Aiming High - Practicing in Heels

[pebblesf]

46 minutes ago, Shyheels said:

I’ve just been researching the possibility of repairing my boot and it seems it is possible if you take it to a good cobbler - so I’m taking a bit of heart. It’s worth a shot!

So sorry to hear this, nothing more upsetting than heel failure on a great pair of boots.  What brand/style are you tall heeled boots?  I often wonder if my walking style has something to do with heel failure.  

3 hours ago, Shyheels said:

Here for the record are my challenge heels - my 12cm knee boots 

Those boots are amazing, and fit so nicely, so sorry about the heel...

6 hours ago, Shyheels said:

I’ve just been researching the possibility of repairing my boot and it seems it is possible if you take it to a good cobbler - so I’m taking a bit of heart. It’s worth a shot!

Sure hope the repair works out, cobblers around here won't touch a broken/loose heel..

[Shyheels]

Thank you. They are Italian Heels’ Tina model. I have a pair of these with 10cm heels that I am wearing right now. I don’t think it was anything I did which caused the problem - not my walking style or anything - I think it is just a materials failure. A pity because I really like these boots. I was really hoping to master 12cm stilettos - and I have had such good support from @mlroseplant and @higherheels At least I can see that my lack of progress was t just down to ineptitude! For the time being I shall work on becoming very polished and graceful in 10cm heels

[pebblesf]

18 minutes ago, Shyheels said:

Thank you. They are Italian Heels’ Tina model. I have a pair of these with 10cm heels that I am wearing right now. I don’t think it was anything I did which caused the problem - not my walking style or anything - I think it is just a materials failure. A pity because I really like these boots. I was really hoping to master 12cm stilettos - and I have had such good support from @mlroseplant and @higherheels At least I can see that my lack of progress was t just down to ineptitude! For the time being I shall work on becoming very polished and graceful in 10cm heels

I wore my 10cm ankle boots for several hours yesterday while rejuvinating the latest outboard I pulled off my buddy's junk pile, felt great, very comfortable

[Puffer]

19 hours ago, Shyheels said:

Here for the record are my challenge heels - my 12cm knee boots 

I know that, like me, you have large feet, but those heels look lower than 12cm.   I'm not doubting the measurement, nor the challenge of mastering them, but you could perhaps set 13cm as your next goal!   

I do hope you can get a satisfactory remedy for the wonky heel, and without it costing too much.   Let us know what the cobbler's reaction is on seeing them.

[higherheels]

They indeed look a little lower than 12 cm, but this could also be a optical illusion.

[Shyheels]

Here’s a case where appearances are deceiving. The actual height of those heels is 14.7cm as per Italian Heels chart on heel height relative to size - the height based on a standard 12cm heel for size 38. The photo was taken in August in a hotel room while I was on assignment, and shot with an iPhone so perhaps the angle from which it was shot - the phone was propped on a chair - might have skewed the perspective.

i have a pair of 10cm heels in that same model, which I am wearing right now.

i can tell you as fact that 12cm heels are plenty challenging for me, and that I feel no need to up the ante to 13cm - nor is there much likelihood of my finding decent quality 13cm heels in my size even if I wanted to.

Edited Monday at 10:42 AM by Shyheels

[higherheels]

Yes it's difficult to tell the exact height from photos.

I also wouldn't skip to 13 cm in your case if 12 cm are a challenge. As for me, the Hot Chicks were a real challenge when I got them, and I had no issues with 12 cm.

[Shyheels]

18 minutes ago, higherheels said:

Yes it's difficult to tell the exact height from photos.

I also wouldn't skip to 13 cm in your case if 12 cm are a challenge. As for me, the Hot Chicks were a real challenge when I got them, and I had no issues with 12 cm.

Yes. I suspect that single extra centimetre makes a whopping difference. When I was tottering about in my 12cm boots I tried imagining what that extra centimetre’s height in your Hot Chicks would be like. Definitely too high for me even to attempt.

That said, I think when I either fix my present boots or buy some new 12cm heels I will start making decent progress. Seeing the tilt on that left heel when I was examining the boot on the tabletop  explained a lot of my difficulties so far. I’m really looking forward now to giving 12cm a proper try.

until then I’m getting plenty of time in my 10cm heels 

Edited Monday at 11:23 AM by Shyheels

[mlroseplant]

Hopefully the boots can be fixed, especially if it's not as wonky as my Michael Kors sandals got. @pebblesf My cobbler, Marty, will gladly fix loose heels, but declines to touch anything having to do with a shank. I can understand why, because he's busy enough that he probably doesn't want to mess with it. It's a rather involved repair.

As far as photographing heels to get an idea of their steepness, it is a very tricky business. If you've ever noticed in my own photos, I tend to pose in what is perhaps a less than natural way for the express purpose of showing the heel height. Whether this is actually necessary with y'all is perhaps open to debate, but it's something I've got in the habit of doing. A 10º difference in angle with make a heel look way different than it actually is.

In addition to optical delusions (as I like to call them), I have run into several situations where I cannot get the ruler to agree with the feel of the shoe, and sometimes the look as well. I have some shoes that measure pretty tall, but do not feel it or look it. And yet the ruler doesn't lie, right? I also have a couple pairs that feel insanely steep, but I can't manage to get the ruler to reflect that. I guess I should worry less about numbers, maybe.

My latest training shoes, pictured above somewhere, measure 13.3 cm, which translates to 12.5 cm in size 38, and they feel to me exactly like those numbers would suggest. I need to pace around in them for a good 5-10 minutes before I don't feel completely stupid wearing them, and even then, though I haven't measured, I feel like I can only get the heels about 1/4 inch (or 6 mm) off the ground, standing on tiptoe. I feel like until that distance improves, there's only so much improvement I can make.

[higherheels]

Certain shoes with similar heel heights also feel different for me. I think it comes from all the other differences they have combined.

[Shyheels]

Yes, there are other aspects beside heel height that contribute to a shoe or boot's ease of wear. I have a pair of lovely side OTK boots custom made by Jean Gaborit with slender - nearly but not quite true stiletto - heels that measure about 9.5cms. They are so incredibly easy to walk in, not much different than walking in chunky mid-heels really. If I had the money I would love to get some more of their boots.  

[pebblesf]

1 hour ago, Shyheels said:

Yes, there are other aspects beside heel height that contribute to a shoe or boot's ease of wear. I have a pair of lovely side OTK boots custom made by Jean Gaborit with slender - nearly but not quite true stiletto - heels that measure about 9.5cms. They are so incredibly easy to walk in, not much different than walking in chunky mid-heels really. If I had the money I would love to get some more of their boots.  

You are sooo right.  It is the total design of the shoe/boot that determines walking ease and comfort.  I just wish that there was a universal accepted way/method for measuring heel height.  As we know, heel heights vary even on a particular manufacturer's exact model depending on size.  I have struggled for many years to make the jump from 4 to 5"/12cm heels.   I was so thrilled to find these nine west stiletto booties (5"/12cm) heels that are fairly easy to walk in!  Too bad I wrecked one of the heels, since found another pair though, will be more careful.  

[Shyheels]

I think too that with stilettos, the higher the heel the more fragile it is likely to be

[pebblesf]

40 minutes ago, Shyheels said:

I think too that with stilettos, the higher the heel the more fragile it is likely to be

So true

[Puffer]

On 2/9/2026 at 10:41 AM, Shyheels said:

Here’s a case where appearances are deceiving. The actual height of those heels is 14.7cm as per Italian Heels chart on heel height relative to size - the height based on a standard 12cm heel for size 38. The photo was taken in August in a hotel room while I was on assignment, and shot with an iPhone so perhaps the angle from which it was shot - the phone was propped on a chair - might have skewed the perspective.

...

This was all getting rather confusing!   I hadn't realised that you were describing heel heights by their 'standard' equivalent, and that the true measured height of yours is 14.7mm, which explains a lot as regards wearability.  But it makes the pic look even odder - I would have guessed those heels as shown to be no more than 4.25" high in your size.   I know what it is like to wear heels (probably same foot size as yours: UK 11/12) that are a truly measured 5" or 5.25" high - not easy; you have my further respect for 'managing' when practising in a true 5.75" heel! 

It would help mutual understanding if true heel heights were always quoted, with the 'standard equivalent' too if helpful when shoe size is not only marginally larger or smaller.

These Office shoes (UK8) belonging to a friend have a true height of 131mm = 5.16".   They look noticeably higher (and certainly steeper) than your boots.

Edited Tuesday at 12:08 PM by Puffer
Added info.

[Shyheels]

Well my boots were purchased from Italian Heels and were sold as 12cm heels in their standard size, with the heels being incrementally higher or lower depending on however much bigger or smaller your foot size is. It is what it is. Whether it looks accurate in the photo or not. Whatever the actual measurement of the heels on my boots, I regard them as 12cm heels since that is what they are billed as.

its sensible to figure things this way as there can be a general talking point - when @mlroseplant or @higherheels says they’re in 12cm heels we know we are talking about roughly the same angle and degrees of difficulty, allowing for slight variations in the designs of the shoe or boot.

Edited Tuesday at 01:50 PM by Shyheels

[pebblesf]

1 hour ago, Puffer said:

This was all getting rather confusing!   I hadn't realised that you were describing heel heights by their 'standard' equivalent, and that the true measured height of yours is 14.7mm, which explains a lot as regards wearability.  But it makes the pic look even odder - I would have guessed those heels as shown to be no more than 4.25" high in your size.   I know what it is like to wear heels (probably same foot size as yours: UK 11/12) that are a truly measured 5" or 5.25" high - not easy; you have my further respect for 'managing' when practising in a true 5.75" heel! 

It would help mutual understanding if true heel heights were always quoted, with the 'standard equivalent' too if helpful when shoe size is not only marginally larger or smaller.

These Office shoes (UK8) belonging to a friend have a true height of 131mm = 5.16".   They look noticeably higher (and certainly steeper) than your boots.

I will have to measure my nine west ankle boots this way today!

[Puffer]

4 hours ago, Shyheels said:

...I regard them as 12cm heels since that is what they are billed as.

its sensible to figure things this way as there can be a general talking point - when @mlroseplant or @higherheels says they’re in 12cm heels we know we are talking about roughly the same angle and degrees of difficulty, allowing for slight variations in the designs of the shoe or boot.

Yes, understood.   A standardisation that helps comparison - provided we all understand and adopt the same standard, which mlroseplant takes as being the actual height of a Eu38 shoe heel.   As good as anything.   I expect the shoes I pictured above were sold as being 5", which they probably were in size 38.

[Shyheels]

Yes the heel height all seem to be based on a size 38. 

[mlroseplant]

We are like the only 6 people on the planet who care about such things. Even my fashionista people don't understand how trigonometry relates to high heels. Few, if any, have any concept of the height of the heels they wear or don't wear.

Until very recently, I just used the actual heel measurement in our conversation here. I figured my size 40 was close enough--and it probably is for 99.9% of the people in the world. For this challenge, however, actual steepness actually matters, so I changed my way of stating it, in order to have and apples to apples comparison.

I can remember a former member here, years ago, saying he'd spent the entire day in 4 inch heels. Pretty impressive until you actually saw the shoes. In his size, they were almost like kitten heels!

[Shyheels]

Yes we are indeed a unique little group - true aficionados of high heel fashion who know and care about the details. I like that. It’s nice to be in such company. 

[pebblesf]

7 hours ago, mlroseplant said:

We are like the only 6 people on the planet who care about such things. Even my fashionista people don't understand how trigonometry relates to high heels. Few, if any, have any concept of the height of the heels they wear or don't wear.

Until very recently, I just used the actual heel measurement in our conversation here. I figured my size 40 was close enough--and it probably is for 99.9% of the people in the world. For this challenge, however, actual steepness actually matters, so I changed my way of stating it, in order to have and apples to apples comparison.

I can remember a former member here, years ago, saying he'd spent the entire day in 4 inch heels. Pretty impressive until you actually saw the shoes. In his size, they were almost like kitten heels!

I have always felt that given a certain actual heel height, it is much easier to walk in them with larger feet.  

[HappyinHeels]

Shyheels,

Saw all the chatter then saw the photo of your knee high boots. They certainly look nice and I would consider something like this. I’ve never worn boots tucked into jeans like this rather have worn knee high boots with dresses. These look great on you. I don’t have flat sole boots like these but the overall look of your boots is classic indeed. HinH

[Shyheels]

Thank you @HappyinHeels

Yes I like wearing my boots over my jeans. I’ve always liked the classic style boots - both stilettos and chunky heels. Clean lines and simple styling and worn with jeans. For a guy who likes to wear heels, my tastes are really rather conservative. 

[Cali]

4 hours ago, HappyinHeels said:

Shyheels,

Saw all the chatter then saw the photo of your knee high boots. They certainly look nice and I would consider something like this. I’ve never worn boots tucked into jeans like this rather have worn knee high boots with dresses. These look great on you. I don’t have flat sole boots like these but the overall look of your boots is classic indeed. HinH

Get with it HinH. 😁 I wear my knee highs over my pants all the time too. Today it was my black faux suede Jessica Simpson knee highs over my size 8 jeans. The JS knee highs are black faux suede with 4 inch TH heels.

@mlroseplant My new unit of measure, using measuring instruments is TH which is heel height minus platform.

Edited 14 hours ago by Cali

[mlroseplant]

10 hours ago, Cali said:

Get with it HinH. 😁 I wear my knee highs over my pants all the time too. Today it was my black faux suede Jessica Simpson knee highs over my size 8 jeans. The JS knee highs are black faux suede with 4 inch TH heels.

@mlroseplant My new unit of measure, using measuring instruments is TH which is heel height minus platform.

Yeah, I've pretty much quit caring about absolute heel height these days, and tend to focus on TH, as you call it. Having said that, I actually own at least two pair of 15 cm heels (I'd have to look), and several 14 cm, but they all have giant platforms, so that doesn't really count for me as much as it used to. One thing about giant platforms is they do make you considerably taller than a single sole of the same height.

[higherheels]

Before my times here on hhplace I never even measured my heels. Still I got in contact with the "heel height in standard size", because all manufacturers claim a certain heel height which doesn't seem to change with the shoe size. It's very prominent on some Louboutin models where it's even a part of the name (like Pigalle 120 or Hot Chick 130).

Then after our discussions here I started measuring some of my heels (size 37) and found out they're a little bit below of what the manufacturer claims.

So over all the years I didn't even know my personal heel height but got a good feeling for the "heel height in standard size" 😀

 

12 hours ago, Cali said:

My new unit of measure, using measuring instruments is TH which is heel height minus platform.

What does TH stand for?

In my mind I also always subtract the platform height. Sure, a huge platform can make it more difficult to walk on uneven ground but for the steepness it's irrelevant.

[Shyheels]

I hadn’t realised how much higher my heels were, in absolute terms, with my size 45/46 boots, but of course that makes sense - so you with you size 37 and @mlroseplant with his 39/40 and me with my size are all talking about roughly the same thing in terms of angle, proportions and degrees of difficulty. It makes for a useful shorthand 12cm is 12cm for all of us