City nightlife shoes with high heels and rough straps can cause agonizing stress for the feet, leaving wearers to decide each weekend if the price of pain is worth it the fashionable footwear.
Instead of a stilleto, avoid hobbling out of the club and try a wedge or platform shoe. While platforms may seem even more impractical than stilettos, they are quite cunning. With the front placement of a platform underneath the ball of the foot, it actually balances out the high heel of a shoe to provide a sense of stability and dramatic height.
For some of the more comfortable nightlife shoes, check out Strut of NY. Located on 14th Street and Fifth Avenue, this boutique is an official Jeffrey Campbell retailer. These shoes are some of the hottest clubbing shoes sold and are deceivingly comfortable. A pair of spiked blue suede platforms are sold for $89.
“When I wear shoes, I have to commit to them, and they’re not that bad because they’re easy to walk in,” CAS freshman Daliah Ross said of a pair of Jeffrey Campbells she owns.
For even more support, check out the pink snakeskin wedge, another Jeffrey Campbell model, at $70. This shoe provides the unmatched support of a wedge and still looks incredible. If those shoes are too steep in price, Strut carries plenty of knock-off brands that are a bit less comfortable but still mimic the unforgettable Campbell style.
Down the street on 18th Street and Fifth Avenue, try H&M’s faux leather boot with a quilted front section and side zipper. This edgy model looks and feels great at just $50. For a cleaner look, try H&M’s smooth platform ankle boot for $40 or its wedge-heel sneaker for a casual look at $35.
“They definitely go with the urban feel,” Stern freshman Maria Alejandra Vasquez said.
If making a statement is what’s in mind, venture to the Bowery between Bleecker and Houston streets for the most outlandish boutique of all. With manageable comfort, Patricia Field’s Iridescent Snake Heel is a hybrid platform stiletto at a reasonable $48. With the yellow Rocky Lace Up Boot for $88, style and stabil-ity collide in a perfect match. For the ’90s club kid in all of us, the Quzmo Platform Sneaker offers the most comfortable, practical and fashion-forward nightlife shoe for $80.
The trick is to stick with the flat form, the wedge or the platform shoe. With any of these three models, a combination of chic style and comfort are sure to let you dance the night away.
A version of this article ran in the Wednesday, Oct. 16 print edition. David Bologna is a contributing writer. Email him at [email protected].
