Comments on: About Me

By: samantha

samantha — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 19:47:47 +0000

In reply to drew. Hi Drew, You can find brands with a wide toe box, but not a barefoot sole here.

By: drew

drew — Mon, 02 Mar 2026 06:05:57 +0000

Hi ,

do you know of any boots with a heel that are still good for the feet ?

By: samantha

samantha — Fri, 20 Feb 2026 19:42:28 +0000

In reply to Mary. Hi Mary, thank you for your comment. Anya's Shop does not have any immediate plans to open a physical shop. We appreciate your enthusiasm and we'll see you at the Expo in May!

By: Mary

Mary — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 09:57:30 +0000

Anya,
Will Anya’s Shoes be adding any brick and mortar shops? I would love to have an opportunity to travel to a Anya’s retail shop anywhere within a day drive from my home, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA.
Moreover, I am excited to share that the city of White Bear Lake, approximately 12 miles from St. Paul, MN has a few retail spaces available. WBL is a prosperous suburb that supports a diverse commerce, including many in wellness, functional activity and health. I would love to an Anya’s Shoe retail shop here! Perhaps it could be a low risk trial for an Anya Shoe and Footwear Shop in the future?

I plan to attend the Shoe & Footwear Expo in Schaumberg this May and look forward to meeting you. Thank you for your virtual shop and educational resources.

By: Anya

Anya — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 17:25:52 +0000

In reply to Greg. I would look at the Lems Chukka. They are more cushioned than Birchbury, and accommodate an extra insole well. I hope that helps!

By: Greg

Greg — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 16:46:00 +0000

Hi Anya,
I love reading your reviews. They are very helpful. I am a teacher and I wear Birchbury dress shoes everyday. My classroom floor is tile with concrete underneath. I have started to realize that I think I need to wear something with more cushion. I use your Bridge Sole insert and have also begun using a Dr. Scholl’s Air Pillow insole. It is definitely more comfortable, but now my toes feel scrunched. I have sacrificed the wide-toe box for cushion. (Also I don’t think I properly transitioned and just went cold turkey). Do you know of a dress shoe that has a wide-toe box, but also has more cushion?
Thank you for your response.

By: Anya

Anya — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 17:07:13 +0000

In reply to Dawn. Hi Dawn! Which model? The Nebula that I shared about in my newsletter is the only model I really have experience with, and I didn't personally have any issues lacing them on my low volume feet. However, one trick I like to use when there is ankle stiffness is to unlace the top of the boot and tie it right at the ankle bone over the arch. This can also help cinch it down right where you need it to keep your heel in place. Otherwise ankle warmers or stirrup socks and tongue pads are my go to for heel slippage. Hope that helps!

By: Dawn

Dawn — Mon, 08 Dec 2025 22:45:33 +0000

Hi Anya! I love your reviews and advice so much!! Thank you for all you do! I subscribe to your email and recently saw that you were loving a pair of Skinner’s boots. I find that what you love often works for me, because I also have low volume feet. I decided to order a pair of Skinner’s. They just arrived today and they are far too stiff around the ankle - I feel like I don’t even have appropriate range of motion for ankle flexion! On top of that, they slip on my ankles no matter how tight I lace them. I fear they just won’t work for me, but I wanted to check in case you had any tips or secrets for breaking them in or lacing them differently. They’re super cute and I love the lining, the zipper and the fantastic tread, but I can’t function without bending my ankles. LOL

By: Anya

Anya — Wed, 03 Dec 2025 21:34:33 +0000

In reply to Kelsey. Hi Kelsey! I do, you can find a list of Wide Fan brands and shoes here. I will say that Peerko is the slimmest of the options there, so if you need extra wide I would go with one of the other options.

By: Kelsey

Kelsey — Tue, 02 Dec 2025 04:21:09 +0000

Hi Anya, I’m dying to find the shoes that are “wide fan” shaped. Do you have any lists/resources for this (and wide, not narrow or medium, “wide fan”!)? Thank you!

By: samantha

samantha — Tue, 21 Oct 2025 22:44:03 +0000

In reply to Elena. Hi Elena, you can read Anya's tips for transitioning to barefoot shoes here. I would advise you take it very very slowly to reduce the risk of injury.

By: Elena

Elena — Sun, 07 Sep 2025 18:23:13 +0000

Hello,

I’m 75 yo, changed to barefoot shoes 5 mo ago. I love to be barefoot and found the BF shoes to be very comfortable. I have never had any issues with my feet, I’m a walker.
I think I was too fast in the transition to BF and in a month or so of wearing barefoot my mid foot was in pain. Then the pain moved to the left hip, I guess it’s tendinopathy or bursitis. I’m in therapy now, the mid foot is much better but the hip is very slow to heel. I’m still wearing Xero with very thin orthotics. So I need an advice how to proceed from here. Still want to continue BF but the question is Am I the one who can’t wear BF ? Or should I step back start a slow transition? Which shoes /boots I have to try . Thanks for the advice.

By: samantha

samantha — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 15:43:19 +0000

In reply to Tatiana. Hello, there is one that we know of: Tip Top Shoes – (New York, NY) – Lems, Vivobarefoot, Altra, No(N)s, Vibram FiveFingers You can find our full barefoot shoe brand and retailer directory here.

By: Tatiana

Tatiana — Tue, 22 Jul 2025 16:58:16 +0000

Hola, qué tal? Hay tiendas física de calzado barefoot en New York? Gracias

By: samantha

samantha — Wed, 19 Mar 2025 14:47:29 +0000

In reply to Candace. Hello, you can find some cushioned options here!