mlroseplant

@Jkrenzer and @HappyinHeels, I'm going to respond to your posts, but probably in a couple days, as I have a lot of ruminating to do today, and I don't want to make this post extremely long.

I have only two items to report, but the story is a little bit long. Suddenly, things is happening! My wife sent me to Walmart last night to pick up a few things. As you know, Walmart now requires masks to enter the store. So they have a person underneath a canopy outside making sure everyone is following the rules. So here I am, walking up to the entrance of the store, and this little Mexican woman yells at me, "I HATE you, I absolutely HATE you!" Don't be alarmed, it was the Walmart employee, whom I've known casually for years, expressing her frustration about how she can't wear heels anymore. I'm guessing she's about 55 or 60. She always comments on my shoes every time I see her. Interestingly, she always wears Dansko clogs to work, often in patent leather. She even has a pair of fire engine red patent leather clogs that she sometimes wears to work. So I stopped to talk for a minute. There was a man there also, obviously another customer who also knows her. She said to me, "How do you wear those heels all the time? I used to wear heels when I was young, but I can't wear them anymore." I said, "Well, I didn't get started until I was in my 40s, but I've practiced a lot since then." The man really didn't react one way or the other. I then said, "Sorry about this, I really need to shave my legs." I had been lazy and let it go for about four days. She said, "I can't see anything from here! You have great legs!" I sheepishly thanked her and proceeded into the store.

As soon as I got into the store, I was accosted by a young woman. I don't know whether she had heard the earlier exchange between me and the Walmart employee a few seconds earlier or not, but she asked me, "HOW? How do you do it?" I said, "How do I do what?" She said, "How do you walk in those heels so easily and gracefully? I sometimes trip in my flip-flops." I swear, she actually used the word "gracefully." I said, "Really, it's just like any other athletic activity. It's just practice. I'm not really all that talented, but I am experienced." She nodded, and we both went about our business.

After purchasing my items, I met the Walmart employee at the front door again, and we had a nice chat about immigrating to the U.S. and learning English. This came up because my wife works at Walmart also, and as many of you know, her first language is not English. It is rather amazing and inventive how people wind up learning a language. This woman said she learned English watching Sesame Street and reading children's books. Her foreign accent is almost undetectable, it's really quite amazing. I have not yet subjected her to my terrible Spanish.

23 hours ago, Pierre1961 said:

I am not the best fan of clogs and mules in general.But these may help me change my mind. So comfy! 

And so easy to slip in after the shower in the morning. 

I still prefer shoes that cover the feet. But nevertheless quite happy to have gotten these. 

Those are super cool! Can you share information about them? As you well know, those are right up my alley (sorry to use an idiom).  .  . for winter.

Like I said before, I don't have "pump bump," well how could I? I mostly wear mules! But still, after doing some cursory research, I have found that that Haglund's Syndrome is idiopathic, that is, we don't really know the true cause. Like bunions, people tend to blame high heels. I am convinced that all of my foot troubles were caused by ill-fitting work boots, and well, wearing shoes too much in general. But that's a whole 'nuther topic.

On 8/6/2020 at 9:44 AM, Jkrenzer said:

These are for me the optimal heel shape and height. Leather pumps from Steven by Steve Madden. Heel is 5.25 inch and there is a .25 in hidden platform. As seen by the wear, I've gotten good use out of them. Currently wearing them at work at my desk. Co-workers are all aware, however i don't walk around the office or obviously the factory in them.

 

 

And to the other topic, never find heels like this on Madden's site now.

Got a couple of questions: 1) Do you know the model name of these pumps? I wouldn't mind finding a pair of these somewhere out there, but Uncle Google isn't being very helpful. 2) Since this is the place for ruminations, may I ask why do you wear high heels at your desk, but feel you can't walk around the office in them? I understand why you can't go on the factory floor wearing heels.

10 hours ago, Jkrenzer said:

Just arrived 3 pr of Shoe Republic LA. Just shy of 5 inch heels. 10 dollars eac on ebay. They are a touch tight but shoukd break in fine. These are a well made middle quality heel and i like them. The soles are rubbery but do wear into a harder white colored surface. I like that as the soles last longer. I really miss the super hard soles of the 80's shoes.

Jesus, Joe! What happened to your foot?

And speaking of Joe, I have to report that my latest purchase is not a pair of 5 inch pumps, but rather (gasp), another pair of mules. I have basically quit buying shoes, for a number of reasons, but these were cheap enough and cool enough to catch my eye on ebay. They are Joie "Raja" mules, and I paid approximately $50 for them, once you include shipping. They are my usual formula of 5 inch heel, 1 inch platform (sorry Joe, old habits die hard). They are all leather, including the sole, and they're rather buttery soft. Only thing is, in a perfect world I would have gotten them in a size 9 instead of 8 1/2. I'm pretty sure once they break in, they'll be all right, but they are bordering on being too small. Buying online, it's the risk one takes. I have learnt over the years, don't buy size 9 sandals, they're always too big. Except when they aren't. Super thin heel on these. I kind of like it, but I kind of don't. One of these days, I'll have to make up my mind about what I'm really going to actually wear versus what I think is pretty cool.

6 hours ago, Pumped said:

I agree. I have a couple pairs of heels from Nine West, but over all their styles don't do anything for me. The good old standard spiked heel pump, and spike heeled boots is about all I like, and their styling with the heel straight up at the back of the shoe is not my favorite either. I prefer the spike heel to curve slightly forward, but it seems to be the style of the day.

There appears to be a new style, called the Bliss, where the heel has been moved back to its proper position. It seems like they're not pushing it on their website compared to the Tatiana, which is as far as I can tell basically the same shoe, but with the dreaded set-back heel. I would never buy it for myself, but it's a move in the right direction!

1 hour ago, JeffB said:

Who indeed? Years ago, I had no interest whatsoever in sandals, especially flat sandals, today, they're my shoe of choice during summer. Between June and August with precious few exceptions, sandals are pretty much all I wear as I like them a lot. Call it an evolution in my personal style, something I imagine we all experience in one way or another.

I used to hate sandals too, but I think it has something to do with the fact that it was ingrained into me growing up that they were for girls. Obviously, that doesn't bother me now.

6 hours ago, chesterx said:

Tried something different for me when I went out to lunch today. Now that the redness from the waxing has subsided I decided to test the waters by wearing shorts & exposing my legs to daylight for the 1st time in years. Was a quick one as I got it to go. There were two young ladies waiting for their order as well, & one complimented my sandals & the other my nails. Had a nice chat until our orders arrived. I'm calling it a success. I wore a top from Long Tall Sally, shorts from Aeropostal, & mauve sandals from Universal Thread. I just wasn't sure how I looked with heels, so I played it safe with sandals. I was thinking of wearing my mid height heels with this outfit as a compromise. Heels are rare enough in my area as it is, but I can say I have never seen a woman wearing heels with shorts, so I was hesitant to do it. I know some of you guys are practitioners of heels & shorts, any thoughts on the matter?

Yeah, ah, basically wearing shorts with heels takes it to another level. I think it's because it would be a noticeable outfit even if a woman was wearing it, even without a midriff-baring tank top or whatever. I do occasionally see a woman in high heels and shorts, but like RonC says, it's usually wedges, and I think in general, it's a waning trend. It seems like I saw it a lot more just a few years ago. It may be that if you went to bars and clubs, you'd see it frequently. I wouldn't know. I personally love the combination, and have ever since Catherine Bach of "The Dukes of Hazzard" made it her signature look. It really took about 30 years for this look to become generally accepted, however. I do this pretty much every day in the summer, and I still sometimes get negative reactions. I also get positive ones, too. I think you've gotten it pretty much right. If you want to add heels, be prepared to get significantly more attention that you would with either shorts and flats, or long pants and heels.

1 hour ago, JeffB said:

An interesting topic. In the beginning, I was all about the higher heels (three inches and over), they used to be almost all I wore on my outings. However, of late, I've come to appreciate lower heights (three inches and below), following in the footsteps of women who don't wear sky high stilettos all the time and prefer flats instead. But, that's just me, everyone here should wear and enjoy the heel height of their choice.

I have not bought anything south of three inches in.  .  . I don't think ever. Not counting work boots, or anything previous to 2012. I have bought a few recently that were south of four inches, however. I thought to myself, "Oh, those are actually very cute, and you know, life would be incrementally easier if I would just back off on the heel height a little." Guess what? I haven't worn any of those shoes. Not even once. To be fair, it's a strange, strange year, and unless I want to take a walk around my neighborhood at a good clip, I have precious little reason to wear any shoes where you have to bend over and do up a fussy buckle, so perhaps it's unfair to say I will never wear them at all, but I probably should have known myself a little bit better and kept my money. Like so many people on this forum have said about themselves, I cannot possibly tell you why I like the shoes I do. There is no logic to it whatsoever. It's even worse than that! Sometimes, as you have noted, Jeff, we suddenly do an about-face, and start liking something we didn't before. So who knows?

15 hours ago, RonC said:

Ok.  When you were talking of the Pleasers being too high, I didn't know you meant a 1/4 - 1/2 inch or so too high.  Also just a note - I believe Nine West measures heels straight up the center of the heel from the side, not the back.  Their 4" heels do measure close to 4.5", especially in larger sizes, when measured up the back.  While I can't really wear anything over 4" with any degree of comfort and grace, from an aesthetic point of view, I personally actually prefer the look of a heel in the 3.5-4.5 inch range to those of 5 (+) inches.  Of course I am talking here about single sole shoes.  But even for platforms, I just don't really care for the look of a towering high heel.  Too each their own!  ;-). 

Yes, I can't even explain my own preferences. I wish I liked lower heels, but I just don't. There is a point where even I think they start to look odd. That for me is somewhere in the 5 1/2" range, on my size 9. There are some 6" heels that look pretty hot, but it's very easy for the design to go south pretty quickly. More than that, there is hardly anybody who can walk in such shoes, anyway. To be fair, I probably have a pickier definition of "walk" than some people.

I don't have "pump bump", but I do have a bone spur on the side of my heel, and I can almost guarantee you that it was caused at a certain point in my life by ill fitting work boots. It hasn't been bothering me too much lately. It wouldn't keep me out of the army, anyway. I have often wondered about what @Jkrenzer alluded to. Like him, I wear heels every day, but I can't wear heels at my construction job. I have never experienced much in the way of negative effects because of heel wearing, but I wonder if I would if I had an office job.

On 7/30/2020 at 9:37 PM, RonC said:

Might check the Nine West site.  They have a pretty wide selection of pumps with varies heel heights for fall.  And www.classicpumps always has some nice looking pumps in decent leather.

I think that perhaps we may be entering a time where there's just not a lot of shoes that I want to buy. Not from normal outlets like Nine West, anyway. I have a ton of Nine West shoes, and it used to be something I searched for, but all of these shoes are at least 5 model years old, most probably older than that. Now, I look through their website, and my reaction ranges from ambivalence to cringing. I am encouraged to see that they now offer a classic pump (as well as other variations on the same sole/heel) in which we see a return of a classic stiletto heel shape that curves forward as it reaches the ground, instead of dropping vertically at the back of the shoe. This "new" heel style seems to be available in at least three different heel heights, topping out at 100 mm, or about four inches.

Herein lies the sticking point for me with both Nine West and classicpumps.com. I don't mean to sound snooty at all, but they are just simply not high enough for my taste. I know, know! Once upon a time, a four inch heel was like insanely high! How can you possibly walk in those, much less wear them all day? I heard that conversation more than once growing up, and half the time, the girl was bragging about having four inch heels, but that boast was somewhat aspirational when you actually put a ruler to it. Four inch heels were the pinnacle of.  .  . something, I don't know what. Anyhow, what it comes down to, and I have nothing against classic pumps with a 4 inch heel, but I know I won't wear them. They will sit on my shelf collecting dust until someday I decide to get rid of them. So I'm going to resist the temptation to buy anything that short. I am not interested in having 50 pairs of shoes that I just look at. On the other end of the spectrum the Pleaser pumps that y'all seem to admire so much are right at 130 mm, or 5 1/8". As I said before, this is right beyond the height where I feel comfortable actually having people see me wearing them. I was thinking that maybe if I went down a notch to 120mm, I might actually wear them. That is where something like Italianheels or Fuss seems to be the way to go, because nobody (except very costly designer brands) is making single sole pumps in that height range anymore. The bloom appears to be off the rose with the extreme heel heights, outside of LA County.

The above referenced heel heights apply to my U.S. Women's size 9/EU size 39 shoes. As you know, your mileage will vary as you get much bigger than that. Or smaller, but I can't imagine we'd have much smaller on this forum.

Size 44? That accounts for a good deal. What I can't seem to figure out from the website is what size conversion they are using. Sometimes my size 9 converts to 39, and sometimes it converts to 40. Does your size 44 mean you are a 14 women's/12 men's?

On edit: Never mind, I finally found the tiny, tiny little button to click for the size chart. I had to find the right window of my trifocals to see it. They kind of messed up on the cm to inches conversion chart, though. 24.8 cm does not equal 9 1/4". I knew what they meant, though, haha.

5 hours ago, chesterx said:

Can confirm. They are just a tad bit too high for long term wear. I am getting another pair from them with a 4" heel, just can't decide what I want. They have a bewildering array of selections...

Just exactly how tall are they? I assume if it's Italianheels.com that they must be 120 mm, or 4 3/4". At least, that's what their catalog says. What I'm wondering is, what size do you wear, and how tall do the heels actually measure? I'm interested in ordering from them myself.

On 7/26/2020 at 8:03 AM, vinheel said:

Jennifer Lawrence , Vapour sandals from Jimmy Choo. Too.......Gorgeous 🤪

 

The sandals are really quite nice, but it's not the most flattering picture. I wish I could see two steps before or two steps after to know whether she can actually walk in something that steep. I know I can't. Whoever is beside her in the boots appears to be much more graceful.

15 hours ago, Jkrenzer said:

I know your a open shoe kinda guy, but those pumps are beautiful.  Hope you start wearing those as openly as your other shoes.

The main trouble with these shoes, besides the fact that I can't walk in them, is that they are not leather. My feet do not deal well with them. Can you hook a brother up and recommend something in a similar style that IS leather? I think that would help my enthusiasm or lack thereof a great deal.

Howdy folks, it's been pretty quiet around here lately. The only really cool thing that I've done lately is participate in an online hymn sing at our church, which has been re-closed until at least Aug. 30. The choir director and I took turns leading the singing and providing accompaniment, and I actually got to play the organ this time! I wore the salmon colored shirt for the video, but I wore organ shoes instead of the pumps pictured here. I still can't walk in those suckers, in case you're wondering. I put them on to model them for a fashionista friend who can't wear heels anymore due to an unfortunate combination of health issues.

The other outfit came about sort of accidentally. My wife had bought my 11 year old several t-shirts, because of course, he's a growing boy, and you have to do that every so often. She overestimated his size by quite a bit, however, and so I wound up with them. They're crappy t-shirts, but my immediate thought with the yellow one was, "I bet that would go with my DvF wedges pretty well." And it does.

A further thought about my fashionista friend. I know her from college days, and I remember she used to have these black suede pumps that she wore fairly regularly. Well, not regularly like what we do here, things was different back in them days, but that's sort of my whole point. To me, at the time, these suede pumps were shockingly tall, and they absolutely were, compared to what most girls were wearing at the time. They were every bit of 3 1/2 inches. I think sometimes we remember the past differently than it really was.

5 hours ago, chesterx said:

Posting 3 of my newest pairs, as I'm bored & have no reason to wear them out yet. 1st pair are some black strappy rhinestone sandals from OnlyMaker. Just a tad bit oversize but they are wearable & feel nice to walk in (no idea where I'm going to wear them, but I had to have them). 2nd pair I ordered from ItalianHeels.com. The leather is so soft, like butter. I love how dainty they look on my feet. Bit tall to walk in, but I will make it work. I am looking for my 2nd pair from them, just a tad bit shorter of a heel this time. Last pair (picture was blurry, thats not the way the heels look!) are some slight platform black pumps with a quilted pattern from BCBGeneration. Bought them from a lady on Poshmark. Was buying a nice looking pantsuit from her when I saw these in her other items for sale column. Bought them as well. I think they make for a striking look when paired with a pantsuit. Wore them out a couple of times & they feel great, gonna make them part of my regular rotation. Cant wait for things to open up completely so I can get some longer jaunts in...

 

Evidently, you need to get with Krenzer and tell him about your Onlymaker shoes. I will be interested as well. I am also interested in your experience with Italianheels. Is it worth the money, and can I just order a 38 1/2 blindly? I am 8 1/2 U.S. Women's in sandals.

8 hours ago, Cali said:

In many countries you are always being observed.  And almost everybody has a phone to take videos, too.  "Smile It's Candid Camera" meets George Orwell's "1984."

When I visit Vietnam, my mother-in-law dutifully reports my presence to the authorities. We always arrive late at night, and the next morning, a dashing young man in a crisp uniform shows up at our house to take down my information. This is strictly for my safety during my visit, of course.

On 7/22/2020 at 11:54 AM, Jkrenzer said:

Had to get new shoes today. Yes "men's". Naturally I wore pumps to and from the store. Been years since my last non-athletic heelless purchase. Got several inquisitive looks. Had to go to the ladies aisle to get foot covers.

Were your flats technically "ladies" too? That's what happened last time I bought flats. And thank you for spelling "aisle" correctly. Many people these days seem to confuse this space with a small island.

2 hours ago, azsub1 said:

Nothing but negative comments and a whopping 1 like.

Photo's like these obviously aren't wanted in this forum, so as i said, i will refrain from  posting any more of my collection of wallpapers.

Sorry for taking up space on the forum. Feel free to delete my post.

This part of the forum never gets any traffic, anyway. Surely you noticed the huge gaps of time between the most recent posts. It wouldn't have mattered too much what you posted, few would have seen it. Don't take it personally.

17 hours ago, Lvemadomina said:

I won’t go into detail about what kind of social gathering to keep it PG but lots of compliments and my one friend gave me a hug and picked me up and spun me around! Agh it was wonderful 😄🥰

One lady said I was looking like a snack lol, I was really blushing by that point 😄 my GF actually let me borrow those shorts for the night 🥰 the whole outfit just went together well.

I am not sure how to react to all of this. You are evidently at some sort of event racy enough that you can't mention what it is, and you chose to wear.  .  . pretty much what I wear every day in the warmer months, except I never wear pumps, I always wear sandals, and usually mules.  I am the most boring person you will ever meet. You better be careful, I might rub off on you.    

15 hours ago, Cali said:

 

Time to go shopping for new shorts for yourself. @mlroseplant and I both like shorts that are short. I haven't bought men's shorts (aka capris) in 6 years.

Absolutely! You should get your own shorts. I find that length to be perfect for a man, for practical (modesty) purposes.

6 hours ago, Lvemadomina said:

Thank you! I did ☺️💁🏻‍♀️ It’s so tough to make a nice men’s outfit pair with heels but I like to think I did it with this one ☺️

I am not entirely sure what is so "men's" about this outfit. It's awfully unisex. I suppose the t-shirt offers a bit more coverage than your typical t-shirt marketed at women, but that's about it.

22 hours ago, Pumped said:

Milrose, I know how you feel. I love messing around with fake nails and did so last Saturday. I like them long and ridiculous. Too bad I wear them for just a few hours, perhaps over night, then back to my "man" hands. My wife told me to leave them on, but i had some things to do and they definitely get in the way. Woman that wear them long, how do they do it? I can type on a key board, zip my pants and button a shirt, but Sunday AM my wife asked me to peal an orange and I held it in my hands and there was no way!

I think part of it is much like trying to walk in a pair of 5 inch heels if you've never worn heels before. Applying very long fake nails suddenly when you're used to short nails is going to cause you problems. However, if you were to grow your natural nails long (hence the title of this thread), you would get used to doing things little by little, and could perhaps eventually peel an orange with no problem! I understand that in your situation, it simply isn't possible, and if you want to have fun with fake nails occasionally, go right ahead.

The longest I've had all ten of my natural nails is 4 mm, and I usually keep them at about 2 or 3. I am curious, just exactly how long is "ridiculous?" I assume that your artificial nails are not acrylics or anything like that, being as you only have them on for a short time.

On edit: I scrolled back through the thread and discovered that you have already answered these questions, so, uh, never mind, I guess! "Ridiculous" appears to be in the 12 - 15 mm range, which is pretty doggoned long for these days (in most circles), but certainly not "ridiculous" in my book.

I saw a gal wearing high heels and shorts at the grocery store yesterday, with a full grocery cart and everything, not like she'd just stopped in for something really quick.  I'm not the only one!

I am trying out a new way to reduce the file size of my images without making everything look horrible. These files are ridiculously small but look fine to me on my laptop computer. Let me know if something is odd as viewed by you, the rest of the internet world.

Anyhow, up for your consideration is a pair of Diane von Furstenberg wedge mules in an unusual (for me) eye popping yellow. Actually, there is a fairly restrained amount of yellow, so I don't feel like they scream "Look at me!" They are equipped with a 4 3/4" heel and a 1 1/4" platform, so yeah, they're basically flatforms, haha. I bought them used on ebay for $37 plus shipping. I've worn them out a couple of times, and I don't see any downside to them yet. The straps do not bite into my toes even after extended wearing, so that's a good thing. As mentioned, the steepness is basically nothing, so I imagine they are easily all day shoes without even trying, though I have yet to confirm that. The wedge itself has some interesting detail to it, with the little cutouts, and the heel of the wedge is pretty narrow, so I don't feel it's super clunky looking like many wedges are.

Baby steps, baby steps. But don't walk with baby steps in heels. That just looks goofy.