Fall has fallen, the leaves are changing, and the air temperature has gotten cooler. And as we put away the summer clothes for another season, I realised that I had a fairly big gap in my wardrobe: While I own a fair number of sandals as well as winter boots that are both stylish and comfortable enough to walk in, I lacked such an all-purpose pair for fall.
See, I own several pairs of pumps and heels that are cute, but not really practical for commuting. And I own sneakers and hiking shoes that are comfy but not really office-appropriate. In the pre-COVID days, I’d often commute in sneakers and switch to heels at the office, which I left in a big jumble in my desk drawer. But these days, with hybrid work and tele-desking arrangements increasingly popular, I needed an all-purpose shoe that would take me from the metro to the office to after-work drinks and back again, all without destroying my feet.
The quest for narrow Chelseas
Enter the Chelsea boot. This short ankle-height bootie has been made fashionable and popular, with trending brands like Blundstones showing up everywhere from the runway to street style in the past few years. It’s a style that can be cute with the right outfits, practical in variable weather, and versatile enough to dress up or down.
But finding petite-friendly shoes and boots that fit my extra-narrow feet and heels has been the bane of my shoe shopping existence for years. My feet are about a size 5.5 or 6 US, with an AA forefoot and a AAAA heel. With shoes sold by retailers getting increasingly larger and wider, it has become challenging to near-impossible to find styles that are narrow enough to fit my feet without causing foot pain, blisters, or the shoes to slip off my feet entirely.
The Naot Ethic boot
As a result, I’ve been a big fan of Israeli-made shoe brand Naot for years. They make everything from sandals to shoes to boots in a variety of styles, most of which are made with comfortable footbeds that mould to your feet.
While not all of Naot’s styles are made narrow — there are different product ranges that range from narrow to regular to wide — they do tend to carry a bigger variety of narrow styles than most other brands out there. As a result, I’ve spent a ton of money there over the years on a variety of sandals, shoes, and a beloved but sadly now-retired pair of mid-calf boots that I wore for nearly a decade.
And so, I decided to pop into the Naot store here in Montreal (on Monkland in NDG, for those asking) to check out their selection of fall boots and booties. And I found a plethora of options in my size that fit comfortably and securely on my narrow feet. After resisting the overspending urge I always get anytime I walk into their store, I finally decided on this pair of Naot Ethic black leather ankle booties:
Boots: Naot Ethic Chelsea boots, size 36, soft black leather, $310 CAD
Billed as a “medium” footbed in Naot sizing, they actually run narrow, like many of Naot’s other offerings. These have a 1.8″ block heel that’s just high enough to give me some petite-friendly lift, but still low enough to be comfy to walk in. And they have a zipper on the inside, which helps them fit more snugly at the ankle than a purely slip-on boot would.
From a comfort standpoint, they have Naot’s trademark comfortable footbed, made of cork and latex that moulds to your foot over time. The footbeds are removable to allow them to be replaced with wear and tear, or for people who wear orthotics.
The boots have a sleek narrow profile and almond toe that makes them look at little more dressed up than, say, a Blundstone boot. But they’re deceptively comfortable: The sole is rubberized and has good traction, and I’ve so far found that they are extremely comfortable even while walking around for several hours:
In my usual Naot size of 36, which translates roughly to a women’s 5.5, I found that they fit snugly with socks on. In my experience, Naot boots and shoes tend to stretch out a bit over time, so it’s usually best to size down rather than up if you’re between sizes.
The leather isn’t waterproof, so I gave them a spray treatment when I got them home. But other than that, I’ve found that these are the perfect addition to my fall wardrobe. They aren’t cheap, but given how much wear I’m already getting out of them, they are a worthwhile investment.
How to style them
One of the challenges for us petites when wearing ankle boots is that they risk cutting us off at the ankle, making our already short legs look even shorter. To avoid this, here are a few tips to style Chelsea boots if you’re petite like me:
Do:
- Go monochrome: Tuck skinny black pants or leggings into black Chelsea boots. This elongates the leg visually by not having a noticeable colour change at the ankle. In my experience, dark blue denim also works pretty decently with a black boot. The trick is to avoid strong colour contrasts, like a light-coloured pant with a dark boot or vice-versa.
- Go boot cut: The other option is to wear straight leg or boot cut pants or jeans that fit over the boots. You’ll want to look for lengths that hit just above the floor with the heel, so they don’t pool at the top of the boot or drag on the ground. It’s best to avoid cropped lengths here, which can look awkward with ankle boots.
- Opt for sleeker boot styles: Instead of chunky boots with blunt angles, opt for an ankle boot that has a sleeker, slimmer profile. If possible, look for an almond, pointed, or tapered toe, which can make the leg area look visually longer. (This especially applies to petites with smaller feet. If you have very long feet already, you may not want to visually elongate them.)
- Pair short hemlines with booties close to your skin tone: One of the tricks for us petites when pairing dresses with footwear is to opt for nude-coloured heels or shoes that are visually close to our skin tone, rather than contrasting colours. Ankle boots are already much trickier than pumps or low-vamp sandals to pull off with shorter dresses or skirts, since they cut the leg off at the ankle. To minimize this effect, opt for a boot colour that is as close as possible to your skin tone if you want to do this look.
Don’t:
- Wear cuffs or bright socks: It’s been very on-trend to roll up or cuff your pant legs over Cheslea boots, or even to wear brightly coloured contrasting socks that show between cropped pants and ankle boots. All of this creates multiple horizontal lines that visually cut your leg length, which is something that can be challenging for petites. Instead, get your pants hemmed to the right length, and wear a neutral sock underneath in a colour that matches your pants or boots (or, ideally, both).
- Wear chunky ankle boots with short hemlines: While it’s been trendy to spot fashion models and celebrities rocking a chunky pair of Blundstones with a short dress or pair of shorts lately, this is something that can be particularly challenging for us petites. Wearing chunky dark-coloured ankle boots bare-legged creates a visual contrast with your legs, especially for pale-skinned humans like myself. Add a short cropped hemline to this, and it’s just a bit of a mess.
- Pair them with ultra-wide cropped pants: While they have been trendy for a few years now, ultra-wide legged pants that are cropped above the ankle paired with Chelsea boots is an insanely difficult look for us petites, especially those of us who are more pear-shaped, to pull off. Far better to opt for full-length pants, and go with a straight leg or more moderate wide leg style.
Of course, fashion rules are meant to be broken, so it’s always fun to experiment with different styles. But the above tips and tricks are great if you want to keep your look polished, sleek and professional this fall.
Enjoy the shorter days and the pumpkin spiced lattes!