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Stiletto heels can be found on almost every type of shoes, such as these ankle boots.

A stiletto heel, or just stiletto, is a shoe with a long, thin, high heel. It is named after the stiletto dagger.

Stiletto heels may vary in length from 2.5 centimetres (1 inch) to 25 cm (10 inches) or more if a platform sole is used, and are sometimes defined as having a diameter at the ground of less than 1 cm (slightly less than half an inch). Stiletto-style heels 5 cm (2.0 in) or shorter are called kitten heels.^{[citation needed]}

History

High-heeled shoes were worn by men and women courtiers until the French Revolution. When high heels came back in style in the late 1800s, they were worn only by women.^[1] The stiletto heel came with the advent of technology using a supporting metal shaft or stem embedded into the heel, instead of wood or other, weaker materials that required a wide heel.^[1] Italian shoe designer Salvatore Ferragamo paved the way for stilettos by inventing the steel arch. Some historians also credit him with inventing the stiletto heel, while others credit French fashion designer Charles Jourdan. French designers such as Roger Vivier and André Perugia popularized the stiletto design in the 1950s, which quickly spread across Europe and the United States.^[1]^[2]

After an initial wave of popularity in the 1950s, the heels reached their most refined shape in the early 1960s, when the toes of the shoes which bore them became as slender and elongated as the stiletto heels themselves. As a result of the overall sharpness of outline, it was customary for women to refer to the whole shoe as a "stiletto", not just the heel, via synecdoche (pars pro toto). Although they faded from the scene after the Beatles era began, their popularity continued at street level, and women stubbornly refused to give them up even after they could no longer readily find them in the mainstream shops. A version of the stiletto heel was reintroduced in 1974 by Manolo Blahnik, who dubbed his "new" heel the "Needle". Similar heels were stocked at the big Biba store in London, by Russell & Bromley and by smaller boutiques. Old, unsold stocks of pointed-toe stilettos and contemporary efforts to replicate them (lacking the true stiletto heel because of changes in the way heels were by then being mass-produced) were sold in street fashion markets and became popular with punks and with other fashion "tribes" of the late 1970s until supplies of the inspirational original styles dwindled in the early 1980s. Subsequently, round-toe shoes with slightly thicker (sometimes cone-shaped) semi-stiletto heels, often very high in an attempt to convey slenderness were frequently worn at the office with wide-shouldered power suits. The style survived through much of the 1980s but almost completely disappeared during the 1990s when professional and college-age women took to wearing shoes with thick, block heels. The slender stiletto heel staged a major comeback after 2000 when young women adopted the style for dressing up office wear or adding a feminine touch to casual wear, like jeans.^{[citation needed]}

Image

Stilettos, like all similar high-heeled shoes, give the optical illusion of a longer, slimmer leg, a smaller foot, and overall greater height. They alter the wearer's posture and gait,^[3] flexing the calf muscles and making the bust and buttocks more prominent.^[4]

Stiletto heels are particularly associated with the image of the femme fatale. They are often considered to be a seductive item of clothing, and are even fetishized as an erotic object by some.

Disadvantages

All high heels counter the natural functionality of the foot, sometimes causing skeletal and muscular problems if users wear them excessively; such shoes are a common cause of venous complaints such as pain, fatigue, and heavy-feeling legs, and have been found to provoke venous hypertension in the lower limbs.^[5] Despite their impracticality and fluctuating demand, they persist as a fashion option.

Stiletto heels concentrate a large amount of force into a small area. The great pressure under such a heel, which is greater than that under the feet of an elephant,^[6] can cause damage to carpets and floors. The stiletto heel, unless equipped with a "heel stopper" to enlarge the floor contact area, can be impractical for outdoor wear on soft ground (such as grass, sand or mud), or in environments where floor damage is unacceptable.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c DeMello, Margo (2009). Feet and Footwear: A Cultural Encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, California: Greenwood Press. pp. 307–309. ISBN 9780313357145.
^ "A short history of the high heel". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 12 November 2017. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
^ Bering, Jesse (23 July 2014). "The High-Heel Hottie Effect: The Evolutionary Psychology of Women's Shoes". Scientific American. Archived from the original on 26 January 2015. By exaggerating the normal female gait, high heels serve to falsely enhance our perception of the wearer's femininity.
^ Betts, Hannah (27 October 2008). "Are we just masochists?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 January 2015. Heels alter the angle of the buttocks by 20 or 30 degrees to create a more youthful and thus fertile-looking body.
^ Wagner, T.F.; et al. (October 2012). "Influence of high-heeled shoes on venous function in young women". Journal of Vascular Surgery. 56 (4). Society for Vascular Surgery: 1039–1044. doi:10.1016/j.jvs.2012.01.039. PMID 22483354.
^ Green, Jack (2003). "Pressure Under High Heels". The Physics Factbook. Retrieved 20 December 2012.

Bibliography

Bergstein, Rachelle (2012). Women from the Ankle Down – The Story of Shoes and How They Define Us (Hardback). New York: HarperCollins. pp. 284. ISBN 978-0-06-196961-4.

External links

Media related to Stilettos (shoes) at Wikimedia Commons

[DeMello307-1] DeMello, Margo (2009). Feet and Footwear: A Cultural Encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, California: Greenwood Press. pp. 307–309. ISBN 9780313357145.

[2] "A short history of the high heel". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 12 November 2017. Retrieved 14 October 2020.

[3] Bering, Jesse (23 July 2014). "The High-Heel Hottie Effect: The Evolutionary Psychology of Women's Shoes". Scientific American. Archived from the original on 26 January 2015. By exaggerating the normal female gait, high heels serve to falsely enhance our perception of the wearer's femininity.

[4] Betts, Hannah (27 October 2008). "Are we just masochists?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 January 2015. Heels alter the angle of the buttocks by 20 or 30 degrees to create a more youthful and thus fertile-looking body.

[5] Wagner, T.F.; et al. (October 2012). "Influence of high-heeled shoes on venous function in young women". Journal of Vascular Surgery. 56 (4). Society for Vascular Surgery: 1039–1044. doi:10.1016/j.jvs.2012.01.039. PMID 22483354.

[6] Green, Jack (2003). "Pressure Under High Heels". The Physics Factbook. Retrieved 20 December 2012.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|Shoe with a tall, thin heel}}
-{{otheruses2|Stiletto}}
+{{other uses|Stiletto (disambiguation)}}
-{{Refimprove|date=December 2006}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
-[[Image:Heel 04.jpg|thumb|A boot with a stiletto heel]]
+{{More citations needed|date=April 2019}}
+[[File:Stiefelwiki1e.jpg|thumb|200px|Stiletto heels can be found on almost every type of shoes, such as these ankle boots.]]
+A '''stiletto heel''', or just '''stiletto''', is a [[shoe]] with a long, thin, [[high heel]]. It is named after the [[stiletto]] dagger.
-A '''stiletto heel''' ([[American English]]: '''spike heel''') is a long, thin, high [[Heel (shoe)|heel]] found on some [[boot]]s and [[shoe]]s, usually for women.  It is named after the [[stiletto]] [[dagger]], the phrase being first recorded in the early 1930s.<ref>[http://www.oed.com/bbcwords/stiletto-new.html Entry revised for OED Online - Wordhunt appeal list - Oxford English Dictionary<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>  Stiletto heels may vary in length from 2.5 centimetres (1 [[inch]]) to 25&nbsp;cm (10&nbsp;inches) or more if a platform sole is used, and are sometimes defined as having a diameter at the ground of less than 1&nbsp;cm (slightly less than half an inch). Stiletto-style heels 5&nbsp;cm or shorter are called [[kitten heel]]s.
+Stiletto heels may vary in length from 2.5&nbsp;centimetres (1&nbsp;inch) to 25&nbsp;cm (10&nbsp;inches) or more if a platform sole is used, and are sometimes defined as having a diameter at the ground of less than 1&nbsp;cm (slightly less than half an inch). Stiletto-style heels {{convert|5|cm|abbr=on}} or shorter are called [[kitten heel]]s.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}
-Not all high slim heels merit the description stiletto. The extremely slender original Italian-style stiletto heels of the late 1950s and very early 1960s were no more than 5mm in diameter for much of their length, although the heel sometimes flared out a little at the top-piece (tip). After their demise in the mid-late 1960s, such slender heels were difficult to find until recently due to changes in the way heels were mass-produced. A real stiletto heel has a stem of solid steel or alloy. The more usual method of mass-producing high shoe heels, i.e. moulded plastic with an internal metal tube for reinforcement, does not achieve the true stiletto shape.
-== History ==
-[[Image:Stilettos-heels-b.JPG|thumb|A pair of shoes with 12&nbsp;cm stiletto heels]]
+==History==
-Relatively thin high heels were certainly around in the late 1800s, as numerous fetish drawings attest. Firm photographic evidence exists in the form of photographs of Parisian singer Mistinguett from the 1940s. These shoes were designed by [[Andre Perugia]], who began designing shoes in 1906. It seems unlikely that he invented the stiletto, but he is probably the first firmly documented designer of the high, slim heel. The word stiletto is derived from [[stylus]], meaning a pin or stalk. Its usage in footwear first appeared in print in the [[New Statesman]] magazine in 1959: "She came ...forward, her walk made lopsided by the absence of one heel of the stilettos".<ref name=Games2007>{{Citation
+[[File:1952 ad for stiletto heels.jpg|thumb|right|1952 newspaper ad for stiletto heels]]
- | last = Games | first =  Alex
+[[High-heeled shoe]]s were worn by men and women [[courtier]]s until the [[French Revolution]]. When high heels came back in style in the late 1800s, they were worn only by women.<ref name="DeMello307">{{cite book |last1=DeMello |first1=Margo |title=Feet and Footwear: A Cultural Encyclopedia |date=2009 |publisher=Greenwood Press |location=Santa Barbara, California |isbn=9780313357145 |pages=307–309}}</ref> The stiletto heel came with the advent of technology using a supporting metal shaft or stem embedded into the heel, instead of wood or other, weaker materials that required a wide heel.<ref name="DeMello307"/> Italian shoe designer [[Salvatore Ferragamo]] paved the way for stilettos by inventing the steel arch. Some historians also credit him with inventing the stiletto heel, while others credit French fashion designer [[Charles Jourdan]]. French designers such as [[Roger Vivier]] and [[André Perugia]] popularized the stiletto design in the 1950s, which quickly spread across Europe and the United States.<ref name="DeMello307"/><ref>{{Cite web|date=2017-11-12|title=A short history of the high heel|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-11-13/why-do-we-wear-high-heeled-shoes/9135936|access-date=2020-10-14|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|language=en-AU}}</ref>
- | year = 2007
- | title = Balderdash & piffle : one sandwich short of a dog's dinner
- | isbn = 9781846072352
- | publisher = BBC
- | location = London?
-}}</ref>
+After an initial wave of popularity in the 1950s, the heels reached their most refined shape in the early 1960s, when the toes of the shoes which bore them became as slender and elongated as the stiletto heels themselves. As a result of the overall sharpness of outline, it was customary for women to refer to the whole shoe as a "stiletto", not just the heel, via [[synecdoche]] (''[[pars pro toto]]''). Although they faded from the scene after the [[The Beatles|Beatles]] era began, their popularity continued at street level, and women stubbornly refused to give them up even after they could no longer readily find them in the mainstream shops. A version of the stiletto heel was reintroduced in 1974 by [[Manolo Blahnik]], who dubbed his "new" heel the "Needle". Similar heels were stocked at the big [[Biba]] store in London, by [[Russell & Bromley]] and by smaller boutiques. Old, unsold stocks of pointed-toe stilettos and contemporary efforts to replicate them (lacking the true stiletto heel because of changes in the way heels were by then being mass-produced) were sold in street fashion markets and became popular with [[Punk subculture|punks]] and with other fashion "tribes" of the late 1970s until supplies of the inspirational original styles dwindled in the early 1980s. Subsequently, round-toe shoes with slightly thicker (sometimes cone-shaped) semi-stiletto heels, often very high in an attempt to convey slenderness were frequently worn at the office with wide-shouldered [[Suit (clothing)|power suits]]. The style survived through much of the 1980s but almost completely disappeared during the 1990s when professional and college-age women took to wearing shoes with thick, block heels. The slender stiletto heel staged a major comeback after 2000 when young women adopted the style for dressing up office wear or adding a feminine touch to casual wear, like jeans.{{Citation needed|date=May 2016}}
-High heel shoes were worn by men and women [[courtier]]s.  The design of the stiletto heel originally came from the late Kristin S. Wagner but would not become popular until the late 1950s. {{Citation needed|date=August 2007}}  The stiletto heel came with the advent of technology using a supporting metal shaft or stem embedded into the heel, instead of wood or other, weaker materials that required a wide heel.  This revival of the opulent heel style can be attributed to the designer [[Roger Vivier]] and such designs became very popular in the 1950s.<ref>{{Citation| last = Paslawsky | first = Meredith | title = Italian Fashion: The History of the Heel | url=http://www.lifeinitaly.com/fashion/high-heels.asp  | accessdate = 2008-08-11}}</ref>
-As time went on, stiletto heels became known more for their erotic nature than for their ability to make height.  Stiletto heels are a common [[Sexual fetishism|fetish]] item.  As a fashion item, their popularity was changing over time.  After an initial wave of popularity in the 1950s, they reached their most refined shape in the early 1960s, when the toes of the shoes which bore them became as slender and elongated as the stiletto heels themselves.  As a result of the overall sharpness of outline, it was customary for women to refer to the whole shoe as a "stiletto", not just the heel, via [[synecdoche]] ([[pars pro toto]]).  Although they officially faded from the scene after the [[Beatles|Beatle]] era began, their popularity continued at street level, and women stubbornly refused to give them up even after they could no longer readily find them in the mainstream shops.  A version of the stiletto heel was reintroduced as soon as 1974 by [[Manolo Blahnik]], who dubbed his "new" heel the Needle.  Similar heels were stocked at the big Biba store in London, by Russell and Bromley and by smaller boutiques. Old, unsold stocks of pointed-toe stilettos, and contemporary efforts to replicate them (lacking the true stiletto heel because of changes in the way heels were by then being mass-produced) were sold in street fashion markets and became popular with punks, and with other fashion "tribes" of the late 1970s until supplies of the inspirational original styles dwindled in the early 1980s.  Subsequently, round-toe shoes with slightly thicker (sometimes cone-shaped) semi-stiletto heels, often very high in an attempt to convey slenderness (the best example of this being the shoes sold in London by Derber), were frequently worn at the office with wide-shouldered [[power suit]]s.  The style survived through much of the 1980s but almost completely disappeared during the 1990s, when professional and college-age women took to wearing shoes with thick, [[block heel]]s.  However, the slender stiletto heel staged a major comeback after 2000, when young women adopted the style for dressing up office wear or adding a feminine touch to casual wear, like jeans.
-Stiletto heels are particularly associated with the image of the ''[[femme fatale]]''.  They are often considered to be a seductive item of clothing, and often feature in popular culture.
 ==Image==
+Stilettos, like all similar [[high-heeled shoe]]s, give the optical illusion of a longer, slimmer leg, a smaller foot, and overall greater height. They alter the wearer's posture and gait,<ref>{{cite magazine |url= http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/bering-in-mind/2014/07/23/the-high-heel-hottie-effect-the-evolutionary-psychology-of-womens-shoes/|title= The High-Heel Hottie Effect: The Evolutionary Psychology of Women's Shoes|first= Jesse|last= Bering|date= 23 July 2014|magazine= [[Scientific American]]|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150126022304/http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/bering-in-mind/2014/07/23/the-high-heel-hottie-effect-the-evolutionary-psychology-of-womens-shoes/|archive-date=26 January 2015 |url-status= live|quote= By exaggerating the normal female gait, high heels serve to falsely enhance our perception of the wearer’s femininity.}}</ref> flexing the calf muscles and making the bust and buttocks more prominent.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2008/oct/28/fashion|title= Are we just masochists?|first= Hannah|last= Betts|date= 27 October 2008|newspaper= [[The Guardian]]|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150126023553/http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2008/oct/28/fashion|archive-date=26 January 2015 |url-status= live|quote= Heels alter the angle of the buttocks by 20 or 30 degrees to create a more youthful and thus fertile-looking body.}}</ref>
+Stiletto heels are particularly associated with the image of the ''[[femme fatale]]''. They are often considered to be a seductive item of clothing, and are even [[shoe fetishism|fetishized]] as an erotic object by some.
-Stilettos give the optical illusion of a longer, slimmer leg, a smaller foot, and a greater overall height.  They also alter the wearer's posture and gait, flexing the calf muscles, and making the bust and buttocks more prominent.
 ==Disadvantages==
+All high heels counter the natural functionality of the foot, sometimes causing skeletal and muscular problems if users wear them excessively; such shoes are a common cause of [[venous]] complaints such as pain, fatigue, and heavy-feeling legs, and have been found to provoke [[venous hypertension]] in the lower limbs.<ref>{{cite journal|last= Wagner|first= T.F.|title= Influence of high-heeled shoes on venous function in young women|journal= Journal of Vascular Surgery|volume= 56|issue= 4|pages= 1039–1044|publisher= [[Society for Vascular Surgery]]|date= October 2012|url= http://www.jvascsurg.org/article/S0741-5214(12)00117-6/abstract|display-authors=etal|doi=10.1016/j.jvs.2012.01.039|pmid= 22483354|doi-access= free}}</ref> Despite their impracticality and fluctuating demand, they persist as a fashion option.
+Stiletto heels concentrate a large amount of force into a small area. The great pressure under such a heel, which is greater than that under the feet of an elephant,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2003/JackGreen.shtml|title=Pressure Under High Heels|last=Green|first=Jack|year=2003|access-date= 20 December 2012|publisher=The Physics Factbook}}</ref> can cause damage to carpets and floors. The stiletto heel, unless equipped with a "heel stopper" to enlarge the floor contact area, can be impractical for outdoor wear on soft ground (such as grass, sand or mud), or in environments where floor damage is unacceptable.
-All high heels counter the natural functionality of the foot, which can create skeleton/muscular problems if they are worn excessively. Stiletto heels are no exception, but some people assume that because they are thinner they must be worse for you. In fact, they are safer to wear than the other extreme of high heel fashion, the [[platform shoe]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}} Despite their impracticality, their popularity remains undiminished - as Terry DeHavilland (UK shoe designer) has said, "people say they're bad for the feet but they're good for the mind. What's more important?"
+==References==
-Stiletto heels concentrate a large amount of force into a small area.  The great [[pressure]] transmitted through such a heel (allegedly greater than that exerted by an [[elephant]] standing on one foot<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hypertextbook.com/facts/2003/JackGreen.shtml|title=Pressure Under High Heels|last=Green|first=Jack|year=2003|accessdate=17 July 2006|work=The Physics Factbook}}</ref>) can cause damage to [[carpet]]s and [[Flooring|floor]]s.  The stiletto heel will also sink into soft ground, making it impractical for outdoor wear on grass.
+{{reflist}}
-== See also ==
+==Bibliography==
+*{{cite book|last= Bergstein|first= Rachelle|title= Women from the Ankle Down – The Story of Shoes and How They Define Us|location= New York|publisher= [[HarperCollins]]|year= 2012|type= Hardback|isbn= 978-0-06-196961-4|pages= [https://archive.org/details/womenfromankledo00berg/page/284 284]|url-access= registration|url= https://archive.org/details/womenfromankledo00berg/page/284}}
-*[[Ballet boot]]
-*[[High heels]]
-*[[Kinky boots]]
-*[[Shoe fetishism]]
-==References==
+==External links==
+* {{commons category-inline|Stilettos (shoes)}}
-<!-- this 'empty' section displays references defined elsewhere -->
-{{Reflist}}
-{{High heels}}
+{{High heels|state=collapsed}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Stiletto Heel}}
+[[Category:1990s fashion]]
+[[Category:2000s fashion]]
+[[Category:2010s fashion]]
+[[Category:Clubwear]]
+[[Category:Fetish clothing]]
 [[Category:High-heeled footwear]]
-[[bn:পেন্সিল হিল]]
-[[da:Stilethæl]]
-[[es:tacón]]
-[[fr:Talon aiguille]]
-[[no:Stiletthæl]]