mlroseplant

6 hours ago, bluejay said:

Going to the bank or paying a bill in person is another way to get out heeling. I do it all the time and I enjoy my adventures.

Happy Heeling,

bluejay

Yes, I do take that opportunity also. But my original point was that if somebody robbed the bank, and the police showed up, they would not suspect you or me for even a second. Well, unless somebody called in that "some guy wearing high heels just robbed the bank." In that case, I guess it would work to our disadvantage.

19 hours ago, at9 said:

How quaint. In the UK cheques (as we say over here) are now hardly used. I haven't written one for several years. Utility bills are usually paid by direct debit, or failing that by bank transfer.

Cheque. I had forgotten the British spelling for some reason. It's funny you should mention the novelty of writing a cheque, because this particular bill is the only bill I have left that I don't pay online. I could very easily pay it online, as the City has updated its billing system a number of years ago. However, I have forgotten my password, and somehow it just seems easier to write out a check every month and hike down to the drop box. It's not, I know, but the shit gets paid either way. It's just my own peculiar take on a tiny slice of life, I guess.

8 hours ago, chesterx said:

That had not even occurred to me. I dont even have any mules at this point. I agree, that would have been a good choice. Years ago I had a pair made by Candies, but ditched them in a "purge". Think I need to add a pair to my wardrobe...

I would ABSOLUTELY approve of Candie's. Being as they have changed over the years, the closest I can find in style is a company called Kiara. I don't actually own any Kiara shoes, but they certainly have that style down.

Also, being who I am, it's so hard to imagine not having a pair of mules. What's that like? How do you even survive? 😆😆😆

I went on my morning constitutional at about 6:30 a.m., something which I have been trying to do more regularly as of late. I actually had a mission on this particular morning, I went to drop off a check for my utility bill, which is administered by my city. They have a drop box about a mile from my house, so there is no need to put it through the mail, if one chooses.

I was walking to the drop box in the semi-darkness of daybreak. Normally, on a Sunday morning, our town is dead quiet, with hardly anybody about, and practically no traffic. However, this morning, I noticed a number of police cars driving around, and one in particular stopped at a house and the officer got out and was shining a flashlight (torch, for our British brethren) around a few houses. I thought, "Hmmm, that's funny. I wonder what's going on?" The police officer paid me no heed as I walked by. Several minutes later, another police officer drove by me, rolled down his window and asked me if I had seen anybody sneaking around, and gave a description of the fellow that they had evidently gotten a call about. I had not seen anything out of the ordinary, but it occurred to me that, dressed as I was and usually am, the chances of the police mistaking me for somebody else are probably pretty slim. The officer was obviously not hassling me, only wanting to know if I'd seen anything. It had never occurred to me that I might actually be safer walking in my town in high heels!

So, today, let's talk about heel wear. As you all know, I have ceased wearing stilettos on walks because the heels wear out too fast. I have made an exception with my latest purchase, the Shoedazzle "Alexa" rainbow colored mules, pictured elsewhere on this forum. They have 4 3/4" or 12 cm heels with no platform, making them among my steepest heels. While I was talking on the phone to a friend, I decided to take a walk in them, just to see if I could manage a mile in them. It was rather easier than I thought. So last night, I decided to give them my true two mile test, which has been my standard for years on deciding whether I'm going to keep a pair of shoes. I'll tell you what, after about a mile and a half, although my feet were perfectly comfortable, my ankles were getting fatigued, just from the height. The shoes themselves passed the two mile test easily, but my body needs some additional conditioning. Nothing hurts at all, but I'm glad I didn't have to walk five miles in those shoes. I'd have been a tired puppy! After a total of three miles, I can observe the wear on the heels, and I estimate that I could get maybe 8-10 miles out of them before they absolutely need to be replaced. That's actually pretty typical, and really quite respectable for stock heel tips on a cheap pair of shoes. Plus, they are just so much fun to walk in! I can't really explain it.

I mentioned a few posts ago that my BCBG Bonny mules (Pair No. 2) were reaching the end of the stock heel tips. Well, they absolutely reached the end a couple of days ago, because one of them came loose and fell completely out. Luckily, this happened when I was back at home. I could have theoretically glued it back in and gotten a few more miles out of it, but I hate to make the cobbler's job harder for basically no reason, so I'm shelving these for a while until I can make it up there.

11 hours ago, chesterx said:

. I like this look but I'm not sure what shoes go best with it. I ended up wearing some strappy black sandals from Torrid I got on Poshmark. Any suggestions would be welcomed.

 

Haha, well you know what I would have worn. My BCBG Bonny beaded white mules. But that's probably just me.

19 minutes ago, vinheel said:

My new sandals 

Super cute! I very much like sandals in this style, but I have shied away from ever buying any, because I'm afraid such thin straps would be uncomfortable after a short period.

17 hours ago, Stevie65 said:

 Name: Steve

Age: 55

Gender: M

Location:Alberta

Occupation: costruction

Height: 5. 10

Shoe size:  10.

What's your favourite heel style: stiletto 

What's your favourite shoe style: pump

Do you wear your heels outside: yes

What is: (a) Your favourite heel height: 6 inch

( Your highest heel height: 6 inch

How often do you wear: (a) Your favourite heel height: not too often 

( Your highest heel height: 4

Do you wear socks, hose, stockings or bare feet with your shoes: bare feet and nylons

Anything else you wish to add: wish there were more Albertains here on the site

Good to see another construction guy here. Are you out in the field, or in the office?

20 hours ago, p1ng74 said:

 

Yup, they are real Carhartts.  And I like them so much I ordered another pair in black before they go out of stock on the smallest size.  These are uninsulated so I guess they fall under the “bib” nomenclature.  Carhartt does get referenced in fashion discussions - mostly in admiration of their pants.  When I first saw it I was like, Carhartt?  The same Carhartt that they sell at Tractor Supply?  Yup.  They feel high quality, and seem to have a following with women too - probably because the materials are actually durable versus cheap stretchy distressed stuff.  That would explain why small sizes are often out of stock.  
 

Fashion doesn’t have to be impractical.  The funny thing is, that very work fit you are ready to leave in the trunk is the same fit that some young urban hipster will adopt for fashion, reflective vest and all.  Course, these same people are probably into streetwear and “techwear”, so we’ll take that for what its worth.  

Huh, that's interesting. I've never seen a pair of uninsulated Carhartts with zip up legs. I used to have a pair of Carhartt bibs that I really liked in theory. They were made of that cotton duck material, much like your new ones. They were forest green in color, but sort of faded looking. They did not have zip up legs, but were heavier than your normal demin bibs. The problem I have with Carhartt is that none of their pants of any style fits my body, and these green bibs were no exception. I can't really explain why, they just fit funny. I finally sacrificed those bibs to help repair another guy's jacket of the same color.

I finally found a picture of me in my natural environment which shows my work clothes pretty well. I've firmly settled on Key brand bib overalls. I've tried to wear regular pants at work, but they just don't have enough pockets. I always thought that when I became foreman that I could quit wearing bibs to work, but it hasn't worked out that way at all. I'm probably too far along to ever be promoted to an office job, and if I were ever promoted to an office job, they probably wouldn't like my shoes anyway, so maybe everything is working out like it should.

10 hours ago, jeremy1986 said:

I hear ya, A nice dream still... sounds like its something you would like to do ... 

ooh - do tell! 

Not much to tell, really. This sort of thing happens to us all eventually. I was out running some errands, and I didn't realize that it was Bike Night, which is a small motorcycle rally that happens in our town once a month. It's actually a pretty big deal, drawing thousands of people for a few hours each month. At any rate, a lot of the guys from the electrical union like to go to this thing, and it just so happened that I ran into a bunch of them when they came to my town for Bike Night. I was wearing my usual shorts and heels. If memory serves, they were wedges, so the impact may have been a little less than stilettos would be. Nobody said anything, everybody acted perfectly normal. Like I said, that will happen to every one of us eventually.

16 hours ago, p1ng74 said:

As @mlroseplant said in Kneehigh's thread, work wear is always so generously cut, but I had developed some interest in wearing overalls lately so I gave this piece a try.  First thing I noticed taking it out of the package is that this is a HEAVY piece of clothing!  Yeah, generously cut, and heavy fabric on top of that.  Not sure I'll wear these in the heat of the summer, but things are starting to cool down.  Plus, I'm digging the zip up leg openings - helps stay cool, and you can show a little leg LOL.  

 

You got a pair of Carhartts! At least that's what we call them around here. Doesn't matter what brand they actually are, they're "Carhartts." The uninsulated, lighter version that I wear every day are known as "bibs." I'm sure this is a regional thing. In any case, I would never have imagined that anyone would buy Carhartts for their fashion. With the boots, they really don't look all that bad! However, I still don't like them, because every time I think of Carhartts, I think of the picture below. It is my fervent hope that the Carhartts stay in the trunk of my car all winter.

11 hours ago, RonC said:

Well, I like these better than the other pair with the real wide upper band and platform as I much prefer single soles, and I kind of like the see-through fabric of the upper, but that upper is still, for me, too much.  But I have a feeling they would be comfortable (I'd need a lower heel though as I'm physically averse to heels that high....lol)

 

Funny you should specifically comment on these, because I just wore them outside the house for the first time last night. With a 4 3/4" heel, no platform, they are among my steepest heels, but they feel quite manageable. I have some 5 inchers that I can't really walk in, but for whatever reason these are fine. I walked a mile in them just to test them out, and they are reasonably comfortable. I probably could have walked a second mile, but chose not to because the first mile put significant wear on the heel tips, and I don't want to replace them the second day I've worn them! I don't wear stilettos anymore for walking, just for incidental trips out. The fabric uppers did feel a little bit scratchy after a mile of walking, but not bad. It didn't hurt, it was just noticeable.

My shoe buying habit has slowed way down as of late, but I perused my usual searches on ebay the other day, and thought, "I'm going to buy those." They are, and yet are not, outside of my usual taste in shoes. Plus, they were 25 USD plus shipping, so I thought, "Why not?" When they arrived yesterday, way ahead of schedule, despite the troubles that the USPS has been experiencing as of late, I was less than thrilled with the packing job the seller did, but nevertheless, the shoes seemed to have arrived undamaged. They are Shoedazzle "Alexa," 4 3/4" heels with no platform. The uppers are a kind of a mesh, rainbow-colored fabric, and the heels are a sort of faux suede. Both of these features would be outside of my normal buying range. The general style and height of heel would be usual for me, so you can see the dichotomy.

The length, size 8 1/2 U.S. Women's, is just perfect for me. The fit of the single strap is just a tiny bit loose, but with the addition of some ball-of-foot pads (I prefer Foot Petals "tip toes"), they fit perfectly. Despite the fact that they fail Chyna Whyne's "rocking test" miserably, they are very easy to walk in, despite their height and supposed instability. I've mentioned this before, but this Rocking Test business, in my experience, has little value. Some of my best walking shoes fail this test. As long as they sit straight upright at rest, there seems to be no correlation between passing the test and walking comfort. I don't know why, but this woman bugs the s*** out of me. I think she is doing the high heel wearing world (at least on the female side) a service, but I can't stand her. And take those ridiculous sunglasses off of your head! You're filming indoors, for god's sake.

The weather has rebounded somewhat, both in temperature and precipitation (or lack thereof), so I was able to take a nice walk last night, wearing some of the best walking shoes ever, My BCBGirls Bonny mules. I know, I know, it's all about the Bonnys. What caught my attention this time is the fact that the stock heel tips on Pair No. 2 seem to be much more durable than Pair No. 1. According to my records, I had to replace the heel tips on Pair No. 1 after less than 10 miles, whereas Pair No. 2's heel tips have been run (walked?) for 21 miles so far, and they've still got several miles left in them (see picture below). This is comparable to the durability of the Vibram heels that my cobbler normally uses to reheel heels of this width. I just think it's so weird how inconsistent mass manufactured products can be.

As an aside: The stock heel tips are quite noisy, giving a strong "tock, tock" sound when walking. Not like the clickety-click sound of stilettos, but definitely attention grabbing. Although I no longer care as much about the sound shoes make as I did when I first started heeling, I think I shall miss the sound these sandals make when I do have them reheeled. They will be nearly silent by comparison.

__________________________________

09/14/20

I liked the outfit that I wore to the dentist a couple of weeks ago, that I recycled it to wear to Costco and the cell phone place yesterday. It has finally warmed back up to seasonal temperatures after five straight days of cold, windy, rainy weather, so I took the opportunity to wear shorts again, even though my errand running session started at a mere 58º. I wore different shoes this time, sandals with actual back straps! The horror! I do not have a picture from yesterday. Actually, I do, but my wife took it, so my feet are purposefully not in it. There is no sense in posting it here. I do have a partial picture of the sandals, however. I like how the medallions bounce against your ankles when you walk. It's kind of a fun feeling.

21 hours ago, bluejay said:

You guys just aren't around the right places to see women in heels. I have been working near a plastic surgeon's office and have seen all kinds of heels in the last few days. From stilettos, pumps, wedges and lots of high heel sandals, too. Most all the women patients are coming in heels. Yes they are out there and they do generate sales of new heels.

Happy Heeling,

bluejay

17 hours ago, RonC said:

In that case, I'm jealous!

I think that perhaps my area is somewhere in the middle. I do see women wearing heels regularly (though I'm still the only man I've ever seen), but I have noticed a downtick in the frequency, and that has everything directly to do with your Wells Fargo/ Principal Group type office workers, who would often stop by the grocery store on their way home from work. That's not happening anymore, because they're all working from home, and unless you're rare people like us, why would you ever put on heels to go to the grocery? Well, except for my friend the tailor, who probably would also, but maybe not these days. The other thought I had was that the women who were patients at the plastic surgeon are probably a small, self-selecting group, and I'll bet money that they aren't wearing Payless. Probably not even Nine West.

On 9/8/2020 at 2:21 PM, Cali said:

I think @mlroseplant would agree, those shorts are still too long.   

On 9/8/2020 at 2:53 PM, p1ng74 said:

LOL I admit I folded a cuff on them to see if I could go any shorter, and yeah I get where you are coming from

Believe it or not, I have been wearing some longer shorts this year, which I roll up to make them the length I like. It's not what I would do in a perfect world, but it does accomplish two things: First, it greatly reduces the chances of a wardrobe malfunction when seated, an unsightly and embarrassing problem that I have if I'm not paying close attention while wearing very short shorts. Second, it allows me to go practice the organ on a whim without going home first and changing pants, as I can just unroll the legs and avoid the problem of bare legs sticking to the organ bench, a painful experience. Likewise, it also avoids the problem of slimy feeling legs against the leather seat of my car. Photo is a recycle, I admit.

7 hours ago, kevloveheel said:

I had a dream just the other night. I was going to a garage sale and decided to wear a black leather pencil skirt and a pair of very tall black wedges. When I got to the garage sale there were a whole bunch of people that I knew at the sale and it was kind of awkward and embarrassing. 

I've had that happen to me in real life! Well, substitute denim shorts for the skirt.

17 hours ago, p1ng74 said:

I wish there was a happy medium, somewhere in between.  Work wear seems generously cut because they are trying to do "1 size fits all" or maybe "S, M, L, XL fits all" and slim people like you and me get totally swallowed in work clothing.  My hobbies usually involve MOVING machinery so baggy clothing actually is a hazard!  I'm not into skin-tight clothing, even for fashion - I just want something that actually fits my body, even if it's for work.  Life is too short to look crappy while working.  

It's funny you should mention it, because I have to have all my work clothing altered. At least I know a gal.  .  .

On 9/8/2020 at 6:05 AM, jeremy1986 said:

Not 100 percent sure, but I think she likes your legs

On 9/8/2020 at 11:18 PM, kneehighs said:

Wow, she's gushing with praise for your legs and shoes!  Cool anecdote!

29 minutes ago, JeffB said:

Yeah, it sure sounds like she's complimenting you.

This week, it doesn't matter. My legs have been covered up for the last three days. We have had the weirdest weather. Sunday, it was 95º. Monday, it was 72º. Tuesday, it was 50º. That's 35º, 22º, and 10º for youse guys in the rest of the world. It has stayed 50º for the last 3 days, and rainy. It's a shock, even to my system. I hate to admit it as an Iowan, but I'm cold! I'm not wearing shorts, even though I want to. It's only September, for Pete's sake!

18 hours ago, Henri1942 said:

What No Arc Flash PPE????

The equipment was de-energized. Although somebody did have to wear the arc flash suit to check with a voltage meter to make sure it WAS, in fact, de-energized. Newer best practices basically don't let us work on anything energized anymore.

17 hours ago, Heelster said:

With three guys in a panel like that, there better be no power in the panel, and under Lockout / Tagout !!

Yes, we followed proper lockout/tagout procedures, which in that place is a little more complicated than it sounds. It's a pain in the neck, but I do not miss the days when we were expected to work everything live. Some of the rules are silly, but you'll have that on these big jobs.

12 hours ago, RonC said:

While I have no direct knowledge of their quality these days, I personally find the majority of their offerings attractive.  I like classic style pumps and stiletto heels, and they have an abundance of those, while so many other shoe lines are going full time clunky crap, so I have a hard time with ho-hum, but agree that there are some butt-ugly, but the same goes for most shoe companies.  There are probably 10-15 shoes in their line-up that I'd take in a second, but they won't be 5" heels either, as I don't want that to begin with.  So if ho-hum for you is heels in the 4" range, I guess then they are ho-hum!

 

I like a classic pump as much as the next guy, I just don't really like them for myself. It looks to me like Nine West has got about 3 or 4 basic styles of classic pump in 3 different heel heights. At the other end of the spectrum, they've got these huge, funky sandals that I have no idea how they're going to sell. I'm no business or marketing guy, but I'm guessing Nine West made pretty good hay from selling classic pumps over the years, before they branched out into all this other crap toward the end. Back then, they sold shoes for 100-125 USD. Who bought these shoes? Office people and flight attendants. People who had to wear pumps every day, they had to be reasonable quality, but not too expensive. Guess who is no longer at the office? Office people. Guess who is probably not wearing pumps when they do have to go to the office? Office people. This is why I say it doesn't look good for Nine West from my point of view.

5 hours ago, p1ng74 said:

Yeah I know what you are trying to say, but it's funny you mention overalls.  I've never worn genuine overall pants, but I've taken a recent interest to them.  I know some people think of them as just practical clothing, and it's probably always going to be a casual look even when deliberately worn for fashion.  But since I won't exactly be going into an office any time soon, I figured now is a good a time as any to look into incorporating it into my wardrobe.  They should be arriving today... 

This goes without saying, but the bib overalls I wear to work barely resemble anything worn by women for fashion, hence my "looking over my glasses" comment. If I were to ever wear overalls with heels, and that's a big "if," they would certainly be tailored in such a way that would most likely make them unsuitable for actual work. I really don't have a good picture of me wearing my work clothing, but this will have to do. Everything is generously cut. In case there is any doubt, I am the guy in the middle in the lime green shirt. We were cutting over a panel to permanent power, and were under time constraints. In other words, pressure. I have no idea who snapped this picture, but I have to thank them, because it's one of the few I have showing what I do for a living. Usually, it's not nearly this dramatic, however.

Thought I would share a picture my young friend sent me yesterday. They could obviously use some attention, but hey, no fakes! That's pretty impressive.

@kneehighs

Something messed up royally here. If there are weird replies, just ignore them. What I was trying to write in the first place is that I must be channeling my inner @kneehighs , because I've been getting some compliments through chat lately. The difference is, my aims and intentions in chat are rather different than kneehighs's, as I am uncle/mentor/English teacher to what few chatting friends I have left. I might also add that I have met all of my chatting friends in person on multiple occasions. Anyhow, this is an excerpt from a conversation I had with my friend Huyền, who is very young. I believe she's 24. She's into shoes, nails, and fashion in general. She also tends to ignore my advice, usually to her detriment. That's the problem with a lot of kids these days--they don't really want advice, they want validation. I think that may be part of the reason she hardly ever talks to me these days. I digress, and I'm taking some validation for myself! HA! What do you think about that?

10 hours ago, p1ng74 said:

But women pair heels with overalls:  

 

[Picture me looking over my glasses] Mr. P1ng74, you are being willfully obtuse. 😆😆😆