mlroseplant

As it turns out, my presence was not really needed after the setup and settling in. I was only there for about 3 hours in the morning and a couple right around closing up time (10 p.m.). I wore some Bebe wooden heeled sandals with an effective 3 3/4" heel, and they didn't bite back. I was actually rather glad to have them when it came time to open up the side wall of our tent, as I am barely tall enough to reach the hooks. Their one inch platform with 4 3/4 inch heel gives me an effective 3 1/2 inch boost in height. Perhaps today I will choose some type of shoe with a really big platform for that very reason. Nah, probably not. Today I will have my son with me, and he will be my effective boost in height.

One person said something to me the entire time I was there, and it was some random 20-something woman, who simply smiled at me and said "Fabulous!"

Oh yeah! I remember the clogs now that you mention it. But that was a thing when I was somewhere around 10 years old. I'm sure I noticed such things at that age, but my preference for heels did not fully form until several years later. I know I never cared for the giant disco platforms of Saturday Night Fever. I rather liked the Dr. Scholl's exercise sandals, which were also everywhere during the Clog Era. Both on college campuses and the elementary school classroom.

A long time ago, I mentioned something about my wife partnering with another Vietnamese woman for the purpose of selling food and making money. At the time, I think I mentioned something about not wearing heels to meet her so as not to project myself into something that is none of my concern. Today, that partnership truly begins, and I have already forgot about being invisible.

There is an Asian festival taking place in the city, and it's one of those things that is well organized, well funded, and well attended. We went to set up some things last night, and I didn't even really think about it, but I wore some casual heels. My wife didn't say anything, the other woman didn't say anything, and her husband didn't say anything.

Today and tomorrow, the festival is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. I am assured that I will not be obligated continuously for that long, and I hope that's right. I am not finding any joy in any of this. But, I am seriously not sure whether to wear heels to work this thing. Since I won't have a vehicle available right there (we have to park several hundred meter away), do I carry backup shoes with me on my person? I cannot recall ever needing the backup shoes in the past when I have brought them. And if I do decide to wear heels, which heels? Naturally, it is thunderstorming outside my window as I write this. It's supposed to be over by the time the festival starts.

17 hours ago, Shyheels said:

Try living on a narrowboat and you’ll imagine it soon enough! 🙂

Even if I lived in a trailer, I'd have to have a double-wide, I guess. 😆

18 hours ago, Chorlini said:

We just had Iowa confirming my observation.

I'm not entirely sure that my observations line up with yours 100%. If I understand you correctly, you say that Dutch chicks do not wear heels, ever, and haven't done so for decades. My observation is that college age chicks stopped wearing heels about 5-10 years ago. I haven't followed any to the tavern or anything, but for on campus daily student life, yeah, they don't wear heels. In my generation this was also largely true, but there were half a dozen girls who wore heels every day to class. Then again, there were also half a dozen girls who went barefoot to class every day, and you don't see THAT anymore, either.

I know it's very First World of me, but I cannot imagine having only 12 pairs of shoes.

I can remember that from about 1995 to 2005 was a dark time for heels--or at least stilettos. It seems all the girls were wearing "Spice Girls" giant chunky heeled boots. This was following a period in the late 80's-early 90s when stilettos were everywhere. Not everywhere at once, but at least 50% of girls had stilettos in their closets, which got brought out for special occasions. A few would wear them every day, but not many.

I can remember shopping with my ex-wife in the late 90s, and you literally could not find a pair of shoes with 4 inch stiletto heels in normal shops. Then after the Turn of the Milennium, stilettos slowly but surely came back--only this time sporting giant platforms. Again, you didn't see them everywhere all at once, but they were definitely out there.

After we decided that 6 inch heels with 2 inch platforms were no longer a desirable look, it was sort of a slow downhill slide, which became a fast downhill slide during the pandemic. Then it never really recovered. I do say I see more high school girls wearing heels than I do college girls. And I also live in a college town, 200 m away from the college, so I also see a "massive overabundance" of young women. My son is still in high school, so I get to see the younger crowd, too. I see lots and lots of belly buttons, but few heels. But not zero heels. The idle desire is still there, have no doubt. I know this because even young girls will often ogle my shoes and say they wish they could wear them. We've been through all that discussion before. The societal pressure to wear heels is gone, so they don't wear them much, if ever. I can't really blame them.

Also (but not as an afterthought), Don, I hope your knee gets better. This getting old business is for the birds!

I did something that I rarely do during warm weather. I wore actual enclosed shoes to church. I did so because as I posted in the New Shoes section, I bought some pumps specifically to wear to church (and maybe a few other places). I keep saying that I do not need any more shoes, but I bought two more pair last week. These Steve Madden pumps, and a pair of Frye wooden heeled sandals. Sometime I'll post the Fryes--they're kind of interesting, but I thought the coffee color of the pumps was really beautiful, and the lady offered to sell them for 20 bucks plus shipping.

The rest of my outfit was based around the shoes. I often do that, but it was very particular on this Sunday, because I had decided to wear the shoes well in advance. So I picked out some earth-toney stuff I thought went with the coffee color, and then I realized, "Hey, wait a minute.  .  . It's Pentecost." To some of you, this will mean absolutely nothing. For others, you are chuckling to yourselves right now. Let's put it this way--the red tie is an add-on and an afterthought, but I think it works. I even got complemented on my tie. But not my shoes.

I had intended to let my shoe collection remain at its present size for a while, but I ran across these Steve Madden Klory pumps in a color I don't have, which I'll call coffee colored. Coffee if you have added a little bit of cream, that is. Some might call them brown patent. The seller shot me an offer of 20 bucks, and I could not resist. I wore them yesterday for the first time, and they fit just like my other Klory pumps. Not something I would want to wear all day, every day, but good enough for cheap shoes.

I have three flavors of Steve Madden pumps (four, if you count D'Orsay style), and the Klory model is my favorite for style. It features a 4 5/8" heel, making it just short of Louboutin So Kate territory, but only we would notice. The heel is 5/16" thick, and solidly built. I do not regret this purchase.

For a website that has become a home for men who like to wear high heels, we sure spend a lot of time talking about "they, they, they." I'm guilty myself, but I don't tend to do it in a negative fashion. I'm happy, at least in a small way, when I do see a woman in the wild who actually still wears heels. As far as the attitudes about fashion and identity among the younger generation--I have a 15 year old son, I am around his friends, I can tell you for sure that my life is much easier and happier than it was 10 years ago as far as being accepted at face value. Let's look forward, not backward. The good old days weren't always good.

Hi all, I'm posting a day or two early because I took some extra pictures this week. They are really all the same picture, but I'm not very creative about posing.

Yesterday, I did a 5 mile (8 km) walk for only the sixth time since I started heeling. As I've probably said before, I have a 1 mile, a 2 mile, and a 3 mile loop that I walk regularly, choosing one on whim or available time. On weekend mornings, it has been my habit as of late to walk the 3 mile loop. On this particular morning, I chose my BCBGirls Bonny mules, iteration No. 4. No. 4 is pretty unused, as No. 3 yielded up the ghost sometime last fall. These Bonnys are not a shoe that feels good out of the box. Every one of them has been very stiff and rather uncomfortable until having been worn for several hours. Then they become pliable and all-day comfortable.

I have never done a 5 miler in Bonnys before, even though I've tried on a couple of occasions. Both of the previous attempts ended in shoe failure of some sort, one of them catastrophic. The fact that these Bonnys only had two miles on them to begin with made them a suspect choice for a 3 mile walk. I had worn them around the house for a couple of hours, but they were still a bit on the stiff side. I took Bandaids with me, just in case. After the first mile, it was obvious that they are going to be just fine, same as the other 3 pair were. After two miles, I began thinking, "Yeah, I remember why I like these so much." At about 2 1/2 miles, I thought, "Hmmm, I've got time, why don't I do a 5-miler today?" So I did. During the 4th mile, the right shoe started rubbing my instep. Luckily, I had those Bandaids with me, so nothing bad happened. A little tender when I got back, but no blister. The rest of me, however, was very tired. You wouldn't think 5 miles would be that big of a deal when you do 3 miles regularly, but those last 2 really took it out of me.

When I got back, I made a list and went grocery shopping, changing my shoes to another pair I haven't worn in a while, blue FSJ stiletto mules. Like last week, I couldn't remember if there was a comfort reason why I haven't worn them. Apparently not. They were just fine, and easier to walk in than I remembered. It is really hard to tell the color in this picture, but they pretty much match the color of my jeans.

Note: Photos are in reverse order of the story, if you haven't already figured that out.

I don't think there is a bright line regarding classy vs. trashy. There are so many factors that go into that equation, and a lot of it has nothing to do with the clothes, but the carriage and the demeanor of the wearer. I agree with you that you certainly can't quantify it scientifically. One inch difference on heel height by itself is not going to do it. Not being able to walk easily in your heels, on the other hand, no matter their height, counts for way more "trashy" points.

I haven't been to a thrift store in years, and that's probably because I've never had any luck finding shoes there. I'm not nearly committed enough to making the rounds on a regular basis to find treasure. I prefer to do my shopping on Poshmark or Ebay. The bad part about that is you can't try stuff on, but I still have an 80% success rate that way.

3 hours ago, Cali said:

There are so maany banks and credit unions around here. There is one block nearby with 5 insitutions. But I live in one of the most expensive places in the world.

 

Now back on topic.

I was at a meeting today. The woman sitting across the room had a pair of T-straps on with 4 inch heels. When the meeting ended, she took off her heels and put on a pair of socks before standing up. Then walked in her socks back to her office.

This is.  .  . most disturbing, on so many levels.

On 5/12/2024 at 7:50 PM, Gige said:

Just wondering if anyone has heels that they will only wear at home/indoors due to heel height, comfort, or some other reason. I recently acquired a pair of very high Ann Taylor leopard print heels which are NSFW by any stretch of the imagination (I had to first take them to a cobbler for the footbed to be repaired). I also have a pair of Vince Camuto high heel loafers that also fit into the NSFW category. Thus, I was wondering if any other members of this group have heels that are best left for sitting around at home while looking pretty.  

Thanks, G

P.S. not my photos but from the web

 

Having another look at this topic, I can see where the leopard print pumps would be unsuitable for work, but the loafers? They look like they were MADE for work. I don't see what's wrong with those.

I thought I had been such a good boy and gotten rid of 2 pair last week. One because they flat-out don't fit, and the other because they are flat-out ugly. And they stink. However, I've gotten 2 more pairs in the meantime. So I'm not such a good boy. Hopefully, this will at least slightly lower the percentage of shoes that I don't wear. I think I'm down into the single digits of shoes that I don't wear out of 106.

I've always liked that single strap with the closed heel style. I've thought about getting a similar pair many times.

Today's feature has a bit of a strange story. I bought these BCBGirls mules (model name unknown) to replace some Jessica Simpson mules which had catastrophically failed. I wore the JS mules just about everywhere that summer of 2017, including on a road trip throughout the Midwest and into the Deep South. I was very sad when they broke, and I could not find a suitable replacement pair. What I did find is this BCBG pair, and I was very high on that brand at the time. I still like it, and the shoes tend to fit me well, but as it turns out the shoes are not as bulletproof as I made them out to be at the time.

As this point, you're probably asking yourself, "Where is this rather long-winded setup going?" It is going nowhere. That's it. That's the end of the story. I got my BCBG mules in the mail, looked at them, tried them on, and put them away. For nearly seven years. I'm not sure why. I decided to pull them out last Saturday and wear them to go grocery shopping, just to see if there was some reason why I'd never worn them. There wasn't. I then wore them to church the next day.

The question is, why did I never wear these even one time in seven years? I'm not 100% sure. It may be that they are slightly dressier than the shoes they were intended to replace, and they are mainly ivory instead of tan, which may have made a difference to me back then. It may be because they are snakeskin print, which I still don't like as well as smooth leather. I will never really know, but I am now presenting these as New Sandals.

The numbers: 4 5/8" heel, 7/16" wide, putting it toward the bigger end of the stiletto range, and a 3/4" platform, for an effective heel height of 3 7/8", which is well within my heel wearing capabilities. The heel and platform are molded as one unit, and I fully expect that to break one of these days. I noticed a little bit of a hot spot forming behind my right big toenail, but that spot has been somewhat of a problem for me since I was in my early 20s. I think it's me, and not the shoe. Typically I can put a Bandaid around that toe so that it doesn't really show, and I'm good to go. In fact, I now have a list that reminds me what comfort or fitting aids I need to wear with which shoes. It's come to that, I guess.

This week's church outfit continues on the same theme of button down shirt with a tie, but with different colors. Specifically this time, the whole outfit was based around the shoes, which I wanted to try out because although I bought them at least five years ago, I've never worn them until now. I'm not entirely sure why that is, there appears to be no fault with them. I'll have to post them in the New Sandals thread when I get a chance. They're BCBGirls, by the way.

When I thought about what to wear with these shoes, I could have sworn I had some cream colored pants at one time. Evidently not, or I got rid of them at some point. So I just held a sandal against each of my pants, to see which was the most suitable with the color. The pale pink ones got the nod. I decided to go with a darker, contrasting color for the shirt and tie. No comments, but that's pretty usual.

Everybody is different in his wants and needs. I have never bought a pair of shoes thinking that I couldn't wear them out at some point. Besides, have you seen my house? There's no room in there to feel pretty! 😆

Nope, nope, nope, nope. You gotta let it go. Do not approach either man or woman in heels and expect to talk. Women are allowed to do this and get by with it. We are not. It's just the way of the world. MAYBE if you're actually wearing heels yourself, and discernible heels (in other words, you'd better be wearing something 3 inch or higher), you get to compliment and walk away. Otherwise, you're just a creep. I've been on the giving and receiving end of that situation. Sorry if I seem a little harsh, but this is a hard and fast rule.

A couple of days ago, I was preparing to make some bangers and potatoes with Guinness stout as an ingredient in the recipe. As the last minute, it became evident that earlier in the week, I must have drunk all of the Guinness. Oops. A quick run to the grocery store was necessary. While I was there, in my Bebe wooden heeled sandals, I spied a woman wearing some giant wedges. And by giant, I mean probably 5 1/2" heel, 2" platform. They were cork, and the single wide strap was made of clear PVC. She wore them with ripped skinny jeans and a denim jacket. I was in a hell of a hurry, so more than that I cannot tell. Even though I never saw her face, I did not guess her to be a very young woman.

16 hours ago, pebblesf said:

I want to wear them more publicly, but lack the confidence, skills to rock those heels properly.  I'm getting to the point where I have the confidence to rock red boots in most public settings, but my skills just won't allow it.  I just can't seem to break the 5" heel barrier.  I have no problems with my 4.5" nine west black stiletto booties though...

Yeah, I'm kind of with you. I pretty much stop at 4 1/2". It's not that I can't physically walk in 5", but not up to my own standards. I always say that I'm going to master 5s one of these days, but I'm not really serious about it. I have way too many other things to worry about that are way more important than getting another 1/2" on my heels.

Yes, I still go to an actual physical bank. My particular bank is small and locally owned. I have not interviewed anybody from the bank, but it seems that even though any restrictions we had due our Public Health Issue are long over, people still prefer to be served in the drive though, so much so that on Saturdays, you can only use the drive through. There are people still working inside the building, but if you want to see somebody on Saturday, you have to call and make an appointment. I wonder if The High Heeled One works on Saturdays, and if so, does she wear heels when no customers can see her?

25 minutes ago, Puffer said:

Very nice 'footwear'!   I don't wish to (re)open a debate but I would regard them as 'shoes' rather than 'sandals'; having an open toe is not in itself the criterion.   But who cares, they look great.

I suppose as long as we keep it out of the boots section, it'll be all right then, init?