Original content: Essential Tips On How To Choose Wedding Shoes
After the wedding dress, the question of how to choose wedding shoes becomes the most important because they decide your balance and comfort level. Wedding shoes also lend sophistication and beauty to your overall look. So it is no surprise that many brides struggle with finding that perfect pair of shoes for the big day.
Many things to consider include the heel type and height, shoe design, embellishments, and how they match with your dress. And you will find all the tips on how to choose wedding shoes in this post. Need shoespiration? Keep reading.
Quick Navigation
- What’s Your Bridal Style?
- Choose Your Dress First
- How To Choose Wedding Shoes: Location Matters
- Do Not Be Afraid Of Color
- Heels Or Flats: What To Choose For Your Wedding Day?
- Think About Your Comfort During The Day
- Consider Your Budget In Advance
- What About Having An Extra Pair?
- Try Your Wedding Shoes On Before The Big Day
- How To Choose Wedding Shoes: Shopping Tips
Brides Often Ask
What heel height is best for a wedding?
If you are a bride comfortable in heels and wear them every day with ease, the best height for you is three to four inches. However, if you cannot deal with them, wear kitten heels or two and a half inches at most.
Do bridal shoes have to be white?
No, they don’t have to be, not even cream or ivory. While black isn’t a favorite bridal shade, you can wear any color of choice.
What’s Your Bridal Style?
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The number one rule of how to choose your wedding shoes is to consider the wedding theme. For instance, a bohemian wedding would love the ideas of Ankle booties, Peep toe pumps, Comfortable flats, Lace-up block heels, and Strappy flat sandals.
The best shades are neutral and made from lace vegan leather, and silk. If you are having a vintage wedding, embellished sandals, lace booties, peep toes, and flapper-inspired flats among others are perfect. However, rustic weddings which are more laid back would work with ideas like espadrilles, chunky platform heels, ankle strap sandals, block heels, and cut-out sandals made of fabric or real leather.
Now, modern weddings are on another wavelength with pointed-toe pumps, embellished details, stilettos, heeled mules, and an endless collection of metallic shades.
Choose Your Dress First
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How to choose women’s shoes for a wedding is by getting the dress first. The wedding dress must complement the shoes and not the other way round. The shoes complement the sophistication and formality of your dress style, color, length, and even the embellishment of your dress. And the only way to guarantee cohesion is by getting the dress first.
Also, brides that want to wear a shorter dress will opt for bolder statement shoes because they will be visible. The chosen shoes must attract attention, adding glitz, sass, and elegance to your overall look. Alternatively, brides wearing longer dresses would only have to worry about the peeping part and height of the shoes. So you can opt for almost anything.
How to Choose Wedding Shoes: Location Matters
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When choosing your wedding shoes, you must consider the location of the wedding. This will determine the heel type, material, and even colors to wear.
- Restaurant: At restaurant weddings, you can either play it up or down. Wear a high-heeled sandal, pump, or stilettos to give an elegant and sophisticated look. You may also opt for flats or kitten heels for a more laid-back look.
- House: In a house, go all out with casual-looking sandals or slippers. Alternatively, closed or open-toed shoes, mules, and loafers are perfect options.
- Chapel: For chapels, dainty sandals with intricate details, pimps, and colorful shades that match your wedding dress are some of the best options.
- Beach: You want to balance without sinking in the sand. You also want comfort, that’s why wedges, platform heels, or open-toed flat sandals are great options you can also wear slip-ons and still look a knockout.
- A park: Espadrilles, block heels, wedges, and platform shoes are great options for the park. Opt for leather in nude to black colors.
- Woods: there is no shoe idea better for the woods than leather booties. They are fashionable yet protective. Stay away from embellishment, bright colors, and fabric.
Do Not Be Afraid Of Color
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Traditional brides would love to stick to the classic ideas of white ivory, cream, champagne, and other nude tones. But do you know that your wedding shoes can be both functional and aesthetic? Add an accent to your overall look by embracing stunning shoe colors. Your best bet is to stick with a wedding brand because they always have the best shades for weddings. Choose the shoes as your something blue or opt for metallic which makes the best contrast against white dresses.
You may also pick your shoes according to your wedding color palette, wedding bouquet, or bridesmaid dress. The downside about choosing colorful shoes is that they cost more, but if you can afford them, why not? However, we love the fact that you can wear these shoes on and again.
Heels Or Flats: What to Choose For Your Wedding Day?
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Are you deliberating on how to choose the best shoes for your wedding? You don’t know whether to opt for heels or flats? Here are some things to consider. The first thing you must know is that the decision is entirely up to you. Then ask yourself some important questions.
- Do you find heels comfortable and how high?
If you find heels comfortable, then, by all means, go for high shoes. But if you struggle with balance, have sensitive hips and ankles, or experience discomfort, opt for lower heels or flat shoes. - What is your wedding theme and location?
Your wedding venue and theme will determine the shoe style. For instance, beach weddings would work with a wedge, platform, or block heels. However, modern wedding themes go with stilettos and pumps. - Do you want a boost to your height or prefer your original height?
If you are on the brief side, high heels are the perfect option, except if you don’t care for a height boost. The same goes for tall girls. You can wear heels and tower over everyone if that makes you comfortable and vice versa. - What is your dress style?
If you are wearing figure-hugging wedding dresses like the mermaid, strappy heeled sandals, pointed toes, and stilettos are perfect. However, flats can go with floor-length ball gowns.
Think About Your Comfort During The Day
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You might ask, where do I learn how to choose my wedding shoes? We got you covered. Choosing your wedding shoes starts with being authentic. Your wedding isn’t the time to experiment. Stick with your everyday options yet make them more sophisticated. Some parameters to consider…
- Right size: Know and stick to your specific size. Don’t go an inch above or beyond because you will be on your feet for most of the day. You want to avoid sores, pain, blisters, and discomfort.
- Correct style: All shoe styles are beautiful, but we always advise that the right style will do you good. For instance, if you are getting married in the summer, you want airy and spacious shoes with open toes and round toes. You would also prefer fabrics and other ideas over heavy leather.
- Right fit: It is also crucial that you secure the right fit by testing as many shoes as possible until you find the one. We always advise that slingbacks should be your top option. This way, you can adjust and hold them sung to your leg so they don’t fall. Also, the shape of your feet should determine shoe fit.
Consider Your Budget In Advance
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It is very important to factor in a specific amount for your shoes when you are planning your general wedding budget. This helps you have a projected amount to spend on your shoes. When you have a designated cost, it is easier for you to select shoes you love in that range. The stress is drastically reduced and decision-making becomes faster. We always appeal to brides that they stock with the mapped-out sum for shoes.
Alternatively, when you fail to create a shoe budget ahead of time, you may end up picking out shoes you cannot afford. This often leads to disappointment or spending above what you can afford.
What About Having An Extra Pair?
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Who says the bride can only have one wedding pair of shoes? Well, we have put that myth to rest by saying you can have as many as you like or can afford. Modern brides now wear more than one dress for the wedding, the same as shoes.
You can wear high heels for the ceremony and then flats at the reception. You will be doing more activities at the reception that require you to stand, so have a spare. Make sure it is fashionable and more comfortable than what you wore for the ceremony. Another plus is that your reception shoes can be in any color you love to complement your new dress. And even if you are not changing the dress, comfort matters.
Try Your Wedding Shoes On Before The Big Day
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One of the worst things that could happen to you is not buying your wedding shoes at the last minute. It is wearing them for the first time on the wedding day. Shoes have a way of surprising us and you don’t need that. Wear them a couple of times before the wedding. This helps the shoe mold to fit your feet. You would also know if it feels comfortable to wear or get returned.
Wear the shoes on covered surfaces and indoors so that they don’t scratch. Also, rock them to do some activities like cleaning, dancing or just walking around the house. The more you wear, the more comfortable you get.
How To Choose Wedding Shoes: Shopping Tips
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Before you go hunting down your dream wedding shoes, here are some tips that will help you both offline and online.
Offline Shopping
- Practice your walk in the shoes and around the store before purchase. If you feel even the least bit comfortable, dump it and move to the next one.
- Ensure to check the heel placement of the shoes before making payment. The heel must be directly beneath yours. If it is farther away, then you may need some support for maximum comfort.
- Go for pearl, metallic, and gold shades of shoes if you don’t want to wear the classic white and ivory colors. But if you are using different shoes for ceremony and reception, go all out on your reception shoe color.
Online Shopping
- Measure your feet using the website’s shoe conversion charts. This helps you minimize the possibility of buying the wrong size.
- Ensure to buy from platforms that you’ve had previous satisfactory dealing with. This helps you minimize the possibility of errors associated with a blind purchase.
- Study the customer reviews and return policy. This is the first thing to do before contacting the brand for purchase.
Finally, your wedding shoe selection depends largely on your style, budget, and preference. So we have curated the best tips on how to choose wedding shoes without hassle. The parameters covered include comfort, dress styles, wedding themes, and how to shop shoes online and offline. There is something for every bride in this post from modern to vintage. So get inspired and snag the perfect shoes before you attend your wedding dress fitting.
