The Real Reason Meghan's Shoes Are Always Two Sizes Too Big
Apr 04 2020
Meghan Markle may have stepped back from being a senior royal, but she's still a fashion queen. But if you pay any attention at all to the duchess's outfits, you'll notice that it often seems as though her shoes are simply too big for her.

The Duchess of Sussex always looks extremely well put together, so it's safe to assume that all of her fashion choices are deliberate, even her oversized shoes. So what exactly is going on with Meghan's massive footwear?

It turns out that Markle wears her shoes a little too big sometimes not for the sake of fashion, but for the sake of comfort. Anyone who has ever spent the day in a pair of heels knows all too well the fatigue that can come from that constant pressure on your feet. After a while, your feet start to swell up and rub against your shoes. When shoes are a bit too big, however, this doesn't happen. Bigger shoes give your feet more space to move, which can be a great thing if you're standing up all day. You'll probably be in some pain, but at least your feet won't blister.

It's not just Markle who is savvy about this footwear hack. As fashion expert Harriet Davey told The Sun,

"Celebs often go a size up, or even two, in the shoe department when they're at an event or on the red carpet and it's for one reason we can all relate to, to avoid blisters."

While giving your feet room to swell in your shoes sounds like a genius hack, it's not without its downsides. When you walk in heels, you're already tempting gravity. How, then, does one keep their balance when wearing shoes that are two sizes too big? Markle isn't known for being accident-prone, so she's clearly keeping her balance somehow. Basically, the duchess must spend a lot of effort on trying to avoid tripping in her sized up shoes.

Rachel Story, the fashion editor for Hello!, revealed the secret celebs use to keep their balance when they're wearing shoes that are too big, and said,

"Celebrities often size up for red carpets or other events, mainly to avoid blisters...Plus, it's all about how the shoes feel when you try them on and walk around in them, rather than sticking to what size you normally take. Italian shoes often run bigger, I always take a half size smaller. So that could be the case for why some styles...are large on Meghan."

While this footwear hack seems to work for Markle, it's not exactly foolproof. Bustle spoke to podiatrist Dr. Miguel Cunha who said that it's always best to wear shoes in your correct size. He explained,

"I do not recommend wearing shoes that are too big. Proper fitting shoes provide a proper platform for our feet to support our body. Shoes that are too big means you will be accommodating the improper fitted size in a dysfunctional way and can lead to foot problems...The constant rubbing of the back of the shoe against the heel can be painful and annoying. The blisters may also become infected and lead to even greater complications."

The best thing to do to avoid any issues seems to be to wear comfortable shoes that have already been broken in. Of course, breaking shoes in takes time, but it seems at least one royal has found her way around that. Stewart Parvin, a fashion designer who has worked on Queen Elizabeth's wardrobe for more than a decade, revealed that the monarch has someone to break in all of her new shoes for her. The person responsible for this important task reportedly does so wearing a pair of cotton ankle socks, and is only allowed to walk on the carpet while breaking in the queen's footwear. As Parvin told the Evening Standard,

"The shoes have to be immediately comfortable...The queen can never say 'I'm uncomfortable, I can’t walk any more.' She has the right to have someone wear them in." Watch the video to learn The Real Reason Meghan's Shoes Are Always Two Sizes Too Big!

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