RonC

Congrats!  I enjoy being retired and doing nothing!

You sure about that?  To me it doesn't look like they are the same people.

Oops. I missed a few replies here.  I don't thing that is nzfreestyler

looks no different than a man's tight long sleeve t-shirt in the photos - or perhaps the underlayer I have for cold weather golf which is like a second skin.

isn't that the truth!

20 hours ago, Cali said:

I'm in my mid 60's and wear stilettos block heels, wedges, etc. all the time and plan to into my late 90's if not longer.

And you will be doing something women of that age won't be doing!   Lol

I did buy one years ago when I dressed as a woman for Halloween.  Ended up using it three or four times on Halloween (a long story) and I actually enjoyed wearing it.  It definitely slimmed the mid=section and love handles.  The women's version I had did push a bit in the midsection, which is expected for something made for a woman's shape.  I rather enjoyed the feeling and did wear it on a few other occasions when heeling in public, but always under clothing.  It can get warm though!

9 hours ago, Pierre1961 said:

Hiding the heels is what I did for a long period. Now I realize that visible shoes draw less attention. But with block heels and all other clothes totally masculine. I wish i had the courage to wear stilettos boots  but didn’t take that decision yet 

@RonC I am also n old dog. Sometimes I wonder if wearing heels matches with an old face,despite of a slim body. 

So far I keep going. 

Yes, I think about the age thing often.  You rarely see a woman in her late 60's wearing heels.  Maybe a low heel or a chunky heel boot, but not stilettos.  So I do have an issue at times with thinking about "age appropriate" footwear.

2 hours ago, p1ng74 said:

I don’t think cross dressing will change this much, in fact it might draw more attention.  Women can shop in men’s shoe sections all the time too.  They are just shoes, not lingerie or anything like that.  You might attract some attention, but it’s not really justified.  Why let these thoughts from total strangers crimp your style?

I know what you are saying - hey look, a man in drag!  What I was trying to intimate was that it would be fun to be able to actually blend in, to pass as a woman, so there would be no question.  That could never happen for this ugly old dog, but it sure would be fun.  But then I'd also want to shrink my feet to at least a womans size 10 so I could find my size in just about any shoe I wanted!  Good luck with that, but hey, as long as I'm dreaming......

I don't really get into the definition of crossdressing.  One or two items or a whole look?  I guess I don't need to hear a label.  From my standpoint, the only reason I would ever want to go in a full crossdressed, try to look like a woman, mode would be so I could totally blend in when shopping for heels.  Feeling like I could try anything, anywhere, without the feeling of being odd and being watched and made fun of.  I know I should just go ahead and do whatever as some of us here do, but I am uncomfortable with that if there are others around.  I will try on in stores, but only if I can do so discreetly.  Not so much worry about employees but others shopping.  I know that's my problem, but I don't see that changing.  So I don't really think of myself as a "crossdresser" as I have no real desire for the whole "look", but I do enjoy heels and hose.  I am getting a bit more willing to wear heeled shoes in public, but still cover my heels with long pants in most instances.  Hard to teach this old dog new tricks!

14 hours ago, mlroseplant said:

Hmm, now that you put it that way, I don't know why. Because they're so sparkly, I guess? I've kind of shied away from metallics for the same reason. And have I become a platform guy? I don't think of myself as a platform guy. Looking at my last dozen purchases, I guess I have become a platform guy, haven't I? It wasn't intentional, believe me. OK, nothing more than one inch from now on! Well, maybe 1 1/4" if everything else is just right.  .  .

I wouldn't worry, Ron, if you were being a little bit critical, but now is it I who is curious. Do you really think I would stand out less if I just wore plain classic pumps? I guess I never thought of my shoes as being all that unusual, just slightly out of date. Don't worry @chesterx. The hijack is only temporary.

And now you have me thinking when you say "would I stand out less if I just wore plain classic pumps".  When you put it that way, my honest answer has to be I guess not.  You would still be a man in heels which is going to stand out no matter how much we wish it wasn't that way.  But I guess that does kind of go back to my initial query as to why not the silver sandals.  I guess that those shoes would make you believe you stood out more, which is why you don't choose them to begin with I suppose.  In any event, it really wasn't being critical, just trying to figure out why you felt that way.  And now I know!  Thanks!

And now, back to you chesterx...lol

On 12/25/2019 at 5:28 AM, mlroseplant said:

Those sorts of moments are part of what makes our experience so sweet. What's even better is that since you were actually wearing heels yourself, you obviously didn't come off as creepy, but merely interested in shoes.

I don't mind admitting that I don't think I could pull off those shoes. Kudos to you!

miroseplant, I find that comment interesting.  Those sandals, while being a sparkly silver color, are a relatively common style.  Your choices, on the other hand, tend to be more toward the unusual side of things - i.e., ultra high heels, big platforms, etc., that one doesn't see often even on the ladies.  This is not meant to be critical at all, but I am curious to know why you felt that you "couldn't pull of those shoes" but have no problem with a pair of six inch heel mules with heavy platforms that rather stand out in a crowd?  Againm, please don't take as being critical in any way, just curious why one and not the other is in your comfort zone.

yes, I did look and saw that it is a chain, but also a franchise organization, so I would assume individual owners may do things differently.  Just stopped in at one of the stores today.  While I didn't see anything I really liked, there were probably 20-25 pairs of shoes in size 11.  Only a handful of size 12, but that is expected.  I did see a couple other stores in my general area.  I'll have to check them out to see if they also have a selection in sizes over the usual 10.

I found a second hand store in my area called Clothes Mentor.  They are somewhat more upscale (not necessarily label wise, but the shoes are in much better condition) than Plato's Closet and do a much better job of keeping sizes sorted.  This store actually has a fairly wide selection of size 11 and even a few 12s.  They made me feel welcome to shop there as well.  Not sure if that is a chain of stores like Plato's Closet though.

I have to agree on the two size up thing.  I typically wear a 10.5 in men's shoes, and used to get 12s in women's.  But these days, I find the 12s are typically way too big.  Unfortunately, 11s are a bit too small in many instances.  My feet are at least a half size different.  11s fit my left foot great, but generally quite snug on my right.  A bit too expensive to buy two pair to get the extra size, but that's likely what it would take.  And just try to find a size 11.5!  My biggest problem lately though is walking out of my pumps.  While the left shoe is a quite comfortable fit in size 11, for some reason the heel lets go when I walk.  Not very comfortable to walk that way.  As such, my public heeling has been limited to booties as they will stay on.  I've been keeping my eye out for something in a pump with an instep strap (maryjane style) or ankle strap to hold my foot in the shoe.  Maybe even an adjustable sling back would work.  But those styles are not overly popular these days.

Welcome SDiaz

Looks quite nice.  Personally, I can't do heels that high - heck, I'm struggling with feet hurting on 3.5 inches - but they look nice.  Wish I felt comfortable enough to display a pair of heels like you do!

I guess I think about the amount of money I've spent on this "hobby" of mine..lol

Thank you, good points all around. I do not think I would care either way, but am just curious. My wife is supportive, but I am sure she would also be super happy if this "feature" of me went away. At certain points, I also think I would be happy myself.

I'm with you on that one, friend.  At times my desire for heels consumes way too much of my time and energy.  There are certainly other things I could do that would be more productive or charitable.

and we wonder why women don't want to wear heels?  Why would anyone want to torture themselves with ridiculous heels such as these.  If you want to sit and look at them, fine, but don't expect anyone to walk anywhere in them.  That is foot trouble for sure.

I did see him on TV recently and he was wearing a similar heel.  That is great.  I like that he is wearing a sleeker boot with no platform and while it is a chunky heel, it is not a large blocky one.  Looks very nice.

While I agree that it does vary from shoe to shoe or boot to boot, I also have found that most boots have more room - width in particular.  I believe the reason is that boots are made to accommodate a thicker sock in most instances.  If one goes to a more dressy style of boot, such as a stiletto heeled boot, then the fit is more shoe like as most dress boots are not worn with thicker socks.  At lease that is what I've seen as being reported from the industry.

for sure.  A sad reinforcement of current footwear habits.  Personally, I'm not counting on heels making a big resurgence this time.  Way too much negative info out there about heels and the supposed damage they do.  

Creates an interesting look!

I agree, those pants look absurd. Mom looks quite nice though!

" I was happy to see a young black lady wearing a lovely pair of heels for her night out. Heel sightings have been rare for a while now. Seems most women want to look like they are on their way to a workout at the gym. Seems like women are just not into heels anymore..."

Totally agree with that sentiment.  Your heels would blow away just about anything I've seen on a woman in the last three months.  Heck, my 3.75 inch chunky heel booties would beat 98% of what I see these days.

Good point jeremy.  But women have been wearing shoe and boot styles from the men's aisle for many years.  Wing tips, brogues, combat and construction styled boots, etc.  Yet those are considered a non-issue for women, and sometimes even the "height of fashion".  Seeing a lot of combat boot styles this year - and not liking it either...lol.