# How tight should loafers fit both side of the foot with thin socks or sans socks?



## Brio1 (May 13, 2010)

I have a thin foot and trouble with a loafer that fits flush against both sides of the foot. (I suspect that this is not such an issue with those who have a wide foot.) I've notice that the shoe especially tends to gape when walking and therefore "rocking" from heel to toe. Is this to be expected of a thin foot inside a loafer or can something be done about it other than the thinnest fit available for a particular shoe model? I'm wearing a pair of Bass Weejun Leavitt in 12 A at the moment. Thanks for reading.


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## RM Bantista (May 30, 2009)

Mr. Briol,
No, certainly not. Please look into a measured fit from a good manufacturer in a retail option available to you. A good loafer ought to fit as though it were part of your own person. And it should feel comfortable in all circumstances and any conditions. If this is not your experience, you have not the correct fit.
As you have some of the best retailers on earth within your reach, please do accept nothing less than superior service, quality, fit, and customer satisfaction.
You own this moment.
A loafer should fit like a glove and never leave one wanting something more secure nor comfortable. A good loafer will serve one in great comfort and secure footing under most circumstances. (Bayou mud and swamp, rough country, and high mountains are better served with other gear, obviously.) If your own do not, then, one may suggest they do not properly fit your person. Please do feel free to consult other retailers available to you or investigate the AE offerings that are available in many fits with many supporters and good customer service reported here at AAAC.
It is not the Bass of old, but what is? Mr. Paul is making many efforts to make AE a worthy brand. One has footwear from many makers and many eras of many kinds for particular uses.
Seek a provider with some expertise who should wish your satisfaction and recommendation of their customer service as a personal and institutional principle.
The sides of your shoes are too wide for your foot, and the waist beneath the instep should be narrower. If you have other fitting issues, they may also be addressed. Your heels should never be blistered. Your toes should never be squashed. The sole should support and conform to the shape of your own foot so that it seems an extension of yourself. This may take longer to bring to completion with some leathers than others, but it ought never cause discomfort from day one.
One must have standards.
Good fortune,
Sir,
rudy


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## Brio1 (May 13, 2010)

I apologize for the tardy reply, Mr. Bantista. I have followed your good advice along with others here on the forum and acquired a pair of AE shoes. Thank you.


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## herfitup (Mar 4, 2012)

RM Bantista said:


> Mr. Briol,
> No, certainly not. Please look into a measured fit from a good manufacturer in a retail option available to you. A good loafer ought to fit as though it were part of your own person. And it should feel comfortable in all circumstances and any conditions. If this is not your experience, you have not the correct fit.
> As you have some of the best retailers on earth within your reach, please do accept nothing less than superior service, quality, fit, and customer satisfaction.
> You own this moment.
> ...


Eloquence beyond what I could say. I live in loafers because of TSA and this is the way they should fit. The only thing I can add is some loafers like the AE Walden need a week or two to conform to your foot. AE will tell you this when you buy them. They are built to stretch but when they do they fit better than a sock. If you buy them big they will never fit right.


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## Himself (Mar 2, 2011)

They probably do need to stretch in for a snug but comfortable fit.

i used to buy Weejuns a half size too small, then hope for a rainy day to break them in. (So the leather stretches out, and the slipperiness wears off the soles.)

Weejuns were cheap shoes though, maybe not sized so perfectly. Better makes like AE are probably more true to size, with some initial tightness built in to allow for stretch.


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## RM Bantista (May 30, 2009)

Gentlemen,
Thank you for the kind and thoughtful responses. 
If a shoe does need stretching, it is not a question of when will it rain; One may use a bit of alcohol and glycerin with a shoe tree that does fit your foot and a slight pressure to the hinge of the tree over a period of a few days with a renewal of the liquid as it drys to stretch the shoe and keep its shape until it is possible for the tree to be fully deployed as intended. However, these sorts of actions are better performed by a cobbler with proper shoe stretchers and long experience. Sometimes a moisturizer will also help keep the leather supple. Too much alcohol in the mix will also cause the leather to become brittle by leaching out the natural products of the tanning process that maintain the stability of the material. One wants suppleness as well as adjustment. Hence the glycerine. Lanolin is also good, but like ambergris, has an ethical reason to question the usage.
It may be done, but a bit of patience with the shoe, for short periods, on carpet. In low stress moments, such as just wearing them while reading AAAC will help. But they should fit from the start.
(It has been said before, but it is my practice to condition the inside and outside of the shoes prior to wearing them; either with Bickmore's Bicks 4 or Lexol. Then, the outside of the shoe may and should be polished with a thin application of your preferred kind of product. It is usually a creme polish for my footwear: black, brown, burgundy, neutral, and navy blue as there are several items that may benefit from a navy polish that caused me to add it to my usual inventory. Anything very light tan should be polished with neutral, creme or paste as you prefer.)
Best practice seems to indicate the shoe should be allowed to rest between wearings, trees if you have them, in their boxes and bags (where supplied or available) on the sides in a rack with the lid of the box parallel to the walls. This is not how they store them in stores. But back in the day, when Clark's was still Clark's, they did exhaustive research into how they might best advise their customers to care for their products so that they would last longer and extend the useful life of their products.
Imagine the concept! How may we make a product better so a customer will not need to replace it? Those were the days, Gentlemen. Others also respected the value of the cutosomer's efforts in those times, and that is why one may have a suit of good quality that was made in 1940 that is still a suit of good quality to this day in service.
But, things change, people are trained to expect to disgard the fruits of their labors in quarterly cycles. Please forgive the digression.
Thank you again for the kind words, and good fortune and long and rewarding life to you all.
rudy


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