Greetings and welcome. Today I would like to introduce height as a footwear concept. Height is related to depth, but the term depth is related to the toe box while height refers to the distance from the floor to your instep which is the portion of your foot that rests next to your ankle. The invisible line that connects the depth of your footwear to its height is the slope of your foot. This critical abstract is what so many people struggle with when they're selecting footwear for themselves and others. Picture a dutiful wife walking into a shoe store to purchase a pair for her husband who needs a twelve wide. Assuming that he has been accurately measured, how on earth is anyone who does not know said husband supposed to know what shape his foot is much less how tall it is?

Let's say this woman knows what shoes her husband has worn in the past. We don't know whether those shoes were a good fit for him or he just put them on and wore them because that's what his wife brought home and he didn't want her to have the hassle of returning them. I recently had a male client who sheepishly shared this very story with me. His wife is a chronic shopper, upon learning he was searching for shoes she went out and bought him a pair. You know who doesn't do this? Me. While you might think that since I have my own Brannock device at home and can measure my children's feet myself that I would be fully capable of scouring the clearance racks for bargain's in their sizes. 

Why don't I shop this way? Because for every square inch of foot someone has that's a potential problem area. It's inefficient and I'm a big fan of efficiency. Both of my children have trim, shallow, or low volume feet. These terms can be used interchangably as they mean the same thing. In a foot of this type the slope from the toes to the instep is not very drastic as opposed to someone with a high volume or voluptuous foot. Throughout history various cultures have found different aspects of the foot attractive. Chinese women who had bound feet were proud of how diminutive their bandaged extremities were. The Regency period favored the instep, associating it with nobility and pride or arrogance as we find with the phrase "high in the instep". 

An explanation for this is not hard to find. With women's skirts sweeping the floor, a man could consider him most fortunate to glimpse even a portion of the stocking clad foot, it being unseemly for a woman to expose her ankle lest others find her fast or believe her to be of easy virtue. Common women wore sturdy boots while higher ranking women wore ornate and beautiful if flimsy slippers although they're probably not what most would call a slipper today. They were designed to go with gowns and peep out from beneath voluminous hemlines. The idea of a woman wearing them outside was unthinkable, even a step or two on cobblestones could ruin them if what they stepped on was wet or muddy. Overshoes could be worn to protect slippers which was a term that applied to women's footwear in general.

While we're on the subject of sex we can discuss the instep as a portion of the foot that many with a foot fetish admire. Another arena where the instep plays a role is in the donning of barrette style boots and shoes worn by some in the BDSM community. Without fullness of the instep the barrette style closures will hang limply instead of hugging the foot the way that they were designed to be worn. Linda O'Keefe's book Shoes goes into greater detail for anyone who may be interested in seeing pictures of boots with golden spurs, eleven inch heels that set the stage for a more theatrical or staged encounter, studded boots and shoes, leather straps, padlocks as accessories, and a discussion on how freedom and restraint in footwear can be used to heighten sexual tension and pleasure for wearer and viewer.

Invariably I hear people tell me that they have ugly feet. For a brief period of time I flirted with custom footwear sales. The bold and curious can Google Charcot foot and search those images. While foot worship and appreciation may not be your particular cup of tea it behooves the rest of the population to take good care of their feet so they will remain healthy for as long as you remain on this earth. Many feet are ruined by very common and avoidable mistakes. Parents who would be shocked at a foot binding lecture are letting their kids run around in flip flops and Crocs. When I was being fitted for ice skates I learned that some children are forced to wear an older brother or sister's hand me down skates while their parents buy them a new pair of tights or a frilly skirt. 

That footwear is a sexist industry is undeniable. The stereotypical shoe whore is a woman although there are men who fit the profile as admirably as the so called fairer sex. Go to a grade school basketball game and conduct a brief survey of footwear worn by players and cheerleaders. More money is spent on boy's footwear than girls with many cheerleaders subjecting growing knees and ankles to the beating that comes from enthusiastically bouncing around on a wooden floor for four quarters. Brands such as Tretorn and Keds were popular when I was younger and still appeal to a portion of the population today. You may have trouble with both if your instep is either unusually high or quite low.

Another shoe style that gives many instep deprived wearers trouble is the pump. The most expensive footwear in the world is designed for men, not women. The modern opera pump is the descendant of courtly pumps that were originally worn by men and later adopted by women. For a pump to fit well and look good on a foot one must have sufficient bone and flesh to fill it without the container becoming overly stuffed with foot. That can lead to sausage foot which is not a fashion faux pas limited to men, women, or people in pumps. Neither of my daughters can wear pumps or flats, when they do their toes are forced to hang onto their insoles as they teeter from side to side in their unbalanced footwear.

Heels push a body forward in an effort to enhance sex appeal, an extended leg and ankle can also indicate availability. Legs are elongated in heels, the bosom protrudes, strain increases on the lower back, and there's the possibility that a stressed ankle can snap if the foot shifts too far laterally or very suddenly twists, turns, or sticks. Whether it's Penny loafers, boat shoes, boots, flats, clogs, mules, or strappy sandals learn what your foot does well and stick to that. As a five foot tall woman with curves I look short and dumpy in the dress boots that my mother and daughters wear so well. Great footwear is about proportions. Boots made for me would fit me well, but my lower leg isn't long enough to properly fill a boot shaft where most manufacturer intends fullness. The solution? Short boots that don't come up as high on my leg. 

It pains me to admit that the classic Ugg is a style I wear well, but it's true and instead of being upset I should be grateful that I have the footwear options that I do. Since my instep is very high I can wear clogs and mules without shuffling. They follow the curvature of my foot if they are tall enough. Many is the shoe I have set back on the rack since it wasn't cut for my foot. If you never remember anything else from what I've written please make an effort to study your instep and compare it to footwear. Try on anything and everything you can. Ask a sales associate for help. I'll be able to tell a woman that the boots she has her eye on will never fit over her instep. Your time is valuable, why waste it on what fails the eye test?

Several years ago a woman brought two of her daughters in to try on Ugg boots. The older daughter had such a tall foot that we were unable to get the boot onto her foot which was also very wide. The mother wanted her to try the next size up, I brought that, but I also brought out a more matronly subdued pair of Earth boots that had the negative heel incline. While the mother snubbed my suggestion the daughter was willing to humor me. She stood up, smiled at me, and started walking around the store. I wasn't sure they were going to work, or that she would like them. Instead of blending into a sea of North Face jackets and yoga pants with pumpkin spice lattes this girl was a fresh original with spunk and boots that actually fit and worked for her. 

A footwear flaw to watch for is feet sliding forward in shoes and toes banging into the ends. That's the danger that's associated with an instep lack. On the flip extreme we have people who aren't tying their shoes because doing so compresses the nerves that run along the top of their foot. At times wide and tall go together just as trim and narrow can, but there are cases where you have narrow and tall which is an extremely difficult foot to fit. Add in a foot that rolls out or supinates excessively and you have a real challenge in front of you. Men with narrow feet have a similar problem that women with wide feet do, it's assumed that a man who wears a size twelve or thirteen will have a substantial foot while a woman who needs a four or five will have pixy sized toes and feet.

Manufacturers are trying to sell the greatest number of shoes that they can. The extremes are not representative of the population so fewer shoes are made for those who fall outside of what the sellers consider average for feet. I say this all the time, but it really would be best for everyone if we got away from mass produced footwear and owned a few pairs that were made just for our unique and peculiar body parts. Dave Little is known for his fabulous footwear and four month waiting list. If your heart is set on owning a pair of Little cowboy boots I hope you have deep pockets, a generous friend, or wealthy family member. But you get what you pay for when it comes to footwear which is why it's tragic to see so many wearing styles that are ill suited to them.

Fashion tends to dictate what appears on the shelves, but never undermine your purchasing power or the weight your voice can carry as a consumer. Buy styles that fit and flatter you. When I worked at the mall I had a pair of red oiled clogs with glossy black heels. I have the foot and the personality to pull off red footwear. I received a lot of compliments on those shoes, I should probably invest in another pair, but not everyone has my foot or my individual style which is what we need to adhere to whether we're shopping for footwear, food, or furniture. Great footwear will flow seamlessly into the rest of what someone is wearing. Just as a home shouldn't feel decorated, neither should your outfit fall to this cardinal sin. Make flattering styles and colors a priorty, shop for fit and value, and you'll be surprised at how much better you look and feel when you're done. 

An exercise that may help you is to write down adjectives that you feel best describe you. Then have people who know you well do the same. Compare these and come up with three to five picks. My list might have intense, whimsical, aggressive, sensual, and vibrant on it. Use these words when you're shopping online or in stores. Ask yourself, does this reflect who I am? Is this conveying the message that I want to be sending to the rest of the world? Am I in touch with who I am on a deep level? Perhaps I want to blend in instead of standing out. Believe it or not, I blend in better when I'm wearing red shoes than I can when I don black. Why? Red is a more appropriate color for me. It works when black doesn't. I am neither sober, utilitarian, sleek, or mainstream. My footwear needs to reflect that or I'll stand out like a shoddy manicure on a nude beach. 

While black is tradionally associated with formality and sexuality in the United States, scarlet and vermillion are used this way on the other side of the world. These are generalizations since black can also be classy, sophisticated, and timeless. Red can be fun, flirty, dazzling, attention grabbing, muted, and rich. A lot depends on the shade, the texture, the cut of the shoe, and the attitude of the wearer. I would send two very different messages if I wore my white tennis skirt with my red cork soled sandals than I would if I was wearing a cream colored satin sheath paired with three inch Chianti colored heels. Both outfits could be described as red and white, but the intent and the attitude set them apart. I can wear pump style heels with straps around the ankles, women with a lesser instep are going to look silly in them. 

Whether you have the highest instep ever or the most shallow foot known to mankind there is footwear out there for you even if you have to have someone make it just for you. The instep can be a very tricky body part to work with, it can take years of experience before you'll be able to predict what can work well for someone with any degree of precision, and if this makes you feel any better, even experts make mistakes. Never hesitate to ask for guidance and support especially if your foot is on or nearing an extreme. You'll save yourself countless hours, a lot of money, and you'll have footwear that works for you whatever your challenge may be. The cost of hiring an expert pales considerably when you compare it to the expense and frustration of a closet full of uncomfortable, unsexy, ill fitting footwear.

I'll close with a story about the woman with black and white hair who swept into the store I worked at with a flourish of her calf length ivory and ebony coat shot with red threads. On her sizable feet were a pair of cherry red patent leather clogs that she had purchased from a competitor. They hurt her feet and she wanted to know why. Unfortunately whoever sold her those shoes hadn't informed her that she didn't have the instep height needed to comfortably carry a clog. The burden of sharing this information with her fell on me as did her considerable wrath. To make matters worse she had a collection of clogs back at home. While she was understandably upset I did her a huge favor by being honest. She doesn't have a clog foot, she never has, and she never will.

It can be devastating to learn that every pair of shoes you own needs to go. She hated me, but that day I was her best friend in terms of her future health and wellness. Forcing a fit doesn't work. You can wed your baseball lover to a computer geek, but as my children can tell you, in the end it didn't work. My ex and I were as poorly matched as that woman and her limited edition clogs. Embrace whatever it is that makes you special and ignites your passion. For some basic black fills their wardrobe needs. For others it's a bright metallic gold while still others may live their lives in comfy casual Birkenstocks. Footwear often comes together like a puzzle with height being a factor along with shape, size, and depth. Armed with this knowledge you're well on your way to making smarter, sexier, value driven footwear decisions.