The News in Shoes: 12″ Heels, Toddlers & Teetering, Electric Ladyshoes

Do you consider yourself well heeled? Here are a few shoe related news stories you may have missed.

If High Heels Just Aren’t High Enough, There’s Now a 12″ Shoe to Fix That

Romanian shoe designer Mihai Albu has created a shoe that will raise you up an entire foot.

What woman wants to be a whole foot taller? And talk about hard to walk in – they’re a lesser version of stilts (albeit much better looking)!

The tall shoes seem to come at a tall price, as well: $1,525, which is approximately 3 times the monthly wage in Albu’s homeland of Romania. {BayAreaLiving} And from the picture, it looks like you’ll definitely have to pull off a balancing act.

That said, Alexander McQueen’s 10″ armadillo heels found a few fans in Daphne Guinness and Kelis among others, and the former has stepped gingerly around town in heelless Nina Ricci shoes that mere mortals would have broken necks or ankles in. And some of the custom heels in Lady Gaga’s Alejandro video don’t exactly look like they’re made for walking, so maybe there are more potential customers than we think.

When Tiaras Aren’t Enough: Parents Fear for Teetering Toddlers in Heels for 3-year-olds

They may have a celebrity spokesperson in Suri Cruise, and a potential customer in New Jersey Housewife Teresa Giudice {Dlisted} but it turns out not all parents are so excited about the idea of heels for tots.

Mumsnet, an online community for UK moms has launched a campaign called “Let Girls Be Girls” in response to UK retailers GapKids, Asda and Next selling heeled shoes for children as young as three years old. {Daily Mail}

While the group fears that the shoes will sexualize girls at an early age, a podiatrist chimed in with fears of safety. “Any heel above 2cm increases the risk of twisting you ankle,” says podiatrist Gregor McCoshim (wonder what he’d say about Mihai Albu’s shoes).

The companies rebuffed the claims though. Next responded that the popularity of the shoes “suggests many parents agree we’ve come up with a look that’s special without seeming inappropriately grown up.” Asda said they hadn’t had any customer complaints about the heel size, and GapKids said the tiny heels had been tested to ensure safety.

Continue to the next page to read about the world’s first Electric Shoe Guitars






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