How to Measure Vintage Shoes
Vintage shoe sizes haven't changed significantly--a woman who wears a size 7 1/2 modern shoe will probably still wear between a 7 or an 8 in most vintage shoe sizes. Vintage sizes do vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, though, so if you intend to list vintage shoes for sale you will want to list both their size and their measurements so that customers can select the best fit. Customers can use the same techniques to measure their own shoes, then record those measurements so that they know exactly what dimensions to look for when shopping for vintage shoes.
Instructions
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1
Feed the end of a flexible tape measure into the toe of the vintage shoe. Make sure the tape measure is centered in the middle of the insole and runs directly from the end of the toe to the end of the heel. Read the measurement on the tape measure--this is the inside shoe length.
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2
Place the end of the tape against the inside edge of the widest part of the shoe, which is generally the ball of the foot. Flatten the tape across this area and read the measurement to get the inside shoe width.
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3
Measure across the heel of the shoe, using the same technique as directed above, just before it tapers. This is the heel width and may or may not be listed on many vintage shoes.
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4
Place your vintage shoe on a flat surface and use a rigid ruler to measure the distance from the surface up to the seam where the heel meets the sole of the shoe. This is the heel height. Make sure the edge of the ruler sits flush against the flat surface the shoe is resting on and the ruler itself leads straight up.
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