The thing about high heels is that they lift you up, but at the same time they drag you down. They lift you up, literally. You stand taller and, because balancing in heels requires you to correct your posture, you are eyeball to eyeball with people you are normally gazing up at. Plus, your shoulders are back rather than hunched, which makes you look and feel powerful. You see, heels don’t just make you taller, they elevate you. Look at you, standing on your very own Olympic medallist podium! Heels make you feel as if you can achieve anything.
But they can also hobble you as you go about your day. You miss the train because you can’t run down the station steps, or the bus gets stuck in traffic and you can’t get out and walk because … heels. Heels are a time-suck, and take up valuable headspace. When you cross the road, you have to think about the divot that might pull the heel tip off, as well as oncoming traffic.
Enter: the grandma heel. The grandma heel – a modest height, comfortable heel – is gaining ground as the party shoe of the thinking It girl. Now, let’s talk about that name. I hate it when grandma or granny is used as an adjective in fashion to mean frumpy or old hat, so I promise you that is not where we are going with this. Nor am I segregating items of clothing into age demographics. The grandma reference is whimsical, in that it evokes a kind of shoe that hasn’t been seen around much lately: one with a low block heel. Not a dainty kitten heel, not a towering sandal, just a shoe with a solid, modest heel. But the name also speaks to wisdom. To balance – the not-falling-over kind, and also the making-an-effort-without-making-your-life-a-misery kind.
Is it possible to be comfortable in anything but a flat shoe? It is, but there are several factors you need to think about, of which heel height is only one. Height-wise we are talking two inches, three inches absolute max. Your foot should be on a diagonal, not arched, so that your ankle pushes forward and all the pressure is on the ball of your foot. The shape of the heel matters, too: the more surface area hitting the floor the better, because your weight will be more evenly distributed and you’ll waste less time getting them reheeled. Next, because your foot isn’t sitting flat in the shoe, you need to consider what is keeping it secure. A strap across the front, Mary Jane-style, tends to be more comfortable, because your feet don’t have to stay in tension to stay in the shoe. Look for a strap that sits towards your toes, which will create a much more pleasing line.
It is absolutely not the case that expensive shoes are always more comfortable. A surprising number of very expensive shoes seem to be designed with zero attention to comfort: if the price tag suggests you can afford a chauffeur, then the shoe is often created on that assumption. This is not true of Manolos, which are great, partly because the leather is supple enough to give where it needs to give, rather than grating your little toe and heel until you are blistered and limping.
But there are lots of less expensive options. I seldom walk past M&S without a detour through its shoe department, because so many of my shoe cupboard staples have come from there. I bought some Chie Mihara sandals this summer, after I admired a pair on a fellow partygoer who promised me they didn’t hurt, and she was right. But while they are half the price of Manolos, they are not cheap (about £350).
I love the snazziness of Kurt Geiger’s Chelsea Block Slingback Heel (£179), which has a fancy eagle-head motif on the toe, a cushioned sole and an adjustable slingback, which can make all the difference in getting the fit just right. Dune is also well worth a look: for a cushioned heel and good quality upper, check out the Contact Chisel Toe Block Heel Slingback (£90). The grandma heel is here to put a spring in your step.
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Hair and make up: Sophie Higginson using OUAI and Lisa Eldridge Beauty. Styling assistant: Sam Deaman. Model: Meja at Milk. Dress, £129, massimodutti.com. Shoes, £120, boden.co.uk. Earrings, £168, barjewellery.com