also de rigueur for
tramping through the Tucson shows... and YES, I'm going! Got my
plane tickets and car reservations made. 

Absolutely right on! After years of complaining about being on my
feet all day, every day, my wife surprised me with a pair of
Birkenstocks, which I at first did not want to wear…odd looking, I
thought. To keep the peace, I tried them and they killed my arches
for the first couple days. Then, my back pain disappeared, for good!
hey are ALL that I will wear now and that has been ten years ago.
Make SURE you get the right size!

Wayne

There a couple of things that no one seems to have mentioned that
will also help greatly…

Arch supports or heel cups depending on your areas of problem. If
you find a shoe that has arch supports and they feel sufficient then
you don’t need this. If not go out and look in the pharmacy section
of you local store and get some kind of shoe insert. I personally
like Dr. Scholl’s gel ones. They are a must in crocs which have NO
arch support.

Another thing is get a pair of support socks/hose and get them on
the 1st thing in the morning. They help keep the blood from pooling
in your feet.

Everyone else has given you the good shoe brands to buy. I don’t
worry about the $$ too much because they are good shoes and they
will hold up for you. After all… you are worth it!!

I adore my Danskos. I got them when I was working 8 to 10 hours
shifts in retail, on cement floors. GREAT shoes.

Noel - I know your pain! I am a recent convert to the
sort-of-funny-looking but VERY comfortable ‘Crocs’, you may have seen
them around, they are made from some kind of foam and shaped like a
clog…Oh yeah, and they come in a wide array of funky bright colors.
(but also black if you want to be subtle). You might feel a little
silly in them at first, but I’ll bet you will grow to think they even
look good once you feel how nice and comfy they are! I have a major
problem with my heels getting sore from standing up a lot (even just
from a few hours in the kitchen or studio, after a whole day at a
show I used to be practically crippled) but with the Crocs my whole
foot stays happy all day long. I have started seeing nurses wearing
Crocs lately, and waitstaff in restaurants, and you know THEY know
whats comfortable!

I also recommend some pairs made by the brand Keen…I have the
style called the ‘Boston’ which is a simple lace up shoe made of soft
leather. The foot bed of these is very comfortable as well and I
often wear them to shows. The Crocs will only set you back about $30,
and the Keens run about $100. I’m sure you can find them online, and
ina lot of stores these days (esp. outdoor stores like REI). Good
Luck in your pursuit of Happy Feet!

My new favorite saying? : “I’m too young to be this old!”

Catlin
Catlin Blair Designs

Noel - you bet, standing for days on end is hard. I take three pairs
of shoes to a show, start with one, change about half way thru the
day to the next, Start the next am with the third and then start the
rotation over. If it might be cold, take wool sox. My personal
preferences aRe: Birkenstock sandals, Dansko clogs, and New Balance
non-white athletic shoes. If hot, the birks are perfect - I have two
pair, one with the slightly softer sole material, and even when cold,
I wear them with sox - kinda dweeby - but my feet are happy, and I’m
smiling. My sister absolutely loves Crocs for shows. We both use the
rubber mats - it makes your feet move as well as cushion them. Sissy
paves her whole booth with mats and the customers love it - you can
see her hand painted black and white photography on marystaby.com .
We have a great time doing shows together.

Judy Hoch

Try Z-Coils. zcoil.com. They cured my plantar fascitis (sp?) when
nothing else worked. 

Ditto. Ditto. Ditto! I had severe plantar fasciitis. Note the past
tense! Z-Coils saved my feet. They’re not cheap, but they’re worth
every penny!

By the way, I think they can only be found at Z-Coil stores. At
least when I bought my pair, that was the case.

Beth

I vote for Dansko’s too. They are my show shoe, my everyday show, my
go to shoe. My son has a pair that have saved his feet while being a
waiter and bartender. They come in a variety of styles. Nurses &
doctors swear by them. I can stand all day in them. I’ve tried
running/walking shoes but they kill my feet. Go with the Dansko’s.
They are wonderful.

hth
Carla

Barbara, you asked about Dansko shoes, I bought a pair and liked
them… until I bought one, then two pairs of Merrells, I am looking
at buying pairs 3 and 4 now.

Marlin in 70 degree Denver, although I think we may have seen the
last of Summer.

Karen, your post is the only one that recommends some positive body
work that helps the feet. It is amazing that we ignore the importance
of the parts that are at the support base of the whole body.

A couple of years ago, I had “Corrective Foot Manipulation” over a
period of a year, because of the pain in my left foot, of many year’s
standing. It was a combination of podiatry, physiotherapy and
chiropody techniques, and actually realigned the bones in my foot -
shown clearly with before and after Xrays. I had to learn to walk
differently, and do certain exercises to strengthen the right
muscles. This has made a huge difference to my whole life, and was
well worth the expense and time involvement. It gets to the root of
the problem, rather than just supporting an already bad bone
alignment (usually caused by poor posture, bad genetics, or
injuries) as with orthopaedic inserts.

Yoga helps too. I haven’t done shows, but I often think while I’m in
town shopping that it would be nice to be able to go somewhere and do
a shoulder stand or headstand - amazing in helping you to revive when
you are tired. Perhaps jewellers should agitate to have a little
recovery room for such activities. Sounds weird, I know, but it
works.

Oh, yes, I was glad to see someone recommended Naots. They’re great,
and I live in them.

Regards
Elizabeth Gordon-Mills
South Australia

It was fun reading folks’ recommendations on comfy shoes. I would
add to beware of Aerosoles unless you use a gel liner (or something).
Some years ago, I wore a pair of very comfy Aerosole flats when doing
some library research at the University of Chicago. I walked 13
blocks on cement sidewalks, and the next morning I had a bruised heel
(or whatever) that took two years to entirely heal. I’ve not had that
experience before or since. The insidious part was that the shoes
felt perfectly comfortable the whole time. I still have those shoes,
but they now have gel heel pads in them and I don’t wear them for
long walks.

Judy Bjorkman

Ecco shoes are Danish not Italian - go to ecco.com to see all the
styles. I have several pair, and they are really comfortable, but
fairly expensive for wearing at shows. I’ll stick to my Dansko clogs
and Birkenstocks. They are sturdy and comfortable and cost about
$100 a pair and last forever.

Judy Hoch

I like ballet slippers. Not toe shoes. They are your feet as they
were designed. They are light. They protect against small ground
flaws. Their flexibility conforms to imperfecions. (I’ve done
mountain climbing in them.) You can snooze in them if your feet are
cold. Do not get the split soles. Capezio makes a nice one. I think
that when you add a sole with thickness or a heel you make yourself
crazy. I have no corns, bunions or calluses.

I wear them 24/7 (not in bath). 365 a year.

Just my experience.

Justine

Donna,

Well, Noel, ugly is relative! Crocs.com 

I second this. I’ve been wearing green crocks every time I have a
show or do house cleaning at the shop. They are like heaven and my
feet are very grateful. And colour ads a bit extra.

Danuta Cieslukowska
Gold Cast
www.goldcast.ca

I have a few waitress friends, along with a few others buds that
have foot problems and they all swear by Dansko shoes. I’ve never had
a pair myself so I’m afraid this is just hear-say.

Has anyone tried the products from a Good Feet store?