Vintage Fashion: Ladies Shoes 1939-40 Style

      Women who love the Vintage "embroidered and crocheted " Linens which are offered here on our site often have an appreciation of :

    Vintage Fashion and the glamour and style of the 1940's American Woman.

American Women spend thousands of dollars every year on shoes. Whatever style a designer can create will appeal to some woman somewhere who will have to own "that shoe" to add to her collection of fashionable shoes.

The open toe and open heel shoes became very popular with young women in the 1940's in part as a result of seeing their Grandmothers and Mothers feet always completely covered, booted and laced up.

The earlier 1920- 30 era designs in shoes ushered in pointed toes and stylish high heels but the 1940 era designers during the WWII years truly created the "Sexy Leggy Look" which called serious attention and a peek- a- boo attraction to a woman's Foot, Heel, Toe, Ankle and Leg.

Very short dresses and skirts were not far behind. Here are some of the styles of the era from the pages of LIFE Magazine.

Some of the heel designs were given names like grooved, keg, upside down, platform, spool, fluted and permanent wave heels.

Above: In the second row , the last shoe on the right is a black fabric shoe with red and green plastic covering the heel. This was designed as a battery operated shoe with the battery hidden under the plastic in the heel. It was called then the "Stop and Go" Shoe.

The shoe shown in the photo in the last row on the left side has gorgeous large chunky jewels which according to the caption " will make feet look as if they had bracelets around ankles and rings on toes"

That fashion statement became a reality and a "trend " in the later decades (1960-70 Era) when women did love and often wore ankle bracelets and toe rings.

Slave bracelets became fashionable and trendy in jewelry designed during the 1960's in part due to the mass popularity of " Cleopatra" a Hollywood movie staring Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton.

Gypsy bead sandals were hand crafted or designed for women with elaborate bead work strung on thin elastic bands. They linked the toe and ankle together and stretched over the foot as an adornment for bare feet during the "flower child " era of the 1970's.

These are Shoe Magizine Advertismets from the Era 1939-40 Era.
LOOK at the Price tag! $6.50. We have to add a few zero's to that price tag today.

Today women have walking, running, tennis, golf, casual , work, dress or evening Shoes.

There are "one of a kind "designer shoes and "One time only" shoes manufactured for today's woman.

Some shoes are worn often and others may never be worn but were purchased by women as "must have fun shoes" which often hold no promise of comfort other than to replace chocolate as food for our souls.