Review: Emyloo Shoes

Emyloo Shoes “Madison”, size 5.5 – No longer available

**UPDATE** Emyloo Shoes was kind enough to give us a coupon code! Use code AN2011 for $10 off at checkout. Good through November 30, 2011.

I wear a pretty solid size 5 shoe, which is becoming harder and harder to find these days. Stores are beginning to stop carrying this size (I don’t even bother going into the Bloomingdales shoe department anymore, and I got unceremoniously rejected from the Saks Fifth Avenue in Las Vegas last year), and if they do, there is usually only a pair or two, so once they’re sold out…they’re gone!

So I really feel for ladies I meet with shoe sizes even smaller than my own, because if I have a hard time, I know their challenge to find stylish shoes is a million times harder. So when Emily of Emyloo Shoes asked me to review a pair on Alterations Needed, I was delighted to do it! I love companies that make items specially for petite women, and this shoe-aholic is always happy to share a resource for small sized shoes.

Out of the styles that were available at the time, I choose the Madison, which is a platform heeled loafer that I felt would work well with the menswear theme of my closet. When ordering, you are able to customize the heel height of most shoe options, which is a wonderful feature. I choose a 3.5 inch heel, which is my personal favorite heel height.

I added heel liners at the back of the shoe

I like how the edges of the shoe have been lined in suede. One of the hallmarks of a cheaply made shoe are skimpy, poorly finished edges. The stitches are also nice and even.

I’ve already scratched them up a bit, but notice the nice stitching along the back, and suede-covered heel. They also have a textured, non-slip bottom that I did not photograph because I doubt anyone wants to look at the bottom of my dirty shoe. Hehe.

All in all, it’s a pretty well made little shoe, and the only thing I would change is the dinky o-ring on the horse bit detail, that I thought kind of cheapened the detail.

Choosing Your Emyloo Shoe Size:

Emyloo has a handy size chart and measuring guide to help you choose the correct shoe size, but of course, this is where I had the most anxiety.

Story: I reviewed Pretty Small Shoes a while ago, and simply ordered my normal shoe size, size 35 (US5). That didn’t go so well, so for my second attempt, I measured my biggest foot, which indicated I was a size 34 (US4) in PSS. This seemed weird to me, but I went with it, and after multiple attempts to wear the size 34′s, I’ve realized they are just too small and we’ll have to part ways.

I measured my feet according to the Emyloo instructions: pencil straight and not slanted (for PSS, I measured with a slanted pencil, so that’s probably why the shoes are too small). I got 23cm, which seemed strange because that put me in the 5.5 range. I still must not have measured correctly, because I could probably use one 1/2 size smaller, which would put me at my usual size 5.

The shoes are still wearable, I just needed to add heel liners, and ball of foot pads, which actually makes the shoes very comfy…win-win?

Learn from my experiences:

Measure your feet using a ruler: Stand barefoot on a sheet of paper and place a ruler at your heel and then the tip of your big toe, marking each point with a pen or pencil. Pick up your foot and measure the distance between the two points you marked. Measuring your foot with just a pen or pencil seems too difficult to get an accurate measurement (at least it was for me :P ).
Emyloo Shoes seems to run true to size, so it’s likely you will be the same shoe size in Emyloo that you generally wear.
Pretty Small Shoes seems to run large, so it’s likely you will be 1/2 a shoe size smaller than you generally wear.

About Emyloo Shoes:

Sizes start at size 3 (select styles start at size 2), and go up to size 6.
Available in regular, narrow and wide widths.
Choose your size, width, and for many styles, the heel height.
Some boot styles (like the Keely) are customizable! Submit your preferred boot shaft circumference and height for a customized fit.
Even if boot styles are not customizable, the shaft has still been proportioned to a more petite fit (measurements vary by style and size, but the average measurements for size 4 knee-high boot are: shaft height= ~12″, calf circumference= ~33 cm. Mid-high boots would have a shorter shaft, around 7-8″).
All Shoes are made to order. Order to delivery typically takes 2-3 weeks for domestic (US) orders.
Shipping domestically in the US is a flat rate of $12.50 for orders up to $135. A flex rate is applied for orders over $135.
Shipping to Canada is $25-$30, depending on the weight.

My favorite style available now is the Heather, which is a very cute, little almond toe pump available in a number of colors (and a great alternative to the Pretty Small Shoes version, which can be painfully expensive due to the exchange rate and shipping costs from the UK):

Has anyone else tried Emyloo Shoes? Please share your experience!