Stylish Weatherproof Footwear?

Anonymous

Angie's post about her tall doc matens has got me thinking about a problem I will be facing in the next couple months. Living in San Diego the past 5 years has allowed me to wear mostly sandals and more delicate shoes. I will be moving to the Seattle area next month and now I have to figure out footwear. I will be fine the rest of my body but HOW will I keep my feet dry and still look stylish. These docs won’t work for my style…boho/soccer-mom and tall doc martins don’t go!

Any suggestions for stylish, weather-proof footwear? I can do low heels but prefer to keep my everyday footwear fairly flat. I picked up a pair of nice, mid heeled tall black boots in London in January but they are not what I have in mind for the everyday damp-proof life. I wear mostly bootcut jeans most days and do a LOT of walking and in/out of cars. HELP!

17 years ago

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7 replies

Latest reply was from Angie

Angie

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Fashion Stylist

Thanks Marlene. You’ll have instant Seattle YLF forum mates!

Lets start here: How much walking outside will you actually do? If you’re in the suburbs, you might find you’re in and out of the car most of the time, in which case your feet won’t get wet. If you’re an urbanite and you walk around a lot (like I do), that’s a whole different story. That requires a whole new foot and shoe philosophy. Either way, you’ll need to keep your feet warm.

17 years ago

Anonymous

Yes, I am in and out of the car a fair amount BUT we are going to be living in a neighborhood that will allow me to walk the kids back and forth to school each day. I will also be able to walk to the little downtown area. The reason we chose this neighborhood is because of the walk-ability of the area. So there will be much more walking around than most suburbanites do.

17 years ago

Angie

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Fashion Stylist

I hear you Marlene. Before we delve into the matter further, I have a few quezzies. Bear with me, there is method to the madness. I have clients with your needs and gone through this exercise several times.

o Will you wear fab wellies for brief amounts of time?
o Will you consider straight-cut and skinny jeans ?
o Will you wear Converse?
o Can you hold an umbrella or are the kids still young and you need both hands free?

17 years ago

Anonymous

No worries about the quezzies! I am hoping you can cut my shopping time down by several hours!

~ Yes, I would wear wellies for brief amounts of time
~ Yes, I will consider straight-cut and skinny jeans
~ Doubtful about Converse since I am not certain about the support they would provide my high (very high!) arches. Unless I can get my orthotics in there. Then they may be an option.
~ Umbrellas are a definite option. My oldest is 10 and refuses to hold my hand anymore (boo hoo!) but my youngest needs me to hold her hand. So I would have one hand free.

My thought is these shoes/boots will be all-day shoes. Shoes I can walk for miles in, still comfortable if I end up indoors for periods of time (in stores, in a classroom with the teacher for a bit etc ), and can withstand the constant dampness of trekking along the sidewalks. All this and still looking gosh-darn cute. Is that too much?

17 years ago

Angie

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Fashion Stylist

Great! Think about the following:

o Bootcuts and flared pants get wet in the rain if they’re the right length. Straight-legs and skinnies don’t.
o Skirts and dresses worn with knee high boots and hose in Autumn and Winter is another way of keeping your feet dry. That’s why tucking jeans into boots is ideal for our climate. That’s why it’s popular in Western Europe (similar climate).
o Converse are really good in the rain with straight leg jeans. Good rubber soles.
o Wellies are great for a quick trip with the kids in the rain. Pop them over boot cuts and commit to another shoe when you’re out and about in a drier place.
o Look at boot brands like Aquataila and La Canadienne. Most of their styles are weatherproof. It’s very strange that I actually don’t own a pair of either!

You’ll find that the rain in Seattle is light. It’s not tropical so the drops are small. You don’t get wet fast if you carry an umbrella. Also, the good news is that we have magnificent Autumns. The weather is fresh but beautiful and usually dry. It’s our Springs that are hard. They are very wet and cold. Winter is Winter and our Summers are absolutely perfect.

You’ll have to experiment with shoes. I start wearing closed shoes and boots with socks end September and don’t stop till May. But most people are sockless for shorter periods of time. I’m colder than the rest and love wearing closed shoes with socks. It will be very interesting to see how you go. Obviously we can chat more when you’re in the thick of it. This will hopefully get you started.

17 years ago

Anonymous

THANK YOU! This is great advise and will definitely head me in the right direction! I think my first step will be to look for some cute wellies since they will work with the bootcuts I already have.

I have heard good things about La Canadienne boots so I will probably invest in some of those later on in the season once the weather turns colder. I did a little online browsing and there were a couple styles that would look good with skirts and tights.

Like you, I get cold easily and if my feet are dry and warm, the rest of me is generally comfortable. Some of the shoes that were shown as "weatherproof" are mary jane style and the hole on top allows my foot to get wet and cold. So cute as these were, they would not work for me. But once I get moved, I will spend some time doing some serious shoe shopping and surely will have more questions. But wellies is a GREAT first step and will probably tide me over for the first little while.

17 years ago

Angie

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Fashion Stylist

There you go. Somewhat sorted. Don't leave boot shopping till too late - sizes go quickly.

17 years ago

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