For referance, I normally wear an 8 to 8.5 in ladies.The ball of my foot is just a little wider than the “average” shoe width, but most B width (medium width) shoes and boots fit comfortably. Wide width shoes are almost always too wide. My heel is relatively narrow.Pros:They seem warm? I tried them on and walked around on my carpeting for a few laps, and my cold toes started to warm up, so that was nice.The sole is OMG cushiony, and not very thick – I prefer zero rise shoes and boots when possible, and if these aren’t zero rise, they seem close.Cons:So. Freaking. Narrow.I live in snow country, and we regularly have temps in the single digits and negatives during our long winters. Snow and slush are common, so water proof is preferred and highly water resistant is necessary. I work in an office, but am in and out of a warehouse as well. I’ve been looking for a pair of shorter (ankle height or just above) snow boots that will keep my feet and ankles warm and dry, are easy to get on and off, and will work with both boot cut and skinny jeans.These looked like they’d fit the bill, and Columbia products are generally worth the price.Unfortunately, as I noted above, these things are freaking narrow. After 2 laps on my living room – maybe 200 steps? – the bones in the ball of my foot were hurting. I don’t wear thick socks in winter, my go to socks are alpaca or merino wool – warm, moisture wicking, and no thicker than a normal cotton or cotton blend sock.Nothing that I saw in the Amazon reviews prepared me for how narrow these are, so I thought it might just be my feet vs their lathe width.I got my MIL (same shoe size, but narrower foot width) to try the boots on, and she immediately said that they were too tight and hurting her feet – she didn’t even want to stand up in them.I decided to check out the reviews on Zappos and Columbia, and saw several reviews that recommended going up a half size.Unfortunately, as I have a narrow heel, sizing up usually means the heel rubs ?Other than the fit, I’m not sold on the looks of the boot in person. I love the color way (black/deep water), but the way the sole narrows in height at the ball of the foot makes the boots look almost clunky in person… Almost as though they’ve been worn for a while by someone who rolls their foot to the outside, and this has worn down the outer edge of the sole. This design choice made even my MILs narrow to average width feet look wide.I’m going to return these; if I size up, I’ll update my review.
