Interesting Concept

[johnieheel]

Wife and I went out today to do a little shopping. She wore her 3" heel above ankle boots and I , for the first time in a long time, wore my Nike runners. For some weird reason I noticed a man kinda staring at me a little like I was wearing heels or something. At that point I thought I would, just for the fun of it, do a little observation. Conclusion is that it seemed people were looking at me the same way in my guy runners as in my heels. Go figure. Tell you all anything? I actually believe I was getting more looks today than when wearing heels. This just proves to me that it's mostly a head game we play with our self that people might stare, laugh, or make remarks we don't want to hear when we wear our heels in public. They look anyway because that's what we do. Everybody looks at everybody when out and about no matter what they wear and nobody really cares because we amuse ourselves by "people watching" so don't be afraid to give them something a little different to look at. They like it!

[Thighbootguy]

Something I have noticed when I’m wearing thigh boots and particularly when I’m wearing a skirt, is that some folks do see you but make an effort to not make an overt action of looking. I suspect they just don’t want to mess with the idea of a guy in boots and a skirt and refuse to let the concept into their world. (It’s their world and they can do what they want with it.) I have not noticed that I generated more or as much attention when wearing guy shoes and slacks. But there is another consideration. When I’m out in boots and a skirt, I kind of throw up a mental shield against the rest of the world. With that filter in place, I’m real conscious of who I’m interacting with and who I’m tuning out. I am picky about who I’m letting into my world. I’m sure that others pick up on that and are willing to return the snub, of overtly being ignored, by ignoring me. (I’m not sure I realized I was doing that until I wrote this ... I’ll have to give it more thought). Back to your post Did your Nike runners match (or was one pink and the other green)? Just kidding. I do absolutely agree with your conclusion that this is a head came that you can win.

[lorriette]

tbg, like new avatar. Perhaps i'm getting too old, but todays young work on an alternative set of values. Older people react in a defensive, shocked?. attitude. The young either like the look, or take the p**s out of you. Public heeling, especially accompanied with a skirt, requires you to have a mental shell/ shield that blocks the idea of negativity. Sadly, this shell can also let you miss the positive looks and put off someone who may wish to verbally compliment your efforts. Still, the fun is in the trying!

[Guest]

I'm with you thighbootguy, I fully agree with that concept of "tuning out" & "letting in" all who pass you & come across you in public-this IS all MENTAL in the way ALL of us see "our" world!

[onyourtoes]

I've noticed I get many more obvious stares when wearing men's shoes that are less than mainstream: my bright red sneakers and Swedish wood soled clogs (Black) come to mind, though one day recently I was wearing tan sneakers and from the stares, had to keep checking that I wasn't wearing 6 inch heels. I recently sat in Starbucks with my 3.5 inch block heel Mary Janes out in plain sight and nobody gave me a second look.

[thedesigner]

agreed !! I got more stares for wearing plimsolls with little red flowers and green leaves, than when wearing heels !! Anything out of the ordinary causes looks, but dont we all look - often admiringly - at anyone with the bollox to be themselves and not a clone of a magazine page....

[loveheel]

Johnieheel, I did exactly the same experiment a while ago. First walked through the mall with HH and had this feeling people were staring at me. Maybe it was because I was wearing a bag from Kate Spade (had just bought a gift for an employee). Then I went to the car and changed to regular shoes. Interestingly, I still had the feeling people stared at me. So indeed, it is mostly a head game. That doesn't mean that people don't notice your heels, but they are probably less fixated on it than you think. Especially where there are few people around, people tend to look at each other. That is why a crowded place is often better if you prefer not to get spotted.

[roniheels]

I was in a Starbucks one day in my suit and stiletto heels. A young man walked in wearing a multicolored shirt, jeans with holes in them, and bright orange Nikes. Guess who the people in the store stared at more?

[JeffB]

A few weeks ago while at the mall, I saw a young guy, dressed all in black, piercings everywhere (nose, ears, eyebrows), platform Doc Maartens and---I'm not making this up---a six inch high purple mohawk, and very few gave him so much as a second glance. Then I saw another guy wearing tight jeans tucked in red knee high sneakers with normal clothing, a normal hairstyle, no piercings, nothing out of the ordinary, but he got all the stares, mainly because of his sneakers. It's all about perception and what people are used to seeing, goth kids and headbangers are part of the landscape, but the guy in his funky sneakers aren't, or at least not yet. As for men wearing heels? I'd say we're somewhere in the middle on the perception meter, not quite normal, but not quite bizarre either.

[Guest]

thats a good way to put it, JeffB, it is all about people see the "landscape" as it were around them, you know that its kind of funny in a way, you got it right on the nail about men wearing heels seen in public too! I'd say that it is all about habitual exposure to all the elements of that "landscape" in everyday life, over & over, day after day.

[thedesigner]

HELLO. this is what ive said all along, people look at the non-stereotypes WHATEVER THEY ARE all the time.... On a 'does not compute' basis. So lets just regard ourselves as being emos, goths, punks, and style setters ! C'mon, dont we also look at unusual and creative fashion styles ? Keep 'em high !