My last two pairs of footwear were Mephistos (a splurge, but worth it!) lace-ups and sandals: European 40, UK 7 and US 9 1/2; the Eccos the poltergeist took away and brought back were 41 (I'd bought others in that size previously)--and don't fit as well as the Mephistos; a pair of flats I bought at Filenes Basement were 8 wide. Go figure.

Have you bought Rockports before? I had a bad experience with their man-made soles: no traction on wet pavement when the soles wear down. I go for rubber soles all the time now.

I can't help you there, taz, but I *am* left wondering why you aren't in IRC.

Shoe size conversion charts are sucking. According to this one, I should get a 6.5 if I'm a US 8 - but shows those sizes as corresponding to Eur. 39.5, and 39 is usually too big for me.

This one shows a US 8 as a European 38.5 which seems about right to me (I never see half sizes here, but since I'm 38, occasionally 39, it matches my expectation), but doesn't show the corresponding UK size.

This one shows a Eur. 38.5 as a US 7.5 and a UK 5. This one shows a Eur. 38.5 as a US 8 and UK 6.

Bah. I know it's not a great plan to buy shoes online, but I'm having a very hard time finding comfortable, stylish winter walking shoes at a reasonable price.

oopsies... didn't see the IRC comment!

Well, girl, I'm SHOPPING. Shopping on my computer! Actually, I went to see if Amazon UK has peacay's book, and it does, for pre-order... then I thought, well, maybe I should pick up a couple more books I want. And then I thought, hmmmm... why not just have a peek at their shoes, then. And, score! 25% off! :)

Brujita, I haven't had Rockports before. The sole thing sounds discouraging, since I do a lot of walking... But if they're comfortable, it would be worth it to me to have them re-soled...

I'm having a damn hard time finding comfortable shoes here. The focus is on fashion, and when I do see something that looks promising, They're usually 80 Euros or over. Bleh.

I'd go for eccos then... they use rubber soles. Tip Top only had Mephisto lace ups when I went in; I was wearing the sandals with socks that day, because there was no way I was going to force my feet back into the too-small Chucks and Doc Martens. It took weeks for the raw spots on my heels to scab up. My feet have gone up a size and a half since I moved to NYC...I thought they stopped growing when one reached their full height.

Complete derail....I'm a bit jealous of ej right now....not who but what, though I'd want more than "the best six minutes of my life" (as I heard someone{not bunny or Mefite} smirk the other night). I need the emotional connection.

I know it's not a great plan to buy shoes online

Can you send them back if they don't fit?

Probably. But the cost of shipping, blah, blah means that it would ultimately be no savings at all to order if I have to do that. I think I'll probably not get them... they're 70 Euros even with the discount, which is too much to take a chance of them not being utterly fabulous-fabulous. Too bad.

But I have a long term plan. I'll keep notes on sizes of shoes that fit me here in various brands, so if I ever find the same brands online for good prices, I'll know what size to order. Yes.

I am about a UK 5.5, but it's difficult to find shoes in that size in the UK. Sometimes a 5 fits, sometimes a 6. I take a Euro 38 and a US 7. A US 7 is the best fit for me.

Wow. That's so confusing. I'm pretty sure I was wearing an 8 when I left the U.S. (though I wore 7.5 for years before that), and I definitely wear 38 here... Odd.

I wore a US size 7 1/2 and I wear a size 5 in the UK. It is rare to find half sizes in UK shoes but a 5 usually works pretty well for me. For women's shoes in the UK, you should generally got down about 2 numbers from your US size to find what you wear.

As an aside, for women's clothes in the UK, you should go about 2 or 4 numbers UP from your US size.

Sorry, can't help you with the Euro sizes.

I don't know if this is too late to be of help (and my sizes are way off yours), but I am a US size 10 or 11 and a European 42 or 42 1/2 (yes, I have big feet). I can wear a UK 8, although not all UK size 8 shoes fit and I do better with shoes that are also tagged as European 42 or higher or US 11.

Looking at the shoes closest to me:

Skechers flat cycle shoes, in the style that everyone seems to be wearing here: label says US 11/UK 8/EUR 41.

Hush Puppies flats from Schuh: label says US 10W/UK 8.

I should add that my work shoes largely only have European sizes, and are 42 or 42 1/2.

Thanks, guys! It sounds like 6 is the ticket. I might see if there are some less expensive shoes from them that I can try out.

I can wear 9, 10, or 11 (UK), depending on the shoe. This fact keeps me from buying online.

My motorcycle boots only come in Euro sizes, so I dropped into this thread to empathize. I'm still not sure I got the right size.

Late to the party again - I don't know my US size, but I wear UK size 6/European 39. Hope you find some good winter walking shoes - could do with some of those...