Sangue16

I had some success with a couple things that might be helpful for others: Use oil or some type of lubricant like WD40 to help counteract the rust and corrosion that will make removal difficult. Also, try to get pliers as close as possible to the type commonly used by shoe cobblers. I found that regular needlenose pliers tend to have this sharp part away from the tip, closer to the handle. Position the pliers so the thinnest part is on the junction between the heel tip and the actual heel. One thing I did was peel back my covering on the heel after damaging part on one heel (I may recover these as I have been toying with the idea). The main thing is wiggle or "shimmy" the bit upward instead of expecting it to come off by pulling straight up as I found I chopped metal splinters off with the later technique. Thank you to Shoerepairer, Pussyinboots, Dr. Shoe, Shafted, and everyone who has contributed to these shoe repair forums!

Continental types? That's an odd comment, Megan. I think Heidi means she is not as comfortable using computers that are set up in French rather than that she does not know a word of French, is that correct Heidi? If not, how fun would it be to blunder our way through on my shaky (at best) French!

Heidi, after I read your post the other day I was running late to one of my Biology classes--running in stilettos on concrete. I imagined that you would be amused and it made me laugh in spite of my haste!

How fun would

be? Heidi, Sharon, would you two wear heels for this look? I personally think the shoes she used were better off as they were, but I like better (as usual, less platform would be nice). Cheers!

Hi Annette, welcome! Like Rachel said click on "search this forum" at the top right corner on the Shoe Repair forum and search heel tips. There are some great tips (lol) on replacing plastic/metal tips and I also posted about IdealHeel, Solemates, etc. I am going to really, really have to replace and protect some heel tips soon. If I do it first, I'll tell you how it goes, but I'll keep an eye out for your results in the meantime

Megan and Sharon, I thought you would like those boots, lol! I would not buy them myself because, as you said, they are not "real" boots. I understand that it is more fun for you to soak shoes that hold water. I, on the other hand, like transient sprays and soakings.

Heidi, I am glad I was closer on the mark to your style! Do you find Victoria's Secret shoes in stores in Europe? Here you can only order them through the catalog or online The shoes you picked were actually the ones I liked best, but I wish the platform was either 1/2" or nonexistent. As for campus, there is a lot of very harsh asphalt and concrete. I used to wear flats when I was crossing these and pop my heels back on once past these areas until I lost the flats. I really have no patience for flats shopping as I very rarely find a pair I like. Another idea I have toyed with is buying heel protecting caps or replacing my stilletto heels with metal. I think I will have to do the later because I noticed a difference in the sound and feel to my black heels with gold cut-outs and sure enough, I was down to the metal. Quebec! I took four years of French at an advanced level in high school and I am horrible conversing but can read and write pretty well in French. You're not too far away as Minnesota borders on Canada

Some others I like: may have already shared these, and these, although these are too precious to so much as splash!

Saw this on a commercial this morning and I thought (1) I want those and (2) I have to post this on hhplace!

Kate Hudson shows some very nice heels at 0:12 for Almay Smart Shade foundation.

MrsW, that is about perfect! "Changes colour, even black to white. Repairs scuffs, scratches and restores colour. Dries to a shine, an after finish is not required. For leather, canvas and synthetic leather." Cool.

And these would be beautiful performance heels for you, Heidi! 5 inches and a well-hidden non-hooker (lol) platform! Perfect for the ski resort, but I wish they would specify if they are lined with faux fur or just have accents. Kind of neat that the fur can fold over as a cuff or stay up for versatility.

Sharon, do you own any knit boots? I just came across these I thought this would get very, extremely soaked!

Very true. And prevention would have been so many times more effective! Do you know of any non-damaging removable insoles, by chance?

Megan: Lol, yeah a man's jacket is not at all your style! I just meant it's interesting what people can do with unique materials (I wish the Project Runway challenge would have been to design for women instead of that 70's theme group.

As for shopping, I have learned to really love shopping when I can find something in my size (e.g. at Victoria's Secret, The Limited, thrift stores, etc.). I almost never wear jeans, they just seem so coarse and warm. I know lots of girls that stress of the perfect pair of jeans, but I don't because my husband has an eye for clothing that fits like a dream. Sometimes he just brings something home and it is exactly what I want, even when I didn't know I'd want it!

Green eyes? Wow, striking! I would love to do your eye make up Megan!! Haha I have brown eyes myself and love to wear eyeliner to make my eyes look bigger. I am kind of a snob about it because I have surgeon-steady hands so I don't mind that my busy schedule means sometimes applying eyeliner right in public. When I go out I sometimes line my eyes first in black, with a thin line starting in the middle of my top lid and thicker to the edge, then an even line on the bottom. I connect the corner of my eye from the inner corner to where the black starts in gold glitter liner and a small fleck below the lower edge. I would do yours in purple glitter liner instead of the gold! We would have to definitely use waterproof! lol

As for my heels-to-soak update, I am sort of dangerous right now as I just received a Victoria's Secret gift card. So far I don't have anything in mind and I better not spend money just yet (upcoming school expense!), but what would you all pick?

Hi, with all the experts around here I was wondering if anyone has ever repainted insoles? I have a pair of Boutique 9 heels that I am rather fond of and which have a cream insole. I noticed some gray marks on the insole and thought they had gotten some dirt in them. When I wiped them down, they got dirtier! Oops. I figure whatever they used to give them that white/cream color was rubbing off and would like to repaint them with something that will not run too much with perspiration. Then I would use some sort of removable insoles to protect the original insoles from friction, perspiration, dirt, and the like. Any suggestions are much appreciated!

FYI I was typing up a long response and closed out of the page, so I'm going to post more later. Just saw you added a post Megan and I think you should definitely do color! As for the fringe, I think it can be very well as seen here in an episode of Project Runway (different view). I say embrace what makes you comfortable, it is your style after all. How exciting that you're finding this all empowering!

And I will admit, I feel I am trailing in the wake of the fabulous ladies here quite often myself. With my college budget and financially cautious planning, high heel splurges are the exception rather than the rule. Because of this, I try to only buy high quality shoes that fit my style and my budget--easier said than done! One thing I plan on doing is replacing the heel tips on my favorite pairs with metal tips as explained in the Shoe Repair threads here.

Sharon, thank you for sharing your style with us. I would sum it up as ultra stylish with a sense of practicality. I bet you are a formidable beauty with 33" of leg ending in an elegant heel! I like the overall look of the silver sequin heels--showstoppers are my favorites. Your partner is a very lucky lady

Heidi, I am planning to buy block heels or stillettos, but am increasingly leaning toward the more stable of the two. I tend to buy very impractical heels and like adapting to them and feeling like I can conquer the world, lol. I guess that's why I like "braving" wet weather and snow so much. These block heels I have been looking at are something more appealing to me than I would have thought. The heel would probably last me a lot longer than heel tips, plus I purchased several heel protectors that extend the life of wider heels on a whim. Speaking of whims, your impromptu heel buys must be so much fun! When I am done with medical school (then residency...) I will have enough room in my budget for similar buys.

With all our height and heel variations, imagine how we would sound walking down the street together! We would have mine and Megan's short steps, so a faster sharp patter of stilletto heels and a softer rhythm of cowboy boots. Heidi's boots would probably sound more similar to Megan's with the great tread if it was winter but come at a slower rate due to her longer stride. Sharon would have the slowest rate of steps, sounding otherwise exactly like Heidi's. I think summer would be the most fun of all with all of us tapping away in stillettos! LOL

Fringe? Interesting... I will have to check those out! How appalling that you can never find your shoe size! I remember hearing about women with your size feet having lots of trouble finding heels when I worked in a mall. I do not envy that! I wonder if you could try shopping for shoes and reading the reviews to see if they run small, especially if they are leather and could shrink. I don't think I could quite brave a polar expedition! I was, however, very pleased that you thought of me and in comparison to such brave heeling! The other day I forgot to report to all of you that I did get my feet wet, unexpectedly and not enjoyably. I was walking between campuses and to and from a convenience store, thoroughly soaking the last 6 inches of my pants leg! It was awful because I just knew the salt was creeping up my leg and these are beige pants with a light design of darker beige, white, and blue lines almost like a faint plaid. Definitely going to have to be scrubbed out, the machine won't get that after it dries. I really should have hemmed them up quite awhile ago (such a problem, being short. Clothes here is for short, fat women or for tall, thin women with no shades of grey. And not tall enough for our Sharon either!) These I paired with some old shoes I got from who knows where, they are PU block heel (2.5"?) heels that are at least a size too big, but I had Biology lab (no open shoes curse). A jaunt through fountains would have been welcome, even in that cold, but dirty, road-salty water climbing up my pants? Nope, I had my Heidi moment.

Thanks, Megan. I don't worry too much, I wonder. I think it mainly boils down to jealousy. The "Essex girls" thing I had to look up, but that's pretty much right on.

Interesting perspectives, thank you. Platforms are, for sure, very eye catching.

I find myself feeling a bit like a cheater when I wear high heels with a platform. In my head, they only count as the height of the heel minus the platform, because in actuality, one's foot is not as inclined.

Are platforms cheating? I do notice that a lot of high heel shoe selling sites have tons of "5 inch" heels that have at least a good inch to two inches of platform. The platform itself is not an integral part of the shoe, for the most part, but looks more like an after thought or a way to increase the heel height. Then there is the ease of walking in 4" with a platform versus 4" without... definitely feels like cheating to me!

:silly:Sangue

Hi stillettopete! Love the "heel scanner" bit, I so wish more people around here wore heels. (Come to think of it, I only see someone in heels about twice a week.) Suffice it to say that you better turn down the intensity of your heel scanner here or it will blow up! Have fun!

I can't count the number of times that some other woman has sneered at me or assumed that I am, well, a b**** because of the way I dress. It seems like women have some sort of a catty reaction to me in heels and dressed to the nines. On days that I do not dress up as much but am still wearing heels (e.g. wearing heels, slacks, and a loose sweater) I still get these reactions, although not as much. I am not sure if this is just a midwest US thing, but I have trouble changing people's opinions that I am snobby once they have this opinion. Does anyone else find themselves dealing with a high heel bias? Do women, especially with their partners, look down at you after seeing your heels? Just wondering if I'm not the only one!

I ran a quick Google search of block heel boots and came up with some that caught my eye. As for the 60's/70's style boots, I'm not sure if I am really getting a good picture of what they look like. It seems there are lots of types that people refer to, some of them seem like cliche styles. Could you post an image of the type that you mean? I am definitely getting the sense that with boots there is a whole different set of rules!

Hi Sangue

I see you're on line. I'm awake for no good reason. Do you really find heels make you feel taller? Shouldl I bite the bullet and try them instead of looking and longing? I saw some shoes today, red patent, ankle strap, 4" heels. So beautiful, and so no good for me. They won't have them in my size any way. How do you get shoes to fit?

Megan

Absolutely. At work, if I came in wearing flats since I had Chemistry lab, everyone would notice immediately that I looked shorter! I think that if you feel that the heel height detracts from your leg length, you should pick a monochrome outfit plus heel look as the single color will create the illusion that there is no transition from your leg to your shoes. Not sure if you read back to where Heidi mentioned wearing suntan pantyhose with similar colored high heeled boots at some type of a dressy function and she seemed taller while people were none the wiser.

As I have been searching for boot styles that interest me, I am finding that a boot is a whole different animal indeed. 4+ inch heels look all wrong on them, to me anyways. It seems that the bulk of the boot contrasted with the long, thin stilletto heels that I favor just looks proportionally wrong. I think 3" heels look best, stilletto-wise, on boots and I found some called Perry by Via Spiga that I like. I think boots are all too often black, saggy, and with a non-functional buckle, so I like that these feature a design in suede and skip the unnecessary buckle. Those are my thoughts so far, as it has taken me years of heel love to finally consider boots! Sharon, Heidi, I know you two own lots of boots, what do you look for as far as design and color in boots? Megan, do you have high heel boots, apart from the cowboy ones? If you don't, I think you ought to research a bit and tell me what you think you would get.

zzz, I envy the two of you! loveheels or zzz, would you mind telling me that brand and what these heels are called? They are absolutely gorgeous, I need a pair! lol Thanks for posting, she does have very sexy feet and heels!

Hahaha! Gary, I am not sure if you are more funny, or naughty! Dr. Shoe, feel free to stop your heeled toes on his foot, lol!

Dr. Shoe, could you elaborate? I am curious about what shoes you might be thinking of.

Mike, I abhor the "pointy toe curse!" In general, I don't like pointy toe shoes but I have some experience having to pass on heels made for... Barbie feet? Maybe that's who they're making shoes for?

Hi, kneehighboot! Nice timing, I'm just now looking into heeled boots, little or no platform probably. If you have any tips for picking them out or pictures of your favorites I would be much obliged! Anyways, welcome and enjoy!

Hello all,

I have noticed quite a trend of heels that look like peeptoes with a piece added on in a different color over the toes--a bit of searching and I learned they are captoes. I'm not the only one that has noticed this trend and I was wondering, what are your thoughts on these?

As most of my heels, okay, all but one, are peeptoes these rub me wrong. Some of them almost look good, but in the end I seem to reject them all. Maybe that's my peeptoe bias coming in. Any other peeptoe lovers feel the same way, or differently?

Thank you for the explanation, Heidi. I do love (ich mag) learning new thing--one of the main reasons I am working on going into medicine. I forgot to answer your question about my preferences in boots! I have a knack for picking shoes that prove to be unwieldy in my daily life; I hate to wear anything other than stillettos. Such a preference is hard on my college budget, so I do everything I can to avoid buying tennis shoes (trainers for the Brits lol) or any other type of flat shoes. Gardening tends to be a problem, and playing with the kids, in heels so I were these pink soled flip flops with multicolor (mostly pink) wide ribbon that I lace a little up my legs. One day I will be able to buy a sumptuous wardrobe to rival Sharon's! lol As for heel height, I like my regular heel height, at least 3" but so far only up to 4.5", so I would probably go with that. Shafts... I have not decided on yet, but tall shafts would probably cut my legs shorter yet

My main shoe problem is keeping my feet dry--in lab. Pre-medicine requires lots of lab so completely closed shoes, as per Osha which Heidi, I'm sure, is familiar with. Currently my battered old, old Converse. I bet I would ace every lab with a dreamy pair of boots. Maybe not quite up to Sharon's standards, because I still have to take Organic Chemistry lab and doubt spilled acetone and the like will do leather any good, PU would be better. Hmm...

Today I

to go with my multicolor Carlos Santana heels (Roulette) that I told you guys about. I have a dress I found after I bought the heels that I had to buy, which I can't wear tomorrow b/c I have Biology lab But I have a dressy shirt that matches the shoes even better, down the mimicking the pattern on the shoes! So I am going to wear that with the heels, sadly switching out of them for lab, and grey slacks. I can't wait! I imagine Sharon would wear tights under the whole outfit

Megan, I plan on picking your brain for tips on knitting just as soon as I find time to start my stocking project, if you don't mind. I am so excited to know someone that has some experience and insight. I have heard there are cotton blend yarns with lycra that are luxuriously soft with enough stretch for stockings. Heidi, I will look into finding opaque sheer-look tights. I wonder if these would look even more sheer wet? Has anyone tried this?