An A-Z of Women's Shoe Styles

Footwear Guide to Platforms, Pumps, Ballet Flats, Mules & Mary Janes

Jan 31, 2008

Can you tell a Kitten Heel from a French Heel or a Mule from a Mary Jane? With so many footwear styles to choose from become an expert by reading the shoe glossary below.

The Ankle Strap Shoe

An ankle strap shoe has a single or multiple strap that fastens around the ankle. Straps can also include laces, ribbons and other material which wrap around the lower part of the leg, as in a Bondage sandal.

The Ballet Flat

Short for ballerina flats and inspired by ballet shoes, this versatile footwear has become a wardrobe staple for women of all shapes and sizes. A Ballet Flat is a flat-heeled, enclosed shoe (pump), almost like a slipper. These shoes are easy to slip on as they are low-cut and leave the top of the foot exposed.

Nowadays ballet flats are made from all sorts of materials and come in many different designs and toe shapes, although the traditional shoe has a rounded toe. Embellished ballet flats are a recent trend, with beads, jewels, fringes and flowers, which make them suitable for eveningwear too.

The French Heel

Many women wear these but do not necessarily know their name. Shoes with a French heel are of medium height and the shape of the heel is curved, somewhat chunkier than a Kitten heel.

A French (or Louis) heel was influenced King Louis XIV of France who had high-heel shoes especially designed for him in order to increase the height of his 5ft 3 inch frame.

The Kitten Heel

Kitten heels by definition have a thin-based, “low heel that tapers sharply to a narrow base,” according to shoe-design.com from their glossary of “Shoe Design and Footwear Definitions.” A kitten heel is usually 1.5 inches or less and is set in slightly from the back of the shoe.

These cute, very feminine shoes are an alternative to ballet flats for those who are vertically challenged. Kitten heels combine comfort with a little bit of extra height and the dainty heel goes well with most outfits.

The Mary Jane

A Mary Jane shoe takes you back to your school days, as it is styled after the single cross strap, round-toed, low heeled shoe that children often wore to school.

Nowadays Mary Janes come in varying heights and styles, but what is distinctive about them is their rounded toe and the single or double strap that crosses the middle top of the foot.

The Mule

A mule is a slip on, backless shoe which comes in various heights and different shaped heels. The front of the toe is covered, as in a normal shoe, but the back is open.

The Pump

The pump has become almost a generic word for shoe but officially relates to a low-cut shoe that surrounds the foot without fastenings, says Shoe-Design.com.

A d'Orsay style pump shoe has the back of the shoe cut away to reveal the arches and sides of the foot.

The Peep-Toe Shoe

A peep-toe shoe has an opening at the tip of the toes that shows part of the toes but not the whole toe line. The opening is usually small and is rounded or wedge shaped.

The Platform Shoe

This refers to the sole of the shoe and not the heel. Platform shoes are thick soles sitting under the front part of the foot and are often combined with wedges (as in the 70s), chunky heels or stilettos. If they are combined with a wedge heel, they are referred to as a Platform Wedge.

The Sandal

Worn as daytime or eveningwear, sandals are shoes with open toes and backs and have single or multiple straps for fastening.

Sandal designs vary greatly depending on the type and material of straps and the height of heels. Bondage sandals have material straps that wind right up the leg, as in the days of Roman slaves.

The Sling-Back

Sling backs are a cross between a Mule and a full shoe. Instead of a closed back they have a strap which connects the sides and back to the front of the shoe.

Sling-back shoes can be any height and have open toes or a fully closed front.

The Stacked Heel

Stacked heels have re-emerged as a popular fashion style and refer to what appears to be thin layers of wood that as stacked to create a wedge, flat or high heel.

The Stiletto Heel

Stilettos (or Spiked Heels) refer to the type of high heel, which is pointy and thin. These slender, very feminine heels can be as high as 6 inches and designers such as Manolo Blahnik and Jimmy Choo have made their name selling sexy skyscraper heels.

The T-BarShoe

A full shoe similar to a Mary Jane except the strap is in the shape of a "T" across the front of the foot.

The Wedge Heel

A wedge is based on the same shape as a triangular door-stop. The heel extends from the back of the shoe to right under the foot, running in a wedge shape from back to front.

Not all wedges have high heels. Some are low to medium height. High-heeled wedge shoes are easier to walk on than stilettos but will still flatter the feet and legs, giving you the necessary height.

Now that you are familiar with name and shoe types it is important to consider which footwear styles will best suit your body shape. When it comes to heels women with thick calves and ankles should go for a sturdier heel such as the wider French (Louis) heel “as the weight of your calf looks like it's not supported by the delicate kitten heel,” say style advisers,Trinny and Susannah in their book What Not To Wear (Weidenfeld Nicolson Illustrated 2004).

Women with big feet should avoid delicate, strappy sandals and if you have short, chunky legs, then stay away from ankle straps, which only serve to fatten your ankles even further.

The copyright of the article An A-Z of Women's Shoe Styles in Shoes & Accessories is owned by Gill Hart. Permission to republish An A-Z of Women's Shoe Styles must be granted by the author in writing.