Good in the right situations. They make you look imho, goofy if you wear them to a playground, park, dock, etc. I do notice shoes and I do like tall women in tall shoes. If you're tall embrace it.

Heels require practice. Not just walking in them, but knowing when to wear them and with what. They make a boldly feminine statement, and I believe you are more likely, with heels, to catch the eye of tall men.

No. I'm no fan of high heels. May be because I'm short, or it may be a consequence of having hippy friends, but they just look wrong to me.

I think they're weird.

I don't have a strong opinion either way, but i do notice when I see someone who appears to be uncomfortable in them. I think it just looks weird to dress in any fashion that makes one uncomfortable, I guess.

But for women who can walk in them without being wobbly, I figure, if you like 'em, wear 'em!

The love of my life is all like, "I wanna wear high heels but they kinda make my back hurt if I wear them too much," and I'm like, "Then you should wear comfortable shoes with lots of support, like ones made for walking or those light hiking boots," which to me, I mean when she wears sensible shoes I think smart is sooo sexy, and she's all like "But I see all these women in New York wearing heels and I want to look gorgeous too" and I'm all, "There are other women in New York?" and then when we get dressed up to go somewhere and she puts on high heels and twirls in front of the mirror and I open the door for her on the way out, I watch her walk by and I'm like "Damn, woman, but you look good in those shoes!"

Not that I'm a guy who likes girls, but.

So I have this pair of shoes that I really like. Navy and tan saddle shoes. (navy suede and tan leather). I wear them a lot. And these shoes have brought me the most compliments from men of any item of clothing I own. And the range of men -- from the young hipster dude in the coffee shop, to the my-age sporty running guy in the running store, to the 70 year old man (a former shoemaker) at my bridge club. And many more. After the most recent compliment, after I thanked him, I laughed and mentioned that these shoes got me more compliments than my 4 inch (pretty hot) heels, and 3 of the men in the elevator with us snorted and said that high heels were stupid.

So that was kind of funny, because obviously there are plenty of guys who do love high heels on women, my husband number one amongst them (which is in itself amusing because I'm already taller than him without shoes on). I just seem to float around in a social pool of men who like lace ups.

Ooh I like lace-ups too, gaspode!

I bought FOUR pairs of shoes this weekend in Kittery and Freeport. Count 'em, FOUR. *sigh* But I love all four of them...

One pair of LL Bean comfy sandals (wearing now), one pair of LL Bean flats with a high ankle strap (that looks good on me), and two pairs of high heels from Nine West Outlet.

I needed the first two pairs, not so much the second two.

LOL Hugh Janus!! :)

Not into high heels on women. My wife has recently gotten a couple of pairs of very modest "stacked" heels and I always tell her, "don't buy these on MY account."

But I don't recoil from them like I used to.

Honestly...no. Heels don't do anything for me. When I see a woman in heels, I feel for her, and her poor feet.

Of course, I have a problem with a lot of what women do to themselves to supposedly be attractive to men.
Long nails? Ew. Super-Ew if they're fake nails.
Any nails with "cute" paint jobs? Yuk.
Shaved eyebrows with a new brow penciled on? WTF???
Heavy eye makeup? You're much more attractive with a more natural look, frankly.
And that whole Kardashian look? Do women really think she's attractive? She isn't.

I feel your pain, Melismata… I’m a pitiful 5’8” (not judging here, but when you’ve grown up with COSMOPOLITAN telling you that That’s what women want nowadays—for 6 foot hunks to swoop them off of their feet, and you don’t even come close… you start to feel pretty small—you know). Well, at least I did. So, if I were a woman, I would’ve definitely gone with the heels, and the hell with what men have to say about it (which includes me as well, because this is a post I’d made a couple of months ago, extolling my virtues).

God, I’m such a hypocrite sometimes. That is, until you see the images that I did… let me see if I can find it for you…

4 new pairs of shoes, Melismata? photos! Shoes make me happy, even though I hardly ever get new ones.

I just went back and skimmed through my entire posting history on fb to try and find it, but couldn’t—it was a procedure that they had put up on youtube showing the damage that women’s feet have to endure when wearing such high heels, and to then get them corrected by pretty (what seemed to me to be at least) gruesome surgery—if I do end up finding it, I’ll be sure to post it here.

Look, if they make you feel sexy and sophisticated and gorgeous, wear the hell out of 'em. For me? I'm definitely on the meh side of the fence. I think they look like Bronze Age devices of torture. Now, a woman in a pair of hiking boots, running shoes, sandals, even riding boots? Hot.

Yesss, finally, it was hiding in this post—that too, in the comments section… I know this doesn’t apply to you, or most women, hopefully—I’m thinking that walking constantly up and down the runway, and running to and fro from one venue to another, is not what most women have to live with, so it must have some kind of an [exaggerated effect], but I have no idea how uncomfortable it can be to balance your entire body weight, on what amounts to be a glorified tooth pick (okay, it's not the same size, but) and then manage to stay on it the entire day… wow, that takes some determination, right there.

High heels? No. No interest. They fall so far out of the practicality range that I'd makes *me* hurt to see someone wearing them.

*shrug* I think they're implanted in culture as a sort of fetishized, sexualized item so on that level they're kinda attractive

in terms of whether they change your walk or calf or whatevs I don't really know

I like wearing heels (where high equals no more than 2.75 inches). Any taller and I'd fall on my butt. I think 2" is the sweet point of minimal pain (especially when the right shoe width is purchased) and the "I'm tall(er)!" feeling. Then again I'm only 5' 1" so ymmv.

I can't wear high heels after an accident 30 years ago when I damaged all the metatarsals in my left foot. If I'm going to a party or something I'll change into heels (about 2.5" is my maximum) but I'm glad to get out of them. I see women at work striding along in 4 or 5 inch heels and wonder how the hell they ever can even walk a few steps in them.

gaspode, aren't those saddle shoes green and tan? ;-)

I think high heels are like a lot of fashion - great in the right context. A big glamorous night out, with the mega-expensive dress and the hairdo and all that? If your partner is wearing either a dinner suit or dressed up the way you are? High heels are pretty much mandatory there. Every day at work? Just pointless, in my opinion. It staggers me that so many women go to the trouble of carrying their shoes in a bag to and from work and wear joggers because they can't walk the distance from the train/bus to work, then change into high heels for work. If you can't walk more than a few steps in a pair of shoes, they aren't meant for everyday use.

Unfortunately, the corporate world outside the public service is still largely driven by men and the simple fact is, if you want to get ahead in a company and you're female, you need to dress to impress. Sad but true.

Me, while I'm kind of embarrassed to admit it, a well-dressed woman who can walk confidently in high heels? Yeah, I notice and yes, it makes a (positive) difference to the way her legs look. But there's not much less sexy than seeing a woman struggle down a stairway walking sideways hanging onto the handrail for dear life because of her shoes.

I think super-high heels are kind of dumb in general, beyond that it very much depends on whose wearing the heels. To my mind, it's a lot like a lot of things in regard to fashion; if the first thing you notice about someone is their shoes (or their dress, or their makeup, etc), then they've failed. Fashion should accentuate the wearer, not overwhelm them. That said, if someone has dressed up on my account I will certainly make note of the effort even if, inwardly, I don't really care very much. As someone who religiously wears jeans and t-shirts, I prefer to see people comfortable. If wearing heels makes you feel more comfortable (for whatever reason) then go for it.

I wear heels daily to work, and have for most of my life. But not super high heels, which frankly look stupid on everyone. In the rest of my life, I'm partial to a mary jane style flat or very low heeled shoe, and boots.

The Bear dislikes all heels on all women but mostly polices mine for round toes. He thinks pointy toes are particularly idiotic.

It staggers me that so many women go to the trouble of carrying their shoes in a bag to and from work and wear joggers because they can't walk the distance from the train/bus to work, then change into high heels for work.

I'm afraid I do this, but not because the heels are particularly high (only about 2 inches) or uncomfortable to walk in -- it's because shoes are EXPENSIVE, and my work shoes will last much longer if they never go outside.

Heh, that reasoning never even occurred to me. Just one of the many advantages of being a male who doesn't care about fashion is that I can buy one pair of black shoes for work and wear them every day until they wear out, then buy another pair.

I a gay so, you know, I don't find woman romantically attractive but I do have an opinion.

Just this past Friday I sat at coffee, in the window seat, and watch woman clomp by in their completely UN-sexy, "I can't even straighten out my legs when I walk," shoes. It was among the most ridiculous things I have ever seen.

For the love of god and all that's holey, ladies, love yourself enough NOT to wear ridiculous heals. Believe me, the mens will still be hot for you. Really.

High heels? Hell yeah!

gaspode, aren't those saddle shoes green and tan? ;-)

*sigh* be off with you!

My heel days are behind me, alas. My flat daffy duck feet are inching towards double wide, I fear. Nothing says sexy like orthopedics.

If you can wear them, though, heels do look nice. It's interesting how women in NYC generally don't wear nylons with them. I do wonder how their feet don't stick in the shoes.

For this summer I plan to order some new open-toed (albeit flat) sandals this summer. When I lived in Miami I never wore socks. And I have new purple nail polish for my toes I wanna try. (I only ever wear polish on my toes.). Since I started driving to work, I miss seeing the Spring feet fashion show on the subway -- every type of polish and toe jewelry imaginable. It would make a good photography series, I think.

(enjoy your new shoes, melismata!)

I like heels now and then, and I often wear a pair of Mary Janes by Sofft that I just love the look of. And a 1-inch heel on a basic pump is a pretty nice work look that's really pretty comfortable, without being crazypants. But lots of the stiletto-type heels you see offered are entirely laughable. There's nothing like watching a grown woman totter. Even people who can walk well in them have to do that short-stride thing.

Wearing sneakers to commute and nice shoes in the office makes all the sense in the world to me. I can't wear sneakers at work, but nice office shoes aren't great for walking to the train, around puddles and grit and spilled Dunkin Donuts coffee and stuff like that. Also, the more walking you do, the less you want to do it in hard leather shoes with stiff wooden or steel shanks inside. I like to walk fast, so once the walking sets in I really want shoes I can cruise in. At work, though, walking fast wins no points, but looking shiny does.

It really depends on everything - your outfit, your style, your comfort, how long you have to be in them, where you have to be in them. I don't wear them for men, I wear them to make an outfit work.

Modest high heels have the same effect on the walk, and a woman looks far more graceful when she's comfortable walking.

Now, a woman in a pair of hiking boots, running shoes, sandals, even riding boots? Hot.
Yup - hiking boots, short khaki shorts, white cotton shirt, backpack, slight sheen of sweat on the brow. Much sexier than anything with high heels!

Excuse me, I think I need some time alone.

I prefer sensible-shoes Barbie.

"When she walks, she swings her arms
instead of her hips"

I'll post the new shoes later after work.

There should be a new Askme rule: if there is a question about shoes, one should be required to post a picture of said shoes. (Like the cat rule.)