Some trends seem amazing at the time, but when we look back on some trends we immediately assume, ‘what were we thinking?’ Some trends looked awful, but even posed hazards to our health. Shoes have been since 8000 BC. They served the purpose of protecting feet, and today we have them to show off our feet.
Foot Binding
The practice of foot binding originated in China. It was a horrible cultural practice that destroyed women’s feet. Women were believed to have smaller and more feminine movements with smaller feet. Although the practice was incredibly painful, the trend didn’t start to lose popularity until the twentieth century after several people started speaking out against it.
Foot binding became popular because smaller feet were considered beautiful, even if it meant your foot ended up distorted. The process involved breaking bones in women’s feet including their toes and the arch of the foot. The bandages wrapped around the feet were tightened on a consistent basis to prevent growth. Thankfully, this painful trend was done away with.
Platform Sneakers
Platform sneakers did not destroy our feet, although they were pretty bad on our eyes. It was a trend the Spice Girls were leading with all of their very animated outfits in the 1990s’. Sneakers came with heals and very high platforms.
So, what were benefits of these shoes? As a kid, you could get on some amusement park rides that you normally did not meet the height requirements for. The downfall was that they were ugly, and very clunky and heavy, so your chances of falling were pretty high.
Lobster Claw-Shaped Heals
This trend popped up on the runway in 2010 with Alexander McQueen’s armadillo shoes. Generally, if you had money, you would be sporting these horrific pumps. The shoes not only looked painful to wear, but the were ten inches high!
Lady Gaga was all over this trend to go with her quirky sense of fashion. Lady Gaga was actually reported to have wiped out in an airport while wearing them. Some helpful advice: if you think you are going to twist your ankle, don’t buy the shoes.
Crocs
Crocs are still hanging in there with their trend, despite how ugly they are. There are Croc stores, and even accessories for the foam shoes. They are basically a clog, but with holes in it. It is popular with nurses to wear during their shifts at hospitals, although for everyday use it’s just not nice on the eyes. Hopefully something will eventually replace these shoes.
Liz Granger is a shopaholic and she loves comfortable shoes. She constantly is following new trends on what to wear in blogs and magazines.