Websites That Let You Design Your Own Shoes

There, nothing is more frustrating than not being able to find the perfect pair of shoes for your needs. Imagine you find the right pair but the heel height is too high, the color is a bit off or you wished the pair you didn't come with ankle straps or those crazy rhinestones on them? Instead of putting up with what you would rather not have in a pair of shoes, why not design your own pair? Think it is impossible? There are a few websites and resources out there that let you design your own shoes. All you need is a little creativity and a wish list of exactly what your perfect pair of shoes would look like. Here are five websites that let you design your own shoes.  

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Shoes of Prey

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Photo: Shoes of Prey.

Shoes of Prey is really quite unbelievable. The only limitation with Shoes of Prey is your imagination. The company is changing the way women shop for shoes and is on track to become a significant international retailer over the next five years. You can even buy Shoes of Prey shoes at Nordstrom now. With their 3D Designer, Shoes of Prey allows you choose the shape, color, and height of your shoes. They custom make your design and ship anywhere in the world in around 4 weeks.  Shoes of Prey also come in hard to find small and large sizes as well as narrow and wide widths.

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AliveShoes

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Photo: AliveShoes.

AliveShoes is another company that allows you to design your perfect pair of shoes.  However, this company takes the concept of custom shoe design a step further by allowing you to sell and make a profit from your creations. AliveShoes lets you create, promote and sell unique shoes. Their platform offers design, communication and e-commerce tools so you can develop your brand from scratch and launch your shoes worldwide. All the shoes are handcrafted from the best Italian materials in Le Marche, Italy, also known as 'The Shoe Valley'.       

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Nina Shoes

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Photo: Nina Shoes.

Nina Shoes is a well known special occasion shoe brand.  While most women know that this company offers dyable shoes that can be matched to whatever dress color a woman is wearing, Nina's Design has a Design Your Own Shoe tool which provides more than 2 million different possibilities.  After you choose from one of their seven best-selling styles and start to create, with a 16-color palette wheel that their design team constantly updates to represent the hottest colors of the season, there's no shortage of ways to make shoes that are uniquely yours. Plus, you can even order a swatch book (free with a future DYO purchase) and be absolutely certain that the shoes match the dress.

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NIKEiD

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Photo: NIKE.

Customized shoes aren't just found in dressy styles, NIKEiD is a well-known resource for custom designed high-performance shoes.  No matter what the sport, need or style, you can create the perfect shoes that will not only be supportive for the sport you engage in but will let you stand out with a unique style.  

Don't get overwhelmed

When it comes to shoe customization, be careful of what you wish for. Many of these sites offer limitless possibilities, which may seem liberating at first, but can be overwhelming. Before you sit down to design your perfect pair of shoes, be clear on what you are looking for and stay focused. Consider having the pair of shoes you want figured out in your head before getting started. Even if customized shoes is out of your price range, playing with these sites can be a lot of fun and a total creative outlet.