Iasia C.

Age: 23| Size: 12| Mississippi, USA

Being a sister with big feet has its pros and cons. Let us start with the negatives then the pros. It is not attractive to have feet that are larger than any guy that wants to date you. As a tall woman, already, I feel it adds on more insecurities for me when dating. Thankfully, I have been told that my feet do not look like an actual size 12. Just do not line my foot up with his and you will not be able to tell the difference. Secondly, when all your friends are borrowing shoes between each other. No, I can’t do that because their shoes are always to little. This irks my nerves and brings me to another point. I could never make a decision at the last minute for any event to go shopping for shoes. For example, prom, homecoming, formal dances, gala, balls, and other events that require a top-notch shoe game were always unpleasant all because I knew, 9 times out of 10, I would not have an easy time finding shoes to wear. This built up my dread of dressing-up and distaste of girly shoes. I could not be like my other fiends and find outfits and then shoes. No, I had to first go and buy the outfit, dress, or suit hoping and praying I would find shoes to match.

For many years growing up, I was known for being the girl who always wore “kicks” (AKA tennis shoes) for today’s terminology.  Majority of my shoes usually came from the men’s section because my size in the women’s section was either sold out or non-existent. Most women shoes went to size 11. As a result, I usually wore a lot of blue, black, red and sometime yellow trying to match my shoes. This means that the type of clothes I could wear was limited as well, making me seem more and more like a tom-boy. Lastly, there were limited amount of places to shop for a size 12 women’s shoe. Often times, family members and friends would refer me to online catalogs, but who had money to spend on one pair of shoes that the average person could get two or three pair for the price of one. So, Payless was, is, and will forever be my store because they come through for me on the low low!

Now, the pros. I can always wear my brother’s or guy friend’s shoes. Especially if I left my gym shoes at home and had practice. This has always given me a little confidence and been a plus of wearing a size 12 in women.  Throughout the years, many women have asked time and time again. Where did you find those shoes? I would reply Payless and my confidence would boost high. Since my shoe size was a size 12, most times I found that some shoes I had were rarely the same shoe that was in other sizes. So, knowing that, I wasn’t annoyed a lot because someone had the same shoes as I did.

A huge plus today is that the shoe industry has invested more in shoes for women with larger feet, but it still has room for improvement. On behalf of all the sisters with large feet, we could appreciate it. Until then, I await the day when I will have a walk-in closet full of shoes in my size all for me, from more than just Payless.