Great Chitter Chatter - Stories from Loud Voices

With the right pair of shoes on her feet, a woman can adjust to anything. And she can do it pain free. No other apparel item wields such power. Women all over the world covet the comfortable shoe. We hunt for them, collect them, store them for next season, keep them long past their due date, and expect them to gloriously update the dreariest of fashion ensembles.

Whether they cost ten bucks or 300, a woman’s choice of footwear say much about her mood, her lifestyle, and her personal style. Take Dansko brand footwear, for example. Now this is a shoe for the active woman who wants support and comfort without having to wear tennis shoes in public. Available in an endless variety of colors, this is the comfortable shoe for the woman who swore she’d never wear comfortable shoes. I know, because I am that person. My feet are wide, yet the styles I tend to like simply do not come in wide widths. All my adult life I’ve suffered in the name of fashion. I’ve worn strappy leather sandals, cork wedges, kitten heels, high-heeled loafers, you name it. But comfortable shoes? Ha! Forget it. I’d rather go barefoot through snow drifts.

Being a girl from the city, I was absolutely floored when I first moved to Indiana. It didn’t take long for me to notice that almost no-one wears stylish, high heeled shoes around here. And those who do are apparently not appreciated for their sense of fashion. Rather, they’re seen as frivolous. And not in a good way. I was in the country now, and I was surrounded by sensible conservatives. I never got compliments on my flashy shoes anymore. I got sideways-glancing looks of disapproval.

To say I stuck out like a sore thumb in the red suede stilettos with the brass grommets that I like to wear with my distressed jeans is a gross understatement. Suddenly, dismayed to find there was nowhere to wear all my fun shoes, I packed them up (along with my single girl outfits) and my sassy, single girl attitude. I wasn’t a single girl who could spend half her paycheck if she wanted to on handbags and shoes anymore. I was married. Thoroughly married. To a wonderful man who appreciates the earthy virtues of the “comfortable shoe-wearing girl”.

So, on the day my wonderful new husband took me out to Main Street in search of sensible walking shoes, that I found my first pair of this Dansko footwear. Before we entered the store, I told him that I was was determined to be sensible. Inside, I felt sad. I felt sure that pleasing my husband meant I would have to go home with a truly hideous pair of walking shoes. Shoes made for seniors in nursing homes. Shoes made for those with multiple orthopedic complaints. What I found that day was like an epiphany. There they were - cherry red Mary Janes, with just a bit of a heel, and a buckle strap across the bridge of the foot that once in place, would stay that way. Just looking down on these beauties makes me smile!  These are seriously sweet shoes! They rock as you walk! The sole is designed to roll forward as you step onto the ball of your foot, then rock gently back as your weight shifts to the other foot. What ingenious engineering.

I have clocked countless hours in my Dansko clogs. I wore them through two pregnancies - back-to-back and with only three months between. I never, not once, complained of lower back pain, and I was on my feet a lot. My knees hurt a bit, but I’d never blame the Danskos for that. I blamed the babies. My feet never felt better. Sure, the toes are round. “All the better for wiggle room, my dear”, says the sensible woman my husband would like me to be. And in my red Dansko Mary Janes, I know he smiles with pride, walking with his cool-yet-sensible wife, hand in hand down the nature paths and along Main Street in quaint little main-street Indiana.

Check out The Los Angeles Times and/or by searching in Technorati for additional information regarding these subjects.       

Dansko footwear first arrived here from Denmark in the 1980’s. Husband and wife Peter Kjellerup and Mandy Cabot loved the unique closed back clog when they were in Denmark and started bringing them back for their friends and family. They quickly began selling them here in the United States. In 1991, they bought the exclusive rights to these shoes and began their business, Dansko, Inc. in 1991. Dansko sandals are currently available for sale in over 3,500 retailers, worldwide.

What makes Dansko clogs unique? At the beginning, Dansko clogs were heavier clogs made primarily wood. However, there are now many different styles of Dansko shoes, but many styles still have a wooden sole. What has made Dansko clogs so successful is their amazing comfort. To highlight this comfort, quite a number of Dansko styles have been approved by the American Podiatric Medical Association. They feature a rocker bottom sole in combination with a raised heel, which helps to ease strain on your back and legs. When you combine this comfort with style, you have a wonderfully perfect shoe. The female line of Dansko, currently features shoes, heels and sandals, in addition to their staple clogs — available in over twenty unique fashionable styles. The male line boasts shoes and boots aswell as clogs.

Where is it possible to buy Dansko clogs? Dansko shoes are guaranteed from manufacturer’s errors in materials and workmanship within a reasonable amount of wear and tear. Consequently, you may wish to make sure to purchase your Dansko shoes from an authorized Dansko retailer. There are many authorized retail stores, and naturally will be one in your area. Furthermore, you can purchase Dansko shoes from many retailers on the Internet. Many web sites offer free shipping and handling, and because of that you do not need to worry about buying the wrong size. You can’t buy directly from Dansko because they are a wholesale distributor. However, they offer a Dansko clogs Outlet online from which you can shop directly.  In today’s economy, you need all the help you can get, and shopping at a Dansko shoes sale can save a pretty penny.

For a long time, Dansko clogs have been the choice of professionals who are on their feet all day, along with people who just want coziness and style in a good quality shoe. Whether you are looking for winter boots, summer sandals, work shoes or walking shoes, Dansko is sure to have just the shoe you’re searching for.