High Heel Sneakers

High heel sneakers are part of the new era in fashion which allows women to express their individuality while staying up to date with the latest styles.  They’re comfortable, fashionable, modern and practical.   Lest you think high heel sneakers are an ironic joke, let me inform you dear reader that they are fashionable, popular, and even at times graceful.

What you see in this picture is a joke…a costume shoe.  It’s about as useful to a stylish wardrobe as an would be a burkha.  In other words, sorry Converse, your high heel sneakers are for Halloween.  They are completely graceless, an awkward slapping on of the stiletto heel to a pretty much unaltered Chuck Taylor.  It slams you in the face…see, I’m a high heel sneaker by Converse! 

The Chuck Taylors could have been artfully made into high heel sneakers by adding a few touches of the classic converse sneaker here and there.  Instead of just adding a high heel to the original and tapering the toe a little, the designers could have designed nice high heel sneakers with details that were reminiscent of the original, using subtle bits of the Chuck Taylor we all know and love.

Skechers’ high heel sneaker is a different take on the look.  It has a very sporty feel because of the rugged sole, which actually changes the look completely.  Even though it has the same type of heel as the Ash high heel sneaker (the Flirt kitten heel version, anyway), the two are very different.  The Skechers high heel sneaker is very casual, and again it’s because of the rugged sole.  If they hadn’t made the lug sole it would have been a much more versatile high heel sneaker.

Even though the Ash version has a faded denim fabric and the Skechers high heel sneaker has an more conservative beige two-tone look, the Ash is much easier to dress up.  Why oh why did they do that?  A rugged sole like that is very tricky to pair with a skirt or a dress.  Also, the large Skechers logo on either side is way too sporty for many skirt or dress situations.  It’s just a sporty shoe, in spite of the high heel, which by the way is even higher than the Ash high heel sneaker.

But that tells us a lot about design: it’s not just the high heel that makes a sneaker go with skirts.  One has to also consider fabric, texture, the sole, and other details like whether or not there’s a giant “S” on either side of your foot.  That’s a logo look that is usually reserved for sports shoes (think Nike, Addidas, etc).  Therefore, the Skechers high heel sneaker gets a thumbs down.

One of the the first things you notice about the Ash high heel sneaker is the hardware.  The zippers and buckles are of such superb quality you can tell  just by looking.  There’s a vintage look to the hardware on an Ash high heel sneaker that makes the sneaker look casual but not grungy or old.   That’s because the metal is polished and burnished to a perfect soft hue.

Ash makes several high heel sneakers, but right now the Flirt Kitten Heel sneakers are absolutely my favorite.   This one is in a color called Delave Blue Washed.  It’s a fabulous color.  If you can’t tell because of your monitor, it’s a washed denim look with lots of grayish tones throughout.  That’s so much better than a true blue denim, which is kind of tacky looking if you ask me.

The kitten heel is 2.5 inches which means you can practically run in this particular version of the Ash high heel sneaker, which is a bit lower heel than some of their other styles.  The other reason this Ash high heel sneaker is the most comfortable thing on earth is that the heel is actually made of rubber, just like the toe part of the sole.  Why is a rubber heel so comfy?  Well it’s like shock absorbers for your heels, since the rubber absorbs the pounding from the pavement and cushions your heel.

Sure, go ahead and joke about it…the high heel sneaker is the silliest product ever, right?  I mean, what the… isn’t that an oxymoron?  Sneakers are for comfort or sports, and high heels are for looking sexy.  Never the twain shall meet.  Function or style, but not both.  I used to think that as well, but if you read on, I assure you will see the beauty of the high heel sneaker and you may even want to run out and get a pair of your very own.

Let’s zoom out a little, and consider a few generalities about style, comfort, and identity.  Don’t worry, it’s just a short little bit, nothing too philosophical!

Every woman has her own look, a combination of style and creativeness applied to how she chooses to present herself. Style is a general term, not to be confused with trendiness.  That is, you don’t have to subscribe to Vogue to have style. Someone who wears her favorite raggedy T-shirt with confidence and the perfect pair of jeans is exhibiting style, just as the woman who wears the latest Michael Kors and keeps up with trends.  And by the way, this applies to men as well!

Style is a personal expression of who we are, and we’re all different.  Some people think about style a lot…and others go with their gut and move on.  Either way, it’s called style and it definitely matters in how you relate to the world.  That’s because humans judge each other visually, no matter how hard they try not to judge a book by its cover.

Now, the degree to which someone dresses for sexiness is the variable that drives style.  The other main variable is power.  And sometimes they are linked, depending on your view of the world.  Like it or not, every man and woman considers how much sex appeal they really want to display, every time they get dressed.  We all want to look good, it’s just human nature.

I’m a woman, and I can’t help it but I do like to feel sexy.  That doesn’t mean I have to wear stilettos and cleavage-bearing shirts.  I have my own way of showing off my features and feeling comfortable at the same time.

There was a time, when I was building my career, during which I was more interested in displaying power rather than womanly appeal  through clothing, to the point where I thought that appearing feminine made me seem weaker.  Therefore, I chose suits that were dark and very businesslike, and which displayed as little flair as possible.  I looked like a twenty-something that had raided her grandmother’s closet!  Sure, my drab suits made people take me seriously for my mind rather than any womanly feature I possessed under those layers, but I also looked uncool, outdated, and perhaps a little weird.  And that, believe it or not, can actually harm your career.

But I digress…back to the high heel sneaker.  For humans, attractiveness is all wrapped up in evolutionary circles with health…more specifically, childbearing possibilities for women and protection capabilities for men.  If you’re healthy, you’re successful.  For some, health is visually assessed by to what degree a person seems athletic.That’s why for some women, feeling strong, healthy and athletic is part of sexiness. I feel sexy when I feel strong, healthy and of course happy.

Sometimes the high heel sneaker is the perfect accessory because it puts all those feelings into a shoe.  The soft sole allows you to walk fast and with strength, but the high heel adds some extreme femininity to the mix.  If heels are part of your style, you can throw on a pair of high heel sneakers and be one of the boys without letting go of what makes you feel sexy.