You should be able to count on one hand the things that make you feel sexy. My list is as follows: lingerie, Aretha Franklin’s greatest hits LP and last season’s GAP blazer.
The latest addition to the list ”” high heels.
Something about those extra four inches can make a woman feel diabolically unstoppable ”” in the classroom, in the workplace and even in the bedroom.
Take French entertainer Jeanne Bourgeois, whose legs were insured for 500,000 francs and throughout the 1920s was the highest paid female entertainer in the world. Or the ultimate femme fatale Jessica Rabbit, the sexiest cartoon character of all time. Or co-founder and editor of The Huffington Post Arianna Huffington, who was named one of Forbes Magazine’s World’s 100 Most Powerful Women in 2010.
What do these woman have in common? They each rose to the top of their profession, all while wearing heels.
However, with any great success, pain and pleasure are necessary.
To my dismay, heels two inches and higher may, over time, contribute to joint degeneration and knee osteoarthritis, according to one of New York City’s premier Podiatric physicians Dr. Jacqueline Sutera.
The news was hard to digest. I have come to realize that heels are incredibly fulfilling, and just like pain and pleasure, are necessary. Plus, I just dropped a pretty penny on a pair of four-inch Sam Edleman wedges. What can I say, they made me feel capable.
I believe UK shoe designer Terry DeHavilland said it best: “People say they’re bad for the feet but they’re good for the mind. What’s more important?”
As I removed a pair of ancient heels to make room for the new, I was reminded of the words of a former professor: Get rid of every accessory, item of clothing and pair of shoes that you have not worn in the last three months.
I routinely follow his advice and I encourage readers to as well.
Rummage through your closets, dresser drawers and storage. Sort through the clothes that make you feel capable, from the clothes that make you feel buyers remorse.
What is the reason behind keeping clothes that you never wear anyways? Sentimental value? That designer label? Or the “it was a gift” excuse. If you are not going to rock it, give it to someone who will.
The Salvation Army distributes a tax-deductible value of any items donated, local consignment stores like Repeat Performance and Plato’s Closet pay cash, and if you are feeling charitable, donate to a campus clothing drive.
Wherever you stand, in whatever you are standing in, own it. Be sexy. Create a list of your own and ditch everything else.