While many brides to be focus on the wedding dress as the centre piece of the big day, choosing the right bridal shoes to go with your wedding dress is just as important. Your shoes do show in many of the photos and you want to be able to select the right sort of shoes that will be comfortable, pretty, and, of course, fit into your budget.
Besides thinking about how the shoes will look in the photos and as you walk down the aisle, you need to consider how you feel wearing the shoes for the entire day. A bride who has to take her shoes off during the reception because they hurt her feet misses out on some of the joy of the day. Imagine trying to do the bridal waltz in your bare or stockinged feet, simply because you chose the wrong sort of shoes for your wedding day.
Selecting the Size of the Heel
You will be standing in your bridal shoes for a large part of the day, during the wedding service, for many of the photos, and even during the wedding reception as you walk around to spend time with each of your guests, and dancing the night away with your darling groom, so you need to be sure you are comfortable in your shoes. Unless you have practiced wearing very high heels for long periods of time, or regularly wear high heels every day at work, you may want to consider choosing a low heel or a medium heel.
Matching Your Dress
You also need to consider the style of your dress and the length of the dress when selecting the size of heel you want for the wedding shoes. If you are getting your dress made or altered to fit exactly by a dressmaker, you should take your wedding shoes to the fittings, so that the dressmaker can ensure
the hem is the right length to show off your stunning wedding shoes.
You need to match your shoes to the colour of your dress (either ivory white or cream) or have your shoes dyed to match the colour of your accessories to really make a statement on the day. If your dress has sparkles on it, you may want to choose a metallic look or a shoe with matching sparkly pieces on it.
If your dress has bows, a matching bow across the elegant toe of your shoes will look lovely.
Catering for the Wide Foot
Women who have a wider foot will find that some bridal shoes with a narrow, pointy toe become very uncomfortable quite quickly. If you have a wider foot, look at bridal shoes that have a wider toe design or even beautiful open toed sandal style shoes that will not cut across your toes. Designer shoes that have an alterable strap can cater for feet of every type, from narrow to wide.
Getting Comfortable
Most women spend thousands of dollars on their wedding trousseau and forget the simple comfort a few dollars could bring. Invest in some clear heel cushions, which will give you support and additional comfort throughout the day, enabling you to continue to smile while spending the day on your feet. Heel cushions can be inserted into many different styles of bridal shoes and can add a great deal of comfort to your day.
Wear your bridal shoes around the house for a few hours in the weeks before your big day, so you know they will be completely comfortable on the day. New shoes often take a little bit of time to stretch exactly to suit your foot, so wearing your shoes in before the big day is important.
Preparing for Swelling Feet
On any day where you are busy, as well as stressed and emotional, your feet will tend will swell. An afternoon wedding in summer will ensure your feet are more likely to swell and this will make tight shoes extremely uncomfortable. When selecting your bridal shoes, choose a size that gives your feet plenty of
room to breathe and can allow for swelling on the day. A tight fitting shoe on an ordinary day will become extremely uncomfortable on your wedding day, if your feet do swell a bit.
Your bridal shoes are an important feature of your entire wedding outfit and selecting the right shoes will ensure you have a wonderful time throughout the ceremony and the reception, without having to endure the agony of sore feet on your special day.
