Alternative to Pleaser?

[phur]

Just doing a shop around and it seems that everywhere just sells the Pleaser ballet boots. Are there any alternatives left that anyone knows of?

[Chorlini]

www.kassiopeya.de don't sell the pleaser brand. But some say they're not known for being the best quality. Still, if it's bedroom wear you want they also sell other colors then just pleaser's black.

http://www.punitiveshoes.com/database/ballets/catalogue.shtml sell Italian made ballet heels. More expensive, and probably of good quality. But not very attractive IMHO.

http://www.fuss-schuhe.de/high-heels-shop.html also sell these Italian made ballet heels.

[phur]

Thanks for the links! I do actually like the look of the punitive ones - pricey though!

[csb2]

SOME OTHER POSSIBILITIES:

　

1) http://cgi.ebay.com/7-Fetish-Gothic-Punk-Ballet-Pinup-Point-Lace-up-Boots-/310251931972?pt=US_Women_s_Shoes&var=&hash=item8e07667e56

http://cgi.ebay.com/High-Heel-Stiletto-Calf-Sneaker-Boot-Faux-Leather-White-/310274299731?pt=US_Women_s_Shoes&var=&hash=item8e07a2c230 (nice 4-inch heeled sneakers)

http://stores.ebay.com/refusetobeusual sells the same or similar ballet heel ankle boots as http://www.kassiopeya.de. However, you can buy with the protection of eBay. They can also customize the color, width and ankle circumference!!! "Refuse to be Usual" operates out of Taipei, Taiwan and ships worldwide.

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2) http://stores.ebay.com/flyinwindxp sold ballet heels as recently as 2010 for a manufacturer in China, that used cloth instead of leather. They had two styles. One had a black and white ZEBRA print pattern. The other style had a LACE pattern, that was available in either white or red color. flyinwindxp is still in business selling other stuff and can be contacted via their information at ebay. (Remember, you can usually get anything for the right price.)

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3) Imelda de Cirque (a nickname) came out of nowhere and burst onto YouTube circa 2008 as a single middle-aged (about 45 years old) dark-haired woman in Australia, who was able to walk outdoors in ballet heels and 6 and 7-inch heels without platforms as though they were 2 inch heels. She also wears corsets.

Imelda has her own secret manufacturer that makes ballet heels with the stiletto heel closer to the sole of the shoe. If you are trained in ballet en pointe or skilled in walking on tip-toes, this style can make it significantly easier to walk in. Some high heel shoe designers, like the one for the WIld Pair back in the 1980's, who knew about this fact also made some high heel style of shoes with a very high heel closer to the sole of shoe.

Again, Imelda has her own secret manufacturer for this unique style of ballet heels. At one time, Imelda tried to stock, sell and ship the ballet heels herself, but gave up for no apparent reason.

NOTE: Imelda no longer uses the userid imeldadecirque on YouTube because it was banned, (probably because some jealous person reported her videos as porn). This has happened to her several times on YouTube. So, she is now using the userid SuzanziBalletHeels. You can usually contact her via her information on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/user/SuzanziBalletHeels#p/u/14/9mitOJ5K3uw

[Waisted_Giraffe]

See here for Suzanzi's Commando in Heels site; http://suzanziballetheels.com/

and here for her How to Ballet Heels site; http://walkinginballetheels.wordpress.com/

[Chorlini]

3) Imelda de Cirque (a nickname) came out of nowhere and burst onto YouTube circa 2008 as a single middle-aged (about 45 years old) dark-haired woman in Australia, who was able to walk outdoors in ballet heels and 6 and 7-inch heels without platforms as though they were 2 inch heels. She also wears corsets.

Imelda has her own secret manufacturer that makes ballet heels with the stiletto heel closer to the sole of the shoe. If you are trained in ballet en pointe or skilled in walking on tip-toes, this style can make it significantly easier to walk in. Some high heel shoe designers, like the one for the WIld Pair back in the 1980's, who knew about this fact also made some high heel style of shoes with a very high heel closer to the sole of shoe.

Again, Imelda has her own secret manufacturer for this unique style of ballet heels. At one time, Imelda tried to stock, sell and ship the ballet heels herself, but gave up for no apparent reason.

NOTE: Imelda no longer uses the userid imeldadecirque on YouTube because it was banned, (probably because some jealous person reported her videos as porn). This has happened to her several times on YouTube. So, she is now using the userid SuzanziBalletHeels. You can usually contact her via her information on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/user/SuzanziBalletHeels#p/u/14/9mitOJ5K3uw

I don't think she has her own manufacturer, more that she and her partner modify existing shoes. As they have this fetish for the heel being as close to the sole of the shoe as possible. Personally it doesn't do much for me, but if it makes them happy, more power to them, right?

As for the shoes that she sold they probably came from same factory that makes the unbranded/Kasiopeya ballet heels, which she seems to prefer over the Devious brand. But they were produced to her specifications. She has stated that with the exception of the Punitive brand ballet heels, all ballet heels basically come from two factories in China anyway. At the time when she opened her shop she said she had stocked some 50 pairs of shoes, which if true doesn't seem like a whole lot for a secret manufacturer to make a living of. But perfectly normal for a factory already producing them.

She stopped selling them because she claimed the same jealous person that caused her youtube accounts to be banned was badmouthing the quality of her shoes, stating that she was just reselling Devious or Kasiopeyas.

[csb2]

Maybe or maybe not. I don’t know. I have seen all or most of the videos and writings that Imelda posted on the Internet since she began. 　 1) Did Kassiopeya.de ever say that their ballet heels are made in China?. Are there "Made in China" stickers on their ballet heels? 　 2) We all know that Pleaser USA’s Devious brand of ballet heels are made in China. Now, if we assume that Kassiopeya.de imports from China, then I can guarantee you that there were at least 3 different manufacturers in China. That’s because a different manufacturer (who may be just one guy) made the ZEBRA and LACE styles of ballet heels. Also, if that’s the case, then I would tend to believe that there were 4 different manufacturers in China because in one of Imelda’s older videos , she specifically said that a different manufacturer made her ballet heels with the heel closer to the sole of the shoe. 　 3) Did Imelda provide you or anybody else with the contact information for her ballet heel manufacturer, especially now that she doesn’t sell them? (That’s why I used the term "secret" manufacturer.)

[Chorlini]

Considering that I can get a Kassiopeya ballet heel for between 50 and 70 euros and considering that the Italian made Punitive brand ballet heels cost multiple times that it would seem that either Kassiopeya imports them from China, or they use illegal Chinese slave laborers in their German sweatshops.

I still wouldn't be surprised if there are just two manufacturers. One mass producing for Devious, and the other one producing to whoever wants to order and to different specs. Since Imelda holds the Devious brand in low regard, it stands to reason she went to the other factory. Also I find hard to believe that there are three to maybe four manufacturers of ballet heels in the China. It's not like the market for this niche fetish item is huge.

As for Imelda's ballet heels being specifically manufactured with heels closer to the soles, look at this picture from corsetmaker Fran

http://www.staylace.com/pinups/fran/s2.jpg

Imelda has stated that she sold these and a few other pairs to Fran and heel wise they seem quite like all the other ballet heels being sold. Unless we mean different things of course, a distinct possibility, those special ballet heels seem more likely to have been modified by Imelda and her partner.

Of course since Imelda never told me about this she remains the ultimate source of information. Maybe we should ask her?

[csb2]

Of course since Imelda never told me about this she remains the ultimate source of information. Maybe we should ask her?

Chorlini,

First, please note that my first post in this thread was only an attempt to add to your post, not to contradict anything that you wrote. Sorry, if I gave you the impression that I did.

Second, I never heard Imelda say nor write that "she and her partner modify existing shoes" (as you suggested on April 17th).

Third, I got the impression that you already asked Imelda from what you wrote on April 17th, which is why I replied as I did in my last post.

Fourth, since you haven't, PLEASE GO AHEAD AND ASK IMELDA. Also, ask her about her old video in which she specifically mentioned a different manufacturer that makes ballet heels with the heel closer to the sole.

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My original intention was simply to point out some other POSSIBILITIES for those wanting to buy ballet heels, not to get into a silly debate. So, at this point, I no longer give a damn how many ballet heel manufacturers there are in China.

I have seen high heel shoemakers come and go through the ages. I was around when they didn't even make high heel shoes in China (because the Communist government made everyone dress in black pajamas and would not allow the people to make a profit). Back then, if you wanted to buy high heel shoes in Asia, the only place was in Hong Kong. That was before the Internet ever existed. So, you had to buy via old-fashioned mail order catalogs.

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Best Wishes! Good Luck!