While the high heel has quite a long history, one revealing a piece of footwear that was not only made for practical purposes but also as such served as a common accessory for both men and women alike in their wardrobes, in more recent years, the shoe has become an impractical piece only meant for women in the eyes of society. The stiletto heel, as shown in Ken Moody, was crafted in 1955 by designer Roger Vivier while he was working for the multinational luxury goods company Dior, and seemed to serve as the final nail in the coffin of making the transition of the shoe from being a unisex item to instead solely just for women. Even now, the deceased French designer still has a shoe brand named after him, one separate from the Dior brand, showing just how influential his career was overall on the world of fashion. That a male designer created what has become a quintessential female footwear item prompts a deeper reflection on the fluidity of fashion and identity. When further examined, it reveals the various complexities in our current understanding of fashion and gender; that what may appear to be a gendered domain often defies those very boundaries.

“Timeline of High-Heeled Shoes.” Shoe History Facts, 2025, www.shoeshistoryfacts.com/history-of-footwear/high-heeled-shoes-timeline...nette