If the shoe is too tight, it's too tight!

I’D wanted a pair of yellow shoes for a long time. I just could never get the right shade of yellow and when I did, the size wasn’t right. It wasn’t until the other day when we visited my favourite shoe store that I finally got my yellow shoes. But before the purchase was a whole lot of drama. As we walked into the store, one of the store attendants rushed to our service. She asked what we were looking for and I politely said we were just looking at the shoes. That was my first mistake, I should’ve just told her we were looking around and went to the counter when we were ready to buy. So when I made my shoe intention known, she asked what kind of dress I wanted to wear the shoes with.

I wasn’t looking for shoes to wear with a particular dress – that’s never a reason for me to buy a pair of shoes. I prefer having the shoes and then decide what they work best with. Shoes, I believe, make or break an outfit – you just have to get them right.The store attendant started pulling out all sorts of shoes for me to try on – even those that were not in my size. She played the “some are big cuts” ticket on me. I was slowly getting agitated because I wasn’t really interested in all the shoes she was showing me. I just wanted my yellow shoes, which at this point she had given me a mustard pair which was a size too big.

The store attendant insisted that was the only pair of yellow shoes they had and I should try a light blue pair. The blue shoes had a shorter heel than I’d prefer but the design was just right. I really didn’t mind the light blue but the shoes were a little too tight. My feet were never going to stretch that pair. I hear a lot of people saying “it will stretch with time”. Wrong. It never does. Never make the mistake of buying a pair of shoes that’s not your size in the hope that it’ll stretch over time. That will just cause you unnecessary chest pains and put you under pressure to wear the shoes simply because they cost you money.

And you know very well what happens when you wear shoes a size too small. If you’re lucky to make it through an hour, after another hour you’ll be walking like you’ve got thorns in your feet. That would be the least graceful walk ever – you’ll look like a new born calf trying to find its feet. Besides the ugliness of it all, your ankles are badly affected by the ill-fitting shoes. They’ll have to contend with so much pressure as you try to relieve the pressure off of your toes and heels. You don’t need that kind of drama in your life, really.

After the store attendant tried to convince me to buy the light blue shoes, I decided I’d had enough. This was not their money, it wasn’t their feet and they definitely wouldn’t be stuck with an ill-fitting pair of shoes. I decided to have a look around the store myself, and guess what? I spotted the perfect yellow shoes. The shade of yellow was just right and the fit was tailor made for my feet. I just thought to myself – had I not decided to have a look around myself and had I let the store attendant do the picking for me, I would not have found my yellow bliss.

Stop relying so much on the store attendant. Remember, they’re trying to push sales. They’re in business and they really don’t care what happens to you after you leave the store – well, most of the time. Be honest with yourself – if the shoes are too tight, that’s it. They’re on your feet and only you can decide whether or not they fit. The same applies with clothes; look at yourself in the mirror and decide whether or not that clothing item works for your body. Don’t let the store attendant tell you it looks good when the voice in your head is telling you it looks crappy. May your shopping choices in 2017 come from a place of honesty. Take control of your shopping experiences and don’t buy rubbish!