New to Hoads: Place Footwear

We always strive to offer the best selection of styles, fittings and fashions at Hoad Shoes and that includes footwear for those of you that have to wear orthotics or need extra support in your shoes. Recently we came across a brand on the market called Place footwear that offer a selection of shoes and sandals either with orthotic support built into the sole unit or with deep removable soles to enable you to fit your own insoles in.

Up until recently Place have been known (for the past 33 years) as the world's leading manufacturer of customer made foot orthotics for the healthcare market. Based on this they put together a footwear collection of functional healthy footwear incorporating their unique Biomechanical Footbed technology.

There are 5 benefits to Place’s Biomechanical footbed:

1. Reduce Muscle Fatigue – Recent studies have shown Place Footwear improves muscle activity whilst walking and enhances your efficiency with every step you take meaning more energy for the things you enjoy most!

2. Minimise Knee Stress – Faulty foot mechanics can lead to problems at the knee, especially around the kneecap. Clinical studies show the contoured footbed can help because they guide your foot while walking and prevent some of the injury producing loads associated with unsupportive footwear.

3. Reduce Foot Pain – Place footwear provides support others do not. When it comes to issues like metatarsalgia, heel pain and pain around the ankle; maintaining the foot in its natural position makes a big difference.

4. Reduce Impact Forces – The unique footbed of place footwear allows the foot to contour seamlessly with the footbed and helps redistribute pressure more evenly across the foot – less stress means less strain in vulnerable areas like the ball of the foot and heel.

5. Tissue Stress Hurts – every tissue in the body: muscle, tendon, ligament and bone; functions within an optimum zone of stress – exceed that zone and problems occur. Place footwear takes a new approach and helps keep you “in the zone” while enjoying your activity in comfort.

This season we have decided to stock two of the women's summer styles as a trial:

Capri £55

"This luxurious upper is built around our unique contoured sole unit with BFT Technology– carefully crafted to provide gentle biomechanical correction and exceptional pronation control. This advanced foot support, is perfect for everyday wear and incorporates features to minimise foot fatigue all while improving posture, balance and body alignment". - See more at: http://placefootwear.com/place-capri-red#sthash.KhSbkUOu.dpuf

Antigua £59.99

"This luxurious soft leather lined upper is built around our unique foot-bed, which embeds a high quality deep removable cushioned insole, designed to disperse pressure".  - See more at: http://placefootwear.com/place-antigua-marshmallow#sthash.CVOHgMy4.dpuf

We think these sandals are fantastic - the option of fitting your own orthotic into a sandal or wearing a flipflop style that has all the support built in provides people that need extra support with more option when thinking of summer footwear.

Pop in and try a pair; we're sure you'll love them as much as we do!

Key Footwear Styles for Men S/S14

(Image sourced from http://www.globalblue.com)

Men’s spring summer trends are all about the accessories with footwear being a the 

top of the list. For all you men that are interested in fashion, footwear does matter; 

in fact research suggests that every inch of your outfit can create an everlasting 

first impression. 

"Women judge men's shoes twice as much as men judge women's. 64 percent 

of women judge a man's fashion sense based on his shoes; 52 percent of 

women say they judge a man's personality by his shoes; 36 percent say 

they use shoes to determine a man's financial position; and 54 percent say 

men's shoes reflect a guy's attention to detail (or lack thereof)" 

http://network.details.com/post/ss-14-men-footwear-trends#sthash.1pXkrxkr.dpuf

With that in mind, here are our top picks to meet all your footwear needs 
(and the women's!) this season:

1. The Tassel Loafer

Steptronic Fury £110

This season like many previous seasons the loafer is big news but the key trend this spring summer is the ever-popular tasselled version in leather. This simple yet highly effective style suits a wide variety of occasions and fit well with a multitude of looks. Steptronic takes this loafer to the next level with their super soft leather uppers and gel and sheepskin padded inner soles for supreme comfort. 

2. The Suede Derby

Clarks Denner Motion £64.99

Rieker 13012 £59.99 

Perfect for those warmer, drier days this season is all about the suede Derby; with lighter soles for a spring feel and an array of colours to choose from to suit your mood. They work perfectly for casual or dress wear with a multitude of outfits; wear with dark jeans and a light shirt and perhaps a blazer for a dressier summer occasion and with chinos (shorts or full length) and a tee or looser shirt. 

3. The Two Tone Brogue

Steptronic Floyd £110

Barbour Westoe £99.95

Barker Jackson £190

The two tone brogue became big in the latter half of 2013 due to its subtle way of separating your footwear from the vast crowd of brogues out there. Perfect for dressy summer occasions compared to your classic brogue that can look too heavy with lighter coloured clothing. Although the two tone brogue can be dressed down it shines in all its splendor when paired with a smarter outfit.  

Whats your favourite men's spring summer look?

Fashion trends sourced from http://www.fashionbeans.com/2014/five-key-footwear-styles-for-springsummer/

A Break Down of the Colour Trends: 6. Orange

"Orange is the new black! From vibrant shades that scream "look at me" to pretty pastels that are just peachy, we've seen it all at New York Fashion Week. Designer Joanna Mastroianni featured flirty dresses and easy separates in eye-popping shades of tangerine." www.onthefashion.blogspot.co.uk

(Image sourced from www.onthefashion.blogspot.co.uk)

Orange is the new black - we first heard it in reference to the new hit TV series based on a true story of a woman imprisoned and now it stands as a valid statement referring to this spring summer colour palette. Mainly seen on model's faces or feet in the form of tangerine lipstick and vibrant orange footwear this colour is everywhere. We love it clashed with pink in a total neon themed outfit or used as an accent colour with a perspex box clutch, lip and sandal. 

1. Riva Barbados £65

2. Fitflop Aztek Chada £65

3. Van Dal Selma £65

4. Fitflop Flora £65

5. Josef Seibel Caspian £65 (we threw a yellow in for good measure!)

Orange is the great back drop for gold or bronze detailing - think orange footwear with statement Aztec gold or bronze jewellery for a real summery vibe.

More about the colour Orange 

Orange, as a combination of yellow and red is known as an energetic colour evoking feelings of warmth and and excitement. 

"Orange brings up images of autumn leaves, pumpkins, and (in combination with Black) Halloween. It represents the changing seasons so in that sense it is a colour on the edge, the colour of change between the heat of summer and the cool of winter" (orange colour meanings from about.com).

Lighter more peachy shades of orange are associated with summer while deeper, richer shades of orange are linked to late autumn. The colour orange has been know to engage peoples interest and get their attention in a less aggressive way than red does. 

So that rounds off our break down of this seasons colour collection;  if you can't decide which colour you like most opt for all the colours and keep the outfit plain, its fun to be eccentric sometimes! 

HB 282 £110