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Ballet Heels


Jezebel

What do you feel about ballet heels?  

562 members have voted

  1. 1. What do you feel about ballet heels?

    • I love them and wear them!
    • I like how they look on others but don't wear them myself.
    • I don't really care for them.


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What experiences have you had with your ballet heels? I would like to buy a pair, (US women's 10, or UK :lol: and wanted to know your voice of experience. (If anyone has a used pair for sale in that size, email me!) Best styles? Trusted retailers? Highest quality? Since buying a pair is a big investment, at least to me a poor university student, I'd like to know what you feel. I know all of you can offer good advice!

So many shoes, so little time...

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Noone else is weaing ballet heels? I really wonder about that! Well I'm wearing them from time to time - which doesn't mean that I can walk in them very well :lol:

Trusted retailers? Well, I'm not shure which is the best source nowadays - but I've have an eye on the ballet heeled mules, like the model Penelope, shown at:

punitiveshoes.com

best wishes

Joak :(

http://www.joak.org/

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well, there are a few of us lucky enough to own a pair of ballets, fewer still are lucky enough to be able to stand in them let alone walk in them. I'm afraid I'm in the standing (bent legs) and manage a few steps before gravity gets the upper hand :lol: I'm a size UK7.5 and was lucky enough to purchase a used pair from Onyourtoes (thanks, mate!) There are more ballet wearers out there, so come on people. Even if you just thought about trying a pair or have tried and failed, air your thoughts! Even failure can be informative, ie learning how not to do it, etc. :(

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About a year ago I tried a pair but this was not a success. As I had no problems on 5 inch heels all day I thougth it would be easier but I never was able to manage 6 inchers without bent knees either so the outcome was as expected. I don't think at age 51 my feet will be able to take the required angles to handle ballets. As I like any challenge I would have liked to be able and thanks Joak for pointing out that Peneloppe model, this is really tempting me as a house slipper. I think they would be ideal as foot stretchers when working on the pc or watching television, when not much walking is done anyway, and the price is afordable as well (although still a lot for the little material involved). Did anybody else on this board try that or one of the assiciate models held by straps to tell their experiences? They appear to be completely flat (yuck) and I am interested in knowing what is under your toes? Joak, do you intend to buy them soon?

Be youself, enjoy any footwear you like and don't care about what others think about it, it's your life, not theirs. Greetings from Laurence

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I've tried them from time to time.. oh fuck it, I own 3 pairs, from ankle to thigh high :( all made by diferent mfg's. I've had 3 diferent buying scenarios also, from waiting 6 months for my first pair (arch enemys), to talking a german company into using online payment (dungeonz.de) to talking right to the main cobbler and getting a discount (qualifetish). If I was to be asked about the highest quality and best service, I'd go with qualifetish in a moment. If you want a pair thats not exactly the same as most others, but -very- easy to walk in, try dungeonz.de.. if you want to wait around long enough to get your PHD before see'ing your boots, try arch enemys.. hehe

I've yet to try punitive shoes, but I hope to soon. The knee boots I first bought look very similer to the Little Shoe Box models, but the quality of leather is not as good as I've heard LSB uses. So I am not 100% positive that they made them.

I -really- like my zip up thigh high's from qualifetish, very soft leather, very comfortable fit, easy to get on, dificult to want to remove :lol:

Have a good one, best of luck getting a pair of ballet boots!

Jim

http://www.balletboots.net

(formerly known as "JimC")

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Now THAT is an interesting shoe! BTW I couldn't participate in the poll :lol: because there wasn't an option that applied to me. "Do you like the look of Ballet boots and would you wear them if you had them?" My answer would have been yes.

Graduate footwear designer able to advise and assist on modification and shoe making projects.

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Hello Highluc,

well about the ballet mules from punitveshoes.com - I think I may buy one of those sometimes. But I guess it will not be very soon, because including taxes and sipping they will take a little more then 200eur for a pair of those and my heels budget is quite empty for now :-(

best wishes

Joak :lol:

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I tried a pair of ballet style lace up ankle boots a few years ago. It was in a store in Soho, London. I was amazed that I could stand up in them. I got cramp in my foot very quickly, and took them off. I tried again a little later, and didn't get any cramp. Fit is VERY important, they need to be tight other wise you slip down in them and just crush your toes. If they are too long you end up crushing the end of the boot, which look horrible. The ankle boot was all that was in stock, and didn't give me enough ankle support. The thing I didn't like about the boot is that the line from toes to heel is straight. I would expect a sharp bend in there so that the toes are more steep and the heel is less steep. I found it easiest to walk by going up on the toe ends and ignoring the heel as much as possible. When the shop owner gave me a chinese style blue rubber ankle length hobble dress to put on as well, then there was no chance of any walking at all. I tried a pair of knee length lace up ballet boots at Little Shoe Box, some time last year (The shop is 5 minutes walk from Highbury and Islington tube station, and there are three other fetish shops just over the road as well). I loved the feeling of the laced up boot on the leg, and the support it gave. The heel was very very high, and the boot fitted well; but with a straight line from toe to heel, it didn't feel right. Quality is very good. I didn't buy, as I want to find some with a bend in the sole. You must visit LSB just to see the vast selection (Shop usually looks like it is shut; just ring the bell and someone will come out from the workshops behind to let you in). I guess that the ballet style thigh boots are for when you aren't going anywhere at all! and I'll also guess that wearing a long corset is an absolute must. Mmmmm. I'd love to try that.

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Ballet heels are definatly not ment to be a comfy marathon running shoe.. Most people are pretty well hobbled by them and can't walk at all. Some of us like the chalange and feel of trying to walk in them, even if its for a short distance or time. Jim

(formerly known as "JimC")

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Ah, I guess those links are in response to my comment about having a bend in the sole. Unfortunately, your bend is the wrong way to what I meant. Yours lets the toe go more horizontal, as in any more conventional shoe. I said that I would prefer to have the toes more vertical (more steep), and the heel more towards the horizontal (less steep); rather than the absolutlely straight sole that many ballet boots have. With those this usually means that you have to bend your ankle more then necessary. I would prefer to have some of that bend in the foot, with an ultra-high arch instead; meaning that there would be less strain on the ankles. This would probably lower the total heel height by perhaps half an inch, but is still going to be very very high. Sorry for any earlier confusion. Even so, your boots still look quite difficult to master, but it would be a whole lot of fun trying it out.

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Hi Jo! First of all, those ballet shoes and boots aren't mine. I happened to come across them for sale on eBay and thought they fit right in with this thread. Secondly, I personally don't like ballet shoes. And lastly, I find 7" heels are enough of a challenge. :lol:

Being mentally comfortable in your own mind is the key to wearing heels in public.

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That is a bit more like it, though I know my foot could take a bit more curve than that. Those must be quite difficult to stand/walk in without any ankle support; but they would probably be a lot easier in a knee-length boot. looks like a whole load of fun.

Someone sent me a private message about ballet boots a few days ago. I mentioned in another thread that I moved it to the "Saved Messages" folder, to read later, and now I cannot access it. I just keep getting a "General Error" error message each time. Whoever wrote, please resend the message.

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I've tried both the qualifetish 'shoes' and thigh highs.. Not sure if its the ankle support or not but the thigh highs definatly seem easier to stand/walk in.. although my first experience was in the lace up shoe version at fetish factory... amazed the sales girl by standing and moving twards the mirror on my first try :lol: If you get a chance to try a pair out, go for it. If your ankles can handle the angle you can always pad your toes enough to be comfortable for a short time (30-60 minutes or longer) Have a good one Jim

(formerly known as "JimC")

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they look interesting but here they would cost about $650 Australian for knee boot's and roughly $900 for thigh high boots yes I know there are shoe/sandal ones (which are harder to "walk?" in , not only that but I dont have the time to dedicate the time to learn to walk in them, and the cost is a bit extreme

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which ever way round you choose, it is going to cost. Whether that be time or money. If you buy the knee or thigh length you will get far more support and be able to stand and walk quicker, however, if like me you went for the shoe, then time is going to be your cost. Learning to stand in my shoes has been a long (rewarding) experience, even if I still can't straighten my legs. I can now walk a little as long as I have something to ballance myself with and take it slowly. On a plus side, ballets really go well at parties, especially with the women who have seen the Liz Hurley pic :lol:

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I saw the Liz Hurley picture in one of the UK newspapers at that time, but I have never seen much about this on the web. Did anyone else find any other information? In the posts mentioned above, there are references to scanned images. Those images do not load for me.

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I have been in NYC and finally got a chance to try ballet heels and it was great!

The first shoe store we found was called "Religious Sex" and is located on 7 St. Marks Place just west of Astor Place. They had a really nice selection of shoes in all heights from 3 inch to 6 and ballet heels. The main brand was "The highest heel" and I bought a pair of 6 inch boots. Their ballet heels seemed not to be of the reinforced models so they were not good for walking, although very nice looking. It was my first try-on and it felt great.

Then we went to Demask which is located on 135 West 22nd Street between 6th and 7th Avenue. They had a lot of ballet heels with the more flat toe tip, all in UK sizes. I tried a size 9 it was too big for me unfortunately. To my (and a few others!) great surprise I had no problem standing up all by myself and had a short walk in them through the store. I could walk in ballet heels! Here is some proof of me standning in them at least.

Posted Image

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Next we headed to another shop located on the West 20nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenue. They had an even wider assortment of ballet heels but this time in the more sleek pointy style with extremely thin heels. To my great surpris the Oxford model I tried on was really sturdy and nice and I could walk and stand in those too.

Now I only have to see if they are really worth the money, maybe I start with a cheaper pair from PunitiveShoes first.

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Yeah, I could also walk first time (after some initial cramp). I don't think it is possible for people to have a proper opinion of these shoes until they have tried them at least once. They are very very different to anything else anyone may have ever worn before; and the pump shoes, oxfords, ankle boots, knee boots, and thigh boots each require slightly different skills to master properly.

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I find the look of ballets quite intriguing & I'd love to try some out, but can't imagine I'd ever be able to walk in them and thus can't really justify the price tag. Aftter all it is a fair bit of $ for something which, although I like the look of, I might not enjoy trying to wear. Mind you, if I ever see some second hand at a reasonable price, who knows ...

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While I obviously enjoy ballet heels (I have 3 pairs), I can see how someone may not find them visually apealing, I'm not a fan of sandals or other strappy shoes.. So it's good that there is enough of a variety of shoes out there to keep most people happy. I'm fortunate that I drive near a store in Ft Lauderdale that carries ballet heels, and thus have been able to try them out prior to owning a pair. Maybe we could get a list together of stores that have been known to stock a pair or so of ballet heels so people know where to shop at :lol: I may be wearing my ankle high bb's to a club tonight, havnt decided yet.. If I do I'll make sure to get a picture or two to share. Seeya Jim

(formerly known as "JimC")

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I may be wearing my ankle high bb's to a club tonight, havnt decided yet.. If I do I'll make sure to get a picture or two to share.

Wow, your feet must be fairly well trained to cope with that. Let us know how it goes, I for one would be interested to know people's reactions! And photos would be even better! :lol:

SH

Hi! I'm a signature virus! Copy me into your sig and help me spread!

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