Holli Mintzer’s Adventures in Vintage Window Shopping column last addressed the vital issue of the princess coat.
We don’t really think that often about feet. I mean, I don’t. Maybe you do, I’m not judging. But feet are not a thing I think about particularly, and more than that the size of people’s feet is something I very rarely dwell on.
But it does come up occasionally, for me, because vintage shoes are so goddamn tiny. When you’re trying to find shoes that the non-elfin members of the population can purchase and wear, you end up thinking about feet more than usual. Mostly, you end up wondering why everyone’s feet were so narrow prior to 1980, or if they just wore really pinchy shoes at all times.
This gets particularly tricky with boots. Because the thing about boots is this: women kind of stopped wearing them for the whole middle of the 20th century. Boots were ubiquitous for late Victorian women–they were what you wore during the day, no questions asked. Button-up ankle boots with a small, curved heel were basically mandatory from the 1860s onwards. Later, lace-up boots started to take their place, but the shape of the shoe didn’t really change.
The the 20s hit, and hemlines rose, and boots looked kind of silly with the new fashions. So unless you were flying an airplane, farming, or participating in WWII, boots basically disappeared for forty years.
Fortunately, all it took to bring boots back was for hemlines to get even shorter, because tall boots look awesome with a miniskirt. The mid-60s saw the Return of the Boot in a big way. The 70s were basically a bootsplosion. And they’ve stayed with us since then, but this does mean that for vintage buyers, their boot options are pretty severely front-loaded with more recent stuff.
As with all vintage, the older you go the smaller the pieces, and boots are no exception. However, I’m going to try to keep the focus on boots sized 8 and up. Smaller-footed ladies, I apologize, but in all honesty the world is your shoebox already when it comes to vintage. You don’t need much help from me. Also, you can probably run on top of the snow like Legolas, and I’m jealous.
So let’s start with the earliest boots. Women’s boots appear occasionally from the end of the eighteenth century, but they’re not super common, and didn’t become ubiquitous until after the Civil War. Wearable examples of antebellum boots are basically nonexistent: they’re too tiny, too fragile, and were made identically for left and right feet. They can be pretty, though. These are from the Met’s collection:
Postwar, a higher ankle boot, usually buttoning, became the standard for a good long while. Late-Victorian button boots (and the occasional laced example) are lovely, and range from the simple to the hella elaborate. Some of my favorite examples come in bright colors, with intricate cutwork or embellishment, and they can be pretty spectacular. Sadly, they’re also virtually impossible to find in wearable condition, especially the fancy ones.
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So, we’ve covered a hundred or so years of boots you can’t wear. Let’s move into slightly more achievable territory.
From the 1890s through to the teens, button boots gave way to front-lacing. The shape didn’t change too much, though– the heels maybe got a little higher, the toes a little more shapely.
These are fancy examples, admittedly. Most women wore much simpler brown or black front-lacing ankle boots, and those are the ones that you’re likely to see in the wild. We’ve finally reached the territory of boots you can find on Etsy, which would be really exciting if they weren’t all Cinderella-sized. I turned up one pair of size 8 wearable boots from the turn of the century on Etsy, two on eBay, and one miraculous size 9/10.
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Now we’re on the verge of the 20s, and from here to WWII it’s going to mostly be boots that would look awesome on Amelia Earhart. There are even some wearable, non-doll-sized examples!
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Fashion boots basically don’t exist through the 50s and early 60s, so we’re going to skip those decades. Fortunately, from the mid-60s onwards we’re back in Boot Country.
Interestingly, there are a lot of 1960s boots that echo earlier styles. These are dead ringers for the 30s aviatrix styles, except for the shape of the toe:
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Sadly, these are all 7.5s, but larger examples are out there. I hope.
There are also 60s boots that riff on Victorian and Edwardian fashion, incorporating cutwork, embroidery, or even a mod spin on the button boot.
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Mod boots get really wild really fast, though, and a lot of them don’t have much in common with their pre-war ancestors. Go-go boots come in every color of the rainbow.
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And as we get into the 70s, boots get even crazier. (Did I just find the finishing touch for someone’s bad-ass Wonder Woman cosplay? Pretty sure I did.)
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Now we’re getting into Frye territory, not to mention cowboy boots. There are a ton of boots to choose from– suede ankle boots, packer boots, riding boots. I have a few favorites, but you’re spoiled for choice from here on out.
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Here’s the funny thing, though: in the 80s, we come back around to Edwardian-style lace-up ankle boots. There are even boots that recall the earliest Regency ankle boots! These are fairly easy to find– I see them every time I go thrifting– but they can be cute, especially when they’re in unusual colors.
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Now if you’ll excuse me, writing this article has made me crave a pair of vintage roper boots. Happy hunting!
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Tags: BOOTS, fashion, holli mintzer, nicole edits these so she gets to buy all the boots before you get a chance to hahahahahaha, shopping, vintage, vintage clothing
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Ahhh, boots.
I’m a size 11, and yes. This is a problem.
I now have a list of even more boots I want to buy. This was really great.
SISTER (I am a size 9/10)
We can shop together. I’m mostly just SUPER glad my mom’s genes didn’t end up giving me her size 13 feet. (she’s 6’2″)
My sister 11! Come to my arms!
11, sometimes 12, depending on the manufacturer (and how thick I expect the socks I wear to be). Which, on the flipside, is often very kind to my budget. You cannot spend $200 on boots if they don’t come in your size.
Ok, we clearly need to start a gang of women with 10+ size boots.
I would join this gang (size 12 here).
As a woman with a size 12 foot, I’m gonna try and keep that ‘my feet are only thinking of my limited funds!’ mindset. It’s cheerier that way.
11 wide reporting for duty… (Gahhhhhh. I mean, I’m sure that being unable to have saddle shoes, or those sparkly flats that all the girls in my second grade class had, or even goddam pink glittery sneakers (was that so much to ask?) built tons of character, not to mention having to buy ~boys’ shoes~, built tons of character. But I could have done with out it. Still could, in fact.)
I’m a Nordic giant and I wear an 11 wide or extra wide, or a 12 if the toes are pointed. The only vintage boots I can wear once belonged to large male lumberjacks. But I love boots and I love this article. And I love other Sasquatch women. 🙂
ALL I CARE ABOUT ARE BOOTS
same. every day.
i have this on a bumper sticker i wear it on the back of my favorite boooooooots
I WILL WEAR BOOTS IN 104 DEGREE HUMIDITY I DON’T CARE
Those first brown boots from the 20s. WAAAAANT.
It’s amazing how modern some of those Victorian/Edwardian boots look! I mean, you could basically sell these ones today as-is.
I AM SO HERE FOR THIS POST
Says the size 10 lady (dress size AND shoe size, what even) who has been longing for what feels like a century for the perfect cognac leather boot~
https://www.etsy.com/listing/171894889/womens-bro…
THESE ARE REALLY CUTE
My mom has a size 5 foot. It is ABSURD. She also has a thing for shoes, so growing up I used to go stare at the shelves & shelves of shoes (she had a big closet and basically all the shoes she’d ever owned from the age of 12 or so, including her toe shoes and her 1950s roller skates); many an hour was spent fantasizing that my foot hadn’t gotten bigger than hers before I was 10.
Her go-go boots & her cowboy boots & those white leather ones from the 60s! Oh, woe is me and my size 8 foot.
Is your mom Imelda Marcos?
Your mom sounds awesome.
Is your mom me? I have size 5 feet and I’m obsessed with shoes. Which means that whenever I find shoes that actually are manufactured in that size, I just grab them without thinking twice. I still have my heeles from when they were cool for six months.
I read somewhere that the increase in foot size is related to an increase in physical activity. In Russia, my shoe size is incredibly common (EU36, about a US 5.5, depending on the shoe). Girls here don’t generally play on soccer teams and such as children, so to me this theory kind of holds out. But perhaps the next time I am in the US I should check out the adorable vintage shoes that no one else can fit into, yes?
man I was the Least Athletic Child (I did soccer, but halfheartedly, and all my athletic endeavors were dedicated to seeing how little I could run) and my feet ended up at about a 40 (9 US). I mean, maybe it could be? Anecdote isn’t data after all.
I was super-athletic all through my childhood and teens, and I have feet that are absurdly tiny for my frame. I’m 5’8” and curvy, and my shoes are 6.5s.
My friends, who are within an inch or two of my height (they’re shorter), are always super mad at me when we go to thrift stores and I can wear that pair of shoes they covet, but then don’t buy them because I do not have their fashion sensibilities. My feet are apparently completely wasted on me.
The Victorian boots are so beautiful. The buttons!!!!
Oh my god, how much time would you spend each day buttoning and unbuttoning your shoes? It stresses me out just to get regular modern boots on and off.
There is a suicide note from an earlier era that simply said “All this buttoning and unbuttoning.” (I had an advisor who wrote his dissertation on the way suicide has evolved over time.)
WAIT AT FIRST I THOUGHT YOU WERE JOKING D:
Is there a link to information on this? I am morbidly intrigued.
EDIT: Found it! http://www.futilitycloset.com/2011/04/30/dress-bl…
The content of this post was amazing and super interesting but DAMN those boots are ugly! (except all cowboy boots <3)
(Icily) Indeed, madam?
I’m a 6 1/2 – 7 but my dumb feet are too wide to wear 99% of vintage shoes. I blame spending foot-formative years 1-5 in Hawaii where I only ever wore flip-flops and my baby feet were allowed to squish outward to yetilike widths. It took me a lot of tears & ebay buying/reselling before I gave up on ever being able to wear them ):
I have this issue too – size 7ish and/or under but I have zero arches so my ugly splayed feet are super wide. EVERYTHING HURTS.
I’m a 9.5w. Sometimes, I can squeeze into a size 10, but I feel your pain on boots and heels.
Wait, wouldn’t you want really big, wide feet to run across snow, to spread out the force? I’m imagining Orlando Bloom with big webbed frog feet.
You’d think it’d be off-putting, but it works on him.
I once spent an entire summer in (very good) reproduction 1840s boots. Non-differentiated feet, wooden soles, the works. Do not recommend standing on wood floors while hand-scrubbing your laundry, kneading your bread, or vigorous dusting. Those puppies are HARD on your feet.
I have heard that the reason vintage boots and shoes are so small is because they were the ones that didn’t sell. Footwear in bigger sizes was purchased and worn, and therefore less likely to survive intact.
Not sure how true that is, but it makes me feel better about my clodhoppers.
It’s true of clothes for sure, right? And bigger clothes could be remade into smaller clothes until the fabric wore out completely.
I do believe that Olden Days people had smaller feet, though.
I have often wondered if it’s that. If you go to a shoe shop when it’s having a sale, all the good stuff will only be availlable in Tiny and sometimes in Massive, the average sizes will be gone.
so late to this, but yeah, that is the general theory with costume historians. When cataloguing shoes in a museum, the majority I came across were the unworn little ones, circa 1800. Also, the pinchier and more elaborate the shoes, the less you’d want to wear them, right?
Wonder Woman AND Sailor Moon cosplay!
Looking at the 1860s boots puts a new light on just how high those “high heels” were that Meg wore to the ball.
*Gazes longingly at boots in which my calves will never fit.*
Waaaahh I am still so sad it is impossible to find nice boots since I got charcot foot and have to wear monster insoles all the time. (And my foot got bigger AND wider, fuck my life.)
I love that the Victorians basically had gladiator sandals.
Amelia Earhart boots, get into my life!
BOULET-VOUZ! I HAVE THOSE COWBOY BOOTS! I found them in a thrift store and even though they were ridden hard and put away wet, and are a size too big, I didn’t care. That stitching! The rich, rust brown! The slanted heel! Thirty dollars!
They currently sit in my living room where, I imagine, they dream for matching faded demin, late afternoon summer sun and sweet smelling horse shit. Soon, my sweet Boolies…soon.
I got a modern version of the Amelia Earhart boots for Chanukah and they’re so choice. If you have the means, I highly suggest picking some up:
http://www.amazon.com/Breckelle-Georgia-35-Lace-M…
I got a modern version of the Amelia Earhart boots for Chanukah and they're so choice. If you have the means, I highly suggest picking some up:
http://www.amazon.com/Breckelle-Georgia-35-Lace-M…
BUT BUT BUT what did ladies do in placeS like WINNIPEG or FARGO or SASKATOON in the ’50s?? Did they just never leave the house, or what? Because I am looking out my prairie window right now and the verdict is either major boots or not going outside. I DON’T BELIEVE THAT THERE WERE NO BOOTS SHOW ME THE BOOTS!
There are fashion boots and there are snow boots.
Fashion boots are rarely lined.
Snow boots are lined with fur or felt (including removable felt liners) or later a sort of silky knitted fabric with thin foam stuck to it. The last was in the Sixties and really didn’t work too well.
Fashion boots are made of leather, faux leather or patent leather. Some were made with fabric. Water would stain them. Salt would stain and destroy them.
Snow boots might have leather uppers but the owner would use a metric shit-tonne of Dubbin on those. And it didn’t work very well so again the water and salt would destroy them.
The soles would be leather.
Snow boots have rubber soles with heavy treads.
Uppers might also be made of rubber or of badly weather proofed fabric.
Dubbin. Any one else remember Dubbin?
I recently found some really cute vintage-y Ariat brand boots at a Buffalo Exchange and then I went on eBay and bought all of them. ROPERS. KILTIES. BRING THEM TO ME.
GET A LOADA THESE BABIES: http://collections.lacma.org/node/214108
(Ok, I will only tell you what they are to entice you to follow the link but VICTORIAN FETISH BOOTS)
These boots are really interesting looking. I imagine there are decades old and the different fashion back then we’re open to their styles. Some of these styles are still around, it is just really interesting how their style was so different back then.