Back to the 1970s - return of platforms

[mlroseplant]

6 minutes ago, Jkrenzer said:

You have to do way worse to compare to '70s heels. These are nice.

Yeah, I'd have to agree, these are not 70s at all. It's not even so much the platform itself that gives the 70s vibe, it's the giant clunky heels! This is what concerns me most about what I am seeing in my area at the moment amongst the younger crowd. Block heels on delicate strappy sandals where the heel is actually bigger at the bottom than it is at the top. Yuck! And that's without a platform.

[HelenInHeels]

In the 70s i began wearing heels, but it was always classic pumps and never any blockhhels and or platforms. Many girls in my school, which was a Lyzeum, a school only for girls, run by the catholic church, wore platforms with blockheels, mostly brown or white kneeboots at that time. But i did not like the look. I had platforms around 2010 or so, but they didn´t last long because i didn´t like to walk in them. Somehow i lost the feel for the surface i walked on in platforms. But i still have 2 pairs of 1inch platforms for the looks.

[Jkrenzer]

3 hours ago, HelenInHeels said:

In the 70s i began wearing heels, but it was always classic pumps and never any blockhhels and or platforms. Many girls in my school, which was a Lyzeum, a school only for girls, run by the catholic church, wore platforms with blockheels, mostly brown or white kneeboots at that time. But i did not like the look. I had platforms around 2010 or so, but they didn´t last long because i didn´t like to walk in them. Somehow i lost the feel for the surface i walked on in platforms. But i still have 2 pairs of 1inch platforms for the looks.

I agree Helen, walking is for me far more comfortable and natural without platforms. I prefer a my heels to bend at the ball of my foot as I walk. Platforms don't give. Your foot just rolls with them, it's not natural.

[mlroseplant]

17 minutes ago, Jkrenzer said:

I agree Helen, walking is for me far more comfortable and natural without platforms. I prefer a my heels to bend at the ball of my foot as I walk. Platforms don't give. Your foot just rolls with them, it's not natural.

Haha, I have to laugh at your expense just a little bit! There are some who would argue that wearing any shoes at all is not natural, but even you and I must admit that the mere act of walking in high heels is unquestionably unnatural.

Having said that, I had to go check, and it is as I expected. On my Söfft brand shoes which have a platform, the soles actually do flex a little bit. They are made out of some material that is similar in feel to hard rubber. It's not rubber, but it sort of feels like it. Some kind of unitized bottom, the heel is built right into it. The platforms on such sandals never exceed 3/4", so that may be what allows them to flex.

On the other hand, my favorite pair of sandals ever has a platform and heel made of wood, which does not flex at all. At least not on a macro level. These are the best walking shoes, at least for what they are. Perhaps it is because they are mules, and it allows my feet to flex independently of the shoe. Maybe if they were fully enclosed shoes, I would not think so highly of them.

[Cali]

Sorry. but I love my platforms.  

[VirginHeels]

As I work in front line public facing customer services I can say this is true;

Older ladies are wearing their single soles, more, 2-4 inch in height generally. The younger generations are wearing their platforms, 3-5 inches with a 1-2 inch platform.

However the abomination of a flat form and crepe sole brothel creepers are in fashion too, alongside chunky soled flat boots.

Trainers are still the majority of shoes, however heels are back on the style menu for many women. Now their office is open, and social, entertainment and recreation are a thing again.

[Leo]

6 hours ago, VirginHeels said:

As I work in front line public facing customer services I can say this is true;

Older ladies are wearing their single soles, more, 2-4 inch in height generally. The younger generations are wearing their platforms, 3-5 inches with a 1-2 inch platform.

However the abomination of a flat form and crepe sole brothel creepers are in fashion too, alongside chunky soled flat boots.

Trainers are still the majority of shoes, however heels are back on the style menu for many women. Now their office is open, and social, entertainment and recreation are a thing again.

13 hours ago, Cali said:

Sorry. but I love my platforms.  

16 hours ago, mlroseplant said:

Haha, I have to laugh at your expense just a little bit! There are some who would argue that wearing any shoes at all is not natural, but even you and I must admit that the mere act of walking in high heels is unquestionably unnatural.

Having said that, I had to go check, and it is as I expected. On my Söfft brand shoes which have a platform, the soles actually do flex a little bit. They are made out of some material that is similar in feel to hard rubber. It's not rubber, but it sort of feels like it. Some kind of unitized bottom, the heel is built right into it. The platforms on such sandals never exceed 3/4", so that may be what allows them to flex.

On the other hand, my favorite pair of sandals ever has a platform and heel made of wood, which does not flex at all. At least not on a macro level. These are the best walking shoes, at least for what they are. Perhaps it is because they are mules, and it allows my feet to flex independently of the shoe. Maybe if they were fully enclosed shoes, I would not think so highly of them.

On 11/29/2021 at 1:36 PM, at9 said:

Love them or loathe them, platforms seem to be making a comeback. Lots of articles earlier this year and this the other day: https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2021/nov/28/walking-tall-platforms-are-shoe-of-choice-for-the-party-season

Possibly also for men: https://www.justjared.com/2021/11/26/tom-daley-rocks-a-red-suit-platform-heels-for-2021-team-gb-ball/

On 2/10/2022 at 5:50 AM, Isolathor said:

Another look back when platforms were still in fashion:

On 12/15/2021 at 11:43 AM, ohnoberty said:

A number of years ago there was a news article that suggested that plaforms tended to get bigger as inflation rose. I cannot pin any certainty to this, it's obviously a unique piece of journalistic investigation.

I however think they are great. I'm not talking the eye watering hight of the lady in the photo up-top but something of a more manageable height is quite acceptable in my view.

Edited February 12, 2022 by Leo
I thought that it would be for the best.

[Chorlini]

On 2/11/2022 at 11:29 PM, VirginHeels said:

Trainers are still the majority of shoes, however heels are back on the style menu for many women. Now their office is open, and social, entertainment and recreation are a thing again.

Not in my neck of the woods. Only 1 in in hundreds of women are seen wearing heels. And those are usually older women. It's sneakers sneakers sneakers and those accursed faux-combat boots all around.

[Shyheels]

It is rare to see either platforms or stilettos in my neck of the woods, and the heels one does see are usually chunky heeled ankle or knee boots - but since that is my own style I feel as though I fit in!

[mlroseplant]

It is interesting to see what younger girls are wearing these days. My son had a band concert last week, so I saw probably 100 13-14 year old girls between the 7th and 8th grade bands. We did see sneakers of course, a few of the aforementioned faux combat boots, quite a number of dress flats in various styles, and half a dozen heels! Two were black pumps/courts with stiletto heels (but not terribly high, I would say around 3 inches). Two were strappy sandals with block heels, and two were boots with moderate chunky heels, in the 2 - 2 1/2 inch range. No platforms! Go figure. I am not sure if this is significant, but 4 out of the 6 heel wearers were flautists. One saxophonist, one tubist.

No boys wore high heels (except for me), but my son definitely had the nicest shoes out of all of the boys. Here he is sporting his Allen Edmonds brogues, which look almost ridiculous on him at  size 11 men's, and he's a couple of inches shorter than me. It's an awkward age.

[p1ng74]

When I was in school, playing a concert in sneakers would have resulted in at least grade deduction... 

[pebblesf]

5 hours ago, p1ng74 said:

When I was in school, playing a concert in sneakers would have resulted in at least grade deduction... 

Wearing sneakers was the least of my infractions...  "Education is wasted on the young", I was certainly a poster brat for that saying.   Now that I am older, I am much more interested in all the topics I ignored in school..  Too bad now I have that attention span of a spaghetti noodle.  

[Shyheels]

I tried never to let school interfere with my education

[mlroseplant]

16 hours ago, p1ng74 said:

When I was in school, playing a concert in sneakers would have resulted in at least grade deduction... 

When I was in school, I cannot ever remember even thinking of wearing sneakers to such an event, but I'm sure it was done by others. In this day and age, the official email I received from the school asked that the kids please not wear jeans, but that no purchase of new clothing was expected. Actually, everyone looked very decent, if you don't count the parents. The parents looked terrible. My son did in fact wear jeans, but he wore his aforementioned Allen Edmonds and a shirt and tie (pilfered from me).  Evidently, they let that slide. Well, that and the fact that he basically carries the entire bottom end of that band by himself. They can't afford to fire him over jeans.

[pebblesf]

10 hours ago, mlroseplant said:

l

I am always turned off by dress requirements such as no jeans or sneaks.  A nice pair of jeans that fit properly with a decent pair of clean sneaks can look so much better than some ill fitting department store "trousers" and cheesy/cheap shoes.  Now, I'm not saying that ripped jeans and dirty old sneaks are appropriate, but just resent that jeans and sneaks are automatically assumed to be inappropriate dress.  

[mlroseplant]

12 hours ago, pebblesf said:

I am always turned off by dress requirements such as no jeans or sneaks.  A nice pair of jeans that fit properly with a decent pair of clean sneaks can look so much better than some ill fitting department store "trousers" and cheesy/cheap shoes.  Now, I'm not saying that ripped jeans and dirty old sneaks are appropriate, but just resent that jeans and sneaks are automatically assumed to be inappropriate dress.  

I am guessing that the reason for the no jeans thing is because so many of the styles are pre-distressed these days, and some quite radically. It's easier just to say "no jeans." Although they are not old enough to have uniforms, I noticed that by 8th grade, that teacher must encourage the boys to wear black pants, and button down shirt, and a tie, because 80% of them were dressed that way, and I can't imagine it was their own idea.

[pebblesf]

10 hours ago, mlroseplant said:

I am guessing that the reason for the no jeans thing is because so many of the styles are pre-distressed these days, and some quite radically. It's easier just to say "no jeans." Although they are not old enough to have uniforms, I noticed that by 8th grade, that teacher must encourage the boys to wear black pants, and button down shirt, and a tie, because 80% of them were dressed that way, and I can't imagine it was their own idea.

Yeah, I suppose you are right...  Kids left to their own devices will usually pick the worst outfits, so it is probably easier to just prescribe a "uniform".  

[mlroseplant]

13 hours ago, pebblesf said:

Yeah, I suppose you are right...  Kids left to their own devices will usually pick the worst outfits, so it is probably easier to just prescribe a "uniform".  

My kid doesn't bitch when I make him dress up, it's just that it wouldn't occur to him on his own that he ought to wear something better than a greasy t-shirt to a band concert. It also doesn't occur to him that he ought to change out of his good clothes before he starts to work on anything (like antique small engines) that might permanently stain them.

At any rate, I haven't seen any evidence of this platform trend invading Iowa. Ugly heels, yes. Platforms, not just yet. You, being a flight attendant, get to see a lot broader cross section of people than I reckon I do.

[pebblesf]

1 hour ago, mlroseplant said:

My kid doesn't bitch when I make him dress up, it's just that it wouldn't occur to him on his own that he ought to wear something better than a greasy t-shirt to a band concert. It also doesn't occur to him that he ought to change out of his good clothes before he starts to work on anything (like antique small engines) that might permanently stain them.

At any rate, I haven't seen any evidence of this platform trend invading Iowa. Ugly heels, yes. Platforms, not just yet. You, being a flight attendant, get to see a lot broader cross section of people than I reckon I do.

I haven't seen any evidence of platforms fashion returning either...  And I still have the same problem, forgetting to change out of my good jeans before heading to the basement to play with my toys.  

[mlroseplant]

I have another report to say that there  is not yet any evidence of platforms taking hold in the midwest U.S. I went to the last jazz band concert of the season for grades 7-12 in my town's school. No platforms whatsoever. What was interesting is that in grade 7 (my son's grade), I saw no less than half a dozen bonafide heels! Block heeled booties in the 2 1/2" to 3" range seem to be all the rage in the 7th grade jazz band, at least among the girls. No boys wearing heels yet. One girl, a tenor saxophonist, was wearing strappy sandals with at least 3 1/2" block heels, possibly approaching 4". It's hard to tell for sure.

What is even more interesting is that the number of girls wearing heels in the 7th grade band alone exceeded the number of of girls wearing heels in both of the high school ensembles that played. If you include the 8th grade, they are certainly outnumbered. It is too bad that this evidence is merely anecdotal. Otherwise I would say that there is a trend toward heels in the pre-teen/early teen age group. And keep in mind, this was a snowy/icy evening, not terribly heel-friendly.

Unfortunately, there is a distinct disconnect between wearing heels, and actually being able to walk in them. It was example after example of what not to do when wearing heels. All of the common mistakes were on display. The one girl who seemed to do the best at it, and by "best," I mean that she didn't look completely ridiculous, was the one wearing the strappy sandals with the highest heels.

On the other hand, it is heartening to see that the kids have made great strides in the quality of their playing. There has been remarkable progress between three months ago and now.

An afterthought: While there were no boys wearing heels, there was one high school boy who had his fingernails painted black. He wore his hair in a sort of K-Pop (for lack of a better descriptive word), androgynous style. He seemed to be wearing light makeup as well. Otherwise, he did not dress or carry himself in any sort of feminine way at all. He was featured prominently in several solos, both on guitar and trombone, and he appeared to be rather popular with his classmates, both during and after the show. I'm just noting how times may be changing.

Edited February 26, 2022 by mlroseplant

[70splats]

Love 70s platforms! Glad they're coming back. Spike heels are so uninteresting, and boring to me, just my opinion.

[Cali]

30 minutes ago, 70splats said:

Love 70s platforms! Glad they're coming back. Spike heels are so uninteresting, and boring to me, just my opinion.

I like both at the same time, stilettoes with platforms. My Jessica Simpson knee high boots and booties give the best of both worlds.

[VirginHeels]

The ones I’m seeing day in-day out are like the following:

https://wheresthatfrom.com/products/vsp1_red?variant=42382110589170&currency=GBP&utm_source=google&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_campaign=sag_organic&utm_content=sag_organic&fo_c=4389&fo_k=01b0601751a2705b77b283e193e5cc80&fo_s=gplauk&gclid=Cj0KCQiA3-yQBhD3ARIsAHuHT66DKlR_aP7n2RdG_tjPrrdUrKKVPBabnzyUtMTwjfT91hu0aKfLVgoaAvJ7EALw_wcB

https://m.shein.co.uk/Minimalist-Platform-Chunky-Ankle-Strap-Pumps-p-9483517-cat-1750.html?url_from=ukadplasx2112279446400246CN40_ssc&gbraid=0AAAAADm0yO5xzviIuIN75GQ9WBfwoVzzZ&gclid=Cj0KCQiA3-yQBhD3ARIsAHuHT65oO5GOTmYBE82aNVb4we4ILmcW092TcZqDzspjy-mgKdX1jM0KkIoaAt9DEALw_wcB&ref=www&rep=dir&ret=m
https://www.lamoda.co.uk/index.php/guilty-chunky-platform-heels.html

 

The first two are okay, the third is the U word. I know that the wearing of heels is back on the rise, it’s still like 7 in every hundred here. However more women are going back to a heel, one woman said it’s not until April she goes back to the office, but wants to get used to them, and she feels more comfortable in them than trainers. She is predicting that heels will go back on in a big way in the office and other environments as well once most of the restrictions are lifted. She said that it’s the 18-23 year olds leading the push, with the 30+ next. The 23-30 group will have to learn to walk in heels as they are mostly the trainer life. There’s some market data supporting this as some manufacturers have seen a spike in demand for heels, not only from women but men too.

[at9]

Saw a man (I think it was a man, only had a back view) wearing huge platforms in London yesterday. At least 3" platform and 5" heel, possibly more. Not so rare in Camden where there are lots of goths who wear that sort of thing, but this was in Dalston.

[VirginHeels]

Interesting. We will see how this trend goes, if we are here to see it, and that mad man does not press his little red button. Let’s face it, us here in the UK will see things fly overhead.

[Chorlini]

I don't get this trend you guys are talking about. No stiletto heels whatsoever being worn here in my neck of the words. And I work at a university that is 60% female students. At best only some 6cm chunky heeled boots. And those accursed designer combat boots of course.

[VirginHeels]

Im wondering, It may be more cultural, as we come out of pandemic. I’ve read the Heels On Men De site recently, although translated, some have seen this trend in Various places in Germany, and in Milan and Madrid. It may not have hit the Netherlands. 

[Cali]

12 hours ago, Chorlini said:

I don't get this trend you guys are talking about. No stiletto heels whatsoever being worn here in my neck of the words. And I work at a university that is 60% female students. At best only some 6cm chunky heeled boots. And those accursed designer combat boots of course.

It might be weather related. I'm in a temperate locale, so I might see more than someone in a colder area.  Don't the (women) faculty wear boots with heels?

Edited March 1, 2022 by Cali

[mlroseplant]

14 hours ago, Cali said:

It might be weather related. I'm in a temperate locale, so I might see more than someone in a colder area.  Don't the (women) faculty wear boots with heels?

That may or may not have something to do with it. After all, my record (for the modern era) heel sighting the other evening occurred right after it had snowed, and there were certainly a lot of ice patches around.

On the other hand, I can remember when I was a sophomore in college, there was this new girl that moved into our dormitory for the second semester. In other words, it was winter when she moved in. I can't remember how the conversation came up, but I can remember her saying, "There's NO WAY I'm ever wearing heels with all this snow and ice on the ground." And she was true to her word, I never saw her in heels, ever. I figured she just hated heels. To my great surprise, once spring came, she started wearing heels, and not just occasionally, it was almost every day. Platforms were definitely not in style at that time!

[Chorlini]

17 hours ago, Cali said:

It might be weather related. I'm in a temperate locale, so I might see more than someone in a colder area. 

I'm at a lower latitude then Virginheels who is in Scotland, which is not known for its warmer weather.

17 hours ago, Cali said:

Don't the (women) faculty wear boots with heels?

ROTFLMAO! (with respect though, always with respect)

No.

I live in the high heel desert. It was said that the faculty of law was the last bastion of heel wearing, as women who want to become lawyers are told to heel up. But before the coof, when I occasionally frequented their faculty restaurant, 1 in a 100 perhaps? It would seem that the average Dutch woman values comfort over style. At least when it comes to footwear. And maybe other things too, I remember an article that said that the average Belgian woman sleeps half an hour less a day then the average Dutch woman as they are more busy with their looks and take more time to address their looks then Dutch women.