Stylish shoes for large feet/calves?

McChubbin

Due to having humungously large feet that require me to shop for shoes and boots mainly in the men’s department, I’m sorely lacking in the “cute shoe” department.
Since I have a balance/co-ordination issue on account of having a hearing disability, my weight sifts from foot to foot rather than evenly being distributed so my shoes wear out ridiculously fast- I’m lucky if I can get 6 WEEKS out of a pair of cheap Penneys sneakers let alone 6 months.

When I invest in medium to good quality shoes, I have to pay upwards of €50-70, buy a man’s UK size 10 (or an 11 depending on brand and material) and within the space of a few weeks even with careful rotation, the shoes end up wearing out and falling apart.
The only exception to this rule is desert boots and Doc Martens, which are the only boots I’ve ever owned that have lasted me the longest.
My current pair are still holding steady after 3 years of near constant day to day use but are looking extremely dishivelled and distressed. As much as I love my Docs, I’m want to part with them and still can’t bring myself to trash them.
So I bought myself another pair at the price of €100 after haggling them down from €120. They’ve yet to be broken in and I know I’m in for at least two to three weeks of pain as the new shoes adapt to my feet.

The whole reason I’m sharing this post is just as a bit of a vent-or, to be more accurate- a sigh of exasperation over the fact that most shoes today are not made to withstand the wear and tear I put them through by no fault of my own.
As much as I love my Doc Martens, they’re not the most pretty of shoes and I’d LOVE to be able to strut my stuff in a pair of platform stackers but alas, my calves are too wide and chubby for the 20 hole Docs which breaks my heart as they look awesome and would be both functional and stylish.

Basically, I’m just fed up of wearing men’s shoes and I’m looking for something new.
Evans has some nice (if somewhat mumsy looking)boots from time to time when they bring out the fall line but as a person on a limited income I can’t always afford to shop in their stores.

If anyone knows of a good place in Dublin or indeed a website that delivers to here at a reasonable rate, please point me in the right direction. I’ve tried Googling “plus size shoes and boots” but all I find are ugly, dowdy monstrosities that look about as tough as a wad of tissue paper.
I need a strong sole that will hold up to extensive daily wear and tear but won’t make me look butch.

Just my two cents.

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

PhoenixParker

You might not like this answer, but have you tried the ranges targetted at drag queens?

McChubbin

PhoenixParker wrote: »

You might not like this answer, but have you tried the ranges targetted at drag queens?

That answer made me giggle.
I've looked on the likes of HowCool and even bought a pair of stackers off them but they were too tight in the calve and due to a labelling error I wound up with UK size 13 shoes instead of 10s.
Can you recommend some good sites?

lindtee

Evans do a wide feet/calves range and go up to a size ten http://www.evans.co.uk/en/evuk/category/shoes-250471?geoip=noredirect

Amazon seem to have a large amount of size 10s in women's shoes http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=sr_nr_p_6_2?rh=n%3A355005011%2Cn%3A!362350011%2Cn%3A1769609031%2Cn%3A1769798031%2Cp_n_size_three_browse-vebin%3A1919999031%2Cp_6%3AA3P5ROKL5A1OLE&bbn=1769798031&ie=UTF8&qid=1379014852&rnid=419151031 If you sign up for the newsletter you can get a further 20% off the price. You can sign up here

pow wow

Evans have a sale on their boots in stores at the moment (was in there today having a peek). Size 9 and up tend to be in good supply in the sales as there is less demand for them. Might be worth a look if you're near a branch, most of the ones I saw were under €40 today.

Links234

PhoenixParker wrote: »

You might not like this answer, but have you tried the ranges targetted at drag queens?

seriously wouldn't recommend that, the tat aimed at drag queens are usually fairly cheaply made and wouldn't be the least bit comfortable, because they're something for performance and not every day wear so they only need to be good enough to be worn for a few hours at a go. really not advisable for someone looking for everyday wear that'll last

AlbionCat

heard mention of http://www.cinderellashoes.ie today - they go a UK Size 12

McChubbin

Thanks very much for the replies,guys. Gonna check those links out now!

Links234

You might also want to check out http://eu.longtallsally.com/

dudara

For wide calf boots, I've bought several pairs from Duo Boots. I genuinely don't know if they do large sizes, but you could email and ask.

Boot prices are in the €200-€250 price range, but the quality is superb. All leather and really well made.

LittleFox

Simplybe.ie do shoes and boots in various widths and in calf sizes I find them great as ive thick muscular calves that normal boots never fit.