Shyheels

I think that visually speaking five inch heels are the most elegant - any higher and the proportions start to look wrong, but at five inch or 12cm you reach an ideal combination of height and sophistication. The aesthetics are perfect. Actually walking in them, let alone wearing them all day, is something else. But visually they’ll have strong appeal

I’m glad you had a nice visit. Sounds like your trip is going really well!

It is quite frustrating. as I say, I’ve never encountered another man wearing stilettos - I’ve seen one or two in chunky heeled ankle boots - but I do wonder how many are out there who would like to try wearing heels or are curious about them. I’m sure there are a lot, but the vast majority would never dare to express an interest, let alone buy a pair of heels to try. I know it took me a long time to get up the courage to buy some heels, even though I’d wanted to try for years.

I know what you mean. I always feel slightly deflated after taking off my heels at the end of the day. I'm confident they will keep making heels - it just depends on styles. I am quite fussy in that regard. I really like classical styles, simple clean lines, nothing flamboyant.

I'm fortunate in being a freelance and working from home - I can wear what I please without reference to anyone, and have made eels more or less my office dress code.

Yes there are many men here on HHP - or I should say mostly men, as there are not many people in general active on HHP, but rather a small and good-natured group who share a fondness for heels. Our individual tastes vary, but we recognise that we are unusual in our liking of wearing high heels. Speaking broadly, it would be fair to say our fondness for heels is based on aesthetics and a certain envy for the fashion freedoms enjoyed by women, who can pretty much wear what they like, free of censure. Men are expected to keep their style choices within very narrow bounds. As you say, you seldom see men wearing heels. Personally I've never encountered another man in stilettos. As for my own tastes in heels I personally prefer chunky heeled boots, with 8 to 10cm heels, although I own a couple pair of stilettos - I'd always wanted to try stilettos and having tried them ind them a fun challenge, but I don't wear them out and about like I do my chunky heeled boots. The styling is still feminine, although less so than stilettos, but when worn in combination with something neutral like jeans and a jumper seems more 'edgy' to my eyes than outright feminine. It plays to my inner bohemian I guess. Heel wearing among women does seem to be at a low ebb at present, but fashion is cyclical and I imagine it will pick up again. I suspect men in heels will continue to be a rarity for quite some time, despite the occasional appearance of heels in men's fashion shows. They are usually pretty ugly styles and presented outlandishly and not something many men - including myself - would ever take up. But variety is the spice of life

I agree. I love classic heels - simple elegant knee and OTK boots my personal favourites - the more flamboyant styles, not so much

I agree with you. These things are cyclical. At the moment we’re between fashion cycles but I’m sure high heels will be back in vogue and probably sooner rather than later. Tastes are fickle - which is the whole point of fashion. At some point the present trend for dull comfort shoes will become boring and a desire for change will well up. Heels will become interesting again For people like us, who genuinely like heels, these down periods are dull, but they will pass and, change will come and the rank and file will follow

And there are women who feel the same. They’re not the ones complaining about being forced to wear heels

Yes, fit is something that is seldom mentioned in articles castigating high heels. Poor fit, lack of practice and the assumption that the heels women are expected to wear as a part of a dress code are invariably four- or five-inch stilettos colour virtually all narratives about high heels.

I am always highly skeptical of this business about what women are “required” to wear all day every day. While office dress codes may call for women to be in heels, as with coat and tie for men, we’re not talking about four-inch stilettos here - more typically two inch heels and rather thicker than stilettos. I don’t believe anybody should be forced to wear something they dislike or which is uncomfortable - you won’t find me wearing a tie, for example - but I think far too much is made of the “forced to wear heels” business. They aren’t in towering stilettos but in something much more demure and far easier to wear. Lets be real: two inch heels are no more uncomfortable than wearing a tie In my experience and observation women who actually do wear four inch heels are those who genuinely love wearing heels - and they wear them because they like them, and the emotional lift and sense of empowerment they get by wearing them, not because they want to please the men around them, or out if a sense of obligation, but because heels are a part of their identity.

I think that's a wise plan. As you say much simpler to do everything in work boots.

Yes I too am glad to see you back. In the end I gave up on finding trainers in the colours I liked and instead took satisfaction in finding running shorts and t-shirts in attractive colours instead. Congratulations on the weight loss. Hopefully the health issues have cleared up and you can get back to enjoying life!

While we don't have those same companies over here, I have had similar experiences. And it never fails to amaze me than when the second company calls up weeks later, and you tell them that you've long since given your business to their competitor, they are always so breezy about it - a though you'd called them to ask a favour and didn't need it after all. Nobody cares.

Out and about in York the other day. Despite our warm summer I was surprised by the number of heeled knee boots I saw. To be sure most wearing trainers but that there were anybody in boots was a surprise, and I saw a surprising number of women in block heeled knee boots - 3” heels. No stilettos though - although given York’s ancient streets I doubt stilettos were ever big there

That’s nice when you get positive feedback - and nice too when a sales assistant goes out of her way to be helpful. Definitely a boost for the day

I am reasonably competent in 10cm heels, but I don’t think I’d care to run a race in them! Partly I’d be worried about damaging my heels! But as you say, an interesting discipline!

Hello and welcome to HHP. This is a really friendly and well mannered forum. As @Tech says, we look forward to hearing more from you. Have a great day

Yes Leviticus is hard going. The boots seem much more inviting

I didn’t dare take my eyes off the road!!!

I had an old pair of (quite nice) Scarpa mountaineering boots do that - the Vibram sole came loose around the toe area. It was walkable, though irritating, flap-flap-flapping like that, and happily it was also easily fixable with contact cement once I got back to the boat

I saw this article on the CNN website about a high heels race in Spain as part of the local Pride festival. Apparently it has been going for quite a long time. Minimum heel height is four inches or 10cm - so they are racing in genuinely high heels. https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/05/travel/madrid-pride-high-heel-race

Yes! I think I hit even higher speeds but I didn’t dare look at my speedometer - it was a fast and curvy descent on a narrow mountain road without guardrails. High risk, high consequence. 57mph was the last reading I saw.

Oh I’ve descended quickly in the past - my record being 57mph down a steep pass in the Vosges. And that on a loaded touring bike. But I’m not a fan of such descents

That would not be much fun at all. One of the reasons I am hesitant about going out in stilettos is the fear of just such a thing happening. The heels look so precarious - so easy to imagine breakage and the aforementioned barefoot walk home. That's one of the drawbacks to being a creative - a vivid imagination. It's why I am not a great downhiller on my bicycle. I can envision all too easily the consequences of missing my line or a loose piece of gravel