A shoe question ...

[mlsdesigns]

OK, so I need 18thC shoes, I don't have anything suitable! I have my gorgeous little black leather shoes that look like they escaped from Godys (and I have a spare pair I bought when they went on sale so I could still have my amazing shoes even after they wear out!!) and I have my white leather jazz boots that work really well for 19thC day wear. I bought some really cheap white ballet flats and added some ribbon ties to cross round the ankle and HUGE rosettes on the toes to match my new Regency ball gown.
But WHAT do I do for 18thC?! I used to wear some shoes from school that kind of looked OK, but they were a bit small so not very comfy and no good for dancing or long wearings! My friend from dancing ordered some shoes from India for her and her daughters, they came, and were miles too small! We all tried them all on, the ones she got for her youngest (who's feet are a UK size 12 or 13!!) fit her and Clare, with size 6 and 5 (UK sizes) feet!! They look really nice, except the 'latchets' is just one strip over the instep with the buckle slid on, she's planning to get them to change that out for proper latchets when she orders the next lot in the RIGHT sizes, but the fact they made so many mistakes with the sizing really puts me off, even though they're very very cheap (work out to be about £30!)
I've been looking at Fugawee, and the gorgeous red walking shoes by Burnley and Trowbridge, and also the new Regency shoes by Robert Land, which are quite tempting, mostly because of the lower heel. I often have trouble with heels, I don't wear them in modern shoes, but will the lower heel still look pretty? And I think I'd go for the green, but not sure, the red's pretty too! And I bet I could put a wide ribbon through the eyelets instead of the matching grosgrain for a really pretty look :)
Now to my question! What do you guys wear, and do you like them?! Of course, unless I manage to get some money some how, none of them should really be happening anytime soon!! I've had a naughty week on ebay!

Comments

[chloeandrudy.livejournal.com]

Megan, are you only wearing the jazz boots for indoor dancing? Do you wear them outside too? I keep wanting to order a pair but they would be worn outside too and I don't dance, so that keeps me from buying them.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Yes, I wear them outside, I wore them this winter for our dance demos too, just wore an extra pair of socks! I also wore them in the summer when we played battledore and shuttlecock in wet muddy grass, they're holding up really well actually. I have been thinking of getting extra soles for them, either the stick on ones or I'll take them to a cobbler. And since I got white, the first pair are a bit stained now, so I'm going to look into dying them, (I got 3 pairs they were so cheap on ebay!!!)

[chloeandrudy.livejournal.com]

That's good to know.
Oh, on ebay? I thought the $23US at the website was pretty good.

[chloeandrudy.livejournal.com]

I forgot, I bought a pair of shoes from Burnley & Trowbridge recently, and I love them. I just don't have the buckles for it yet. It's the wider footbox so lots of toe wiggle room.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thanks for that, I have quite wide feet, and when I was little we always had to wear 'sensible' shoes, so I like a lot of toe room :)

[chloeandrudy.livejournal.com]

Same here. Angela had me send her a tracing of my foot and they were custom made to fit me. They're not as dainty as I'd like them but since they're under a skirt, and comfort comes first.....

[(Anonymous)]

If I lived over on your side of the pond, I would get Sarah Juniper to make me shoes. Expensive, but oh so pretty. Otherwise, fewer people I know have trouble with shoes from Burnley & Trowbridge than from Fugawee, but I've worn both with no issues. Email Angela at B&T Burnley & Trowbridge Co. to ask her some questions. (You might be able to exchange them when you come to Williamsburg if they don'f fit quite like you want.) She has some good friends in England who do a lot of reenactments and living histories. She may be able to put you in touch with them to see possibly some of her shoes first hand.

[marcine.livejournal.com]

Oops! I forgot to sign in.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

I wondered who it was!
I think the B&T ones may be what I end up going for, I showed them to my mother and she liked them best, even if they are more expensive :)

[ktlovely.livejournal.com]

I really like Fugawee's shoes. I wore the Anna style for two years when I worked at the fort up north (seen here), and I bought the Connie style for myself once I quit working there. I believe the heel on the Anna is 2", but I never had a problem with the height. And I'm clumsy and accident prone and NEVER wear heels IRL. :)

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Hmm, if you wore them fro 2 years they must have been comfy! The website says the Anna is right and left and the Connie is straight lasted, did you have trouble with the straight lasts?
It's usually the high heel putting pressure on the ball of my foot that gives me problems in modern shoes, but they also usually have silly low uppers and you have to keep them on your feet with your toes, or they're a tiny heel and I fall off them :p

[ktlovely.livejournal.com]

The straight lasts aren't too hard to get used to; They look a little funny to modern sensibilities, but I haven't noticed a problem. The heel is low enough that I don't typically have any trouble with the ball of my foot, and has enough surface area that my balance is still pretty good. I do wear inserts in my historical shoes mostly, so that also helped with cushioning and support, in both straight and r/l lasted shoes.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Do you get a size bigger so you can fit the inserts in as well?

[ktlovely.livejournal.com]

I usually wear anything from 8-9 US sizes, and I have pretty wide feet. I believe I got a 9-wide in Fugawees. I already had buckles, so the Fugawee brand was significantly less expensive than, say, B&T and Godwin. Also, at the time, I didn't know many other places that sold shoes, so I just went with what I knew already worked. :)

[peacockdress.livejournal.com]

If you have money, pay Andy Burke to make you some shoes. He's a sweetie and makes surprisingly comfortable period shoes for a good price.

If you don't have money, I'd make it a project.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Nope, don't have money, if I did I'd snap a pair of B&T red ones in a heartbeat I think :)
I've had Loren's 'how-to' in my memories for ages, it's just finding the shoes to cover that's the hard bit :D

Because I am a shoe whore!

[sarahnucci.livejournal.com]

I've spent years breaking in my fugawees - I think that rqavalon is the one person I've heard who really loved their fugawees. Yeah, I know, there are obviously other people out there who love them, but personally I'm a big fan of my B&T. I have both mules and walking shoes (in red) that I love and have never had a problem with them. I have a couple of other pairs of theirs that I am eyeing. I also have seveal pairs of Robert Land's - and I have the new green slippers on their way to me. I hope to pick those up at the post office on Saturday! I love my Robert Lands - and I've been using snow seal on them and they are fantastic. I'm expecting the slippers to be just as good but need insoles like every other pair of historic shoes I own. If I could only buy one pair - it would be my B&T regular flat buckle shoes in red. Of course Katherine will tell you that I never met a pair of historic shoes I didn't like - which is true, I think I have as many historic ones as modern ones!

Re: Because I am a shoe whore!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thank you for your input! since you have all of them you can compare like with like, very very helpful. Now you justification for your shoe collection ;)
I hope you do get your slippers on Saturday, then you can post photos! (hint hint!!)
I love red shoes! They're so cute, and they go with everything!

[girliegirl32786.livejournal.com]

I have the Fugawee Connie shoes and I love them!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thank you for that! I really like the look of them, (and the price!!!) I'm trying to get hold of them to see if they have any in my size, but so far no reply to my email and the overseas number doesn't work :(
Did you have much trouble with the straight lasts? I'm hoping if I put arch supports in they might be more comfortable.

[girliegirl32786.livejournal.com]

The straight lasts are surprisingly comfortable. Once you break them in, you hardly notice.