Let’s talk about shoe shopping for a minute. As is generally the case with clothes shopping, you have a choice between on-line and in-person shopping. Also as usual, you have the choice between privacy and price; between quality and convenience. If you are new to CD shopping, you will probably feel best with on-line ordering but we will talk about both here.
In my little world a great pair of shoes is the most important part of the outfit. In fact, there are times (like right now as I write this) where shoes can be the only fem item. To an anatomy student this would sound odd, but shoes are very close to my heart. I have been shoe shopping for over 40 years and have wasted a great deal of money and experienced a lot of disappointment along the way. Maybe I can help you to avoid some of that. Read on.
Shopping in person: This can be quite an adventure. This is especially true if you like to try shoes on before you buy a pair. However, there are some time and place considerations with this just like anything else. Let’s assume that you dress in drab (guy mode). The shoe department at Macy’s can be very intimidating and I would not go there. However, Payless or DSW feels pretty comfortable. Nobody seems t
o pay you any attention as you pick up a pair of heels or flats and look at them. I do not feel as if I am on Candid Camera there. I have also discovered that the sales clerks are quite accustomed to cross dressers buying shoes at their little stores and might even engage you in polite conversation. But the issue isn’t so much picking out a pair as it is trying them on. To do this you have choices. You can simply try the shoes on right there in the women’s section and shut out your concern about being stared at. On the other hand, you can take the shoes (in
Seriously?? No, not seriously.
the box) to the men’s section and slip them on there with less notice. If we were all well-adjusted, secure guys we would not care what someone thinks since we will never see again, but we all have our issues, don’t we. Oh, yes; do wear knee highs or some form of hosiery. I f you wear your cotton guy socks, the shoes might not fit right later. Of course, this presumes that you will wear long pants on such a shopping adventure. It all seems rather complicated when you are really just buying shoes, but it turns the trip into an event.
Shopping on-line:
Oops! Guess again!
There are several advantages that on-line shopping offers over in-person shopping. Within the strictly personal dimension, it is stress-free as long as you have a place where you can receive boxes and not care about what the label says. On a more objective note, however, you are likely to get better quality shoes on-line. I still remember my first pair of good on-line shoes. I was amazed and thrilled by the feeling of soft luxury they gave me. I knew it was silly, but they also felt more feminine and more real. I cannot overstate the value of paying more for quality. In our case, there is often more involved than mere dollar value; there is the issue of feeling like we are shopping just as a woman shops and of wearing the very quality a woman wears. It makes a difference. There is a word of caution to be injected here: know your proper shoe size. Not knowing it can become very expensive. Read my blog that deals with shoe sizing under the “Shoes and Boots” category. It can save you both money and frustration.
