Newbie Help with Highland Garb

[LadyFae]

The shoes I wear depend on which character I'm being each day.  For Fairy I have cheap, colorful flats with a nice cushy insole.  For Pirate (or muddy days) I wear boots.  Sometimes I wear black MaryJanes with a cushy sole.  Comfort is DEFINATELY key!  Also, no matter how many times you've worn your shoes before make sure that you have band-aids with just in case you develop blisters walking on a totally different terrain. 

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

A lof of performers (and others) wear ghillies.  Steve and I both are wearing them in the Buchanan tartan picture (I have them on in the other picture, too, but you can't see them).  Renboots, Native Earth, son of sander (I think?), Medieval Moccasins, and probably a dozen more shoe companies make them.  Very comfortable to wear all day.  I guess that's why so many cast members wear them.

Something to take into consideration is the terrain at your faire.  At Bristol, it is very pebbly.  There are ghillies that have open toes like sandals.  They are really cute, but I know I'd go crazy all day trying to get the pebbles out.  You already have great boots.  If you haven't already, you might want to spray waterproofing on them for rainy or muddy days at faire.

I agree with Lady Kathleen.  Uncomfortable shoes will definitely ruin a great day at faire.

[Raelyn Fey]

My fair is grassy with dirt pathways. I didn't notice a lot of rocks. My boots help up pretty well for being 'fashion' boots. I put some insoles in them, so that helped a lot. I will probably use them again, but I wanted some other options if I'm able to become more serious about costumes. I'd seen the Ghillies before, but my feet are harder to fit, so I'd have to try them on to know what size I'd need. How much do Ghillies usually run?

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

I would say around $70 to $80, maybe some cost a little less, some a little more.  It is a given that at any large faire, there is a vendor selling shoes/boots, so I would check with them.  Definitely try them on.  I have custom orthotics for my regular shoes, but my ghillies are so comfortable, and so well-cushioned inside, that I am able to wear them the whole day at faire with no inserts.  Be sure, if there are more than 1 vendor, to go to all of them and try them all on.  Some are more cushioned inside, some aren't.  Mine feel like marshmallows, but still give great support.

My husband's ghillies are around 5 years old.  Mine are 3 years old.  My former pair lasted for over 10 years, before my foot changed (due to my foot problems), and I needed a bigger size, so 3 years ago, I gave them to a friend, and she still wears them.  So a good pair will last a really long time.

[Raelyn Fey]

Are all Ghillies basically the same in design? I was just doing some research on them and found the dance ones with whole sole and split sole. I would assume whole sole would be best for fair walking. They looked so much like a normal dance shoe, I wasn't sure if I was looking at the right thing.

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

You don't want the dancing kind.  You want the kind for faire.  If you go on the Medieval Moccasin's website (I don't have that kind.  They aren't at any faires around us.) , you can see a wide variety of ghillies.  Queen Bonnie wears these, I believe, and they look very nice.

[Raelyn Fey]

Thank you! I could only find the dancing kind which made me very confused because I doubted they'd be good for walking. I'll take a peek at the website.

[Claddaghdesigns]

Check the alley off sawmill and 161 for shoes and corsets.  If your looking for Irish dresses my wife sews them and could probably give you some pointers if your handy with a machine.  Also there are quite a few local leatherworkers too that may be willing to make you ghillies. 

[Raelyn Fey]

The Alley apparently is less than an hour from me, so I'll definitely be giving them a visit soon =)