Shoes Don't Make Us Look Fat

By: Stephenie Samborowski

Posted: 2/11/05

If you've ever wondered why women love shoes, here's your answer - shoes dont make us look fat.

But it's really not so simple.

I am a shoe fanatic; I carry a Famous Footwear rewards card wherever I go, and I probably own thirty pairs of shoes. Most of them are impractical, of course, and yet I still search for more. Its one of my few indulgences. Naturally, I found myself amongst many women shopping shoe sales post-Christmas. I tried on several pairs, just like my fellow ladies, and I tried to find meaning in my obsession with shoes. I wasn't alone. I conversed with a 50-year-old woman (who was surprisingly pulling off pink knee-high stiletto boots) about which we thought were the ugliest shoes on the sales rack. I noticed a group of girls trying on old lady shoes for kicks. I tried on purple stilettos, lime green sneakers, leopard-print boots. Realistically speaking, I wouldnt buy most of the outrageous shoes I try on, but I have always thought of trying on shoes as some type of therapy. It makes me happy, and I have often been known to go out with my girlfriends, or even alone...just to try on shoes.

It dawned on me when I started analyzing the way I perceive people by the shoes they wear. One can tell a lot about a person by their choice of shoe. Superficially, you can gain a sense of a persons economic status and social status (think Manolos). But, as strange as it sounds, I believe you can discover quite a bit more about a person from their shoes. Their confidence. How much someone is willing to sacrifice for a style, and their concept of style to begin with. For men, comfort and protection are probably the top priorities in shoe shopping. For women, these are probably the bottom.

But why? A shoes sole purpose is to protect your feet, so why have women complicated footwear over time? Its easy to group shoe obsession into the belief that we live in some kind of patriarchal society that demands women shave their legs and wear eyeliner. Yet I can assure you that when I try on shoes, I'm not angry at men or bitter that I'm a women. Its quite the opposite. A great pair of shoes fill me with a sense of pride--Im thrilled to be a woman.

Take a great pair of heels for example. Women can stand several inches taller. We're forced to stand up straight in a more confident pose. We don't walk in heels, we strut in heels. We walk like our mothers taught us, on a tightrope, with beauty and grace. Heels bring out the best in a woman; they scream, "Hey! I'm a woman! This is what I'm all about!

Sneakers. Empowering. We hit the pavement running, and the sneakers take us there. Its a different type of confidence. We're out, celebrating our womanhood, letting our bodies play. I feel the sense that too many woman today exercise with a sense of self-hatred or punishment, and it's an awful trend. We have everything to be proud of. Just remember the elementary school days, when wed run around the playground in pink Barbie sneakers, just happy to be a healthy little girl. Exercising now shouldn't be any different.

But yet, there's still a self-consciousness instilled in every female, and maybe thats why we love shoes. There's less of a chance that a woman hates her feet more than she hates her thighs. I assume most women can try on any pair of shoes without feeling depressed about the way she looks. Obviously, I strongly oppose this sentiment; I dont think any woman should hate her appearance, but I realize that its a utopian ideal. I'm merely providing an explanation for the female obsession with shoes, bags, and jewelry. Who knows, maybe the female preoccupation of the next century will be pants.

My only disappointment in the shoe market is the fact that pink light-up shoes are not available in my size. Other than that, I have always managed to find a great pair that I feel accurately represents the person I am. I'm sure this sounds ridiculous to the men who've made it this far through the article. But it's all right, men aren't supposed to understand our obsession with shoes. I once tried to explain my fascination with shoes to one of my male friends, and he looked at me skeptically when I said, "Shoes are a reflection of your soul." Okay, maybe I was going overboard, but there is some truth to it.

So ladies, strut your stuff. Life is too short to wear ugly shoes. Kick off the old shoes, and treat yourself to a trip to Famous Footwear. I'll probably see you there.