jetheelsfan Posted December 1, 2011 Posted December 1, 2011 Starting in about 1962, The Aldens catalog in the US started offering a series girl's styles that had a mini-stiletto heel of about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inch tall in size 12 girls to 8 youth. There was a title one year that stated, "She'll feel so grown up in her first heels - just high enough to delight her, yet low enough for healthful foot comfort." This caught my fancy as a youth myself in the 6th grade. About that same time, my female peers began to wear "little heels" to begin dressing up as they began to dress as young women. They were also known as "jet heels" that I became fascinated. style heel styles that had a mini-stiletto style heel styles that had a mini-stiletto. Does anyone remember using them as her first heels? Or his? Just a bit higher to to delight - low enough for healthy foot comfort and great beginning.
Puffer Posted December 31, 2011 Posted December 31, 2011 Shoes of this type (usually ponted-toe court style) with a properly-shaped narrow stiletto heel of 1.5 - 2" height came into fashion in the UK from around 1959 as soon as higher stilettos had become mainstream 'adult' fashion. They were widely worn by fashion-conscious girls of 12 or 13 upwards who were still at school and were prohibited from wearing 'proper' stilettos by parents or by school uniform rules. They were usually known as 'kitten heels' (I never heard the term 'jet heels'), either because they were intended for youngsters or because they had become popular with some of the so-called 'sex kittens' - the youthful personalities of their day - who probably found higher heels less easy to walk in during active pursuits. Audrey Hepburn was a typical wearer - think Breakfast at Tiffany's - and carried off the overall look well. By the time they left school at 15 or 16, most girls who could handle them wore (or at least aspired to) true stilettos with a 4"+ heel and abandoned their kitten heels. Unfortunately, the demise of the stiletto from around 1964 marked the virtual disappearance of slender heels of any height for a number of years. The low slim block heel of up to 3" was the choice of most to go with the mini skirt. Kitten heels have of course come back into fashion in more recent years - but seemingly more popular with older women (often 1960s teenagers!) who can't now handle high stilettos than with the young girls who mostly wear either flats or 4"+ platforms, with little in between.
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