PLATFORMS AND BOOTS, A HISTORY OF COMFORTABLE HEELS
Shoes with heels are not the most comfortable. Even if they are well-shaped and do not pinch us anywhere, they make the legs tire faster, the blood supply to the feet is difficult and the feet are unnaturally bent. However, some of us have to wear heels every day (e.g. when dresscode at work requires it), others want to look good, and some just like heels. However, we do not always want or we can afford to wear high heels all day, but we still want to add a few centimeters. Fortunately, there is a solution for that! Heels and wedges come with help!
Shoes with heels are not the most comfortable. Even if they are well-shaped and do not pinch us anywhere, they make the legs tire faster, the blood supply to the feet is difficult and the feet are unnaturally bent. However, some of us have to wear heels every day (e.g. when dresscode at work requires it), others want to look good, and some just like heels. However, we do not always want or we can afford to wear high heels all day, but we still want to add a few centimeters. Fortunately, there is a solution for that! Heels and wedges come with help!
The history of platforms and wedges begins in ancient Greece, and more specifically in theaters. Ancient theaters could accommodate up to several thousand spectators, so the actors wore wedges to be seen from a distance. These first wedges were made of several layers of leather.
They appeared in Venice in the 15th century chopines. These were shoes on a platform that reached up to 22 cm in height! They served the ladies, protecting their dresses from mud and earth. Apparently just chopines inspired Roger Viber, who in the late 1930s to create platform shoes.
However, what are the platforms themselves without wedges? Also at the end of the 1930s, in 1937 to be precise, the Italian shoe designer Salvatore Ferragamo launched a revolutionary new shoe: a wedge-heel shoe with a solidly constructed triangular heel.
The first person to combine both innovative solutions was the eccentric Italian designer - Elsa Schiaparelli. It was she who in 1939 presented shoes combining wedges and platforms. This model quickly caught on and spread among women who followed trends. In the 1940s, heavy wedges were a balance for airy, chiffon dresses and fashionable woolen hats at the time.
However, it was in the 70s that wedges and platforms gained popularity. In summer, platforms were worn and wedges in winter. They fit perfectly with wide bells - they extended the silhouette in a natural way. Since then, the popularity of wedges and platforms has not decreased, on the contrary.
In the 90s, revolutionary Vivenne Westwood designed black lacquered studded shoes on incredibly high platforms. On the other hand, a few seasons ago, Isabel Marant launched wedge-heeled sneakers that break records of popularity, which are loved by all women who want to combine sports and casual styles.
But let's not forget the British genius, Alexander McQueen, who designed Lady Gaga's favorite shoes called "armadillos" or as some say - lobster or cancer shoes. It was perhaps the strangest but most innovative use of platforms in the history of fashion.
Let's not forget about wedge sneakers, which are the perfect solution for spring walks!
