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Not at all! There’s a Scot moored just up from me who wears shorts when it’s below freezing. Lots wear shorts. I didn’t wear them when I lived in Australia either!

@higherheels Congratulations on another accomplishment, even if it seemed a bit anticlimactic. I am curious to know whether it's just the fatigue that limits your walking distance, or are there other factors? I am pretty much resigned to waiting until Spring for me to make much progress. We just got more snow, and we're supposed to get more on Saturday--like 15 cm more. It is somewhat unusual for us to have this much snow before the middle of December. I have a feeling it's going to be a long winter! As for the rest of the discussion, I could not possibly imagine ever wearing stilettos when I first started heeling. Too girly. I had one color for shoes: Black. And they had to be very plain. I actually used to color in shiny hardware with a black marker to make them less flashy, and then I'd wear boot cut pants hemmed as close to the floor as was practical. I suppose I must have looked very strange, trying to hide my heels like that. It took a couple of years before I warmed to the idea of wearing stilettos myself, even though that was always the gold standard for heels. Today, I basically wear stilettos (though not exclusively) for dressier occasions. My wife has long given up objecting to any of my footwear, and unfortunately is long past being able to wear any of it herself, due to severe knee issues. I still feel funny wearing stilettos in more casual situations, especially with shorts. I cannot tell you why. I need to get over it.

Interesting, I didn't know about the differences between womens and mens shoes. Probably also depends on foot and shoe shape. Some pumps I can also put on just by stepping into them, some I have to pull back on the heel to get into. I'd also say that stilettos look more feminine than block heels in general I just came back from my first walk around the block in my new boots. They're definitely harder than the Hot Chicks for such a "long" walk. I can feel it in my calves and also on the balls of my feet. I will stick to shorter distances and indoor wearing for now. The walk around the block was about my limit, so I'll try it again when I had more practice. Still have a long way to go, but maybe I can wear them out soon again for dinner or so 🙂

@mlroseplant That's the beginner's mistake I also made. Trying them on, thinking they fit perfectly, just to realize afterwards that the heel slips out of them while walking. This often happened after a while of breaking them in. I looked up the Steve Madden Daisie and Klory. They really look similar to the Louboutin Models. I think the height looks nice on them. More suitable for everyday wear than the Louboutin 120's, but not as "low" as the respective Louboutin 100 models. Oh, that's a different story. Not as fun as if you would have been captured practicing in heels. @Shyheels I think of that more as an advantage than disadvantage. My feet are also more on the narrow side and most pumps fit me well. @bluejay I'm the total opposite, almost all my pumps are stilettos 😀 Do you prefer block heels for the look or walking experience?

You're back! Awesome! Here is another pair of wedges that I really liked, from Schutz, but unfortunately they broke on their very first true outing. I forgot about that one, actually. Elsewhere, I said I've only had 2 shoe failures this year. Make that 3.

Pumps can be tricky. I thought I couldn't wear them for the longest time, because every time I tried, I'd just walk right out of them. Literally, my heel would pop right out of the shoe within a few steps. It was very frustrating. After a few years of heeling, I found that I needed to go down half a size in general. That helped a good deal. Thankfully my narrow foot can tolerate a typical pump with a pretty tight fit. Steve Madden is the brand that fits me the best for pumps. Unfortunately, modern Steve Maddens are not leather, but I do not find them objectionable nevertheless. Then again, I do not wear them all day, every day. The other unfortunate thing about Steve Madden is that they do not make a true 120 mm model. My favorite model is called Daisie, which is a pretty good imitation of a Louboutin So Kate, only without the red sole, and with a mere 110 mm effective heel height. My second favorite model is call the Klory, which is quite a bit like the Pigalle (the old Pigalle, not the new ones). Again, the effective heel height is aroun 105-110 mm, depending on which example you get. Not quite up to our standards! Alas, I gave the wrong impression about the church security cameras. There is no footage of me practicing in heels, although that would have cause the Board of Trustees far less alarm, I'm sure. My then 15 year old son got caught in there, practicing with the jazz band combo that he and his friend led. They had tacit permission to be in there, but evidently did not have the correct and official permission to be in there. Unfortunately, I was running an errand when they were escorted out, and couldn't be present to defend them.

Yes, we are waiting with 'bated breath (not literally) to find out how a walk around the block in 13+ cm boots goes. Last night, I wore stiletto pumps for the first time since last spring, and while mine were much tamer than yours, at an effective 10.5 cm, it was the fit and feel that got me way more than the height. I'm just not used to that style. Still, there were no injuries of any sort--not even a blister. I'll get used to them again in no time, I'm sure. I have no idea how far I walked, but I got to the event a little bit late, and had to park my car "in the Back 40," as they say around here. A couple hundred meters, for sure. I used to have the perfect place to practice if I came early enough or late enough--my church, with its long hallways and long flights of stairs. However, due to the times, they've installed security cameras which activate if there's somebody mucking about in there when they shouldn't be. Ask me how I know.

Yes, that's really interesting. From what I know, Louboutins generally are known for not being comfortable. With the Hot Chicks it's the combination of the height and tight/stiff toe box. The Pigalle are way more comfortable, but I've worn them so much that you could almost call them "worn out". Though they still hold up well, I'm sure I can wear them for many years to come. If I would wear the Hot Chicks as much as the Pigalle I think they'd get more comfortable too with time. Maybe I'll try my walk around the block in my boots this week. I'm a bit concerned that it will be very uncomfortable, but I got to start at some point. My indoor wearing also results in a lot of sitting, but as you say it still gets you familiar.

@Shyheels The 100 meters were manageable. I'm curious how the walk around the block (170 m) will turn out. It sounds a lot, but for really wearing them out you quickly get a few hundred meters, so that's my goal to get as comfortable as possible in them to be able to wear them out more. By more comfortable than the Hot Chicks I mean the general shape and fit. The higher heel makes them more uncomfortable for walking, but the rest compensates a little for that. @Puffer In Germany it's the same with Deichmann. They almost only have "standard" shoes, nothing too exciting. @mlroseplant What a pity, a broken heel is a bad as it can get, but sounds like you managed it very well.

I spent the entire day yesterday in high stiletto ankle boots. When adjusted for size and platform, the heel height was 10.4 cm. I am not quite telling the whole truth about that. I intended to spend the entire day in 10.4 cm stiletto boots, but fate had other plans for me. As documented elsewhere, I broke a heel about mid-afternoon and had to switch to 10 cm slim heeled boots after that. I would say that hobbling around on a broken heel for the better part of an hour was good practice for 12 cm, but I really don't think it was. It just made me grumpy, and made me look funny.

I had my second shoe failure of 2025 yesterday. However, this one was not catastrophic--in other words, it can be repaired. I was wearing my Aldo stiletto ankle boots to shop at Costco, and I noticed as soon as I stepped out of the car that something was very wrong. The heel on my right boot had indeed come loose, and was flexing wickedly in a way it wasn't meant to flex. I didn't have any alternatives with me in my wife's car, so I had to walk very strangely the whole time in order to keep from damaging the heel further. I prevailed in the end, I believe this shoe can be fully repaired, but it ruined an otherwise enjoyable outing. I'm doing pretty well this year. On an average year, I have about half a dozen shoe failures, and the vast majority of those result in the shoes being reclassified as landfill material. This year, I've only had two, and like I said, I'm sure this latest one is an easy fix. This despite the fact that I've walked significantly further in 2025 than I did in 2024.