Killer Heels

I have a wardrobe full of high heels, most of which I rarely wear these days, largely because I seem to have lost the ability to walk in them.

The last time I wore some seriously high heels was at a ballet gala in New York. I had a navy chiffon dress that was spectacularly beautiful, and had found very high navy suede pumps to match. I found them online, admired how beautiful they were, and bought them, without a thought of how they might feel, or whether I would be able to actually walk in such a high heel.

We arrived at the ballet on time, joining our friends for the cocktail hour beforehand. After about forty five minutes, my feet started to ache. By the time an hour rolled around, I was in agony.

Thankfully there was much sitting during the performance, and then a very long walk along a red carpet at Lincoln Center to the dinner. When I say a very long walk, it was half walk, half hobble. I managed to pretend I was fine any time I thought someone was looking, but the rest of the time I hobbled miserably.

I didn’t dance that night. And when we left and were safely around the corner, I removed those shoes and did the unthinkably disgusting thing of walking barefoot through the streets of New York City until we reached our car. I honestly didn’t have a choice.

My footwear of choice these days appears to be clogs. I am obsessed with clog boots, bought from a little store in New York, that, bizarrely enough for clogs, are surprisingly cool.

And recently I tracked down a clog maker in Austria who only makes his heavy wooden handmade clogs to order, before shipping them round the world. I ordered a pair. I couldn’t resist. I used Google Translator to translate my very polite email to him into German, and used it again to translate his response to I could understand.

A few days ago, I received the clogs, and they are just as fantastic, and kooky, as I had hoped. I wore them Saturday. And Sunday. And every day this week. I’m not quite sure what to wear them with, but they are perhaps the most comfortable things I have ever worn.

I’m planning on writing to Devich Holzschuherzeugung again. This time I will be asking if it’s possible for him to make them in navy suede.

If anyone is interested, here is the link to buy them (have Google Translate ready!): http://shop.holzschuhe.at/de

(This article was first published in The Lady Magazine.)