Shyheels

Stones

Shelter

I have done the same - I find lower chunkier heels more appealing, not only for ease and convenience, but aesthetically too.

Thats an interesting point - changes can also come from within. When I first joined I quite fancied thigh boots - they seemed to me to the Ultima Thule in this forbidden word of high heels, the most extravagant and theatrical. And I suppose they are. But as I evolved into this, became more comfortable with the idea of wearing heels, more accepting and open to exploring my tastes, I found that my tastes evolved too. Or perpahs I discovered what they really were instead of being distracted by the most theatrical version of them.  I've settled quite comfortably into knee and OTK boots, as well as embraced a fondness (that I see now was always there) for chunky-heels and ankle boots. 

At the start I liked the racy lines and proportions of 12cm stiletto heels, and while I can still see the appeal, nowadays I prefer the look of 10cm in stilettos and 8cm chunky heels - not so much for ease of walking, although thsat plays a part, but because my aesthetic has evolved. I'm quite settled in that, know my mind and buy accordingly. And happily.  

Lots has changed in that time, and very little of it has been good

It’s a very friendly and accommodating forum - so different from some other forums I have encountered! Lots of different viewpoints and styles, but always expressed with tolerance and goodwill

I think with all these things it depends on where you live, the circles in which you move and your own perceptions on society’s drift and the swing of whatever pendulum you’re talking about.

If heels really are that universally disliked and scorned, and are so widely regarded as unwearable then perhaps they should go extinct.

I don’t think they will though. There is a powerful feminist lobby today, true, but these movements, by their intolerance, often create their own backlash. There was quite a powerful anti communist movement in the US during the fifties - and to the actors etc who were black listed it must have seemed that this would stretch on forever. It passed eventually. People got sick of it.

Humanity is easily distracted and bored, always on the look out for the next big thing - and nobody knows that better than fashion designers. 

Nobody walked in stilettos until the 1950s when they suddenly became the fashion, and women very swiftly learned how to do it. The same will happened again - all it would take is some K-Pop band on Tik-Tok to make heels their thing and it would be a craze. 

I’m coming up on ten years in January. Seems hard to believe

Very nice!

Very nice

Yes not a compliment at the very least a sign of good natured acceptance 

I don’t wear leggings but I do like skinny jeans since I like to wear my knee and OTK boots over them

Those are very nice - and as you say, a touch of retro. Classy and classic 

I’ve worn heels all day but in truth much of that times was sitting and working at my desk. It’s not like I’ve been a postman doing my rounds. While I’ve work knee boots on long haul flights, they’ve always been low heeled ones - I like to be able to walk very swiftly to get to the immigration queues ahead of the rush if I can

I second the idea of investing in classics, and paying the extra for beautuful materials, fit and overall quality. Have fewer heels but better - much less need for culling

I think a lot of the fashion cycle regarding heels concerns heel style and height rather than heels themselves. Three inch heels - especially in ankle boots = is not at all uncommon.

That’s a horribly long flight to start with and the inevitable delays and screw ups only add to the misery. Ive don’t it more times than I can count, and in two occasions have dine two-round trips in little over a fortnight. I hope you had a good time in Sydney.

yes they are “trainers” in England (and Australia) and electricians are indeed “sparkles” in both countries

It’s an experience I’ve never had, nor am ever likely to have. I’ve lived my entire adult life as an expat in one country or another 

Well 85 and 100 mm heels seem quite nice to me …

I already explained why I think heels will fare differently than extinct fashion items like corsets - because we all wear something on our feet and will continue to do so. The heel is a design feature on footwear and has been around for thousands of years. At issue is how high the heel will be and that will continue to vary up and down with the changing of fashions.

virtually nobody had ever worn stilettos until Roger Vivier launched his new collection in 1953. At that point the base skill set would have been zero yet that did not stop the stiletto from catching on. Women acquired the skill because they wanted to, it was fashionable and they were willing to suffer a bit for the art.

Sure, there is a very loud and authoritarian feminist voice in social media denouncing anything feminine and urging a kind of bland uniformity but it is a mistake to believe - as they would like you to believe - that they speak for all and that theirs is a universal truth. Behind all the trumpeting and authoritarianism are millions upon millions of people simply leading their lives as before. Lazy journalism has amplified the voices of this unpleasant minority but the world generally continues to revolve as it always has.

I don’t agree. Heels are certainly in a cyclical low and I don’t thing they will rebound in the way typical fashion cycles have worked in the past. Social media and enforced herd-think has changed that forever. But I do not think that heels will fade out completely or that heel wearers will be relegated to a niche fetish community. Nor are heels analogous to corsets.

Corsets, ruffed collars, powdered wigs etc have all had their day and are pretty well extinct. The heel is a staple design feature on nearly all forms of dress footwear - men’s or women’s. At issue is the height of the heel. As long as this design feature persists, designers will tinker with it. And there is no sign of this design feature disappearing - only that it is less exaggerated.

While stilettos may be scarce these days boots with two to three inch chunky heels are common. And I dare say will remain so. And I doubt even the stiletto will disappear.

High heels have been around for well over a century, although the stiletto for only the past 70 years or so. They are well established in the zeitgeist and while I think it will take more that the typical fashion cycle to bring back the kind of stiletto wearing common in the 1980s and early 2000s, high heels are not going to disappear 

I once flew first class on Emirates from London to Sydney - a very nice assignment! - and ended up arriving more exhausted than if I’d flown economy on a lowly airline, mainly because of my own greed and gypsies-in-the-palace mentality. I simply refused to waste a moment of that over-the-top luxury in sleep!

Have a good flight! It’s a long one. I have done it - from the US and from Europe - more times than I can count and it is never easy, no matter which part of the plane you’re in!

I always enjoy your stories and thoughtful commentary - and truly wish your farmers market was not 5000 miles away! You’d have at least one booted and heeled customer and I’d have some really delicious sounding fare!