Alexa

Yes, it’s usually quite fresh and bracing at the seaside here in the British Isles. Apart from maybe a couple of months in the summer, boots wouldn’t be out of place at the beach, but I try to wear ones with broader heels that won’t sink in. I can certainly identify with that cold feeling when you take your boots and shoes off. It feels slightly vulnerable too, somehow. Especially going barefoot outdoors at the beach, and most intensely when you step in the sea, but even at home or in the office my feet feel suddenly cool and very exposed. I get used to it in a few moments but it’s very much a part of life’s rich tapestry.

Alexa

I was one of the contributors to the 'heels off' thread in the girls section, and recounted a couple of occasions where people have yanked my shoes off as part of horseplay or pranks at parties. This was quite a while ago in my student years. I can't help feeling that there's an element of sexualised bullying to these kinds of actvities, rather like you see teenagers doing sometimes. Maybe I'm flattering myself, but I think the boys want some attention too. Maybe they're showing off, trying to convince me and others around them that they're the so called 'alpha male'. There's a lot of dating advice for men which tells them to tease women to get our attention, and to act cocky, so if you can't think of anything witty to say, just swipe her shoes (or scarf, or handbag - that's happened too) and then she'll chase you and you can laugh at her. It's never worked for me, but a female friend told me that her partner of three years had initially made himself known to her by rugby-tackling her at a social event. So, sadly, sometimes these things seem to work. Alexa

Yes, I can get changed and d a lot of beauty touch-ups in the car. Often I shuffle over into the passenger seat so the steering wheel and pedals are not in the way whilst I change. It helps if I'm parked somewhere where people aren't overlooking me. So your boots and socks do come off sometimes Heidi. But it sounds like you prefer to keep well wrapped up most of the time. Alexa

I'll be sure to consult you Heidi next time i need to repair a bouncy castle. Funnily enough, it doesn't come up that often! Alexa

Yes, that should keep you safely zipped in. It'll take them ages to work that out! Alexa

I'm not sure what the temperature range is in the office. I'd need to bring a thermometer in. It just fels a bit chilly on the January mornings and a bit too hot on the afternoon of sunny days in May. I'm not too bothered - I just add layers or peel them off as need be. Alexa

I like the sound of that Karen – starting with the boots and then building the rest of the outfit around them. Depending on the weather I’d go for either skirt or jeans if I was you. I’ve never been keen on Capri pants. And tights? Who needs them! I think of you as the post-hosiery woman anyway.

Hope it goes well, whatever you wear,

Alexa

To Hanna, no I don’t think that’s an overly ‘sexy’ look to go to work in. It all depends on the context. If everyone else was dressed like Old Mother Hubbard, you’d stand out, but looking at what young women wear in many workplaces these days, it could even seem quite conservative! Stroll through any town centre at lunchtime on a weekday (as I enjoy doing, in the tradition of the flaneur) and one can see young women on their lunch breaks who would not look out of place on a fashion catwalk.

I wish my office was a steady temperature. It’s a bit cold on the winter mornings, and some of us have brought electric heaters in. On the other hand, the radiators are hot on warmer days, especially in May. Now we’re in June, the heating seems to be off, finally. But it does mean one can never quite be sure what climate one will encounter at work.

Alexa

Dates, as in people I’m romantically involved with, tend to know what I’m like anyway, so over the knee boots wouldn’t come as a surprise to them. My current boyfriend and I don’t live together, which suits me fine, but we see each other regularly and I think he’s seen most of my boots and shoes over the eighteen months we’ve been involved. However, I have surprised more casual acquaintances with thigh boots under my skirt. It doesn’t feel daring, because it’s just what I’m used to. Many of my skirts are quite full, so you don’t get an outline of the tops of my boots showing through the fabric. With a more close fitting skirt, especially one made out of stretchy fabric, I’d stick to knee length boots that wouldn’t interrupt the smooth line of the material around my hips and thighs.

Alexa

Yes, my car is getting less and less like a car and more like a mobile beauty parlour. I’ve looked at those Quattro razors online and they seem to have blades at one end and a little trimmer at the other. At first I thought I didn’t have the wherewithal to wet shave in the car, as it involves messing about with foam etc. but then it occurred to me that I could get some of those miniature containers of hair conditioner of the kind you see in hotels. I find conditioner’s just as good to shave with as aerosol foam, so using a little conditioner and cleaning up afterwards with a wet wipe and a tissue, and maybe taking a leaf out of Karen’s book, a dab of lotion, should let me freshen up for evenings out, overnight stays at my boyfriend’s house and weekends in the country. Job done!

Alexa

There are firms which offer a bouncy castle repair service, but it works out expensive once you’ve paid the call out fees. So no wonder they didn’t get it fixed immediately. I don’t want to give the impression that my life is one long round of passion and high heel adventures. You’re reading the anecdotes of the last twenty years or so, including my student days, compressed into a few posts. Thinking back, it feels like most of that time has been spent with piles of paper, books, computers and – the bane of my life – filling forms in.

As regards what men like, I’m not sure about sandals because I hardly ever wear any, so haven’t really had a chance to sample their reactions. Boots seem to be popular, as one might expect, and there was one man I had a three year relationship with who liked the idea of shoes being locked on women’s feet. We had some Demonia XTC style pumps with locking ankle straps that he presented me with one birthday and we spent that summer going to arts festivals with me teetering along hanging onto him for support. Google them and you’ll see how high the heels are. We broke up because he was increasingly controlling in other ways. My clothes, my hair and how I spent my time were all things he wanted to influence. Some of these things I acceded to, because it made him happy and his requests corresponded to things I was interested in anyway, but it came to a head when he lost his job and spend most of his time absorbed in the online game World of Warcraft. He wanted me to give up work too, but at that point it felt like my career was just starting to go somewhere. I could give up work and devote myself to an increasingly inward-looking, controlling and argumentative man or I could make something of myself. That was four years ago, and I think I made the right choice!

That’s veered off the subject of footwear a little, but I hope it gives you a bit of context.

Alexa

Whether my shoes fall off in the course of bedroom fun depends on what I’m wearing. Boots and strappy shoes tend to stay on, of course, but pumps tend to drop off unless I make a conscious effort to remain aware of what my feet are doing. I’ve not often damaged bedding with my heels but I once badly scratched a man’s back with a metal heel tip that was slightly burred over as a result of walking around outdoors on concrete. We were sufficiently carried away at the time for neither of us to notice what was happening. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to mind and was even rather proud of it! One event that comes to mind, which is not related to lovemaking but was nevertheless a source of much laughter and embarrassment, concerns a bouncy castle outside a pub. We had been inside socialising and when we eventually left, our attention turned to the bouncy castle in the pub garden. We all piled on and were bouncing and wrestling when I felt one of my heels rip the fabric and there was a sudden escape of air. The castle collapsed inwards on us. It looked quite scary in the moonlight. We were able to make our escape before anybody saw what we had done. The rather sad deflated castle remained on the pub lawn for several weeks before anybody took it away.

Alexa

If there’s something I don’t like the smell of, I try to find a plastic bag to put it in until it’s ready to go in the washing machine. That seems to confine the vapours! Yes, things in my car overlap with things in my handbag, when I can be bothered to carry one. Something I’d like, but which I’ve never seen advertised, is a little shaver that plugs into the cigarette lighter socket so I can freshen up my legs and armpits if I spot any wayward hairs poking through. Sorry if that sounds a bit gross!

Alexa

The three long term live-in boyfriends I’ve had over the years just got used to me taking ages to get ready. By the time I’ve had a shower, done makeup and styled my hair, another 15 minutes doing up bootlaces doesn’t actually make that much difference. If it’s someone I’m dating casually, or just general socialising, I don’t suppose anybody notices, provided I’m punctual! I suppose I‘ve done ‘layering’ most of my life; since I started choosing my own clothes at any rate. So I’ve done it whether it’s in or out of fashion. Once again Heidi, I feel like saying go on be a devil. You say you wear long skirts anyway, so most of the time people won’t even be able to see how far up your boots go. Give yourself a little treat and find some over the knee boots you really like and buy them. You know you want to. I’ve been to work in thigh boots under a long skirt and people don’t know. A friend at work asked me about my boots once and I showed her, and she was quite surprised how far up they went. ‘Oh, you’ve got kinky boots on!’ she exclaimed. They were a Pleaser brand pair with an openwork front that looked a bit like the currently fashionable sandal boots or gladiator sandals as far as the foot and calf were concerned. So I’m sure you’ll get away with it.

Alexa

Well, I don’t want to overstate my abilities. My high heeling is aided and abetted by platforms. Karen seems to be more of an expert than me, with her 6 inch heels without platforms. My social dancing, although I enjoy it, is rather like what Ami described in another post as ‘shuffling and jiggling’. Yes, if I were doing a lot of ‘proper’ dancing, I’d probably want to rethink my footwear and foot care regimes a little.

Alexa

To get the full 1940s aesthetic Cinnamon, you could always draw lines up the back of your legs! Alexa

Here in the UK midlands one sees a lot of young women sporting bare legs, even when the weather is not that warm. As a shoe-oholic I tend to look at what people are wearing, and I’ve noticed that as time goes by there’s a lot less hosiery, certainly compared to when I was a child. I do like to see retro fashions, especially when they’re done well, so Cinnamon’s style sounds absolutely delicious. As you’ll have noticed from other posts, I use those spray on hosiery products. My skin takes a tan very slowly, and when I’ve done so it has required many hours on a sunbed over a number of months to build up any colour. However, my legs look much paler than my face and arms if I leave them to their own devices, so the aerosol products are a quick and easy alternative. Yes, it’s worth buying yourself one or two to experiment with, as they’re only a few pounds. Not everyone gets along with them, as you’ll see from online product reviews, but I find them good value. When you’re experimenting for the first few times it’s a good idea to do so over the bath, so any overspray can be cleaned up easily!

Alexa

Well, I wasn't too pleased about it at the time either, hence my taking revenge. I'm not normally spiteful! Yes, I can certainly say that high heels have helped my love life! Alexa

I don't think the Bebe Lizas are that distinctive, they're just a nice looking platform pump. I'm told they resemble YSL Tributes, but those are a bit outside my budget at the moment! I don't think this young woman recognised the brand, she just liked the look of them. I certainly notice peope checking out what shoes I'm wearing, and I check theirs out too. Alexa

If I had to clear my car out, I'd like to keep the wet wipes, the tissues and the makeup. Heidi, I'd expect nothing less of you - spare pantyhose! If I was as keen on pantyhose and socks as you are, I'd make sure there were spare pairs wherever I was, so I could lay hands on the instantly. Karen - I like lotions and potions too, especially things with cocoa butter in, but as I've got them at home and at work I usually manage to survive in the car for half an hour or so without them! Alexa

I’ve got at least two pairs of boots that have laces which need undoing all the way down to get my feet into them. There’s one thigh length pair and another knee length one. It definitely adds to my getting-ready time. Yes, thigh boots do keep you warmer, but that can be an advantage for evenings out in the winter in these parts. My usual everyday outfit is a long Goth girl skirt (I’m particularly fond of some of these http://www.daregothic.co.uk/Skirts%20shop/skirts1.php) and a little top with narrow shoulder straps, in a sort of tank or bustier style, so with my skirt swishing about and bare arms, my body has lots of opportunity to keep cool. Of course, if I get cold I put jackets on, or long sleeved tops, but I can always peel these off if I get too hot.

No, I’ve never liked slides or mules much, with all due respect to the people here who favour them! As far as I’m concerned, part of the pleasure of shoes is the way they change the shape of your body. When I was a little girl I remember seeing ladies wearing pumps (or courts as they were called in this country) and thinking they were so sophisticated. I like the way I can be barefoot one moment, looking all Bohemian in funky nail varnish and toe rings, and then put my shoes on and all of a sudden my posture changes and my feet are all sleek and sexy, with killer heels. I’d never get that feeling with my toes sticking out of the end of something!

Yes, I like riding boots too, but I haven't got any at the moment. So much footwear, so little time . . .

Alexa

It piqued my curiosity as to where the idea came from. I know I‘ve seen it in old black and white films and it always struck me as a bit yucky. So I tapped ‘champagne’ and ‘shoe’ into Google and found this:

http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=70830

which contains some stories about the origins of the practice. It all sounds very gallant and romantic, but it’s not necessarily very pleasant for the ladies afterwards. No reports of anyone being ill as a result of doing it though, other than the usual hangovers! I think I may have slapped a few people as I was chasing around trying to get my shoes back off them too. Playfully, but hard enough so it would hurt a bit. My revenge on the man who threw my shoes in the pond came later when he was very drunk. I came up behind him, pulled the neck of his t shirt out and tipped a drink down inside. By the time he realised what was going on I was out of the door. Seems like there was a lot of physical horseplay when I was a student.

Heidi – what I was talking about was the way some of my boyfriends over the past few years seem to have been more enthusiastic about my high heels than I was, if you can guess what I mean. They seem to find them very sexy on me, and when we get intimate, they’ve asked me to keep my shoes or boots on. Of course, as I’ve said elsewhere, on carpeted surfaces I’m likely to be found padding about in bare feet, irrespective of whether I have a partner. But even with my very small sample of boyfriends over the years, I seem to have picked up at least two of three with a thing about high heels. What I wear out on dates or for socialising depends on where I think I’m going. If there are likely to be steps, kerbs, slopes and cobbled streets, I may still wear high boots and shoes but will wear ones with a wider heel and platform that keeps my foot at less of a steep angle. If everything’s likely to be flat, and I can get the car reasonably near, that gives me licence to be a bit more creative in my choice of footwear. But as I’ve said before, there are often emergency shoes in the car, in case things don’t turn out as planned. If I’m walking in the country, I’ll have army boots, and unusually for me, socks on.

Alexa

That reminds me of a few experiences I had in my student days. Once I was at a party and one of my acquaintances decided that he would like to try that old Hollywood scenario of drinking champagne from a high heeled shoe – mine in particular. After a little play fighting my legs were grasped firmly by his companions, my shoes removed and before I could struggle upright, they’d poured champagne into them and were drinking out of my favourite pair of pumps. They didn’t stop at champagne either. I think beer, wine and orange juice were involved too. Eventually, they tired of the game and I got my shoes back. As you might imagine, they were all wet and sticky for the rest of the night, and on the way home, despite my wiping them out with tissues. The shoes were never quite the same again. On another occasion, again at a party, I was sitting at a table and one of my male friends bent down, grabbed my shoes by the heels and whipped them off. He ran through the house, brandishing them like a trophy, with me following behind trying to avoid treading in broken glass and spilled food. He ran out the back and threw my shoes in a garden pond. I had to hike my skirt up and go wading in to retrieve them. I can’t help feeling that there’s some sort of sexual or fetishistic undertone to all this.

Now my social life no longer involves drunken students I find that my high heels and I are treated with a great deal more respect. By contrast, I find that boyfriends are more likely to want me to keep my heels on, especially when things progress towards the bedroom. But that’s a story for another day.

Alexa

Yes, it's surprising how quickly a little microclimate builds up inside your shoes or boots and how cool it feels when you take them off. I know what you mean, even though I go barefoot often, there's that sudden feeling of openness and vulnerability when you slip a shoe off or unzip a boot. Feet are very sensual objects in some ways, and very sensitive to temperatures and textures. Alexa

In this particular case, the woman in question was barefoot, hence the dexterity with the toes in getting the shoes upright and aligned with the foot, ready for a deft insertion movement. I think the other thing people do is clench their toes as the shoe goes on so as to pull the foot forward in the shoe so their heels can get past the heel cup of the shoe easily. Anyway, I tend to need a finger in the back of the shoe to guide me in. If I can get my foot in unaided it usually means the shoe will be too big on me.

Alexa.