Nate

I also think these are good for going out in:

Those are CUTE! Do they make much noise? I like my street heels to be fairly quiet.

for the guys ladies trouser socks feel a lot better than bare feet in heels

I agree -- and in fact, lately, I've been wearing womens' trouser socks in place of regular socks even when I'm not heeling. I just LOVE the feel, and can't help but miss it when I'm not wearing them. Even in my sneakers. :-)

I've always been curious as to whether there might be some measure of genetic interference with my being compelled to wear heels. Investigating this question has led me to the firm conclusion that -- no, my Dad doesn't wear heels, or if he does, he's wearing my mother's, or hiding them really well. I suppose I could just ask him -- anyone gone this far to find out? :-)

one more...

I particularly like this combination here -- very classy!

The Payless I went to had the men's and women's shoes displayed right next to one another making looking at the women's large sizes very easy to be on the sly, to work up the courage to bring total focus on them. Men's size 15 were right next to the women's 12's. The store was not divided half and half the way other stores are.

Agreed -- I've just started noticing this myself, and am pleased as punch -- I get twice the selection to choose from without having to go across the store! :-)

A First Date.

Well, we are going shoe shopping this Saturday, then out to dinner again.

I asked her if it was ok if I wore heels. She said she hoped I would.

So guys! Go for it.

Hope this was not too Long Winded a Story.

Gary0618

Awesome! I always love hearing stories like these! You must be doing something right. :-)

Good luck!

-Nate

You guys are lucky to be able to go out in heels whenever you want to.

Maybe a trip abroad would be the way to go, at least for a while.

This is my first post and it is nice to know people with the same interest.

Glad you came out of the woodwork -- but, don't feel too bad about not being able to go out in heels as much as you want. I'm in a very similar situation as you. I live in a small farming community, and wouldn't DARE go outside in a pair of pumps with stiletto heels. (Actually, I've yet to have the courage to wear stilettos anywhere outside, just yet). I guess we'll just have to pick our battles. The last thing I'd want to do is to generate anger and resentment, despite the fact that those things always precede acceptance.

-Nate

Opinions, people?

Certainly! :-)

Personally, I don't go to great lengths to keep my shoes in the greatest of shape, for a couple of reasons. Ever since I came to terms with wearing high heels (only very recently -- used to only want to watch, but am now actively participating. :-) ), my taste has been evolving and changing very rapidly. What I think is cute, and what I'm comfortable wearing in public has been changing from week to week. Additionally, since this is still a somewhat new sensation for me, I've been buying new shoes at a fairly rapid pace -- at least one or two pairs a week. As I'm a starving college student (graduate on the 10th of Dec! Hooray for me!), I don't have too much money to fling around on shoes, thusly I don't spend very much on them. All in all, I think thats what it boils down to. The shoes that I buy rarely cost more than $20-$25, and by the time they get a little bit dirty, I don't care for the style anymore.

Maybe when I graduate, I'll buy myself a pair worthy of keeping bright and shiny! :-)

-Nate

JeffB -- I also enjoy the sound of heels, but I've yet to develop the psychological armour to be the one wearing noisy ones. So, while I still prefer stealth heels so that I don't get too much attention when out in public, I'm very grateful to have people who don't mind drawing all the attention. By wearing heels and other stereotypically feminine clothing with such great style and confidence, you're doing us all a favor. Click and clack away!

I have tried stearing her towards heels when out shopping but she is adament she wont walk around taller than me and judging by some of the above she is not alone.

As for Datsuns

Well then, I believe the solution is obvious! You're goign to have to go out and buy some 5" heels to wear, so that YOU're taller than HER! Then she'll have to go out and get some heels to make up the difference!

Good luck!

I'm not terribly enthralled with the cowboy boots in my new avatar, but it feels good that I've participated enough to be "promoted.". Thanks for putting up with me! :-)

Nice! While I feel somewhat validated in that its MY turn to say, those aren't particularly my style, but suit you well! I especially like the somewhat rugged look that it conveys, despite having a moderately high heel and platform. You have my respect for furthering our cause! :-) -Nate

total relief

Wow! Those are some nice boots! Congratulations! :-) I wouldn't mind having a pair of those myself! -Nate

Ill see if I can't post some pics of'em. I'm going back next weekend for more! :-)

-Nate

I finally managed to snap some pics off of my boots -- I'm not the best photographer in the world, but I wanted to share. People seem to enjoy pics. :-) Here are the boots that I bought the first time I ever ever tried on the shoes and bought them myself in the store.

One thing I can say, is that these things are LOUD! I should have taken them for a test-run around the store, to try them out on harder surfaces. If they weren't so loud, I might just have to wear them out and about. :-)

I'm a super nice guy. I've been in maybe 3 fights my entire life.but when people see me they aren't willing to risk being known as "the guy who got his butt kicked by the guy in heels"

Thats a tough call, too. Even if I had to defend myself, I'd /hate/ to get into a fight while I was in heels, just because of the impression that it might give. Even if you were totally nice, and still ended up having to fight, I'd really hate for people to make the association between men in heels and violence.

Best of luck to you! Always nice to hear about fellow US'ers wearing heels. :-)

Yesterday went pretty well, so I thought I'd give it another go today.

I wore these "lower east side" loafers that I got at payless, which I'm particularly fond of. Not very high up, but I love the shape and width of the toe. I suppose its not the height of the heel that counts, but rather the act of expanding our style horizons.

These are very very similar to the black slingback shoes I wore yesterday, but its very important to me to try a variety of things, and to start out as slowly as I'm comfortable with.

This day went pretty similar to the yesterday, with one or two exceptions. These shoes are a little too long for me, and as my heavy frame (250lbs or so -- 5'8") worked their way into the shoes throughout the course of the day, my heels started slipping out of the back, so my normal confident stride was somewhat limited. One of my friends seemed to notice and asked, "You okay man? You're walking like you're hurting a little bit." I had no immediate response (I tend not to be very quick-witted when I'm moderately nervous/uncomfortable) but eventually managed to mutter, "Yea -- I'm okay. Just tired and a bit sore." Which was the truth -- just glad he didnt' ask me what I was sore from. Never worn heels all freakin' day before, and was indeed a bit sore from it. :-)

I was leaving my office at school (I work on campus also) and was standing in the doorway to my office putting on my jacket and backpack, and noticed our office secretary behind the desk taking a good hard look at my shoes. Her face underwent somewhat of a transformation the longer she looked -- from a normal glance, eventually morphing into a rather disapproving scowl. She didn't realize that I was watching her stare, and eventually looked up and saw me watching her scowl at my feet. She didn't seem to skip a beat though -- I don't think it dawned on her that they were women's shoes, but it was one of those glances that I mentioned previously that people tend to make when confronted with something they've never seen before. (for those of you familiar with theories of psychology, I call it the "Cognitive Dissonance" stare. :-) )

For the most part, this has been very encouraging, and I might be ready to go to school in some shoes with higher heels. (I really wanted to say "feminine" instead, but I think I would have missed the point of being a guy trying to promote high heels.)

-=Nate=-

Nate,

Not my personal style, but I think they look great on you.

Thanks! Although, I have been hearing that quite a bit lately -- things to the effect of "Not my style, but they suit you well." Apparently I'm unique even amongst my high heel wearing friends here. My "avatar" is per chance my most favorite pair of shoes, and those received mixed sentiments here also. :-)

Nevertheless, I appreciate the encouragement. I should have taken a pic of myself and not just my feet -- I was rather proud of the whole outfit.

I've recently just gone on my first street-heeling expedition, which just happened to be on my way around campus today. I'd be really curious to hear from anyone else who's been brave enough to wear heels in an academic setting. My experience was mostly positive, insomuch that I received *mostly* no feedback. I've grown to be quite adept at distinguishing looks that mean, "Hrmm... never seen a guy wearing those kinds of shoes before". I received a few of those, and have to admit that I was somewhat excited to catch people taking sideways glances at my feet. No nasty remarks, so I'm going to go ahead and make the assumption that I coordinated my outfit well.

I've been rather inspired by other posts regarding the topic of moderation in heels, and while these shoes aren't very "high", I believe that they're a good starting point for me, as far as working a heel into a somewhat masculine outfit. I'd also be interested to hear any comments regarding the actual style of the shoe I chose to wear, as well as suggestions on what they might go well with. :-)

I wore these shoes with a pair of fairly dark jeans, and a grey sweater over a dark grey collared shirt. (The trouser-socks I wore were a first for me too, and I feel as though I must spread the word here -- these particular l'eggs brand trouser socks are the softest, silkieset most wonderful damned thing I've ever had the pleasure of sliding my feet into, and I have a feeling I'm going to have to buy a few dozen of them in various styles and colors.

Let me know what you think about the shoes, and as well as your experiences in school settings.

I never could have come this far without the support I've found here -- just thought I'd let everyone know that. :-)

-Nate

I can identify with both Larry and Firefox on this one. I very much enjoy looking at myself in the mirror when I'm wearing skirts, nylons, and heels, just for the pure narcissicm of it. But, I'm trying very hard to gather the courage to wear heels in public, with the very same goal that I think Firefox was getting at -- the incorporation of a high heeled shoe into a somewhat masculine style. Finding the right pair of pants to go with the heels is important. I have a feeling I'm going to end up selecting a pair of jeans that covers the heel for the most part -- I just need to find a relatively quiet pair of shoes to wear with them. I've read various posts from people that say that the noise is not that big of a deal, but its important to me that I be comfortable and confident. The noise of the heel will make me a bit self conscious, and I dont' want to street-heel for my first time being self conscious. -Nate

On halloween weekend, I finally gathered the courage to walk into a Payless in Spokane, WA and browse through the women's shoes. I've been fairly lucky so far, in that I manage to get into the stores when there aren't too many people around. I'm somewhat of a newbie when it comes to buying women's shoes, even though I spend quite a bit of time looking. I was not so lucky this time -- there were a few customers, which in general is too many for me. Something inside of me snapped. My normal backup plan is to meander my way to the men's section, casting sideways glances at the women's shoes. I wasn't going to walk away from this one empty handed, and I thought it was about time to stand up for something that I believed in -- I should be able to try on and buy whatever shoes I want. The months and months (perhaps even years!) of time I've accumulated just staring at the beautiful heels sitting on the shelves just waiting to be worn, grew together to form something that was stronger than my human inhibition. So, I did it. I marched right into the women's section, sat down on one of those small benches with the "foot" mirrors, and proceeded to try on every pair of high heeled boots I could get my hands on that I liked. It was my first time trying heels on in the store, and I imagine that you all can understand my apprehension. I finally selected a nice pair of fairly-chunky 4" high heel boots -- tried them on, and took a few steps. So absorbed was I in my own bravery, that I didn't notice a few askance looks I was receiving from the women (and their accompanying men) that I was sharing the aisle with. Similarly, however, so absorbed was I in finally standing up for something I believe in, that I paid them no heed. I sat back down, removed the boots, put them in the box, and bought them. Nobody said a word. I received a few strange looks, but thats it. In retrospect, I believe I may have enjoyed the looks that I got more than anything else. My courage served me two-fold that day. Not only did I buy my very first pair of high heeled boots, AND try them on in the store, but I also believe that by having people see me try them on, they were subjected to the very change that I would like to see in the world. (After all, didn't Ghandi say, "Be the change you'd like to see in the world.") Ill see if I can't post some pics of'em. I'm going back next weekend for more! :-) -Nate

Okay guys, many of us have bought women's shoes in the self serve type shoe stores and even tried them on there. I have no trouble at all in that kind of outlet, but it is difficult in the more conventional stores where you deal with clerks. My courage seems to disappear in those places, especially if it is necessary to try them on. How about you pros out there, do you have any advice for us novices?

I believe I may be able to offer something useful. What works for me is to not offer any excuses whatsoever. Just do it non-chalantly as if you do it twenty times a day (an easy thing to say, I know.) I used to go through the whole shpeal about wanting to get them for my girlfriend. But, sometimes being so forthcoming with an excuse is somewhat of a giveaway. This makes a little bit of an assumption that you aren't going to try them on before you buy them. As for this, I'm afraid I can't offer any advice, as even I am not brave enough to try them on in the stores just yet. But, doing it without offering any excuses seems to draw even less attention than making it a point to have a reason.

Sometimes bravery is a learned behavior. :-)

Those are fantastic! And, I'd like to say, the skirt is a perfect match also. Although, were I to put together the outfit, I'd probably end up with grey and/or white tights on with them.....where'd I put that credit card? :-)

It seems as though I'm not in the minority here when I agree that wearing hosiery and /or tights with heels is fantastic. I wish I could offer useful advice regarding brands -- I've only recently gathered the courage to go out and buy hose and tights and heels for myself, so I've yet to acquire a brand loyalty. My favorites so far have been the "Just my Size" brand of pantyhose, mostly for the reasons of the perfect fit, longevity, and feel of the fabric. I just love'em. I've also acquired a pair of dark-grey tights that are just fantastic too, because they cover up most of my leg hair. I just love wearing a pair of jeans with some rips in them with the grey tights underneath -- gives everyone a peek if they're paying enough attention, and although I'm not a fashion expert, I love the whole grey under the blue-jeans look.

Those are umm different, not sure how much I like them, but I do like them. But all power to you just walking in and buying them. And thanks for sharing with us of lesser courage how easy it actually is

I very much appreciate the encouragement. Now, if I can only find a job with such open office-mates as JeffB or perhaps some friends with similar interests here in eastern Washington. :-)