Stuart Weitzman Shoes & Munro Shoes

Long before the rise of Jimmy Choo & Christian Louboutin, Beth Levine (1914 – 2006) was designing shoes that were objects of desire, even lust.  Born into a family of Jewish farmers on Long Island, she rose from shoe model to award-winning designer who revolutionized footwear.

A true visionary in her field, Levine popularized such styles as mules, stilettos and fashion boots.  Her shoes became favorites among designers & celebrities alike, from Halston to Geoffrey Beene, Marilyn Monroe to Cher, as well as four of America’s First Ladies.  Her work was featured in magazines and displayed at museums around the world.

I recently toured her exhibit at the Bellevue Arts Museum.  I saw Nancy Sinatra’s boots designed for “These Boots are Made for Walking, the Race Car Shoe (1965) designed for the wife of an Indy 500 driver and the Paper Twist slide Levine described as “just right for your at-home costumes (1966). 

If you love shoes and have the opportunity to see her designs – don’t miss it.  To read more about Beth check her out at Wikipedia.

Not only are shoes an integral component of our daily ensembles, but they play an equally important role in our culture. In many ways shoes have both defined & been defined by human culture. Phrases & idioms incorporating shoes have invaded the American English lexicon in way often overlooked.  At an individual level, one’s shoes provide far more that their utilitarian purpose of protecting the feet & serve as signifiers of status, wealth, age & demeanor.

Black sling-back heels for example, convey different ideas that a pair of metal studded boots.  At a more macrocosmic level, styles of shoes have paralleled changes in culture such as the explosion of go go boots onto the market in the 1960s in step with the social & cultural revolutions of the decade.

Here is a sample list of some common phrases associated with footwear.  Consider what they mean & perhaps how they came to be cemented into our language:  If the shoe fits, wear it ~ Comfortable as an old shoe ~ Waiting for the other shoe to drop ~ Fill someone else’s shoes ~ Wouldn’t want to be in his shoes ~ Shoe is on the other foot.

**Courtesy of Bellevue Arts Museum First Lady of Shoes brochure.

Cleansing, exfoliating, moisturizing & massage are some of the elements of recommended professional foot care.  Even taking a few minutes daily at home can keep those feet in tip-top shape.  While in the shower, using a pumice stone or foot paddle you can buff smooth those heels & toes.  It will not damage the skin & can be incorporated into your daily routine.  Daily moisturizing is crucial to dry, cracking feet.  I recommend daily moisturizing with a rich cream right out of the bath or shower while your skin is still damp.

If a more intense treatment is needed, then apply a rich moisturizing cream & slip your feet into a pair of cotton socks to seal in moisture & warmth.  I do this before bed & wake up in the morning with wonderfully soft feet.  In-salon paraffin dips can be performed, which have even greater results.

After a long, hot day, fill the bathtub half way with water & add a cup of Epsom salts.  If you have a portable foot soak bath – even better, because you can sink back into your favorite chair while your feet soak.  Soak your feet for 15 – 20 minutes, follow with a mint foot cream or gel.  Store the gel in the refrigerator for an extra refreshing feeling.

Giving yourself a foot massage, kneading the soles of your feet & toes, will increase the blood circulation.  Whether done in a salon or at home, a pedicured foot & polished toenails do look nice.  You are ready to don a pair of sandals.  Your feet will be just too sexy for your shoes.

The most common problem women have is that their shoes are not properly fitted.  A study by the American Orthopedic Foot & Ankle Society shoes that 90% of American women wear shoes that are too small & 80% have pain from their footwear.  It takes several years for problems to develop and you may not realize the problem until you’re quite a way down the road.

A test you can do yourself is to measure the width of your foot just below the little toe across the ball of your foot.  Then measure the same part of you shoe.  Is there a difference?   If there is – your feet ache for a reason.

Our feet are the only one we get.  We can’t rotate them every 10,000 miles and we can’t “retread” them when they get worn & thin.  Feet deserve the maintenance & care we give our car.  After all, don’t they support us?  Our feet need to get that spring tune-up – a “fluff & buff” if you will.  Regular foot care can eliminate & prevent serious problems later.

Details on care in Part 3.

It getting to be time to step into sandals and show off some toe cleavage.  Grooming is not just about looks but the health of your feet.  You may have noticed you have neglected your feet all winter long.  Your soles are cracked, dry an callused.  The feet withstand a force equal to several tons and walk about 8,000 steps a day.  What is that in a lifetime?  About for times around the world.

Our feet produce no natural oils and they lose moisture through more than 250,000 sweat glands.  The foot’s ever intricate structure contains 26  bones, 33 joints and 36 muscles.  It also has a half mile of blood vessels and other half mile of nerves.

People new to the pedicure experience think of it as a luxury, but it is just as much a necessity.  By living in sandals, going barefoot in the park and exposing them to the sun, out feet tend to need more attention and definitely more moisturizer.  Adding insult to injury, the average individual confines parched feet in shoes for 12 and up to 17 hours a day.  The temperature in those shoes can reach up to 120 degrees.

More on the state of your feet in post 4/17.