Tacchi Alti

Wow. I can just imagine you hauling in the nets and spearing fish with your heels... Awesome!

It's just simple: Your ankle joint is higher off the floor than your toe joints and quite a bit forward of the back of your heel. The only way a four-inch heel would raise you four inches without a four-inch platform would be if your ankle joint were a hinge right at the back of your heel. Just one of my personal hang-ups. You see so many times that people imagine a six-inch heel without platform will raise them six inches. It will actually raise them very little more than a four-inch heel. To those who doubt - measure it!

What more? Adding 10cm to my height gets the top of my head to just over 180cm and makes conversation with my Dutch friends easier :-).

A 10cm heel doesn't add 10cm to your height unless you also have a 10cm platform. If you don't believe me, try measuring yourself and you'll find you're only just over 5cm taller with no platform.

I'm sure you can work out the maths: continental drift multiplied by the ambient temperature minus the trunk diameter of the second oak tree from the left and the square of the glacial erosion of the Mississippi during February. Sorry, couldn't resist that one.

Please get her to ring me regularly - at least six times a day...

"Does the sight of a man in high heels turn you on or off"?

So far I would have to say it does.

"Do you find it interesting or simply wrong"?

I'm very inquisitive, so in a way, yes. I'm interested in the motives.

I don't think it's wrong.

"Are you for it or against it"?

I'm for people being able to explore, express and enjoy themselves so long as it harms no others.

"Men wearing high heels in public, a do or a don't"?

Not with me on their arm.

Amanda, well done! A decided shift to more tolerance even if you don't like the sight or concept of men in heels.

Hello all. it must be christmas because I have bought yet another two pairs of boots again, see what you think, both are so comfortable to wear.

I LOVE the black ones. I hope both pairs get a lot of street mileage.

Wow, some night owls here! Congratulations pvccat on your first post. Nice to see another English member.

Have a look at these:

http://www.bertulli-shoes.co.uk/en/8-sport

They stock them down to size 38.

Absolutely ideal. High enough to get the high heel feeling; chunky enough heel and neutral styling for you not to get a second glance from most people. Outside my price range, however...

Another suggestion: do you have charity shops/thrift stores in NZ? I can often pick up shoes (flats and heels) more cheaply than reheeling existing ones. This doesn't solve your immediate problem of keeping your favourite sandals alive (answered by Shafted and jay jay) but it's worth bearing in mind. You can also pick up very good quality shoes like that, far outside your usual price range. Ebay is another option.

I regularly wear cowboy boots with a 2.5 inch heel (and generally an insert to raise them inside!) and get very little attention. Yesterday I wore them for a hospital appointment and they made a colossal clatter in the corridors and in the waiting room! I'm sure quite a few people looked, but I ignored everyone and concentrated on walking without slapping the sole down. I was wearing bootcut black cords, but the heel would have been obvious.

Well, I guess I should not have created a new post. Seems like many others don't like that I did. I did not think I'd receive that kind of multiple negative responses, so I probably will just close my account here and move on elsewhere. Not too friendly here. . .

You've been a member less than a month, and, as others have said, the replies on this thread have not been negative. Perhaps we're a bit more familiar with the site and are making constructive suggestions to help you. If you're simply going to abuse people, then I think your idea is a very good one. Close your account and move on elsewhere. We'll warn them you're coming...

However, I think you'll find if you stick around that most people here are warm, welcoming, forgiving and helpful. There's plenty of room for genuine high heel lovers who show mutual respect.

In case I don't see you again - have a Happy Christmas, and may all your stockings slip sensuously into party heels.

Do you have a pic of the wedge trainers? They sound ideal for getting some street heeling done...!

They're like this: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEXT2NOWT-Lace-Up-Buckled-Wedge-Boots-Various-Sizes-/190599397101?pt=UK_Women_s_Shoes&var=&hash=item72184d7f31

I also have a pair similar to this in black:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-Ladies-Beige-lace-up-High-Heel-Pumps-size-7-/270862757283?pt=UK_Women_s_Shoes&var=&hash=item84b9659014

There are quite a few of similar style on Ebay, and probably other places. One snag is that the maximum size is UK8. That's OK for me, as I'm an 8, although they're a snug fit on me.

Hello and welcome Hotheels1969, hope to hear more from you soon.

Errr, 4 years later?

I have these wings around my ears that just won't go away.

I wondered what it was just under the halo in your avatar. Now, how about a few nice wigs? You could coordinate them for colour with your shoes. I'll wait for the pink.

Thanks for that, I'm going to buy another pair of boots a bit lower and try the shopping mall. have to start somewhere, so I have set my mind on doing that, what have I got to loose now, the mention of a sore back is a pretty good response.

There have been NO reactions, positive or negative, that I've seen when wearing the cowboy boots with 2.5 inch heels, and one time I was with two friends (business colleagues) for several hours. The ones I tried and discarded on Wednesday have heels of nearly 4 inches (I measured them again this morning and they're higher than I remembered) so I may well go Christmas shopping in those and see if there is any reaction. They have a chunky heel.

The wedge trainers I wore are VERY comfortable, and the rubber heel acts as a good cushion. Actually, I looked up my route on the street plan and was surprised to see that in fact the total distance I walked, allowing for garden paths, was about 4 miles. My back is usually suffering before half that distance.

I'm alone in the office today, so have on shoes very similar to those in my Avatar. I thought I'd broken a heel earlier, as all of a sudden my left shoe collapsed. It had popped a knot through the wooden floor! I'm very relieved it's not broken, but it's messed up cosmetically.

No others with stories about wearing in public? I'm surprised. . .

I think you'll find no end of them in other places on the site.

At the risk of being accused of hijacking a thread ... but being a fellow-Englishman and unwilling to start another on a similar theme: I had to do deliver some leaflets yesterday, so took longer trousers with me, plus a pair of block-heel boots (just over 3 inches) and a pair of wedge trainers (just over 4 inches). I was in a residential area, so quite a few people were coming and going. I tried the boots, but they were a bit loud for my liking. They'd probably have been OK in a busy shopping area. I then put the wedges on and they were fine, and really comfortable. Apart from the lovely wobble, particularly over uneven ground and on slopes, I almost forgot I was wearing them, and I was able to walk 'naturally' in them so wouldn't have given away that they were high heels. Certainly those that saw me didn't give me a second glance. I must have walked about two miles in them, possibly more, as it's difficult to judge the extra distance up and down garden paths. It was getting dark, so perhaps it's cheating a bit, but at least it wasn't a furtive night-time trip. A big advantage with the trainers, which gave me far more confidence, is that they are quiet. They're also really comfortable, although towards the end the bottoms of my toes were getting a bit sore. A pair of half insoles might be in order next time. Last time I wore these, I got bad blisters on my little toes after less than half a mile. This time I tried something I'd heard about. I wore pop socks under my ordinary socks, and the second layer worked wonders. Another bonus which I was hoping for, judging by past experience shopping in cowboy boots with 2.5 inch heels, was that my back was fine. In flat shoes my back often aches when I walk or stand around for any extended period of time. Not a twinge of pain. I could therefore give an honest medically based answer anytime to anyone who noticed and asked why I was wearing heels.

New boots, bought these ones today. Four inch wedge heel, soft leather and very comfy to wear.

Very nice, and ideal understated look. Do they do them in black?

Looks like a trip to the salon is in order. Thanks again.

Suggestions? Anyone?

How about a crew cut to complement the suede boots?

HHP member takes his wife into a shoe shop and approaches a shop assistant. Assistant: "Good morning, sir, would you like some shoes for your wife?" Husband: "Sounds a fair swap to me."

Ultimately making more fuss increases the risk of exposure to the wife (phone calls/letters of apology/etc), so perhaps not worth it.

Yes, I wondered about that! I still think it's totally unacceptable behaviour, though. Well done on the way you handled it. I wonder what I'd have done in the circumstances. I'm disappointed that there should be such troglodytes masquerading as salespersons, especially in a large retail chain. I occasionally get stuff in Matalan, as they have very good prices, but I wonder whether their staff are cloned. One way to find out...

Wow, that's absolutely ridiculous, and in fact you should complain to Matalan head office about your treatment and demand compensation for hurt feelings. (They're the most expensive thing you can claim for!) Why on earth would you get accused of shoplifting just because you were wearing high heels? Would they have stopped you if you'd been wearing flat shoes, or a pair of trousers, even if you'd stolen those and left your own on the shelf? I wonder whether it was really a customer who 'reported' you, and even so they assaulted you by grabbing your arm. There was no need for them to do that. Do you have any names of staff? You could make things very uncomfortable for them with their employers, who would be terrified of bad publicity about any 'isms.

Who needs spurs? Actually I'd have thought pony boots would be the next step.

For the kind advice CRabbit so what do you do with you shoes if your wife does not approve. Do you have to hide them from her?

When I'm not throwing them out - I have to hide a pair in the basement where I know she will not look.

I expect a lot here can identify with your problem, although at least you've now found out that you're not the only 'freak' in a global male population of about 3.5 billion. :-) It's really frustrating living a double life when all you want to do is be accepted for who you are - just a normal bloke with a fascination for high heels and rather angry that such a small thing should cause so much grief and drive you to deception of someone you love.

As for surfing at home, you could try what I've done: install another browser and set the history to nil, so that there is no track of your browsing.

My wife tolerates my heels but she still gets a bit upset at times, with no warning, so it's kinder not to leave clues. She has no idea I come to this site, for instance.