I’ve never had a pair of shoes that didn’t give me blisters and the ones I wore yesterday gave me some doozies, and they were such sweet and innocent shoes too.
I bought another pair of ballet flats (surprise) on the weekend, a lovely pair of tortoise shell effect ones from Target for AU$30, a great deal. Then I wore them to work yesterday.
Now I normally do quite a bit of walking on my way too and from work, 15 minutes to the train station from home, 15 minutes to work at the other end, a bit more at lunch, and then the same on the way home again. I knew 5 minutes after I left home, I’d made a mistake not bringing another pair of shoes to walk in, saving the new ones for swanning around the office in. Once I’d made it to the station, I put band-aids on my heels and hoped for the best. By the time I’d made it to the office, I was walking funny. Not a good look.
The way home was even less fun as it was pouring down with rain, and I seemed to be walking around in little portable puddles.
Needless to say, today I’m wearing boots. Thankfully they rub in different spots, so I shouldn’t have blisters on my blisters.
Does anyone have advice on how to stop my feet getting blisters in the first place?
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25 chic comments:
I've heard putting vaseline on the spots before it starts rubbing can help...but I've never tried it!
Hi there, US shoe-wearing reader reporting in.
The only thing that works for my feet is to buy really, really expensive shoes. I have big, hard to fit feet with high insteps and high arches, and new shoes always used to give me horrible blisters and scars (and on one memorable occasion, a massively infected wound when I just kept wearing a pair in the hopes that they would break in).
I order these hilariously expensive shoes from Germany, maybe two pairs a year,Trippens, and for the most part I've stopped getting blisters. Their international service is very good and the leather-lined ones last forever. I used to have a couple of pairs of Campers that fit well, but then they changed their lasts.
I'm fortunate in that I don't have to have extremely formal, delicate, lady-like shoes for work, and I don't know what I'll do if that ever changes. Bleed all over my shoes, I assume.
First, never try to break in new shoes when you will be sweating in them - hot or humid days. Second, if your shoes can take it, do try to wear them wet or out in the rain. They will stretch much more quickly. If there is a problem spot, try to wet it and/or stretch it out with your fingers. Wear a bandaid over anyplace you feel it rubbing for the first few times you wear them. Wear socks if you can. Be prepared with emergency shoes, moleskin, or bandaids in your bag.
Maybe you can tell I've had this problem before.
Karina, good idea witht he vaseline, I might try that.
Hey Frowner, I LOVE the Trippens shoes. Aren't they wonderful! I think if you ever had to work in a formal office environment you could totally wear the Penna or X+OS styles. Fabulous!
Jen, oooh I've done the thing with breaking in when sweating, not good. I though the shoes were broken in, but when I took them on holidays to 35 degree days and 90% humidity, I completely wrecked my feet. FOOLISHLY I didn't take any other pairs of shoes (I was traveling light) and so I couldn't even rest my feet. Not doing that again.
I have this problem ALL the time! Recently, I did the same thing as you and wore a new pair of leather flats to work without bringing a second pair with me. By the end of the day I had over ten blisters on my feet, all of which were bleeding. It took a week and a half for my feet to heal.
I've started using the Band-Aid Blister Block stick, which acts as a lubricant for the areas on your foot that tend to rub. I've also started wearing those little nylon socklets that just barely cover your feet--the ones I bought have padding on the back of the heels and cover most of the areas where I tend to blister. This seems to help--I can wear the shoes for most of the day, and can start to break them in.
It sucks to be me--I also have arthritis in my big toes, so if a shoe's not giving me blisters, it's cramping my foot up and making me cry. :(
Hey Corrigan, I hate sockettes (just a personal thing ^_^) but I like the idea of the Blister Block stick. I'll have to see if I can find some of that in Australia. Ow, arthritis too, no fair!
I've had to add all sorts of little stick on pads to my shoes. Dr. Scholls has a variety, but there are other brands, too. If my shoes are the littlest bit loose I have to add them inside the back of the heel to avoid blisters. I've also added them to the area where the ball of my foot hits to prevent my foot from slipping further down a shoe (especially tacky with open-toed shoes).
I've also heard that mole skin works great. I've tried sockette style socks, but they usually show too much for me to wear them. My husband uses tape on his heels, which works great when you can use it. For when all else fails, I always carry a few band-aids in my purse.
I'll have to find that blister block stuff, though.
nope- i have no advice, i too suffer from new shoes.
All i can say is to take it slow and easy..
You should never have to "break in" shoes. They either fit or they don't. One problem is the heat, and the heat will make even the best-fitting shoes mini torture chambers. I try to take them off during the day and dry and powder my feet. Also, wearing little Peds for just the walking portion could help with control the blisters as well.
Icy try the liquid bandaid on your blister, it does wonders for covering them so they don't rub/hurt. Also great for using before you get a blister.
Foot Petals and Dr. Scholl's.
Ever since I discovered these two brands, my life has been heaven with shoes. :) Especially Dr. Scholl's. The spongy heel-backing strip is fantastic for shoes that rub at the back...
See my post here for the list of what I use: http://fabulouslybrokeinthecity.blogspot.com/2007/06/foot-petals-greatest-invention-for.html
Body Glide. Used by athletes to prevent chafing. Says right on the label, "good for feet". Non greasy unlike vaseline.
http://www.bodyglide.com/
Meg, I've tried the Dr Scholls pads, but they don't seem to stay stuck to my shoes! Then as they come off, they create more blisters!
Kimberlie, thanks for stopping by.
Gina, I know, but I always get blisters anyway (even with flat and comfy shoes). If I stopped, then I couldn't buy shoes at all and that would be sad :'(
CG/CL, Liquid Band-aid, hmm I've seen that around but haven't tried it yet. Might have to get some.
FBitC, Those Foot Petals look wonderful. I'll have to see if they have them here in Aus.
Wendy, Oooh, now that's an iteresting looking product. That I'll have to try and find.
Check out this review on the blister block stick. Hope you can find it in Australia.
http://fakinggoodbreeding.blogspot.com/2007/06/review-band-aid-blister-block-stick.html
My feet are just *slightly* different sizes -- not different enough to require two shoes in differing sizes, but different enough that shoes that fit perfectly on the larger left (appropriately snug, no rubbing, comfortable) rub and blister like the dickens on the ever-so-slightly smaller right. I've found that a lot of the suggestions here (socks, etc.) have helped, but for most of my really nifty heels, the best solution has been to put athletic tape (when the line of the shoe permits it) over the spots that tend blister the worst on my right foot. I do this before the blisters start, and it seems to keep them from happening. I've got rolls of athletic tape in my desk and my bag for just this purpose!
hmm... i know the issue, i also live in a city where you need to do a lot of walking. i try to bring a pair of socks, trouser socks, tights, etc with me because it's usually the problem. also, i stay away from shoes that aren't made of leather, becuause if they can't breathe, my feet will blister.
also, moleskinne is good for blisters.
To prevent blisters in the first place: a) accept that you cannot pound concrete in your shoes and wear something that is suited to that; and b) buy a product called "Glide" from a runners' store. It'll protect your feet from chafing/rubbing, and is ideal for sockless wearing.
Bodyglide really does work - I was turned on to it by the Zappo's newsletter.
If I'm the least bit worried about getting a blister, I rub that on my feet before going out. I've never had a blister after using it. You have to do it *before* you wear the shoes.
I get mine from the local cycling shop.
Amisare, thanks for the link! Faking Good Breeding is a great blog.
Zozo, athletic tape sounds like a good idea. I use fabric band-aids (which work quite well) except they have a tendancy to roll off the back of my heel if the shoe is moving up and down. Athletic tape would probably fix this.
Jennine, socks to work, but these cute shoes wouldn't have worked with them ^_^. I was wearing knee-high stockings but unfortunately they didn't help at all.
Jane2, I'm thinking the Glide or the Blister Block stick is the way to go. Finding it could be the problem...
Sara, good to know it really worked for you. I'm definitley going looking...
Bodyglide! I've told all my friends. It's cheaper than the new BandAid stick.
Heather
Hey Heather, thanks for visiting.
if the shoe is leather just take a hammer and slam the back of it real hard until the leather softens.
Diana, violent, but I like it!
The best solution is to go for half an inch bigger shoes.
I just purchased adidas Shoes from shoedeals4u.com, which is half an inches bigger, its really comfortable and the quality is also good.
Martin, thanks for the suggestion, but unfortunately I find that if my shoes are too big, they tend to rub even more!
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