They made me way more confident.
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| Yes, these shoes make a lot of sense when your high school is four stories tall. |
By Rebecca Deczynski, Sweet
When the Shoe Fits
I
dressed the way I dressed because I loved clothes, and I wanted to wear
things that struck me as beautiful—but I was still shy and not 100
percent comfortable with drawing attention to myself. I had two options:
dress like everyone else so as to not provoke scrutiny, or get over my
self-consciousness so I could wear the things that I really wanted to
wear. I decided on the latter.
[post_ads]Throughout high school, I continued to accessorize my outfits with heels
that ranged from just an inch tall to a staggering 5-inches on rarer
occasions. At just under 5-feet and 6-inches tall without shoes on, my
heels put me above the average height of my classmates. Adding a couple
extra inches to my stature wasn't something that gave me confidence by
default, though—it was a process.
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| Who could resist? Evidently, not me. |
I bought my craziest pair of heels around the age of 12 of 13. Made with
a thick, tapestry-inspired fabric and topped with a pouf of black faux
fur, the 4-inch heeled booties were absurd, looking more like an
artifact from King Louis XIV's collection than a sensible choice of
footwear for a suburban middle schooler. But I needed them. You know how that can be.
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| You can't really blame me when the shoes make the look. |
I had always been the type of person to overdress for any given
occasion—and middle school was no exception. Around the same time I
started reading fashion magazines, I started wearing heels on a
near-daily basis. I quickly learned how to walk in them, leaning heavily
on my ballet training, and soon enough, my friends would know I was
approaching by the sound of my heels tapping on our school's faux
granite floors.
[post_ads_2]
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| Dress fancy, feel fancy. |
Moving On
That said, heels might not be a secret weapon for everyone. You might
feel more powerful wearing running shoes that allow you to sprint at a
moment's notice. You might throw on a leather jacket when you need to
feel like a badass. You might even turn to a trusty pantsuit when you
want to feel confident, capable, and ready to break some glass ceilings.
