Carrie, the designer high heel shoe lover in “Sex and the City” was unapologetically obsessed with designer shoe brands like Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo and Guiseppe Zanotti.

For high heel shoe collectors on a budget, scoring these designer shoes for cheap, instead of paying at least $800 a pair for designer footwear is your highest priority.

While buying designer shoes for less is the ultimate prize in the online shoe shopping game, getting the right size shoe is just as important as scoring a straight-from-the-runway shoe for cheap.

Before you go shopping online or in the store for your next pair of  Christian Louboutin shoes, use these tips to get the right style and the right size shoe.

Here are a few shoe shopping tips to buy the right pair of designer shoes without hurting your feet:

  • Buy your high heels after lunch. Because feet tend to swell in the afternoon, buy your shoes after noon to determine the best fit.
  • Don’t sit when you are getting your feet measured. Stand up while the shoe salesman is measuring your feet.
  • Your shoes don’t need to be broken in. Whether they are Prada shoes or Cole Haan shoes, don’t succumb to the big myth that shoes have to be tight. And pair of designer shoes you buy should be easy to walk in and comfortable immediately.
  • Get off the plush department store carpeting. Walk around the store on a hard surface, instead of carpet to see how your toes would feel when walking on concrete, cement or hardwood floors.
  • Place both shoes on your feet. Because one shoe is typically larger that the other, try on both pairs of designer shoes before you buy.
  • Focus on fit. Make sure that any pair of stilettos, pumps or high heels fit well in the back, sides and front of the shoes. Buy a new pair of shoes that doesn’t  pinch your toes or are too big around the back of the heels.
  • Hosiery matters. Try on your pair of designer shoes with the same type of stocking or sock you plan to wear with the shoes.

Designer high heel shoe shoppers you’ve been warned: buying the right shoe size does matter!

Even if your feet are not hurting today, you should still consider fit and comfort when purchasing designer high heel shoes.

So if you want to follow in Carrie Bradshaw’s fine designer shoe footsteps, you must get your feet measured before buying your next pair of stilettos for a special event, first date or a night of dancing in the clubs.