Fascinated with Shoes Styles

There are many songs about shoes.....apart from Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes by Paul Simon there is also.....

Who Wears these Shoes by Elton John

Old Brown Shoes - The Beatles

Goody Two Shoes - Adam Ant

So you have all come across at least one shoe superstition in their lives. But why did these "old wives tales" come about?

For instance everyone knows that it is considered good luck to hang a horseshoe over the front door, but why? Well in ancient Greece, horses were considered sacred animals, so hanging their shoes (with U up) was considered to bring good luck!

Tying shoes to the back of a newlywed couples car evolved from a Tudor custom, where guests threw shoes at the newlywed couple and if it hit them or their carriage it was considered lucky! Lucky to get bruised on your wedding day? Hmm not too sure about that!

Another wedding day tradition is for the bride's father to give the groom a pair of the bride's shoes, symbolizing the passing of responsibility from the father to her new husband. A variation is for the groom to hit the bride on the head with the shoe to assert his dominance!

But shoes also bring bad luck.....placing shoes on top of the table is symbolic of death - why? Because from the days of Hanging as a form of punishment, convicted prisoners were hanged with their shoes on and when letting loose of the noose, their shoes would tap on the surface.

Named Kabkab because of the sound they make on a marble floor, these were once the shoe of choice for wealthy women of the Middle East. Used to protect themselves from the dirt and hot sand and were often inlaid with mother of pearl.

The Japanese Okobo, traditionally worn by the Japanese Maiko (Apprentice Geisha) was a predecessor to the more modern platform shoe. They wore these shoes as they protected their expensive Kimonos from the muddy streets.

These are the oldest shoes found in India and still used today! Usually made of wood, silver or iron and elaborately decorated. The more intricately the design the higher the status of the person wearing them.

Interestingly, it is also the royal symbol in Malaysia!

Around the 1700s men in high heels was the fashion! King Louis XIV actually had a thing for high heels with red soles and heels! It is believed that he has declared that only royalty could wear shoes with red heels, and that no one could wear heels higher than the king.

"I don't know who invented high heels, but all women owe him a lot" - Marilyn Monroe

"Three quarters of the miseries and misunderstandings in the world would finish if people were to put on the shoes of their adversaries and understood their points of view" - Mahatma Gandhi

"A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes" - Mark Twain

"Between saying and doing, many a pair of shoes is worn out" - Iris Murdoch

"Yet if a woman never lets herself go, how will she ever know how far she might have got? If she never takes off her high-heeled shoes, how will she ever know how far she could walk or how fast she could run?" - Germaine Greer

Quotes from Brainyquote.