csb2

Changing men's fashion, now one year in the making....

Mexican Town Goes Mad for Pointy Boots

Behind The Seams - Mexican Pointy Boots

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEiMA3QtYWc

Dr. Shoe makes a good point, that I have to agree with. It is best to avoid having to pack the front of any footwear. Buy the proper size for shoes. However, with closed-toe boots, it is usually wise to go half or one full size larger for practical reasons. If you are going out, it is much more unlikely for you to take boots off (than shoes) to give your toes a breather. One full size larger will even help you wear the boots 24 hours straight or even, over an entire weekend (if needed). Also, feet swell and boots can be become difficult to take off. In regards to packing material, cut-up foam, tissues and any other permeable materials can be a problem or nuisance: a) when they fall out, when they get wet from sweat, c) when they get wet from rain. If they are single sole shoes, rain water will inevitably soak through the front of the shoes and into the packing foam. Bubble gum, putty or any similar material will keep rain water outside the shoe. Also, covering up the gum with waxy paper and Scotch tape from the inside will prevent it from falling out and also, from getting wet from sweat and become sticky. However, once again, follow Dr. Shoe's advice and avoid having to pack the front of any footwear.

Overexaggerating are we?

Sorry to disappoint you, but no. I did not exaggerate, (but I could be wrong.)

I actually own a pair of Leo's women's dance shoes with 2.75 inch high heels and they are not as high as the ones in the videos. Have you ever done ballroom dancing before?

How high do you think the heels are for:

a) Kym Johnson, the blonde (at 0:57 seconds into the video)

Elena Grinenko, who has black hair and wears the black pair with mid-

foot straps (at 0:59 into the video at far left and at 2:30 seconds )

c) Shakira

=======

BTW, here's my third choice for best moments on DWTS:

3) Julianne and Derek Hough performing the Jive (Great Balls of Fire)

Julianne walks in 3.25 to 3.5-inch high heels with her brother on top of her shoulders and later, does some cartwheels in heels.

Seems to be hard on the little toes.

I created this thread just for the best moments on the Dancing with the Stars series involving high heels.

1) Vittorio Grigolo - 'Carmina Burana'

At least two of the four of the DWTS-USA ladies (Elena Grinenko and Kym Johnson; other two are Ashly DelGrosso and Karina Smirnoff ) do the paso doble on what appears to be 4-inch or so high heels. from Season 3 on September 27, 2006

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptAFOM9dwd4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptAFOM9dwd4

2) Shakira DWTS - Did It Again and Hips Don't Lie

Shakira peforms second single from Shewolf (Did It Again) on DWTS-USA. She drums backwards while standing in one of her pairs of 5-inch heeled boots. from Season 9 on October 13, 2009

As a side line note (and not to steal the thread) I had the luck of talking to a Sales Rep for some of the big names in Western Boot Wear. He spotted me right away in a pair of womens boots with a 3" heel (hey - it's his job to notice) in a local tack shop. The owner. myself, another woman client whole who didn't seem to like the discussion and the Sales Rep talked for about a half hour.

Sales Rep's comments.

- Mens heel heights are coming down - and fast. Don't expect much over 1 3/8" heel in the future.

- One manufacturer is discussing creating a 'Western Show Re-enactors' line for some specialized boots

- Overall sales of western / Tack boots have plummeted with mens boots taking the biggest hit. The economy didn't help.

- One of the biggest surprises was that shortly after the release of the movie Brokeback Mountain, mens sales plummeted. Cowboy boots are gay - or so the buying public seems to have associated boots with gays and 'sheep herders'. This sales rep claims the movie set the boot industry back probably 5 years.

The store owner who also is a riding instructor doesn't sell many boots anymore, and won't stock many styles. She can't get the students to even consider boots even though she made it a requirement, she ignores it just to keep the students she has.

In regards to "Western Boot Wear", Mason Shoes and Sheplers always sold the highest cowboy heels and still do. I purchased from these companies via their mail order catalogs over the decades. Their prices are also usually significantly less than at brick-and-mortar stores.

For geniune Men's 2-inch cowboy heels in all sizes and widths, go to

http://www.bamason.com/

For genuine Women's cowboy heels up to 4 inches high, go to

http://www.sheplers.com/womens/cowgirl_boots/

Note: these women's cowboy boots are the real McCoy (not mock or fake cowgirl boots like those sold by Pleaser USA). They are the kind worn by real cowgirls.

As far I remember(?), the first photo was plastered all over the tabloids in the USA a long time ago. He was wearing a pair of stiletto high heels and standing in back of a podium up on a stage (side view photo) with his former wife Nicole Kidman. They got married in 1990 and it was about that time. Over the years, I saw more articles about Tom Cruise wearing high heels, but never actually read them. So, I assumed that he was still wearing stilettos. Perhaps, after the first stiletto high heel photo, he switched to lifts. I stop being a Tom Cruise fan a long time ago. IMO, Cruise was great in the movies Risky Business and Top Gun, but then changed after starring with Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men. You could start to sense him trying to act rather than being his cool self.

Pair 1 - male Pair 2 - female Pair 3 - male Pair 4 - female Pair 5 - male Pair 6 - female Pair 7 - female Pair 7 is obviously the most feminine pair and therefore, probably the pair the woman reacted to.

They usually look something like this though...

Not necessarily.

1) Tom Cruise has worn stiletto high heels on numerous occasions in public (just google "Tom Cruise high heels"), but like Prince he's rather short at 5'7" and usually partners with taller women. His former wife Nicole Kidman was 5'10" (in barefeet) and almost ALWAYS wore high heels, towering over Cruise. So, Cruise's high heels are also unfortunately regarded as "prop" rather than "fashion".

2) Any big-name male celebrity, who is about 6 feet tall and a GAY FEMININE MALE could probably do it what takes to change shoe fashion for men.

I have a question to run by EVERYONE.

I have a small waist and longer inseam. 28 inch waist and a 34 inseam. I can NEVER find jeans and pants that fit right off the shelf/hook/hanger. I usually take them to a friend whom is/was a seamstress. She tailors them to fit properly.

Recently ( this past afternoon ) she told me to just go to a local fabric shop and pick out materials and she can make me some pants that would fit.

Not a bad ideal actually. For what it costs to purchase a decent pair of jeans ( 25$ ) then to have them tailored ( another 25$ ), the material would be 15$ and I could easily put some cash in her pocket ( shes a stay at home mother presently ).

My question would be.. are these ' mens ' jeans? I was thinking lighter linen types of materials would be nicer for warmer summer months and the fall season as well.

Unless you have lots of experience sewing pants and a pattern/template in the correct size, it is really difficult to sew a pair of pants that I would wear in public.

If you don't mind the button or hook being on the opposite side of the pants,

try JC Penney

http://www.jcpenney.com/jcp/XGN.aspx?DeptID=70656&CatID=71963&cmCatLevel=3&shopperType=G&CmCatId=70656

Lands' End

http://www.landsend.com/ix/womens-clothing/Women/Pants-Shorts/Size+Range=Tall/index.html?seq=1~2~3~4&catNumbers=83~85&visible=1~2~1~1&store=le&sort=Recommended&pageSize=24&tab=2

Gap

http://www.gap.com/products/tall-womens-clothing.jsp

For more, google "tall women clothing".

Whether the heels on shoes or boots are block, wedge, stiletto, blade, or etc., the best high heels are a matter of personal choice. To limit this choice to a particular height or style is the same thing that society has done to keep men from wearing heels at all. This is not honoring the right each person has to choose according to their own sense of style and self-expression.

I agree, but you got to start somewhere. When is the last time you walked into a men's shoe store displaying any type heel over 2/3/4 inches high?

If you ever saw footage of Prince during his heyday, he was ALWAYS wearing stiletto ankle boots. Nobody really thought anything of it and this was 20 years ago. Now, granted, Prince is a very short guy, and a celebrity, but it's amazing what is still not acceptable in the general public.

I have a copy of Purple Rain on DVD. I believe that most people knew Prince was really short (5'2"), so they considered his boots as "prop" rather than "fashion".

If you can get a big-name male celebrity, who is about 6 feet tall, to ALWAYS wear stiletto ankle boots, it might very well change fashion for men (or at least make it easier for other men to do the same).

I believe for the general male 4" + heels are to high maybe should be around the 3 to 3.5 inch mark. That's with out platforms.

1) The "Men's style of high heel shoes and boots" that 6inchhighheelsforever has been selling for the past few years have 4 inch high heels with no platforms.

2) I would agree that the height of a "men's high heel" could be either 3 or 4 inches. So, if we compromise, it would be 3.5 inches. However, if you round that figure up, you get 4 inches. Right?

3) Since a women's high heel is generally considered to be at least 3 inches or so, it would seem appropriate for a men's high heel to be considered at least 4 inches or so. The average man is taller (about 5'9" vs 5'4") and has larger feet (about 10.5US vs 8.5US using same scale) than the average woman. 3 inches is more a "mid-heel" for the average man.

4) I agree with FOXYHEEL, plenty of 3-inch high heels for men already exist. I also don't think that 3-inch heels don't get noticed that much, especially on big men.

========

I believe that getting "men's high heel" styles of footwear is one of the keys for men gaining total social acceptance for wearing high heels in public. Give them some high heel shoe and boot styles that are "Just for Men" and masculine-looking, but also sexy like the 4 inch Vince Camuto oxfords or Seychelles ankle boots (not the ugly ones at 6inchheelsforever).

I have orderd a pair of heels a size bigger for more conferred but am worried they will be to much of a gap at the back what is the best material to pack the front of the shoes

The best material is unused BUBBLE GUM (Bazooka brand, the pink color type). Use as much as needed. After you get the right amount packed into the front of the shoe, you MUST cover it all up with the waxy wrapper (cut size to match) and then, add scotch tape (or clear packaging tape or sticky Contact Paper) so that the gum never gets wet.

Do it right and you will get the best, cheapest and permanent fix possible. It also allows you to wear the heels barefoot, with pantyhose or socks.

I created this thread after reading the threads about designer Rad Hourani's unisex line of clothing and footwear. While his high heel booties are nice, the price tag of $1095.00US seems a little bit overpriced.

http://www.radhourani.com/collections/eshop/products/sh001l

The Rad Horani high heel boots also reminded me of the "Men's style of high heel shoes and boots" that have been available at 6inchheelsforever for a few years now. Even though they seem fairly priced ($275.00Canada for shoes and $345.00Canada for boots), they have never generated any interest in me at all. Perhaps, I don't like the tapered toe boxes.

http://www.orientvisual.com/6inchforever/shoepage.php?querytype=category&searchstring=Boots&itemsperpage=100&currentpagenumber=1

With that in mind, I find the following women's style of high heel shoes and boots to be the best that could potentially be intended for men to wear. The heels are at least 4 inches high and the rounded toe boxes look a lot better than tapered ones.

======

2010 Vince Camuto Cool Oxford Shoe (still currently available on ebay.com in some sizes). NOTE: heel is 4.25 inches and the sole is 0.25 inch thick.

http://cgi.ebay.com/VINCE-CAMUTO-Cool-Oxfords-Shoes-Womens-130-New-/160577439860?pt=US_Women_s_Shoes&var=&hash=item6b1b6cbb24

2010 Seychelles Thriller Ankle Boot (still currently available at amazon.com). NOTE: the heel is 4.625 inches high (not 5 inches high as listed at amazon.com) and the sole is 0.25 inch thick. However, the front part of the boot rises about 0.625 inch off the ground and produces an effect of a 5-inch heel on the arch of the foot.

http://www.amazon.com/Seychelles-Womens-Thriller-Ankle-Boot/dp/B003FSHJBC/ref=sr_1_17?s=shoes&ie=UTF8&qid=1304719366&sr=1-17

The "metal rod or tube" inside the stiletto heel needs to be more "rigid" or "stiff". Those are the proper words in the English language that are used to describe how to fix this type of problem. I dealt with this type of problem about 25 years ago.

oh it seems you really dont understand what i am trying to say.

yes i repeated it hoping i explained it better now.

May be it is because of my language handicap.

Maybe, but I usually understand what you write. Of course, if you don't write it, then I can't understand it.

What about just trying the mentioned shoes - depending of your shoesize i can give you the opportunity too; also possible with lower shoes, and I am sure after trying on 4 *typical* pairs the right way you will know exactly what I mean.

I know what you mean. I have plenty of experience, but it has been well over a decade since I last wore heels seriously. Perhaps, I'll take it up again to find out exactly how cheap those doggone kassiopeya ballet heels really are. LOL, but then I wouldn't want hurt myself. Would I?

I have no idea how old you are. However, based on what you look like in your in videos, I can guarantee you that I'm old enough to be your father.

Balletheels are extreme. speaking about the wobbly heel- they do not need to break nor it is a *malfunction* per se but when instable one just wont be able to walk them well if it is on the border to the physical ability of that moment.

NOW, I AM NOT SURE WHAT YOU MEAN. YOU NEED TO CLARIFY "WOBBLY HEEL" FOR ME. From you wrote previously, I had the impression that you was concerned with the "heel unit" breaking off or becoming loose. If that is not what you meant, then I can think of only 2 other possibilities for a wobbly heel:

a) the HEEL TIPS wear out unevenly, which can happen due to various reasons. However, I doubt heel tips are your concern because you probably would have wrote "heel tips".

the entire heel unit looses its rigidity and becomes slightly flexible. I can see that happening with a cheap long "METAL ROD or TUBE", depending on the type of metal, the condition of the metal and the thickness (outside diameter minus inside diameter) of the metal. The rest of the heel unit is usually either polyurethane or hard wood, both of which could crack (I have seen that happen) and actually break (but not usually as the metal rod is supposed to prevent that from happening).

If the metal rod is the cause of the problem, then the only thing that can be done is to replace the bad rod with a new rod of harder metal. (A well equipped shoe repair shop can do that for high heels up to 5 inches or so.) Of course, you can also tell kassiopeya about the problem and suggest that they need to use better metal rods.

sorry, but once again, is in your quotes any comparison? My statements were not based on my own abilties or *feelings* on walkability alone.

qualifetish might be the best, but in WHAT? as mean of bondage? compared to WHAT features? doubtlessly they were well made but as already said, it does not mean e. g. heel beeing really stable. Alot of people possess extreme high heels but wear them in bed only and then of course luxury of materials and well made shoe is more important than if the shoe will survive a walk outdoor (the stabler the heel feels the longer it can cope the pressure outdoor indeed). Also people tend to appreciate their 300 euro shoes more than those at 50 euro. the illias little shoebox balletheels I have are the most luxurous and wellmade balletheel I´ve ever seen but they are NOT that good for walking as devious balletheels (except for the lower heel). the extreme high ablemen heels I had were amazing all to optics as to craftmanship but they are NOT that good and stable for walking as any similar height modern china heels are.

As already said, all I write as statement I feel beeing able to explain, to show and to prove resp. I have seen it *proved* in real life by alot of other people of different levels of abilities. So I would like but I cannot say anything about balletboots of qualifetish or ablemen, but as already said there isn´t also enough other information available that a statement would be possible. But I think alot of you know, even at a 13 cm heel some very expensive designerheels are less stable and less well walkable than some *cheap* china shoes though the last of course made of less beautiful and fine materials or less good looking etc.

in the quote of bootlovers they write of EXPECTING not of wearing and comparing. may be you have found or read some statements after they got the balletheels? it would be interestint!

The problem is, alot of people (here too) are writing of ablemen and qualifetish but obviosly without ever have worn any of those by themselves? This is what I wanted to point out again here if speaking about balletheels.

walking balletheels, there are no wonders or nothing beyond of our natural physical abilties. you know, some are better in mathematics (I am very good in statistics, as an example ) and some in languages, but we all can learn that more or less good. And the same about balletheels. the most can walk them more or less well if facing it neutraly, not with all those fetish fantasy backgrounds. the last is the main reason for the most failing, because the *bdsm* trainings are quite the wrongest way to face the issue.

As soon as somebody states wearing balletheels all day long over weeks doing normal work & shopping and all that stuff (except if one is sitting wheelchair of course) I can hardly believe any other information of those people either.

also, I know some more people well walking balletheels. there are for sure much more but without the technical possibilties to share or simply staying discrete. the most are men. And as long as feet aren´t spoilt yet and may be some training first an other kind of movement (because otherwise falling)- balletdancers with en pointe experience are for sure able too. but the most would not because it is felt *pervert* .

I´d say at least 1 % can- and this without any trainings as I did not have any and from people with similar abilities I know at least of some of these *good walkers* they did not have any too, even if they eventually say it differently in public. As to the rest, I haven´t got any statements about that.

also I have met by now alot of people in *different levels* who wanted to have some balletheel lessons, also exchanging with alot virtually and at the end I can say there are several very different reasons why they fail.

still two very typical problems of balletheeling are 1) the balance question- caused e. g. by less good general fitness 2) height of the balletheel.

As soon in the heel-case it is cut lower resp. balletboots with a stable heel are chosen, people can walk!

and for those with less balance feeling- devious has been a good choice till now causing kind of a feeling of wonder for those who have been walking and failed on kassiopeya balletheels, e. g. It is important of course to recognize where additional *points of difficulty* might be, but stabilty of the heel is really crucial if not a *good balletboot walker* from very beginning.

I think, as we are here in a high heel forum and people interested in this topic from the view of real walkabilty, we might really try to gather reliable information about all those shoes, critically (!) filter the fantasies and the truth and may be give a statement at the end concerning all those brands which the new readers -balletheel lovers- balletheel walkers - will be able to adapt withouth the need of *inventing the bicycle again*.

Seems like you are repeating yourself. I don’t like to do that and go in circles.

You seem obsessed or overly concerned with the heels becoming loose or breaking off. Have you tried to get heels reinforced before you wear them?

Get a new pair of kassiopeya’s and bring them to a good shoe repair shop. Ask them to try to reinforce the heels so that they don’t break off so easily. For example, add some screws into (but not through) the heels.

it is not because of balletheels (or trainers) nor heels per se nor arches but because of deformation of toes which the most high heels can cause if one does not take care enough resp. give the feet the possibilty to recover.

the most natural foot position is barefeet on the earth and toes straight and slightly apart from each other (not exactly the prefered fetishists view LOL).

but especially at high heels the most usual form is almond toe box which would press toes together- which can become the steady toe position with worst case hallux valgus.

but also alot of low heeled or no heel shoes have quite pointy toe boxes. by high heels the effect is enhanced through the natural pressure of feet slipping forwards in the shoe.

While having straight healthy toes one would choose shoes a size larger, even few month of wearing often such shoewear without *working against* (the younger the feet the faster) makes especially big toe slope which allows wearing smaller size, especially in tight-toebox-shoes.

which some think feet shrinking. actually reversed; feet get larger with the age.

by the way very pointy and long toe boxes as at gml stiletto heels e. g. can be quite healthy as actually giving the toes enough space trough the length and not pressing them together.

maybe, maybe not. It could be a third reason.

Over the decades, too much has been written about high arches and photos taken of people using foot trainers (to develop across-the-entire-width-of-the-foot high arches).

See "Creating A High Heeled Woman (Foot Training)" based on John Willie's work:

http://users.powernet.co.uk/wingett/articles2.htm

======

Spook had pictures of herself using foot trainers on her website back in 2001. As I already mentioned, she wrote that her shoe size shrank one full size and she never mentioned anything about deformed toes.

=====

I tried to find Cirque de Imelda's old blog entries, but can't. However, she has one recent web page mentioning something new about the size of her ballet boots. See comments written by suzanziballetheels at:

http://suzanziballetheels.blogspot.com/2010/12/red-ballet-shoes-modified.html

As already said, and here well to read, there is no reliable information about that.

1) Yes, there may be a significant difference between your definition of "walkable" and that of everyone else's definition. My definition of walkable shoes is that you can actually walk in them. The definition of "walkable" from the dictionary at http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/walkable "is capable of or suitable for being walked <a very walkable city> <a walkable distance>".

I have seen some of your videos in which you do unusual things and abuse your heels (i.e. dig your heels into the ground, crush things, etc.). The only other person that I have seen do that is Cirque de Imelda (a.k.a. susanziballetheels and who uses toe pads). So, your definition of "walkable" could be different in that respect.

In short, you might loosen or break a heel, when most other people would not.

======

2) Yes, I agree there is lots of unreliable information on the Internet, especially on this forum. However, I believe that thehighheelsgirl is geniune (but not sure if it is the dom or sub writing). So, I believe her personal comments about Qualifetish are sincere and accurate.

======

3) Almost everything that I have ever heard about Qualifetish has been positive. Here are some of the comments that you can still find on the Internet:

From BOOTLOVERS

"D.J. (Bootlovers.com editor) spoke with Tony of Montreal's Hot Peppers (aka Qualifetish) last week, and learned that the 40 -year-old, family owned and operated company is now offering custom thigh-high, knee-high, and calf-high boots with 6" heels! Chapboots too! Their ballet boots are already known as the best on the market and we cannot wait to give their new stiletto-heeled boots a try!"

http://bootlovers.typepad.com/booted_up/2006/05/new_custom_boot.html?asset_id=6a00d83452747269e200d83561370c69e2

At Yahoo! Groups balletheelsgroup forum:

"without a doubt i'll have to say www.qualifetish.com has the absolute best. I now have more and the Qualifetish ballet heels made by ..."

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/balletheelsgroup/messages/258?o=1&xm=1&m=p

At BOUNDFORUM, see various comments about Qualifetish at:

http://www.boundforum.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=708&PN=1

Also, note that was a bondage site. IMO, ballet heels were never intended to be worn outdoors, just used as another item of bondage gear indoors. However, SM/BD has really changed over the past decade or two and come out of the closet quite a bit.

======

4) Since Qualifetish ballet heels were priced relatively high, someone surely would have written a bad review (during the six and half years between 2000-2006), if the ballet heels were not walkable.

Now, if you are still not convinced, then you may have to buy an old pair of Qualifetish ballet heels and test them yourself. (Get a copy of ShoeCraft's "STOCKLIST" and try all of the international eBay's.)

Well my feet did shrink after starting my training. I used to be a 7 in stilettos...I used foot trainers at nite and wore heels all day. About a year later I was abouta 6 in heels...now that I only wear heels and ballets my latest purches in boots and pumps area 5 1/2..its not that your feet get smaller...but your arch gets higher...so in high heels you need a smaller size. I havent worn flats or sneakers since I can remember, but I dont know if my size there is any different or not.

Jen

1) I remember that Spook also said her shoe size shrunk one full size (6 down to 5, if I recall correctly) after using "foot trainers" to raise her arches for 5" inch high heels and ballet heels. According to her website circa 1999-2006, she wore 'nothing below 5" heels' afterwards.

I trust Spook 100% because she is a real person. I saw her on television, mainly because of her use of corsets and her at-or-near world record level small waist.

Spook's website no longer exists. However, you can still see some of her photo's at http://www.staylace.com/ under the "PINUPS" icon.

2) Imelda de Cirque (a.k.a. suzaniballetheels), a popular extreme heel wearer in Australia and on YouTube.com has also mentioned her shoe size shrinking from a size 10 down to 9 after wearing ballet heels.

3) Besides the arches (literally) being raised higher, there is also the possibility of some compression of the small bones in the feet. It is a scientific fact that bones are "malleable" to a small degree.

========

P.S. - I don't like the use of "foot trainers", as there are various "ballet en pointe dance exercises" available to do the same.

Good idea but maybe you should have started this thread

in another section of this forum here called "Real life meetings"...

I agree.

========

If there is another meet in New York City and interest in a "micro-cruise", I suggest going on any of the Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises http://www.circleline42.com/new-york-cruises.aspx. However, beware that it might be a bit difficult getting on/off the ramps in very high heels.

An alternative, if you are very brave, is to take the Statlen Island Ferry from Manhattan to Statlen Island, get off and then, get on line for the return trip. http://www.siferry.com/Default.aspx Actually, it's never a pleasant experience to do something like that, but (who knows?) it might be the "time-of-your-life" for some of you.

I beleive if memory serves, that the ballet boots that Spook wore originally came from She an Me in Hammersmith, London, who were supplied by LSB. She was sent them in 1998. They most definately came from the UK, and Hotpeppers/QualityFetish had barely touched the UK market at that time because it was pre internet shopping era.

Divine shoes of Northampton, best known for the firm behind the KinkyBoots film, were the first company (and one of the only UK companies) who imported HP/QF goods

Seems like you are the "Richard", who sent the ballet boots to Spook. So, you must be right.

I started visiting Spook's website in 2001, when Qualifetish was in business. However, I checked some of Spook's photos at staylace.com (under pinups) and saw one in 1999, when Qualifetish was not yet in business. So again, you must be right.

Do you still keep in touch with Spook? How is she? (Her photos at staylace.com only go up to 2008.)

Most of my ballet boots are from Hot Peppers/ Qualifetish that my former Master got me, and they are very walkable and excellent quality. I've tried the Devious and they just don't compare. The LSB ballets are sooooo easy to walk in, but they just don't look all that sexy.

I agree. Also, Pleaser USA's Devious ballet heels are basically a copy of Qualifetish and Ableman's, but made in China of lower quality and cost.

Qualifetish (2000-2006) of Montreal, Canada used Ableman Trading Co.(1969 to 1991) of Hong Kong's ballet heels as their beginning model. Then, made minor changes.

Qualifetish ballet heels had a good reputation for being wearable and walkable. So, Ableman ballet heels were similarly wearable, walkable and of high quality. Before Hong Kong was returned by the British to China in 1997, Hong Kong clothing tailors and shoemakers were in the same league as those in the USA and used because the US dollar had a very favorable exchange rate for Hong Kong dollars.

However, Ableman existed in a different era, when ballet heels were not as popular as they are now. Most people did not have gel toe pads. If you was lucky, you might of had some lamb's wool. So, most people could barely walk in the ballet heels.

Also, note that Ableman ballet boots were usually custom-made for a specific person using buyer-suppled measurements including the ankle circumference and calf circumference for each leg. So, only the person the boots were custom-made for would be qualified to rate them.

======

NOTE: I think the pair that Spook got as a gift and wore 24/7 for a few months in Florida was by Qualifetish, but I need to double check her photo's.

Umm...I'm rather indifferent about these ballet heels. A bit too extreme for my taste.

They seem very painful to wear.

The "comfort" of ballet heels generally depends on how well they "fit" the person wearing them. They should also have some extra space for padding material. The same type of pads, cushions and lamb's wool that are sold by dance supply stores for use in ballet pointe dance shoes should be used in ballet heels to protect the toes.