Ben in Au

Hi Jason, good too see you here as well, say hi to the family for me. Ben

I have a similar pair in my collection. The heel is not as thick, but a bit higher. They are also real leather, not stretch synthetic. I had to fight a german bidder on ebay for them, and it cost me dearly. There should be a pact between heel lovers to not big against each other :-) Ben

I contacted him once via youtube, but I don't think he was comfortable with english and he didn't reply after the second message... let me know if you manage to find out more. Ben

Like the US, there are places it won't be noticed and there are places it will be. The most risky will be going anywhere where the drinking culture runs rampant (pubs/clubs in certain areas at night). A drunk youth would be the most likely to not hold their tongue and give you are hard time.. difficult to reason with them as well. On your own would be more difficult than with a partner or friends. I can't imagine anyone in say a restaurant saying anything. Melbourne seems to be more avant guarde than Sydney, so I would expect you would feel more at home there. (My opinion only) Ben

I have a pair of riding boots in very similar style. they are black leather with dark red tops and came in a size 42. They are some of the most comfortable boots I own. They cost me more than my car did and came from Chloe...

I also bought a pair from french connection which again are similar, also in black leather front and suede back but these have wooden heels and are my fav boots at the moment!

Any chance of a piccy or two? :-)

Ben

Just my style, let me know if you find out. Where did the picture come from? Ben

I am US Womens Size 12. At this size the heel is 7 1/2 inches. The extra heel length makes your ankle over-flex as you place your weight down on the foot. My body mass causes the heel to flex, giving a unique spring when I step off that foot (It also sheds the carpet as the heel flicks back out) Some shoes are made for walking, some are just works of art. I am a collector first and foremost... at 6ft, I don't really need the extra height. :-)

Its hot over here, so I found some open cork wedges for Christmas. Easy to slip on when I get up in the morning. The boots I got a while back (thanks to donnawonna). They are known as 'deranged', and you can see why - at my size the heel is longer than base of the shoe! A trouble to wear, but the feeling when you zip them up and you foot is molded to the arch... makes it all worthwhile. Ben

Wow!, How do you get your legs so smooth? Wax or just a real close shave? Ben

Here in Australia we had to wear a school uniform, including black leather lace-up shoes ( I know not all countries insist on a uniform). When I was young, I had trouble with shoe laces. They were always coming undone, and I was embarrassed about asking teachers to tie them for me. My parents found me a pair of school shoes that had a sort of clasp or buckle instead of laces. I was so happy. They were a girls shoe, but I didn't really understand that at the time. Being made for girls, they were 'thinner' rather than wide, which was a better fit for me. They also had a very small block heel, which was the most uplifting feeling. They also had a squared-off toe box rather than a rounded one that most boy's shoes had. I felt taller and more confidant - and no laces to worry me! Some of the other kids said my shoes looked 'funny', but that was all. Then a terrible day came. A pretty young girl joined my class and she had the same pair of shoes. She was so upset that 'I' was wearing 'her' shoes, that she made it well known to all the class that I was wearing 'girl' shoes. It was a horrible experience. Children can be so cruel. I only lasted the torment a week, then I was back to the same bland boring lace-up shoes that everyone else had. I didn't go near a pair of heels for the next 10 years... the scars were deep..... I hoped the memory of the feeling of enjoying heels would go away. I gave up fighting the urge at 17 when I got my first pay-check and bought a pair of 6 inch thigh-high boots mail order from a fetish store. Talk about pent up desire - I went overboard on heel height... but it was good training. I still have those boots today - they were made by the well known 'little shoe box' Ben

Mine ended up being 7 inch as well, I think because they are US12. I am a bit disappointed because I could walk in 6 inch, but 7 is too much for due to the heel angle. I can cope with the foot being vertical, but my ankle locks after about 45 degrees. I also found that the heel is steel, but it is not a complete steel shank, so the heel bends all the way towards the sole.

After overdosing on your youtube videos :-), I couldn't resist buying a pair.

For all those that have not purchased yet, I found you can buy them from www.howcool.com for a lot less than ebay.

Im going to try this on our manual treadmill over the weekend lol

Please keep me updated... I would be interest if it works out without you breaking your neck or the machine.

Ben

Does anybody know what is under the rubber matting of the treadmill? I would have thought there would be rollers, but that would make it impossible to walk on in heels. In the video it just looks flat, but there must be something preventing friction??

I find that this type of stretch boot needs to have a foot in it so you can see the final shape... so I look forward to seeing pictures of you wearing them!

Hi Hog, I have been chatting to one of your friends in the US, he is going to pass on chat details as well... talk to you soon. Ben

Where did you study?

When I did my course we were studying footwear design in general so that we could work in any part of the industry after graduation. It's usually when you set up on your own you'd specialise...

This was actually from the design stage of construction (last making) to finishing, so it was practical rather than theory. Over here in Oz you can learn these skills from existing craftsmen. I just noticed that one of them now offers intensive 10 day course!?

<http://www.andrewmcdonald.com.au/shoe-making-course-1>

(sorry for the thread hijack)

Ben

I would have to say that the most common comment I get from women when I tell them I think shoes are great, is that they think I am gay. For some reason for a guy to be interested in fashion equates to being gay. I spent about a year studying footwear design, but when I mention this they firstly assume it was design of mens shoes, but when I tell them 'no it was womens shoes', they ask if I am gay. I think it might just be par for the course, but on the good side, once I have told them 'no I am not', _some_ of them have not run away screaming :-) Ben

Wow, thanx for all the info! Desires Resort sounds great, but I think I will have to leave that on my list until I have a partner to share it with :-) I would like to be in an english speaking country as my language skills are a bit limited. I would of never thought of 'festivals' etc, so that is a great thought. Looks like if I combine Halloween with San Francisco I might have a good match. As my knowledge of the holiday is limited, can someone tell me if this is just one night of the year, or does it usually extend for the whole weekend (in regards to people wearing unusual clothes?) Is it just a night, or during the day as welll? Ben

I was thinking of taking a holiday, but what I would really like to do on my holidays is (of course) wear heels for a whole week or two. Does anyone know of a holiday destination or resort that is more fetish aware. I would love if there was a high-heel resort, maybe there is something that is setup for CD/TV/TS people somewhere in the world. I would like to be able to wear heels around, be able to dine in heels, maybe even try a bit of dancing (!)... just generally enjoy life in heels. Ben

Looks like I will have to move to melbourne if that is where all the heeled people are :-)

Hi, I am another ozzie heel lover! Welcome Ben

I am in Sydney, but I have noticed that boots seem alot more popular in Melbourne - I guess because its colder. I think the narrow stacked heel is a great look, but it seems to come and go from fashion making it hard to find at all times. 45/ 14 would be a challenge to find, and you might be forced to get a pair custom made. I also recommend looking at ebay. Ben

Hi all, This site looks like a great place to meet others. I am hoping that there is an active heel community in my country. I have admired shoes and boots with heels for many years but unfortunately I have been unable to find that someone special that shares my unusual yet exciting interest. Ben