sscotty727 Posted October 1, 2003 Posted October 1, 2003 I am not sure if this topic should be here or in the high heel section as I am not sure if it already exists or something that can be easily made. My question is: If say I wanted to wear a 3" or 4" heel to work but didn't have the courage to wear such a heel openly, would it be possible to say take an average looking man's boot but make the inside of the boot be a 3" or 4" heel? In other words, the toe would be filled in but longer, the heel would be solid (like say a platform) but inside your foot would be raised to the angle offered by a 3" or 4" heel? I could have sworn I came across something like this on the internet once, but can't find reference to it. My questions are: 1) Does it exist, if so where could you get such a shoe? 2) If it doesn't exist, would it be farily easy to make such a shoe? 3) And lastly, if it could be made, how easy would it be to walk in such a shoe? Thanks, Scotty
Ionic Posted October 1, 2003 Posted October 1, 2003 scotty, see Highluc's web site and in particular this page http://highluc.net/hidden_heels.htm where you will see some hidden heel examples. I guess he will have more advice on the matter. /I /I
sscotty727 Posted October 1, 2003 Author Posted October 1, 2003 Its funny, I just happened upon his website after I posted my message and before you gave me the link, must be on the same wavelength or something. I will definitely have to ask him since I would love to wear a higher heel at work but can't risk it with working at a government site representing a large consulting company. Thanks for the information! Scotty
Highluc Posted October 1, 2003 Posted October 1, 2003 I already answered in a personal mail but for all the other interested ones, hidden heels can be purchased directly in the usa from http://www.elevatorshoes.com/ and Europeans can find local dealers (including in UK by hitting the country flags on http://www.bertulli.com/ For people with a UK size 7-1/2, Us male 8-1/2 or fem 10B, Euro size 41 you can always buy my hidden heeled shoes second hand because I hardly wear them anymore after my separation from my ex and probably will sell all of them within the next year. I now prefer real nice looking heels on my feet. Check out my website http:// highluc.net and if interested feel free to contact me about any shoes I have. 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
Dr. Shoe Posted October 1, 2003 Posted October 1, 2003 Whilst at college I had the idea for a cowboy boot with an outer heel of 1.5" and an internal heel of 4" giving a total of 5.5". To make it, you would get a last with the 5.5" pitch, prepare the insole in the normal way. Next you would make a wedge and carve it to the shape of a 1.5" last and stick to the bottom and use the whole lot to make a pattern in the conventional way. Next take the insole off and make the lining patterns using the original 5.5" last. Stitch the upper and the lining together as usual. Take the wedge off and re-attach the insole and last the lining then re-attache the wedge and last the upper. Finnish with sole and heel. Graduate footwear designer able to advise and assist on modification and shoe making projects.
sscotty727 Posted October 2, 2003 Author Posted October 2, 2003 While I haven't found anything that eliquant, I did find something that is pretty functional. I was able to add up to 2 inches to my 2 inch JC Penny's heels, and I can take it anywhere from just 1 inch, 1 1/2 inch and 2 inches higher. This gives me a 3" to a 4" heel total while the shoe looks like a 2" heel. The trick was to go out and get some Dr Scholls items. I first start off with a layer of Gel Heel Pads. I then add 1 to 3 layers of Work Heel Pads (they are wedge shaped), and then to top if off and make it feel comfortable, I put a Tri Comfort pad (looks like another internal sole except it also has a little bit of a heel). I walked all over the stores and they felt amazingly comfortable, but I could feel the increased angle. The nice thing is they are removable so I can move it from shoe to shoe. I took my 1inch "normal" shoe, added the pads and took them up to a 3inch heel without looking like anything was different externally. I tried them in my 3 inch buckle heels and they went up to a nice 5 inch heel and I could instantly feel the difference in the angle. This very well could work for me to get the effect of an increased heel while allowing myself and my wife to get used to me wearing higher heels. I would love to get heels made eventually like Dr Shoe mentioned though. Do you ever consider making them for paying customers? Thanks, Scotty
Heelfan Posted October 2, 2003 Posted October 2, 2003 This "Hidden Heel" talk reminds me of my young teens. I ventured out on my first street-heeling expedition when I was only 12, 'borrowing' my mother's 2" stacked heels. I was very excited but very terrified! By 13, to get the heel-feel without the embarrassment, I used to stuff tightly-folded newpaper into the backs of my trainers (then we called them 'plimsolls') to create home-made 'elevator shoes' or 'lifts'. One day when I was down at the shops, I bumped into my mother. Although no-one could see my 'lifts', I was terrified that my mother would notice than I was suddenly 3" taller! However, she didn't, so I carried on wearing my hidden heels. Later again, in my late teens, I bought a pair of black, lace-up'elevator shoes' from a specialist shop in London. However, although hidden heels gave me the 'heel-feel', I found that they didn't give anything like the buzz of wearing real heels in real situations. Like Highluc, I abandonned hidden heels in favour of REAL heels, but in my case, many years ago. I am now in my late fifties, but I still remember my first street-heeling moment and the subsequent newspaper-wadge 'lifts' as clearly as yesterday. It has all been great fun, and still is! Cheerfully yours, Heelfan Onwards and upwards!
sscotty727 Posted October 2, 2003 Author Posted October 2, 2003 Hey HeelFan, Great story. Actually though, the "hidden heel" is more for me to wear at work where I am not comfortable wearing real heels (given my working environment). In public though I am still wearing my higher heels with long pants though. Someday I am sure I will start showing off more, but that is something I don't think I can ever do at work, atleast with my current job. This gives me an outlet though. If it helps any other shy guys though, that is great! Scotty
Ionic Posted October 6, 2003 Posted October 6, 2003 Someone put a web link to a street heeling photo album yesterday which wasn't terribly exciting but the advert boxes all round the edge were quite useful. One was to this site "Shoelifts.com". http://shoe-lifts.com/ They come in half inch steps for men and women all the way up to heights that I don't really understand how one could use. At least it saves having to make your own if you are not very good at DIY. Certainly a handful of half and one inch ones could be handy for fine tuning various shoes and boots. For international, sales people might be able to club together for an order across the Atlantic. /I /I
sscotty727 Posted October 7, 2003 Author Posted October 7, 2003 Actually I found these heel cushions at the local store. I found that by "stacking" 2-4 together, it comfortably lifts my heel to give me a higher heel without the shoe being tight. I've been wearing them to work for days now and they feel great and are alot less expensive than the shoe lifts. Scotty
Ionic Posted October 8, 2003 Posted October 8, 2003 Actually I found these heel cushions at the local store. Scotty That's an excellent site, bodycushion.com, Scotty - lots of good products there, but I don't see any hint of them doing international sales. Need to find as extensive a range over this side of the pond now. The half insoles are good and so especially is the kind of orthotic arch support item to. A lot of shoes have poorly shaped arch and it will also help adjust other fit problems such as taking out some space in a boot without crowding the toes. _ adding... do you also find the lifters made the shoe in effect very slightly longer? This is only a very small factor. /I /I
sscotty727 Posted October 8, 2003 Author Posted October 8, 2003 I've actually been able to comfortably put 3 stacked together inside my JC Penny Heels, which gives me about 1 to 1 1/2 inch more lift. When I put a 4th inside, they my toes start to get numb. I found the half size lifts worked MUCH better than the full insert which does raise the lower part of the foot and again starts hurting my foot. Also I've been able to wear it with the inserts and remove them with no noticable damage to the shoe. You might want to check the Dr Scholls site to see if they make anything similar. Scotty
sscotty727 Posted April 20, 2004 Author Posted April 20, 2004 I came up with a new design of my hidden heel lift and my Clark shoes which have a 2" heel are effectively now mules (I lifted the heel the entire hight of the back of the shoe). They are probably now 4 or 5 inches! I wore them at work all day and it was great! The only problem is with the rubbery material in the Dr Scholls I used, they compress a little when I walk. I am going to look into getting blocks of wood and seeing if I can carve a set of lifts and then put a Dr Scholls cover on top of it to make it more comfortable. Scotty
sscotty727 Posted April 22, 2004 Author Posted April 22, 2004 Actually I went too far in the heel lift and ended up hurting my foot with the lip of the shoe cutting into my foot. Anyway, I revamped the design to give me more lift without hurting my foot. The problem is that outside of work, I don't have a problem wearing higher heels, but at work I don't want to "appear" to be wearing anything higher than 2". Of course I like the feel of atleast 3+", so I created some hidden heels for inside the shoes to achieve this. I still think if I make something sturdy out of wood (think of a wedge shape) and then covered it with something from Dr Scholls for padding, I think it will work great. Anyone else experiment with anything like this? Thanks, Scotty
Firefox Posted April 23, 2004 Posted April 23, 2004 Thanks for sharing your ideas with us Scotty. In answer to your question I did experiment a little with hidden lifts at one time, but I was also trying higher visible heels at the same time. Once I found nobody gave a shit about 3 to 4 1/2" visible heels I never bothered with the lifts again really. The reason is that I like the different heel styles and shapes and lifts don't help this aesthetic endeavour in my view. I think they could be very useful for someone with a larger foot though, when they can't necessarily get the height they want in a style they like. As I can get any style I want in my size that's not a consideration for me.
sscotty727 Posted April 24, 2004 Author Posted April 24, 2004 Thanks Firefox. In my personal life, I have no problem looking for and wearing higher heels. I plan on shopping for a 4 to 5 inch heel tomorrow. For work since I now work in a more visable setting, I don't feel comfortable wearing more than a 2 inch heel. Maybe once I am there a while I will relax more and it won't matter, but in the meantime I am going to experiment with the hidden heels. I am thinking of going to a hobby store and getting a round wooden disk, and cut it sideways to produce two round "wedges. I think that with a Dr Schools heel on top might do the trick. Scotty
Firefox Posted April 24, 2004 Posted April 24, 2004 I made some lifts based on a Dr Schol heel cushion raised with layers of thick cardboard and then bound round with insulating tape.
sscotty727 Posted April 28, 2004 Author Posted April 28, 2004 I finally perfected them! Turns out my mistake was trying to make the insert a wedge and the angle was always hurting my feet. I put something under the wedge to make a more flat surface and it feels much better. This weekend I am going to redo the design with more wood I got from a hobby store. I will try to post some pictures once I get them made. Scotty
sscotty727 Posted May 7, 2004 Author Posted May 7, 2004 Hi All, I finally perfected my wooden hidden heels. I can give more information to anyone interested, please PM me. Basically, I went to Michaels (a craft store) and got a piece of wood got in an oval. (It says the dimensions are 3x5, but the thickness is 1"). I cut the wood in half giving me two half ovals. I then trimmed the sides with a knife to get the wood the right size to fit inside my shoe (of course the "round" size in the back of the shoe). I then used a file and filed the end the flat size so that it created an angle (I will try to get pics, but my camera is acting up right now so you will have to bear with me). Anyway, I keep filing until I can comfortable wear the heels in the shoes. I noticed the wood heels too hard after wearing them all day, so going to the local drug store I found heel pads that just about perfectly fit the top of the wooden heel. I then covered the entire heel/pad combination with a nylon sock, stretched it tight at the bottom and them cut/taped it. My wife and sister-in-law have asked me to make them a set too! Hopefully the above makes sense, but feel free to PM me if you need more details/info. Scotty
Dr. Shoe Posted May 7, 2004 Posted May 7, 2004 Sounds perfectly sound to me! Graduate footwear designer able to advise and assist on modification and shoe making projects.
sscotty727 Posted May 7, 2004 Author Posted May 7, 2004 Thanks Dr Shoe. I have been wearing mine for a week now and they are great! I feel like 3" at work instead of 2" but they still look like 2". Right now (at home) I have my 3" block heels on with them in and they feel like 4"! Even had to do a walk around the house (we just got it painted) and none of the workers even noticed. I got ambisious(sp?) and made my wife and sister-in-laws as well. My wife said they are very comfy. Scotty
Heelfan Posted May 14, 2004 Posted May 14, 2004 How Extraordinary! I can fully understand why various guys would want to wear hidden heels to avoid embarrassment, but I am amazed that any woman would want to do so! I would have thought any woman wearing high heels would be proud to be doing so and would want everyone to see her heels in all their glory. Can you explain their thinking Scotty? Cheerfully yours, Heelfan Onwards and upwards!
sscotty727 Posted May 15, 2004 Author Posted May 15, 2004 Hi Heelfan, Yes I can. Since they are both short, they can look "taller" by wearing a heel and looking taller;) Plus they can reuse their current footware which doesn't have a high heel and gain some more height out of it. Scotty
Bubba136 Posted May 15, 2004 Posted May 15, 2004 To each his own Being mentally comfortable in your own mind is the key to wearing heels in public.
sscotty727 Posted May 15, 2004 Author Posted May 15, 2004 Hey Bubba, Actually I am just guessing her reasons for wanting them, I have no idea. My thing is I don't really care why, she wanted a pair and I made them. Plus it gave me a way to bring up my heel wearing to her so it all worked out. I am sure she has her reasons for wanting them Scotty
Bubba136 Posted May 16, 2004 Posted May 16, 2004 I wasn't disparaging you. I can't think of any reason a woman would want to wear them either. However, what ever works is all that counts. Glad you and your sister-in-law are getting along so well. It does make things easier. Being mentally comfortable in your own mind is the key to wearing heels in public.
sscotty727 Posted June 1, 2004 Author Posted June 1, 2004 All, I finally got around to taking a few pictures with my new camera phone and thought I would take a few of my inserts. I appologize for the quality, but hopefully you will all get the idea. Here is the raw product. You can see it is oval shaped and has a bevel (not sure if that is the correct name for it) cut in it. I cut this in half and then the bevelled end becomes the bottom. Anyway, after I cut the wood in half, I trim the sides of the wood down with a knife until it fits inside my shoe. I then turn the wood so the bevelled part is on the bottom and the round part is in the back. Then using a wood file, I file down the flat part until I have a comfortable angle or wedge. Once I get it shaped just right, I get soft inserts and cover the wood and then cover the entire then with a nylon sock. Sorry I don't have the intermediate steps photographed, if I make another I will take a more step by step picture, but here is the finished insert: And the final picture shows how the insert fits into my shoe. Actually it's pretty comfortable! I hope the pics help somewhat. Please feel free to shoot me any questions. Scotty 1
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