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Even though this is supposed to be a thread about durable heels, it seems like a good place to put shoe failures as well. I just had Shoe Failure No. 4 in 2025 last night. I really thought I was going to make it with just 3 failures this year. My BCBGeneration Queenie wedges yielded up the ghost. Funny thing is, I never really wore them all that seriously. They were pretty much just house shoes. I'm sure I wore them to the grocery store or other errands quite a few times, but I do not have any record of them having been part of my walking routine. I do not know whether I will attempt to replace them, since I have other mid heeled wedges that are less clunky looking.

Well done! I need to do the same!

OK, so I felt guilty about slacking, so I pulled out my highest regular heels for church yesterday morning. I actually had the morning off from musical duties, so I could sit with my family in the congregation like a normal person. These particular pumps are some off brand called Elisabet Tang. There is another brand called GenShuo that is exactly the same. They are inexpensive shoes, but appear to be well made for what they are. They are slightly higher than the similar Steve Madden shoes of that ilk like the Daisie, but still clock in at a mere 11.3 cm when translated to size 38. I thought I did ok in them. I didn't have to walk more than 30 meters at a time, though, so I can't give a real assessment. At the time this photo was taken, the wind had picked up to about 40 km/h, and everything was starting to ice over. Therefore, I switched to boots to after that to run errands.

I understand that foot size often changes during or after pregnancy. My mom said she used to wear size 5 back in the 60s and before. By the time I came along, all I can remember in her closet is 6 1/2 or better. And yes, I did try on her shoes when she wasn't around. My ex-wife's feet swelled up something terrible when she was pregnant with my older son. Luckily, it was summer, and she bought a pair of single band leather slides, and that's all she could wear for a couple of months. Amazingly, only a few short hours after giving birth, her feet shrank back down to normal size, and that's where they've stayed ever since, as far as I know. My current wife's feet increased a whole size after giving birth to my younger son. This was kind of disappointing to me, because we had gone to the great trouble of bringing about 50 pairs of shoes from Vietnam, most of them heels, and none of which fit her within months of coming to the U.S.

Absolutely, I can't imagine wearing flats all the time

I think regularly wearing heels is simply a great idea all around

Incredible to see that hhplace and some of it's members exists for so long! I was still a child at that time and the Internet wasn't even really a thing for me until the early 2000s. However I do remember that when first looking for information about high heels I found hhplace 🙂

So regularly wearing heels might compensate this growth so they stay the same size. So far I couldn't realize any change in size on my own feet. Maybe they would've grown if I never wore heels. Who knows, interesting thought at least.

Nothing wrong with combining a dress with a pair of flats, the particular one of your wife is a good combination in my eyes. And I totally agree on how it gives more of a formal or informal look. My personal view on this is that flats make a look more boring, and heels more exciting. And for myself it would somehow just feel wrong to wear a dress with flats. But for me it would generally feel wrong to wear flats for anything that isn't a sports or working activity 😉

Just as a follow-up we ended up buying an AI based washer/dryer combo. The jury is still out on whether we like it or not. It is far more advanced than I ever thought it would be. It can shut down for the slightest of reasons if everything is not perfectly aligned which can be problematic here with our water quality. But we like the small footprint of it, as we live in a small house, and how easy it was to set up. Just 120 volt, no special wiring required since it uses a heat pump, and no dryer vent to hook up, again because it is a heat pump. So we like that. And every load of laundry is clean and dry and comes out absolutely perfect, which considering the brackish water we have on this island, it is a true miracle. But... it takes an awfully long time to dry. It is a very small washer combo and it does not matter if it is a tiny load, or a small load, you put it in today and it will be done in a week. Well not quite that bad, but at least 4-5 hours. (By small load I mean what me and the wife would wear for clothes on a given day. Yes, that small) She put in 5 pairs of leggings... that was it, and it still took 4 hours to wash and dry just that! The washer part is fine; it is the dryer portion of it. We might wait and see how much room we have after we get our new water desalination system installed, and if we have room, we might just buy a conventional dryer.

I believe, too, that the bones in one’s feet do continue to grow too, albeit very slowly throughout life.

This may anger some on here, and it certainly is not meant too, but my wife switches often between wearing a particular dress with high heels and maybe sneakers. They are a specific type, what we call Keds here, but other call plimsolls in other countries. It depends on her mood because what she wears for shoes changes the whole meaning of the outfit. High heels just naturally look more formal, whereas the Keds give her a more youthful, informal look. I give her my opinion on what she should wear, but it's just a suggestion: I am not the Shoe Police that is for sure. Here is an example. She is wearing a sundress and Keds (plimsolls) in this photo. She thought Keds would look more informal because it was her maternity photoshoot for our daughter. I am in no way saying high heels would have been inappropriate, but it was one of those fashion decisions that she made. But she likes her high heels and will wear them too. Does the shoes work with the outfit for the scope of the photoshoot? Please: be the judge of that for yourself.

Yeah, that was why I mentioned what I had learned: I could see it going in both directions. Feet getting longer because of unsupported arches, and yet with strengthening and heel supports... like high heels... your foot could actually get shorter. I was glad I had my foot sized checked as I have been buying the wrong size sneakers for the past several years.

I was back a member in the late 1990's... but then left for many years. Not upset at anything or anyone, just lost interest. I recently came back but had forgotten my username and password so I started all over. I am not sure that counts anyway. But I do remember the early years!

Gosh, I wish I could be so casual about wearing 12cm stiletto boots ... I'll get there one day, I hope, but I've sure got some practicing ahead of me ...

Same for me. I wore my 13 cm boots at home a few times, but only out once. There was a lot going on before Christmas, so I didn't have quite the time to practice a lot. Naturally there were also many partys and events where I wore some 12 cm boots, so I'm not totally out of routine 🙂

I ventured into women's jeans and cords 8 years ago and haven't ventured out. In Levi's I have several 311's both red tag and cords. In Express I have many different styles, mostly skinny, size 10 and some 8's. Some are 'short', I like the short versions for some boots because the stop before the ankles and don't give me extra bulk around the ankles. My boots fit better. I have gotten a few 'straight jeans' and recently I have some skyscraper in size 10 and 8. I just got a size 6, I can get them on and close the button and zip them up, but they are a little too tight for now. Hopefully, I will be able to wear them with a little more weigh lose. Several of my cords are JAG. I get compliments in those all the time. Love the new 4-way stretchable materials.

Well, having to find a 38" inseam is surely not one of my issues. It sounds like you have a long and lean physique, which of course, is perfect for tight fitting women's jeans. Is the inseam length as much of an issue if you wear your boots over the jeans? In other words, can you get away with a much shorter inseam if you wear the jeans inside the boots? For me, I have just experimented with thrift shop girl jeans. I didn't want to spend big bucks not really knowing what size/length would be right for the old "dad bod". I found a pair of "lucky brand" dark blue "hayden" 12-31 stretch jeans that fit nicely. They are low rise, so it seems important having the old butt in decent form to keep them from drooping down, I just wear a belt. I have a dark grey pair of the same lucky jeans/same size, probably donated by the same person. I like these jeans because they stretch so fit fairly tight without feeling constricting. Definitely look nice with my nine west blank stiletto ankle boots, or most any boots for that matter. A few years back, I ventured into the levis store in Vegas, looking for a pair of women's jeans. It seems like styles have changed, most women's jeans now seem to be "high rise", saw no real "low rise" styles. Not a fan of the high rise look though. My go to for years was always the levis 511s, they fit fairly nicely. Tried a pair of 510s years back also, had to face the fact that I am not 29 anymore. The sales person in the levis store was quite pleasant and helpful, I'm sure she realized she had a sale if she just stuck with me while I pondered several styles. Finally, she recommeded levis 512s. These seem to be a combination of 510s, nice tight fit on the legs, combined the a slightly more "dad bod" fit around the waist hips. I really like the way the fit and bought a pair, probably should have bought two pairs, they might be discontinued now!

Same here, just wearing my block heeled ankle boots lately, better than nothing. Finally, yesterday, I put on my 4.5" stiletto ankle boots while working on an outboard in the basement, and was thrilled at how easy it was to walk in them, and how good it felt/looked...Wore some tighter fitting levis black women's jeans for the occasion

Same here! Again a combination of winter weather, a muddy towpath, and frankly a bit of holiday laziness. Like you, I’ve worn mid heels as a kind of maintenance heel to keep myself in some kind of heel wearing condition. I’m making mastering 12cm heels a New Year’s resolution though and going to get right back into practicing.

It has still not been a great month for practicing in super tall heels. Part of the reason is the weather, but part of it is that I'm taking a bit of a break from walking in heels just for the sake of walking in them. I've had the last four days off due to the Christmas holiday, and I've actually gone out walking on three out of the four. I purposefully wore mid heels for two of those days, because I figured I would be a little out of condition, and didn't want to overdo it. Nothing bad happened, so I switched to actual high heels yesterday. I did my 2.1 mile (3.4 km) route in the equivalent adjusted steepness of 10.5 cm, and wow, the difference between 9 cm and 10 1/2 is remarkable, or so my calves thought! And it's not like I gave up wearing heels altogether, I just haven't been pounding the pavement like I usually do.

The business does seem to be defunct, with no active links that I can see. But this one may indicate a new (or intended) business, although it is unclear whether that is an active advert: https://www.instagram.com/cowboybootscustom/ I bought one pair of MJ boots several years ago and was pleased with the quality and fit. A shame if he is no longer in business.

I still have my first pair of hh cowboy boots that are Western Ranch. Have had them resoled twice. The toe and heel show wear, but a good polishing hides a lot. All of my MJ boots and shoes were custom from my measurements, so have been blessed with a great fit!! As to the Wranglers, I find the pockets are great!! After Levi’s did away with the ‘original spin’ custom jeans, I tried American Eagle jeans as well as Vanity, BKE, Miss Me even Cruel Girl. Miss Me were great!! But very expensive. American Eagle tends to run thin, but fit great, but finding 38” inseam was hard. Vanity was my go to low rise boot cut until they shuttered. Cruel Girl I loved but could only find 36” inseam. BKE were great too but again ran thin and 38” inseam has been difficult. So for the last 5 years Wrangler has been my favorite. I’d love to hear other guys experiences with women’s jeans with their hhboots!! tightlevishhboots!!!

Hey one and all! I forgot to put photos here but I'll go one better and post a video of them. Hope you all had a nice Christmas! https://youtu.be/eTkdC0R6PZc Remembered these photos that I combined into one, as well.

It was in the seventies, so she had high stiletto pumps. It snowed and I went barefooted for a few weeks. The snow helped with the pain.