10 Fun Facts About Shoes.
10 Fun Facts About Shoes.
It’s a well known fact that almost every woman in the planet loves shoes, especially a beautiful pair of high-heel shoes. Once intended only as a protection for delicate feet, footwear became a fashion statement over time. Shoes and footwear have evolved from its practical use to so much more. Footwear can make a fashion statement and also reveal cult following.
We wear shoes daily and yet we know so little about the facts that shaped the history of the humble shoe.
From Stilettos, to sneakers to boots, let’s take a look at some fascinating facts about our footwear.
- Heels
For as far as we remember high-heels have been associated with women. However, according to history men were the first to wear heels. In the 10th century, men who rode horses needed their boots to have heels in order to stay in their stirrups.
- Sneakers
Sneakers got their name because their rubber soles do not make noise. Which allowed people to walk or ‘sneak’ around without making a sound.
- Wedges
You heard of the saying- ‘Necessity is the mother of all inventions’ and this is how wedges came to exist, as a necessity. Salvatore Ferragamo invented the wedge shoe when Italy was suffering from closed trade with other countries in the 1940. Unable to buy steel to make traditional heel he then went to experiment with pieces of Sardinian cork, pushing and gluing and fixing and trimming until the entire space between the sole and the heel was block solid. This is how the wedges came to be.
- Martens
Dr. Martens were originally considered practical workingmen’s boots for their air-cushioned soles. However, it became popular in the 1970s among Britain’s counterculture and punk-music movement.
- Boots
Boots were first worn in cold, mountainous regions and hot, sandy deserts where horse-riding communities lived. Heels on boots kept feet secure in the stirrups. However, the first lady’s boot was designed for Queen Victoria in 1840.
- Ever heard of the term ‘Two left Feet’?
It wasn’t until 1818, that the right shoe was invented. Until that time, there was no distinction between shoes made for left or right feet. The first pair of right and left footed shoes were made in Philadelphia. Obviously, shoes weren’t made for comfort up to this point.
- Wedding shoes
Some odd traditions surrounding weddings and shoes include:
- In Hungary the groom drinks a toast to the bride out of her wedding shoe.
- In China, one of the bride’s shoes is tossed from the roof. The shoe must be red and this gives the couple good luck in the marriage.
- In the Middle Ages, the father and the groom-to-be would have a shoe ceremony. The father would then give the man authority over his daughter. At the wedding, the bride would put the shoe on to show she was now the groom’s possession.
- First Lady In Heels
Catherine de Medici, an Italian noblewoman who married later the king of France, was the one to start the trend of heels in the 16th century. She started wearing high-heels (two inch high) to compensate for her lack of height.
- Lost Boot In Space
Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, are floating somewhere in space. For fear of contamination, the boots he wore when he took the first steps on the moon were discarded.
- Most Expensive Shoes
Some people pay a lot of money for something they want to have, even if they are humble shoes. The most expensive pair of shoes to date were sold for $ 660,000 US Dollars. They were the ruby slippers, worn by Judy Garland in the Wizard of Oz(1939). The ruby slippers were sold at an auction on June 2, 2000.
Hope you enjoyed these random facts about footwear.
