What shoes can I wear when my feet are too small for my height?

[Noblearistocrat]

I'm probably one of the only people in the world with this issue, as I haven't been able to find anything regarding this online.

My issue is that I'm 181 cm(5'11) but I have US 7/EU 40 size feet.

This wouldn't be an issue in itself. However, when I wear my size, my feet look ridiculously small compared to my body, to the point where people have noticed it and said it multiple times. Got lots of comments like "how are your feet that tiny, looks ridiculous", etc.

It's especially bad when wearing bulky shoes, as they make the problem even more apparent. The next issue I have is that despite my feet being short, they are kind of wide and very "high" which makes it hard to even wear most shoes my size, as my feet stretch them out/push up on them too much.

The issue I have struggled with and found no solution for for many years of my life at this point, is what shoes can I wear that will fit me, while not looking ridiculous?

The only solution I have found is simply wearing sneakers one or even two sizes up. But this is not sustainable. I'm sick of it.

Is there anyone here with a similar issue? It's such a torture to have this annoying problem next to all the other problems I have. I wish i could just order a size of shoes in my size and be done with it.

And no, it's not just in my head. Lots of people, including girlfriends etc. have commented on it. I even had a girlfriend who told me I should just buy shoes 2/3 sizes larger and accept that they are too big because my feet look way too small on my body(not in a mean way, she was giving me style advice).

 

[KotaB]

I'm probably one of the only people in the world with this issue, as I haven't been able to find anything regarding this online.

My issue is that I'm 181 cm(5'11) but I have US 7/EU 40 size feet.

This wouldn't be an issue in itself. However, when I wear my size, my feet look ridiculously small compared to my body, to the point where people have noticed it and said it multiple times. Got lots of comments like "how are your feet that tiny, looks ridiculous", etc.

It's especially bad when wearing bulky shoes, as they make the problem even more apparent. The next issue I have is that despite my feet being short, they are kind of wide and very "high" which makes it hard to even wear most shoes my size, as my feet stretch them out/push up on them too much.

The issue I have struggled with and found no solution for for many years of my life at this point, is what shoes can I wear that will fit me, while not looking ridiculous?

The only solution I have found is simply wearing sneakers one or even two sizes up. But this is not sustainable. I'm sick of it.

Is there anyone here with a similar issue? It's such a torture to have this annoying problem next to all the other problems I have. I wish i could just order a size of shoes in my size and be done with it.

And no, it's not just in my head. Lots of people, including girlfriends etc. have commented on it. I even had a girlfriend who told me I should just buy shoes 2/3 sizes larger and accept that they are too big because my feet look way too small on my body(not in a mean way, she was giving me style advice).

You mentioned that your feet are too wide and high for your size. Your arches are the most important part of the shoe that needs to fit comfortably, forget about your length. I have odd shaped feet myself and used to go by length and hated how small my feet looked. Not because I was tall but because I'm quite a rotund fellow. I went to a legit men's shoe-store and a knowledgeable gentleman showed me the error of my ways. With high arches I have to size up anyway to get a comfortable fit. Have you tried casual leather shoes or are you talking about stretching out sneakers?

 

[Vox & Leo Shoes]

In addition to KotaB's incredible response, you could try wearing boots with sleeker silhouettes as opposed to sneakers which generally look "stubbier" because of the cushioning. Magnanni (https://www.magnanni.com/shoes/boots/quiroga-brown.html) has great lasts for their boots, but are quite expensive. Might be worth trying out if this problem is really getting to you. We definitely don't suggest wearing the wrong shoe size to solve an aesthetic issue, that's not good for your feet.

 

[Sfroide3]

With smaller feet you want to avoid everything that can make shoes look smaller like toe cap, heavy broging, etc. You want to emphasize the length of the shoes to compensate for your actual "short" feet. You need to avoid round shoes at all cost. You need to focus on chiseled shoes with more length.

Furthermore, to help increase the visual size of your shoes you need to wear slimmer leg opening. A wider one will just completely hide your shoes and make your feet look even smaller.

This is going to help your feet look longer:

BROWN DERBY SHOES 80449 RAIN

DERBY SHOES IN BROWN...

www.carminashoemaker.us

While this is going to do the opposite:

Fifth Avenue Cap-toe Oxford Dress Shoe | Men's Dress | Allen Edmonds

Handcrafted Since 1922. Shop the Men's Fifth Avenue Cap-toe Oxford Dress Shoe by Allen Edmonds. Luxury footwear, apparel & leather goods. Free shipping on orders $100+

www.allenedmonds.com

You just gotta be smart in your choices. You can also decide to buy choose 1/2 size bigger than what you would pick and add a thicker insole and wear thicker socks too. You just don't want to be stupid and buy 2 size up and have feet and back problems in the future.

 

[MRAnd]

Excellent advice from Sfroide3.

Sartiorial Talks has a 3 part series on shoes () and in at least one of the segments, Hugo discusses this issue, as well as the opposite issue where feet are too long/wide. Definitely consider a sleeker shoe, perhaps a zip ankle boot will further extend the long line vs shoe/sock line. Perhaps a chisel toe vs round toe.

Sneakers in general will not be your best option. However, if you are committed to the sneaker, consider something like Common Projects (or a good imitation) that has a long slim line including the sole. That assumes, of course, that they will fit your foot.

The other thing you can do is to make sure your bottoms are slim in the leg and minimal to no break.