New shoe brands blending fashion and function

(Note: I’m not receiving any form of compensation for this article.)

Exciting things are afoot in the world of wide toe box shoes. The lack of fashionable healthy footwear options has long been a source of consternation for me. But luckily, the hole in the market just got a little smaller thanks to the addition of these new brands.

Ellara

Ellara is an up-and-coming Canadian footwear brand focused on bringing more options for women who don’t want to sacrifice comfort for style. The founder was frustrated at the lack of nice-looking shoes that could accommodate her custom orthotics without squishing her toes; she also wanted something that was zero drop with cushion to provide relief from her Morton’s Neuroma. She decided to take things into her own hands and launch her own brand.

Her first model is a classy Jodhpur-style zipper boot that’s sneakily healthy and can be easily dressed up or down. The boots are zero drop and feature a cupsole that goes higher up the back of the boot than the front to create a faux heel effect, similar to El Naturalista’s Nomada line. The boots come with an insole with built-in arch support, but it can be swapped out for your own orthotic or a flat insole. The toe box has a lovely wide shape that avoids the pitfall of veering into duckfoot territory.

Ellara’s Kickstarter campaign is live until June 27, so if you want to reserve your own pair and help this brand come to life, don’t hesitate too long to lend your support!

Irelis

Until recently, barefoot shoes were often something you couldn’t wear without at least a little bit of embarrassment, especially in formal or office settings. Irelis is one brand on a mission to redefine what a barefoot shoe can be. Pushing back against the prevalent dogma in the barefoot shoe community that shoes must be foot-shaped, Irelis has released a smoking loafer built on an asymmetrical last that curves outward slightly on the medial side to lend elegance while leaving space for the big toe to remain straight.

Irelis aims to create beautiful shoes that just happen to be barefoot. With subtle feminine detailing, Irelis’ smoking loafer is a solid choice for the office or date night. The loafer is made of hair-on calf hide in a few different colorway options.

The current model is intended for women with average width feet, so that’s something to keep in mind if your feet are on the wider side. As with other barefoot shoes, they have a zero drop sole that’s thin and highly flexible. They also come with a removable 4mm thick insole for those who want a bit more padding.

The smoking loafer is open for pre-orders, with an estimated ship time currently set for August. Shipping is free for US customers; those outside the US can contact Irelis about international shipping.

amatoe

amatoe has no intention of being just another comfort shoe brand. Starting with the premise that healthy foot function is sacrosanct, amatoe seeks to create eye-catching footwear that’s perfectly suited for the demands of city life.

Based in NYC, amatoe’s founder is no stranger to the fashion/healthy footwear conundrum. Having developed a stress fracture in her forefoot some time ago, she found that cushioned zero drop athletic shoes were the only shoes she could wear that didn’t put excess pressure on her foot while it healed. But who wants to be stuck wearing athleisure all the time when you live in one of the most fashion-forward cities in the world?

The Maxey is amatoe’s debut model, comprised of a full leather upper and a shock-absorbing 12mm thick zero drop sole. It features a distinctive toe shape that’s unapologetically angular. The forefoot is broad while the heel is narrow, so they would be a great fit for fashionistas with combination width feet.

Pre-orders are open for The Maxey, which is estimated to ship this Fall. Shipping is available to select countries worldwide.

marleys dance shoes

If you have wider than average feet, finding specialty shoes can be a special kind of challenge. That’s why I’m happy to see the launch of a new brand of swing dance shoes that truly understands not all feet are alike.

Hailing from Canada, marleys dance shoes wants to help people look and feel their best on the dance floor. After the founder learned she wasn’t alone in her struggle to find dance shoes that didn’t hurt her feet, she undertook to really understand the fit issues and injuries other dancers have been dealing with.

It’s very common for dance shoes to have narrow toe boxes and high heels. This never made sense to me because swing dancing can be quite a workout. I wouldn’t go for a run in high heels, so why would I want to bounce around the dance floor in them?

Currently, marleys offers two models: The Ava Derby and The Cat desert boot. The Ava features an almond shaped toe that’s a full size larger that most women’s shoes, meaning a size 7.5 is built with an 8.5 toe box. This results in a slightly wider toe box while maintaining a conventional look to the shoe. The toe box on The Cat is more anatomical, so it would be a good fit for those who need the toe room.

Both models have a 2cm (3/4”) heel but the founder has expressed that she’s open to possibly developing a zero drop model in the future, if there’s enough interest.

Pre-orders are open now and expected to ship in July. Sizes are limited since this is a first run. Shipping and returns are free for those in Canada; customs are paid at checkout for US customers so there aren’t any surprise fees when your shoes arrive.

Waveglide Skateboarding Shoes

I used to wear Van’s and Converse all the time before I got into wide toe box shoes. Since making the switch I’ve often asked myself why there wasn’t a wide toe box, zero drop skate shoe with cushion. To me, this just seems like such an obvious thing that should exist. While there are a couple barefoot skate shoes on the market, the thought of skateboarding in a shoe without any padding sounds… unpleasant… to me.

Having come across the Lithuanian brand Waveglide some time ago, I’m super pumped to see the progress being made on their skate shoe design. This shoe incorporates all the elements described above, and I think it looks pretty rad, in an understated way.

The Waveglide skate shoe is still in the prototyping stage. They hope to launch a crowdfunding campaign later this year, but things like this have a way of taking much longer than you might hope.

You can follow Waveglide on Instagram or sign up for their emails to keep up to date with their progress.