corsair

I came across this candid photo on a fashion blog. I like the overall look, as it appears well put-together and classy. But then he has the odd facial hair and the spots (can't tell what they are) on his cheeks which then starts to move it more into the spectacle territory.

http://thrilloftheheel.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2011-03-16T20%3A57%3A00%2B02%3A00&max-results=5

I flew kilted again this week. I got a second search from the TSA again, but it was a quick millmeter-wave scan instead of the full harassment. When I got to the initial ID and boarding pass checkpoint, the TSA woman stepped out from behind her podium, gave me a long look, and then started in about "what they say about the real men who wear those". I allowed as how I was wearing something underneath, had a laugh and kept moving. After the scan checkpoint, I put my gear and boots back on. There was a woman sitting on one of the benches waiting for I don't know what. She kept facing straight ahead, but as I walked away her eyes tracked my feet, either guessing or confirming to herself that those were womens boots. After that, I had time in the terminal. I think one young lady took my photo, but I'm not too sure about that. If anyone had anything to say, they didn't say it or even look it. I could tell that there were people checking out my attire, but no scowls or anything. Usually they just looked, confirmed what they were seeing, and then went on with their business. However, several different women (attractive ones at that) made eye contact and smiled at me. :-) After landing, I wound up on the airport train with the flight crew and continued cutting up with one of the stewardesses. One of the other women looked at me and asked if my outfit was cultural or how I dressed every day. I said that it was just something different to do and that it was actually more comfortable for flying. (that got me raised eyebrows from the stewardess in a pants-suit). I stopped at the airport McDonalds for a snack. While I was standing there about 20 feet from the counter deciding, the muslim girl behind the counter had a disapproving look on her face, but she then caught herself and was professional when I walked up. So, for the most part, reactions were either positive or non-existent. I'm guessing that there would have been even less reaction if I had been wearing footwear that was more obviously mens shoes. My other observation is that you can tell some people are really wanting to ask me about my kilt, but don't, and I'm not going to call them on it. I'm thinking that, for the most part, people either truly don't care, or they don't want to look like an unsophisticated rube by showing any reaction. I've attached photos of this week's kilt in the hotel room, and one shot from the seat in the airplane. The "kilted6" photo is my new black watch kilt and the boots that I want to wear with it. Let me know what you think. Some of the guys on this board like to see how much reaction they get in public. I prefer being more low-key and try not to draw any more attention than I do by wearing the kilt and boots. So, on the one hand, this isn't something for the thin-skinned or bashful, but on the other hand, there has been much, much less reaction than I could have imagined. 99.5% of the people have been blase. Again, thanks to the others who have posted their public outings. It helped me decide to do so myself.

I've made several round trips wearing 2 to 2.5 inch heels under my jeans, and have observed no reactions. I think I caught one young lady staring when I was kneeling down getting into my baggage, and that exposed my highest heel boots from the ankle down. There was no mistaking what I was wearing. As mentioned in my "very public outing" post, I wore flat riding boots with my kilt this week. One flight and a trip to the movies and no comments or reactions. Now if I can only get across Pittsburg and catch my flight tomorrow without getting stuck due to a road closure.

Next week, count on it. I went to see Alice in Wonderland last night, and wore my kilt and boots. Not exactly a big crowd on a Wed night, but still no looks or comments, and it made for a comfortable evening.

Thanks for the comments. A couple of answers: 1. I had a sporan, but wasn't wearing it in the photos. I had had to change to go into work, and changed back to take some pictures. 2. Yes, it does look rather skirty in the pictures (not that I mind much). Being solid black, it is difficult to see the pleats in back, the buckles on the side, or the overlap in the front. Next week will be one with a tartan pattern. As I said, it was a very liberating experience. Am I going to be able to do it around home? Probably not, but I will enjoy it for traveling.

If you’ve looked at my “flying in boots” posts, you know that I’ve been traveling a lot lately. Large airports are sort of like the mall at Christmas in that there are a lot of people, but very few who will notice you one way or the other. I’ve been taking advantage of that to wear heels while flying for the last few months. On my trips, I take my work boots, which get worn only at work, and my running shoes, which get worn only when running (they don’t get relegated to sneaker duty until after they are too worn for running). That leaves me with one or two pairs of boots to wear while traveling, going out to dinner, etc. On my last trip, that meant that my only walking-around shoes were my Walking Cradles boots with a 2.5 inch heel. Pretty cool. I’ve worn them enough that I will zip them on under jeans without much of a second thought. But I would really rather be in a skirt and boots, so I decided to give that a try. I can’t seem to go anywhere without running into people I know, and I need to keep my job, so I needed to maintain some measure of plausible deniability (as the politicians would say). Therefore, I purchased a couple of kilts from Stillwater kilts. I bought a solid black one that is one of their middle-of-the-line kilts, and one of their economy kilts in a tartan pattern. I wanted to look good, so I thought I would go with the black kilt, black tights, and one of my pairs of black riding boots with a buckle detail. I debated whether the buckles on the black kilt would set off the metal detector at the airport, and decided that it probably wouldn’t. I was wrong. In front of I don’t know how many people in Atlanta, there I was down to my kilt and shirt, getting a very thorough wanding, one that went on long enough that I missed my flight. So not only did I get shaken down, but I was now going to be walking to another concourse to rebook. Bottom line: a lot of visibility today. If anyone had any negative comments, I didn’t hear any or notice any bad looks. I was noticed, no question there, but I think mostly just people checking out my attire and then moving on. Delta has people on the concourses trying to sign you up for their Skymiles program, and they are more annoying than the Hare Krishnas used to be. As I went by them, one of the women starts calling out, “You. Hey, guy in the skirt. Guy in the skirt”. Yeah, like I’m even going to dignify you with a response. At the end of my flight, I was standing in the back of the plane with one stewardess I had been talking to, when she finally looks at me and says, “That is a kilt, right?” I replied in the affirmative and she cocked an eyebrow. I said that it was just something different to do, to which she said that was cool. Then as I’m loading my bag in the back of the rental car, one of the older men from the rental company stops and asked if I was Irish or Scottish. I told him that somewhere in my ancestry I was, but this was just something fun to wear. He gave me a big smile and told me that I looked great and chatted with me a few more minutes. Bottom line: no negative comments, lots of non-reactions, and two positive comments. And while it is a kilt (i.e. a skirt approved for men), I did get to spend the day wearing a skirt, tights, and women’s boots. It was very liberating to do so. I got dressed at home, loaded my bags while kilted and drove to the airport that way. I parked in the park-ride lot with the shuttle bus right there waiting for me to get out of my car. At that point, I was very committed to traveling as I was dressed. So I was a bit nervous getting out of the car and getting going, but once I did, I just acted like I do it every day. Wearing the knee-high boots probably looked a bit more feminine than men’s shoes and knee socks with a kilt, but if I wanted to wear wingtips, I wouldn’t be on this forum. My preference would be for a denim a-line skirt, just to avoid some of the bulk of the pleats under my tush while sitting, but this is a good start. For my return trip, I’ll wear jeans to get through the TSA and then change back to the kilt for the rest of the trip. Next week, I’ll wear the economy kilt, as it fastens with Velcro instead of buckles. Thanks to all the other guys who tell about their outings and share photos and help to blaze a fashion trail.

I'm not quite ready to go out skirted like some of the others, but I have bought a couple of kilts and I expect to travel kilted tomorrow. I'll also be wearing low-heeled knee high boots. At least it will be easier to get my boots off going through security. We'll see how things go.

I wore my new brown boots on the flight back last Friday. No issues. I wore them out to dinner and a movie Sat night. Still no issues. I then wore them on my flight Monday, and by then I was so used to wearing them that I didn't really think much about them. If anyone noticed them, I didn't notice them noticing, and no one said a word. On the Monday flight, I was in an exit row seat, so my boots were visible to the stewardess who was giving us the exit row lecture. I saw her looking down several times, but I'm not sure if she was looking at my boots, or the very elegant sandals on the young lady sitting next to me. It may have been the latter, as either that stewardess or one of the others stopped to comment on her sandals. In terms of heel height and narrowness of heels, this is probably about as far as I want to go for street heeling. I run into people I know just about anywhere I go (I even bumped into a coworker at the airport, and kept him in front of me), and I'm not in a position where I can push the envelope too much. But I am getting to wear pretty boots and I'm having fun wearing them so casually. So to repeat a familiar refrain, wear your shoes and enjoy it. 99.99% of the people don't care what is on your feet. BTW, I've attached a photo of the boots while I was in my rental car. Corsair

I spent a couple of weeks dinking around with 3 different pairs of boots from Zappos. For David Tate, wide foot = wide calf, which for them means gigantic calf, which mine are not. But I finally found a pair that are comfortable and fit my calves nicely. I had the keeper pair delivered to my hotel and I've enjoyed wearing them this week for going to dinner or grocery shopping. I wear them under my long jeans, not with my pants rolled up, but I thought you'd like to see them. I will be wearing these for the flight home this weekend, so I will have a whole day in them! I'm looking forward to it.

I'm doing some more traveling lately, and doing so in style. The flt1 photo is a photo I took during my flight. I put these boots on at home and wore them the whole way. No comments from anyone. With the big block heel they are comfortable for long hikes through airport terminals. The jeans I was wearing come down to about the top of the heel when I'm standing, so this wasn't stealth heeling with extra long pants. The other two photos are of some new boots I aquired last night. I finished dinner and headed over to a small mall that has a "show warehouse" type store where they have rows and rows of shelves with the boxes of shoes in them. I wasn't expecting to find anything, but lo and behold there is a pair of size 12M boots. Not much of a heel, and manmade materials, but for $24 they looked like a bargain, and was pleasantly surprised to find that they fit (I usually wear 12W). I wore them to dinner and shopping tonight (under my jeans) and they did pretty well. Most importantly, they kept my feet warm and dry, even in foot-deep snow. I've been wanting some higher-heeled boots for street heeling, and I just finished trying 3 different pairs of boots from Zappos. Alas, for two of them, they turned out to be wide-calf, not just 12W, and they left such a large gap around my calves that I could have put a deck of cards and a couple of sandwiches in there. I guess the women who order them have enormous calves. Mine are rather muscular, but not like that. The other pair fit my legs perfectly, but just weren't comfortable to stand or walk in. Dang. BTW, Home Shopping Network carries large size shoes, so check out hsn.com if you are looking for larger sizes. Ditto for nordstroms.com There is a pair with 2.5" heels at Zappos that I'm liking, so I'll order them and have them sent to the hotel. If they fit, I'll wear them on the flight home. Thanks to everyone else who posts their photos of street heeling and outfits.

I am between jobs at the moment, so I have had some time for heeling that I normally wouldn't have. I have attached a photo of two different pairs of boots that I have been wearing a lot lately. I had a doctor visit for followup and wore the lower, blockier heels without giving it much thought. But, we get to the exam room and the lovely young assistant has me sit on the bed/table to poke and prod, and I see her glance down at what are obviously womens boots. And if that weren't enough, as she checks my muscle tone (very good, thank you) she slides her hands down my legs to the ankles, leaving no doubt that these were knee high. In her cheery manner, she simply commented, "I love the boots". I replied that they kept my feet warm, and she replied that they were also a good choice today for keeping my feet dry (it was pouring outside). I have some jeans that, for some reason, are a couple of inches too long, but they are great for stealth heeling. I wear them for the other boots, and have done so a lot. I spent whole days wearing those boots to many places that I normally wouldn't heel. I wore them down to the government offices, to the library (for hours at a stretch), hardware store, utilities offices, the grocery store, you name it. I think a couple of times, women noticed them from head-on simply because of the shape and the for-shortened foot due to the heel. Otherwise, they didn't get much notice. I know that a bunch of you wear higher or spikier heels, but I was in my neighborhood going places where people know me and know me well. So it was pretty radical heeling for me, and very, very nice to be able to spend some time wearing what I like to wear. Corsair

At work, I limit myself to low-heeled boots that have a riding-boot look, 1 to 1.5 inch heel. (Very conservative environment, and I’m now getting into management.) When I travel, I like to push the envelope just a bit. I have a nice pair of Naturalizer boots with a 1.75 inch heel that I usually wear, or some smooth leather boots with a similar heel. Very sleek and elegant looking, but not with a tapered or spiked heel that is very obviously female. Unlike some of our gang, I’m not trying to make an overt statement or be conspicuous. I recently went on a flight and used an automatic luggage delivery service that was available, so all I had with me was my carry-on backpack with reading material and such. I wore the boots in the photo. The only other shoes I had with me were sneakers, and they were in the checked baggage, so the heels were it. I realize that a lot of you wear higher heels for street-heeling, but these are as much as I need to be pushing it. I went through all the gate check crap like anyone else, pulling off my knee-high boots and putting them in the bucket with my phone and keys. In a dozen different times through an airport, I’ve only had two comments, both from the TSA people. In the first instance, the TSA lady rearranged my stuff for better viewing by the x-ray machine. When she saw me looking, her only comment was, “I’m just rearranging your boots here”, but it was with a pleasant smile, as if to say, “Nice boots”. The other time was when I was selected for the full “gate-rape” I’m standing there in socks getting wanded while a female agent is pawing through my carry-on items. She holds up what are obviously women’s boots (even with the low heel) and asked if they are mine. I nodded, and I could see her mouth to her coworker, “These are women’s boots.” But not a further word, or anything rude to me. Anyway, once they were done searching, I zipped myself back into my boots and went on my way. However, I wanted some slightly higher heels for street-heeling. I had occasion to stop at a discount outlet mall for the first time in ages, and looked into the “Shoe Warehouse” type store that is in there. Usually it makes for fun looking, but rarely is there anything in size 12, and most of the merchandise is still way to pricey. But this time, there were two pairs of Naturalizer boots in size 12, and just $45! I was already wearing a pair of boots, so right there in the aisle, I took off the boots I was wearing and tried on the new ones. They fit! So I made my purchase and left a happy guy. Those are the boots in the photo. BTW, I had women customers around me, and no one looked or said anything. I have a pair of jeans that were mislabeled and the inseam is about 2 inches longer than what I normally purchase. Cuffing them up enough looks goofy and they stayed in my closet, but then I realized that they were perfect for stealth heeling. So for my latest trip, I wore those jeans and these boots. I went to a running event where they had a big forum and such at the race package pickup. I was planning on wearing my new boots to travel and changing into shorts and sneakers at my destination. However, my luggage delivery was delayed, so I had to go to the show in my boots and jeans. So what this whole essay is leading up to is this: I spent about ten hours in these boots, and that included a lot of walking around. And while the jeans might cover most of the heel when I’m standing up, once I sit down, the heel is obvious. Again, no one said a word or even batted an eye, even when I met with a group of people who I know online. And then this weekend, I left a sporting event, changed into my boots ,and decided to check out a local live/work/shop/play community to walk around and see what was there. This time I was in the black jeans in the photo, and they are normal length, so my heels were out there for all to see. Again, no comments. I think I saw one guy who gave a long look as he walked by with his wife, but that was it. So for those who have been bashful about street heeling, go do it. Be discreet in choosing locations and heel heights; no sense in having it cost you your job. But for the most part, people either don’t notice, notice and don’t care, or notice and still won’t say anything.

Nice boots. I've always enjoyed your photos. You always look sharply dressed, especially some of your skirted outfits. BTW, you've mentioned going out and about as a guy in the skirt and boots. I'm sure I'm not the only one who would like to hear more about that. When I was younger, and skinnier, I used to go out shopping, to the post office, etc wearing a skirt and boots. I'd keep my long coat on, so I don't know if I got much notice or not. When I was in Seattle, I used to go out and run errands or walk around town in a skirt and boots without the coat. That was a very liberating feeling.

I never said that they were high heels; I don't wear them to work because they are so obviously feminine in style. As for the Briana style boots: I don't have a pair, but they are good looking boots. I have a similar looking pull-on pair that I bought about 15 years ago. That pair I tried on and bought in the store in Seattle. This was a nice, sit-down type shoe store in an upscale mall, and the owner was very CD friendly and happy to let me try them on first. Way cool. If I had to do it again today, I would have worn them out of the store.

Once it gets cold, I wear boots nearly every day. To work, to church, everywhere. Most of the time it is with just 1 or 1.5-inch heels and a riding boot look.

Anyway, I recently bought some that I don't wear to work, but I have worn elsewhere, and I submitted a review to Zappos, and they posted it.

http://zeta.zappos.com/product/7456383/color/72

Glad you had a good time. I have a fairly new pair of jeans that I went to wear recently and found that they were about 2 inches too long. I have no clue why I have them and didn't want to wear them cuffed up and looking dorky. The light bulb finally went on and I realized I could wear them, I just needed more heel. I zipped on a pair of block heel boots with a 2 or 2.5 inch heel and the hem of the jeans barely cleared the ground. So I have been out a few times in this combo. Sat morning it was off to a sale to get a new appliance for the wife, and then to the hardware store. If anyone looked twice, I didn't see it. I doubt if anyone noticed. I don't know that I'm up to wearing them all day, but they were comfortable, and it was fun to wear them out. Hmm, I may wear them next time I have to travel.

I have had to do a bit of work-related traveling lately, and have used my travel time as quality boot-wearing time, i.e. boots that are a tad less conservative than I normally wear to work.

BTW, the stewardesses at all the US airlines are wearing boots with their uniforms. It's so nice to see. And I wish that I could loiter at the airport with a camera and not get arrested. There are so many booted women with such a variety of boots! <sigh>.

Trip 1.

On my first flight out, I wore black slacks and a pair of Naturalizer boots that are some of the warmest, most comfortable boots I own. (Like these, but with a slightly higher heel and without the buckles at the top)

http://www.widewidths.com/denzel.html

These are the highest heels I own that are not actual “high heels”. I don’t wear them to work, but I do wear them to go to the store, the movies, etc. They have a square toe and block heel about 1.75 inches high and they make no noise when I walk. I wound up in the security line behind a young lady who was also wearing boots (but with a skirt) so I got to watch her debooting. It was nice to see us both dumping our boots into the buckets, with little difference between the two sets of boots. I made it through security, zipped on my boots and enjoyed my flight. As far as I know, no one so much as batted an eye. Later during the trip, I decided to wear those same boots with jeans when the boss and I were going to walk across the street to a steak place for supper. I figured it would be dark and he would never see them that closely. Instead, as I come down to the hotel lobby, he is hanging up the cell phone and saying that we are going to meet the customer at a seafood place. Yikes, is it worse to go back and change, or just press on? I decided to just press on. If anyone ever noticed anything, they didn’t say so.

Trip 2.

I was traveling by myself, so I get to enjoy more booting. In fact, the only men’s shoes I had with me were my running sneakers for when I went to the hotel gym. I again wear my black pants, this time with my black Maripe boots. They have a squared-off toe and a heel of only about 1.5 to 1.75 inches, but they do look very much like women’s boots. Again I get the small pleasure of debooting and rebooting in security (not to mention watching the women around me debooting) and get no comment or stares. I then headed to an airport restaurant to eat. I wind up at a small table where I can see a Delta stewardess in a skirted uniform and wearing knee-high boots. She looked great! Anyway, I wound up in a bulkhead seat where I was able cross my legs and admire my own boots during the flight. One of the stewardesses was wearing a lovely pair of boots with her skirted uniform. As we departed the airplane, I mentioned that they looked sharp with the uniform, to which I received a nice smile and a genuine "thank you".

To go to the work site, I wore my brown riding-look boots with just a .75-inch heel. This is a pair that I wear to work regularly. The next day, for my return flight, it was back to the Maripe heels. It just felt so nice to wear them so much.

Trip 3.

I was going to have another co-worker with me, so I stuck with the previously mentioned riding boots to fly out. However, again, the sneakers were the only non-boots to go on the trip. What I did notice was that after we landed and were walking through the airport, my heels were clopping like any women’s heels would, and I did get some guys heads turning as they tried to reconcile what their ears were hearing with what their eyes were seeing. I stayed with the riding boots to go see the customer. I did have a nice warm pair of tights on under my khakis, and did snicker to myself when I realized that, just like my female friends, I was pulling my tights up every now and then.

I took the coworker to the airport the next morning and then headed back to the hotel. It was cold and going to snow, so I put on my (women’s) leather jeans and my Naturalizer boots. I headed downtown and went sightseeing. The snow started coming down thick and fast, and my leather pants wound up glistening as if I were out in the rain. However, I was staying warm and cozy. Still in the same attire, I later headed into a very nice seafood restaurant and had a very nice meal. Late in the meal, the waiter asked if I was riding a motorcycle in the snow. I told him no, but that I knew it was going to be snowing and that I’d be walking around in it. Nothing else was said.

The next day was more sightseeing in another town, This time in jeans and the Naturalizer boots. After that it was back to the airport for a flight home.

After three trips of airplane and street-heeling, I can tell you that no one said a word, and, as closely as I can tell, no one really even looked twice. I think I had one older women at baggage claim who heard my heels and gave them a long look, but that is about it. Meanwhile, it felt really nice to do. If I had to do it over again, I might have done my sightseeing in a long skirt, or slightly higher heels (or both).

Seize your heeling opportunities and enjoy it!

I have worn boots to work for almost ten years now, and in very conservative work environments. I wear low-heeled knee-high boots with a riding boot look and usually don’t get any notice at all. I had one guy at church who noticed my boots, commented on how nice they were, and then confided that he had a thing for shoes and owned about 50 pairs, but he was talking about regular men’s wingtips and loafers (yawn). However, it meant that he didn’t view mine as anything but nice men’s boots. More recently, I had a guy at work who, as we were leaving a meeting, stopped and asked me, “Are those boots?” I said yes, and he wanted to know where I got them because he needed some new ones. This is a very stout guy who wears regular men’s boots that are about ankle high. I honestly told him that I got them a Nordstroms a few years ago; I didn’t mention that he would have to look in the women’s shoes to find them.

The biggest “problem” with my boot wearing is that they sound like women’s heels on the tile floors around here, which makes guys turn their heads to look at the (presumed) female that is going by. I have had a couple of the guys who have laughingly cursed me and said to quit wearing girl’s heels because they are getting whiplash thinking that a girl came in the door. I just laugh and keep going. I noted that another guy in our group wears men’s loafers that also have a heel that is loud and I’ve swiveled my head thinking he was a girl, and they agreed that they had as well.

A few times I have worn some Maripe boots with a higher heel (1.5 inches) and they look rather feminine even though they have a block heel. And I think that I once overhead someone from another group asking one of my coworkers about my “high heels”. I don’t know that much of an answer was given, but since then I’ve not worn those boots to work. I’m bucking for a promotion and don’t need it derailed due to footwear.

I said all that to tell you this:

I had a funny episode this morning when I went down to our fitness center to weigh myself. I was in the director’s office using her scale so that she could tell me what I weighed 5 weeks ago. Prior to weighing, I emptied my pockets and then sat down and pulled off my boots, a pair similar to these:

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2931429/0~2376778~2372808~6007659~6007688?mediumthumbnail=Y&origin=category&searchtype=&pbo=6007688&P=1

I weighed myself, found out I was still at the same weight (dang) and then started to put my boots back on. We are both sitting down facing each other and she starts staring down and asks, “Are those boots”. ( Well, they sure aren’t loafers.) She then said, “Those look like my boots. Not to be rude, but those look like the boots I wear.” I finally told her that it was probably because they were women’s boots. At that point she started laughing, not because of my boots, but the irony of it. As she explained, she found it funny that I was wearing women’s boots while she was wearing men’s sneakers. (It turns out that she has such small feet that she has problems finding shoes that fit her.)

She asked if I wore women’s shoes all the time or just boots. I told her just the boots, because: 1) They keep my feet and lower legs warm in the winter, 2) They are comfortable, and 3) I think they look good and that men’s shoes are big and clunky looking. All of which she was perfectly comfortable with. By this time I had finished zipping them back up and had pulled my pants back down and I asked her how they looked. She practically gushed about how nice they looked and that she would never have thought they were anything but guy’s shoes if she hadn’t seen me take them off. After that, the conversation was mostly “girl talk” and she wanted to know what size they were and how hard it was to find women’s boots in my size. It was fun to talk so openly about my shoes.

I told her that I had dozens of pairs and asked if she wanted to see any of the others when I wore them. “Absolutely!”, she said. So it looks like I may have another boot friend at work. Too bad she is always dressed in her work uniform, which is sneakers and exercise attire.

I had an interesting experience at work We had a weigh-in for a fitness thing here at work. I went down there, not thinking about the fact that I was wearing boots. Keep in mind that I wear low-heel zipper boots all winter. (Also keep in mind that I work at very conservative companies) So I sat down, pulled up my khakis and unzipped these boots that went all the way to my knee. Left the boots in a pile by the chair and weighed in. Just me and the fitness center woman were there, still not even a batted eye or raised eyebrow. Total non-event. In fact, in all the time that I have been wearing boots to work (about 10 years now) only two people have ever said anything, and both times it was compliments from women. Saturday we went to see the Rockettes perform. Very nice to see all the women who dressed up in nice (taffeta, velvet, etc) holiday dresses and outfits and wearing their very stylish boots. I wore my new Natualizer Dressage boots. Think of a black riding boot with a 1.5” heel. No, not as high as what some of you wear, but I was there with my kids, grandparents, aunts. I wore them with black jeans and a festive holiday sweater. I’m guessing that the little side straps and buckle (as well as the heel) were very visible when I was squatting down to play with my sons, but still nary a word from anyone. The women, especially, will spot women’s boots for what they are almost immediately. The guys may or may not. Either way, I think most people don’t really care. And they see enough wierdness in public, that this is very minor. Besides, what are they going to do? Start yelling and pointing like an immature teen? Maybe, but 99% of the time, no. Last winter I bought a pair of black zipper boots with a 2 inch or 2.5 inch block heel. I decided that I wanted to wear them around that mall. No looks, stares, or reaction. Ditto for when I wore a similar pair for airline travel. Anyway, that’s my contritution. If you are still worried about going out in boots, just do it. Corsair

Dang, dang, dang. Sorry to hear that you moved back to Canada. I work probably a few minutes away from where you did in the Atlanta area. Meanwhile, I remember when Wild Pair carried boots worth buying, and I bought myself a pair of the men's thigh-hi boots. I really enjoy wearing them under my jeans. (Sorry, I can't get quite as "out-there" as you are with your boots). Corsair

http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/2839774/c/16840.html

" Nice boots - Bought these for my wife. She wanted a nice snow boot that looks dressy. A friend told me she buys her boots on Zappos.com all the time. My wife loves her boots. She likes the blk.pat. look of the boot. Makes them easy to keep clean. I cleaned them for her this morning. The boot looks well-made. They should last a long time. I have small feet for a man ( sz 7 ) and I found zappos to be a must have website for me. I also found out a mans 7 is a womens 9. I was curious about the feel of my wifes boots and just tried to put one on. she wears a 9 and they fit me like a glove. I think i'll suprise her later and have them on when she gets home from work. they feel better on my feet than my own boots do. they really are as comfortable as my wife says they are. "

Sounds like he needs to be joining this list...

Corsair

Here is a site that carries some boots all the way up to size 17!

And you can order boots in lots of different heels and colors and fabrics.

http://www.westernweddingboots.com/grannybootsquestions.htm#name%20difference

I have these on order, I'll let you know how good they are for wearing.

http://www.chadwicks.com/chadwicks/product/product.asp?pf_id=57917&dept_id=472&parent_id=&

I also have other zip-up riding boots from them (can't find a good link) that have been very, very comfortable. And some of the Nordstrom brand boots have been comfy. I also have some size 11 boots from Maripe (find them a Rack Room shoes) that have been comfortable.

I just bought a pair of these and found them to be comfortable.

http://www.chadwicks.com/chadwicks/product/product.asp?pf_id=33258&dept_id=472&parent_id=&

I don't really care for the "scrunch" look, but that part of the boot isn't visible under a pair of jean, but the blue leather looks great with jeans.

Corsair

I haven't bought any boots just for Christmas, but I have bought a lot of boots this month. - low heel, blue leather pull-on boots from Chadwicks. $30 and very comfortable. They looked great with jeans at work yesterday. - 2 pairs of riding boots coming from Chadwicks, one pair black, the other brown - 3 pairs of black ankle boots for the wife in stretch suede or fake suede - 1 pair of knee-high brown suede boots for the wife. 2.5 inch slim heel - 1 pair of calf-high black leather boots for the wife. About a 1.5 inch heel - 1 pair of 2.5 inch block heel Aerosoles boots for me. Black, knee high Seems like I've left some out, but that is the take so far. Oh, yeah, a pair of lovely riding boots from Nordstroms, but they were too small so I had to send them back.

Thanks for all the replies. I am an airplane nut. Corsair comes from the Chance Vought F4U of WWII. And I live near Atlanta, GA. I'd love to come to the NY meet, but vacation time and travel are limited by grad school and young kids. I once went into a Naturalizer at Lennox Mall in Atlanta to buy some boots. This was at least 12 years ago when I was first out on my own and discovered that Naturalizer carried larger sizes. This store was all glass front, so anyone walking along the mall could see in. I had gone through there a few times scoping out the place and doing the "just looking for the wife" bit. One day I was going through the mall and went by and decided to get some boots. I went in and there was one woman in there in her 30's or 40's with a debris field of shoes around her as she tried to find something to her liking. The girls left her on her own a minute and asked if she could help me. I pointed to a pair of low-heel boots I liked and asked for them in their largest size. The boots were promptly brought to me and I sat down a couple of seats away from the other customer and tried on the boots and walked around in them. I decided that they fit well enough and told the sales girl that I would take them. Since the other customer was still deciding on shoes, the sales girl said that she would go ahead and ring me up. At this point the other customer had an exasperated look on her face and blurted out, "Did you see what he just did?" I thought, "oh no, she is about to spaz out". The lady looked at me, at the sales girl, and then at her pile of shoes, and said,"Here I've been for close to an hour trying to decide on a pair of shoes, and he comes in, tries on a pair, and is ready to buy them in less than 10 minutes. Amazing". I chuckled and paid and big htem farewell. The nice thing was that the woman wasn't fazed in the least by me trying on the boots or shopping in a women's-only shoe store, just by my ability to transact the deal quickly. (I didn't bother mentioning that that is typical of men shopping). Last year I again found myself at that mall and went by the Steve Madden store where they had some great looking over-the-knee boots. I asked for the largest size and the teenage girl brought them out to me. I looked at them in the box and decided that maybe they might fit. At this point, she still thought I was shopping for someone else, but I sat down and pulled up my pants leg to unzip the knee-high boot I was wearing. She blinked, but recovered very quickly and continued on quite professionally. Alas, the boots did not fit, to the disappointment of both of us. But at that point she was looking around for other styles that might suit me. And form the other people in the store, no reaction at all. The closest that I have come to a bad reaction was in a mall up in Chattanooga. I saw a store with a nice leather skirt and after looking on the rack, discovered that they had one in my size. I asked to try it on and the 17-year-old girl quietly freaked out a bit. I told her to ask the manager. The manager (an older woman) came over, heard the request, and then looked at the girl as if she had lost her mind and said, "Of course he can." At this point I was shown to the dressing room and that was the end of it. And I bought the skirt. Now I'm remembering another shopping trip at a mall in the Seattle area. There was a gorgeous below-the-knee navy blue suede skirt that I liked and in my size. There weren't many customers and I didn't see anyone around so I went into the women's dressing area and into one of the stalls. I had the skirt on and was admiring myself in the mirror when a sales woman looked over the door and asked if there was anything else I needed. This was the very first time that I had done any such thing and I was a nervous puppy and she suprised the heck out of me. I stammered somethings like "no, thanks" and mananged to redress myself with my hands shaking. However, I really liked the skirt and took it out to the cash register. She rang me up as if it was the most natural thing in the world. right before I walked away I told her thanks for being so cool about that. She shrugged and said,"No problem" and meant it. Of course, in Seattle, that was probably far from the first time that had happened. There is actually another incident in Seattle at one of their most upscale malls. A fellow cross-dresser told me about a shoe store at the Bellvue mall and even called them up to inquire about some boots in my size. He hung up the phone and told me that I should head over, they were expecting me. I went over and sure enough they had a gorgeous pair of Joyce Selby boots, about a 2.5 inch heel and tapered toe. They fit, and are comfortable, and are still a favorite pair of mine. Anyway, they woman running the store had me sit down to try them on and walk around and treated me like I was just anyone buying boots.