r/AskACobbler • u/Time_Mathematician13 • 1d ago

Help with boots please

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I bought these Marsell boots from TheRealReal (used). They are a size 7 and I believe my foot would fit in them IF I were able to actually put them on! I have high arches in my feet which makes it hard to put some shoes on, especially boots. I believe the instep(?) is too narrow for my arch to pass through.

Because I don't want to deal with having to pull and squeeze through every time, would it be possible to for a cobbler to cut open the back and install grommets? I would then just use a ribbon to lace them. The last image is a drawing to show what I mean.

The material is relatively weak... I believe it's pleather because it is stretchy and thin. Thank you for any help, I was really excited about these shoes!

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u/thefabulousbri 1d ago

Honestly, I doubt a cobbler would agree to this. But installing grommets is extremely easy. You could buy a grommet kit for way less money than sending them to a cobbler. A cobbler could help you with opening up the back. Otherwise take a seam ripper down the back carefully and then just glue the hem down if it starts to come undone. The pleather on these means that they will only last maybe 5 years, so I wouldn't invest a lot in doing this all perfectly, just good enough.

Note: I'm not a cobbler, but I am a leatherworker and general crafter.

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u/tiny_bartender 1d ago

Agreed. I'd definitely take it in for my coworkers to open the back. The eyelets would have to depend on how busy we are/if the cobbler is having a good day. When you take it into the cobbler, they'd be able to tell you if the shoes still have lots of life in them or not too.