HISTORY OF HIGH HEELS        

The high-heeled shoe, or a shoe whose heel is higher than the toe, is a matter of contentious and heated discussion. Shoes in general have typically served as markers of gender, class, race, and ethnicity--and both the foot and the shoe have been imbued with powerful phallic and fertility symbols as evidenced in the contemporary practice of tying shoes to a newlywed couple’s car. No other shoe, however, has gestured toward leisure, sexuality, and sophistication as much as the high-heeled shoe. Fraught with contradiction, heels paradoxically inhibit movement in order to increase it, at least in appearance. Standing in heels, a woman presents herself already half-walking while at the same time reducing the length of her step, fostering the illusion of speed while suggesting the promise of an imminent fall. The higher and more unstable the heel, the more clearly these contradictions are expressed (Kunzle 2004). Doctors and scholars alike have argued about the physical and cultural effect, both positive and negative,of high heels effects. 


 Precursors to the High-Heeled Shoe

Most of the lower class in ancient Egypt walked barefoot, but figures on murals dating from 3500 B.C. depict an early version of shoes worn mostly by the higher classes. These were leather pieces held together with lacing that was often arranged to look like the symbol of “Ankh,” which represents life. But there are also some depictions of both upper-class males and females wearing heels, probably for ceremonial purposes. Egyptian butchers also wore heels, to help them walk above the blood of dead beasts.  ve had not only on women, but on society as a whole.

Formal Invention of High Heels as FashionIn the early 1700s, France's King Louis XIV (The Sun King) would often wear intricate heels decorated with miniature battle scenes.

The formal invention of high heels as fashion is typically attributed to the rather 

short-statured Catherine de Medici (1519-1589). At the age of 14, Catherine de Medici was engaged to the powerful Duke of Orleans, later the King of France. She was small (not quite five feet) relative to the Duke and hardly considered a beauty. She felt insecure in the arranged marriage knowing she would be the Queen of the French Court and in competition with the Duke’s favorite (and significantly taller) mistress, Diane de Poitiers

IDuring early 1700s, France’s Kind Louis XIV who is the Sun King is known to wear intricate heels that are embroidered with miniature battle scenes. This shoe is called as “Louis Heels” and as tall as five inches. The king then announced that only the noble could wear heels coming in color red and there should be no heels higher than his should.

Aside from this, the novelist Restif de Bretonne created a big emphasis on the finely arched foot by creating curved high heels. This allowed many women to taped their feet to lessen their sizes. Comparable to a corset, it is a known fact that high heels can sculpt the body to make it look more pure, aristocratic, and desirable. This sexual nature of the high heels became famous too to the Puritans. There is even a law that bans women from using high heels in order to attract men. Otherwise, they will be looked as a witch. It is only in the mid 1800s when American finally caught the European craze for high heels.

1553-1558 

Blood Mary or Mary Tudor would wear high heels. During this period, high heels are for both sexes.

Another look at history. While lower heels were preferred during the late 60s and 70s, higher heels returned in the 1980s and early 1990s. Specifically, Manolo Blahnik’s high-heeled shoes were seen everywhere on the catwalks as new designers started to rethink high heels. As opulent television shows such as Dallas and Dynasty suggested, excess was the hallmark of the 1980s. While flat shoes were likely worn in the corporate culture, more sophisticated designer high heels were still sign of Yuppie success. While designers who helped create the very tall heels of the 1990s, such as Jimmy Choo and Emma Hope, rode into that decade on this profitable trend, by the late 1990s heels started to decline once again as the hippie revival emphasized comfort over fashion (West 1993).

Posted 1 year ago by fotofiction

Tags: high heels, shoes, history,

ancient discovry

References

Gamman, Larraine. 1993. "Self-Fashioning, Gender Display, and Sexy Girl Shoes: What's at Stake—Female Fetishism or Narcissism?" in Footnotes on Shoes. Shari Benstock and Suzanne Ferriss, eds. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press.

Kunzle, David. 2004. Fashion and Fetishism: Corsets, Tight-Lacing, and Other Forms of Body-Sculpting. Thrupp, UK: Sutton Publishing Limited.

Mitchell, Louise. 1997. Stepping Out: Three Centuries of Shoes. Sydney, Australia: Powerhouse Publishing.

Murstein, Bernard I. 1974. Love, Sex, and Marriage through the Ages. New York, New York: Springer Publishing Company.

Rexford, Nancy E. 2000. Women’s Shoes in America, 1795-1930. Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press.

Sherr, Lynn. .2006. Going Under the Knife for the Perfect Pair of Heels. Accessed: March 11, 2008.

Swann, June. 1984. Shoes. London, England: Butler & Tanner Ltd.

Turim, Maureen.1993. "High Angles on Shoes." The Shoe in Art, the Shoe as Art. In in Footnotes on Shoes. Shari Benstock and Suzanne Ferriss, eds. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press.

West, Janice. 1993. "The Shoe in Art, the Shoe as Art." In in Footnotes on Shoes.Shari Benstock and Suzanne Ferriss, eds. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press.

Wilson, Nigel Guy. 2005. Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece. New York, New York: Routledge. Accessed: March 11, 2008

At the present, high heels shoes are rampant. They come in varying styles, brands, and shapes. So now, which high heel shoes do you like?

find the magic sho"e colours

Do you know that shoe’s colors give SURPRISING EFFECTS in your outfit if they are well-coordinated with the color of your clothes?

BLACK
Black is the CLASSIC OR BASIC LOOK for a sexy high heels shoe. If you aren't sure with the selection of color for your shoe, black high heels are mostly recommended to wear since this color always goes perfect with any color of your outfit. So you will never have a hard time in matching these shoes because of their flexibility to mix and match with any of your outfit or even any occasion. Black is also the color of intellectualism, of abstinence, of discipline.

RED
Do not underestimate the sex appeal of a red high heels shoe. The color red represents life and fertility, but it's also associated with danger and death. Red is the color for passion and rage, love and war, also religious ceremonies. Red high heels shoe symbolizes BOLD, PASSIONATE, STRONG and INTENSE. If you decide to wear red high heels shoe, be careful with selection of your outfit. Choose a red dress or have a red motif and wear it in the night.

WHITE
White high heels shoe is SEXY, PLAIN, SIMPLE and this is a color that MAKES YOU LOOK YOUNGER. White high heels shoe always catches the eye first, it becomes the first thing you notice about a person. It is suggested not to pair them with dark bottoms or they’ll look a bit too stark and out of place. Pair them with a white or any light color suit. White high heels is work well in the summer or daytime.

3 Seconds to Attract Men's Attention

There are many ways to attract men’s attention. Generally, men likes women because of their physical attribute or 'SOMETHING' THEY WEAR. However, women’s physical attributes will not be discussed in this article, on the other hand, we will discuss ‘something’ they wear.

For instance when we are selling a product to customers, we have to think how to at least catch the eye of the customers. Same thing goes for women. What do you have to wear to attract men’s attention ? SOMETHING RELATED TO 'SEXY' WORD, like sexy dress, sexy skirt or sexy high heels.

Wearing high heels with MINIMUM 3 INCH HEIGHT is the most effective. You have to choose something UNIQUE, different from the others to attract attention. A heel with normal height (below 3 inch) will seem ordinary because every woman wears it. See the article : sexy high heels – 5 things why so many men are mad about them.

If you have never used it before, there is no need to worry because there is a first time for everything. You can also read ‘how to walk confidently in sexy high heels’.

So, now you don’t have to worry about how to attract men’s attention. Use your high heels. After you wear it, in 3 second you will catch the eyes of men.

Another metaphor about how big the influence of this high heels to you : you may spend a lot of time to get beautiful make ups on your face, but if you still use ordinary heels, you are still second to others who put ordinary make ups on their face but using sexy high heels.

Have a try !