The Rivista: How Should Your Loafers Fit?
Ciao from Firenze,
Ok, so we get this one a lot: "How Should My Loafers Fit?" We're here to answer all your fit-related questions in one easy, digestible guide.
- How should my loafers fit?
- What size should I order?
- Do I need to 'break in' my loafers?
- What if I want to wear socks with my loafers sometimes?
- How should my velvet slippers fit?
- How should my sandals or mules fit?
- Why aren't all shoe sizes the same across brands or even within a brand's own offering?
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How Should My Loafers Fit?
Here is an old hockey trick (seriously, hockey players use this to fit their skates): gently tap your toe forward in your loafer. Now lay your foot flat on the floor. Take your index finger and slide it between the heel of your foot and the back of the shoe. You should be able to comfortably fit roughly the width of your index finger in that space. This will provide enough room for when your foot moves forward when you step, but enough snugness to keep the loafer comfortably secure on your foot.
Our loafers are designed to be snug in the midfoot and only slightly snug in the toe box. Since a loafer is lace-less, this allows the rest of the shoe to open up and breathe a bit while keeping the loafer from moving around and giving you blisters. We use very, very soft leathers and suedes, so this design helps mold the shoe to your specific foot after only a couple of wears.
What Size Should I Order?
Here is another shortcut for when you're browsing our site but not quite sure which size you should order: just take your typical sneaker size, or EU size for best fit.
Bonus points if you know your typical EU size...that is actually the best reference for our handmade Italian footwear.
Do I Need to 'Break In' My Loafers?
Our loafers are designed for that 'broken in' feel right out of the box. It's what we get complemented on the most. But everyone is different, and, depending on the style, it may require only a couple wears to 'break' to your liking.
We use premium leathers and suedes with our footwear, which means they are designed to be very soft and supple. This means that they will stretch and form to your foot. Suede tends to stretch more quickly than leather, while leather tends to hold shape a bit more than a suede design.
Our loafers are also designed with intent - the structure of our shoe is specifically designed for this degree of fit versatility and comfort. Our competitors tend to use a more stiff and structured, cheaply designed pattern and build to cut costs, which results in production shortcuts. We see this all the time when we conduct factory visits. Do not be fooled by their fancy and expensive product photography, they will cause discomfort on your feet. The photography is beautiful, don't get us wrong. But they are doing this at your expense.
We make everything by hand, so our shoemakers are physically feeling these things in every step of our process. Yes, this is certainly more expensive and involved from a production standpoint, but there is absolutely nothing worse than stiff, uncomfortable loafers that cause blisters and cuts in the sensitive areas of your foot, right? So we decided to do it the right way and put in that extra effort - it goes a long way with our customers.
What if I want to wear socks with my loafers sometimes?
That's cool, we're fans of it! Be sure to check out our guide to wearing socks with loafers for some tips and tricks.
For most folks, normal sizing should work just fine, especially with Del Toro socks. We design our Ribbed Loop Sock and No Show Socks specifically for our loafers.
BUT...if you are one of those 'in-between' sizes, we recommend erring on the side of a half size up.
How Should My Velvet Slippers Fit?
More or less the same as your loafer. However, velvet slippers tend to be worn during formal occasions, which means you are usually in a tuxedo when duty calls. You're probably wearing a thin sock, like our Ribbed Loop Sock, or a No Show Sock, or maybe even no sock at all. Given this dynamic, you can get away with a slightly more snug, slimming fit. We use an extremely soft, high-grade velvet, so it may feel more akin to wearing a structured sock with a sole than an actual shoe...and this is a good thing!
How Should My Sandals or Mules Fit?
This is where there is a slight nuance. When you have a backless or open piece of footwear like our sandal or mule, size up a whole size. This will allow you to slip your footwear on (and off) with ease, as well as provide that extra degree of space given your foot will be allowed to move more than if you were wearing a fully structured loafer. This will also allow you to sport a sock with your sandal or slip-on, if you're into that sorta thing (for the record, we're all for it).
Why aren't all shoe sizes the same across brands or even within a brand's own offering?
This is an industry issue. And it's one that has been attempted to be solved (unsuccessfully) for forever. The reality is that there isn't a great solution here. Why? Because we all use different patterns, different lasts, different processes, and have differing views on how things should fit. When you layer on cultural and geographical preferences, plus metric conversion math, it always ends up just a touch different.
The same is true for sizing within a brand's own offering. We use different shoemakers and facilities for our boots and loafers, for example. We tend to go with the 'best of the best', so, a shoemaker can be a legendary loafer maker, spending all of his time mastering that specific craft, while another can do the same with a boot. Since we make all of our footwear by hand, there will always be these slight, yet intentional differences from shoe to shoe.
What's more, our different styles actually should fit differently. For example, our sneaker is likely worn with a thicker sock, which will take up more space in the shoe, so we design accordingly.
That's it, there's the quick guide to sizing your loafers. Any other questions, be sure to shoot us a DM @deltoro and we will update the blog periodically to make sure we answer all of your sizing-related inquiries.
Ciao for now,
DT
