Heels

If stiletto heels are your passion, and you ever see a pair of these, chances are that you will never want "ordinary" heels again. What am I talking about? A description: Usually, they are 5" (12.7 cm) high; that seems fairly standard. The upper half of the heel is covered with material to match the rest of the shoe. The lower half is made of a hard metal, frequently anodized gold or silver and polished to a high gloss, sometimes cut with grooves or other designs to increase high- lights, and tapers to form an incredibly sharp spike of only .2" (5 mm) diameter at the tip. The tips are not rubber or plastic padded, and "click" on a hard surface most satisfyingly. They're also guaranteed to "leave your mark on the world," on anything softer than concrete. Talking about sex and power-- these are lethal!

They first appeared, so I'm told, in the small shops along Melrose Ave. in Hollywood, about 7-8 years ago. From there, their popularity spread like wildfire around the world. They started showing up in rock videos ("Cryin'", by Vixen, starts with a shot), and in pictorials in the better "skin" magazines, such as Penthouse. "Upscale" retailers, such as Sacha of London, soon began carrying them. Not long after, at least one manufacturer in Taiwan began producing them for the "budget" trade. These remained popular for many years, long after the more expensive ones disappeared from Sacha's and other places. Perhaps the largest retailer to offer them in this area was Edison Shoe Co., owners of the Leeds and Wild Pair chains. Another major chain (Butler, I think) also carried them for a while, until they switched to the more conservative styles of one designer, and renamed their shops to Dolcis. Somewhere along this time, Fredericks of Hollywood, quick to recognize the value to their specialized trade, also began carrying them. Many highly imaginative styles were produced, including the classic D'Orsey (sp.?) pump (enclosed heel and toe box, open sides-- it was more common in the 1950's and `60's when spikes were last generally popular, but seldom seen this time around), in a variety of materials: Leather and suede (real and fake), patent, satin, and even snake skin. For some reason, styles were mostly restricted to shoes, during this time. Edison Co. offered a few ankle boots for a little while; otherwise, nothing else in the way of boots (that I could find) was available retail, until later. Prices ranged from US$35.00 to perhaps $70.00 for leather.

Their popularity has declined in the past 2 to 3 years, and especially recently, now that spikes are being phased out in favor of the "new" style in block heels that grandma and great-grandma used to wear. Leeds doesn't offer them at all, any more, and Wild Pair only has one style at a time; the last several have been unimaginative and uninteresting, compared to what they used to have. Fredericks is the only retailer that I know of that still offers any variety: In addition to the styles they are ordering from Taiwan, they have bought a large stock of the heels themselves, for use in styles they are having custom manufactured for them. In the last year or two, they have offered boots in various heights, including thigh-high, all on 5" "needle" heels.

I would think that these heels would be popular, or at least available, in the fetish clothing trade. I was told at one specialty shop with international contacts, that they are not. About two years ago, I sent inquiries to a list of mail order houses in the United States and Eu- rope, and received one affirmative response. I have not had time since to make any more contacts or expand the list. Known sources would be greatly appreciated.

Needless to say, shoes like these make great "bedroom slippers"! (Be- ware when using them in a water bed, though. :) Unlike more extreme styles, these are easy to walk in, and are suitable for going out to parties, etc. It was a rare treat to see a beautiful woman who was wearing them in public. (More might have, had they known about them. The few women I have shown them to wanted immediately to know "WHERE did you get those?!") When I had a job maintaining potted office plants, one of the offices I visited every week for a while was very unusual, in that they permitted their employees casual dress. Also, their office was furnished with plush, high pile, and heavily padded carpeting, rather than the usual industrial grade. Their receptionist exemplified the idea that beauty and sexiness are as much an attitude as anything else. She wore her fingernails long but exceedingly well trimmed, and frequently came to work in tight stone-washed jeans (with ankle zips), and those incredible "needle" heels. Years later, images of her walking across the open areas of the office, her heels digging and sinking into the carpet, still ignite my fantasies... (sigh!)

Jeff