We've all seen really silly shoe designs in the Poser world.  Since I'm modeling shoes for a while, I'm doing some research on how they're actually constructed, because I don't think the world needs more silly shoe designs, and I ran across this very informative article:

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/iop-sch031904.php

[quote]

"Essentially this part of the formula explains what women have always known – that you don't buy shoes just because they are comfortable, you can afford them and they look good – many other variables come into play"

'Q' is defined as follows:

             p•(y+9)•L
Q = ----------------------------------
         (t+1)•(A+1)•(y+10)•(L+£20)

The variables are:

p – the probability that wearing the shoes will help you 'pull' (in a range from 0 to 1, where 1 is pwhooar and 0 is stick to carpet slippers). If the shoes are a turn-off, there's no point wearing them.

y – the number of years experience you have in wearing high heels. As you become more adept, you can wear a higher heel. Beginners should take it easy.

L – the cost of the shoes, in pounds. Clearly, if the shoe is particularly expensive, you can put up with a higher heel.

t – the time since the shoe was the height of fashion, in months (0 = it's the 'in thing' right now!). One has to suffer for one's art, and if the shoes are terribly fashionable, you should be prepared to put up with a little pain.

A – units of alcohol consumed. If you're planning on drinking, be careful to give yourself a little leeway for reduced coordination.

So using this formula, if Carrie Bradshaw, who is an experienced high-heel wearer (let's guess at 5 years experience) wears her latest drop-dead gorgeous designer originals when sober, she can cope with a heel height of a staggering 12.5 centimetres (just over 5 inches) [See footnote 2]. However, if she over-indulges in cocktails, the 'safe' heel height (and perhaps also Carrie) plummets. Using the same example as above, if she consumes 6 units of alcohol she would be better advised to stick to shoes with only 2cm heels. [See footnote 3].

Laura Grant, a physicist from Liverpool University welcomes the Institute's new formula commenting, "many of my physicist colleagues have no trouble understanding quantum mechanics but can't figure out how women can wear high heels. Now I can explain to them how I minimise the probability of tripping up".[/quote]

http://www.madehow.com/Volume-5/High-Heel.html

Fascinated to learn that shoes have breasts.  Really.

Do higher heels have bigger breasts than low heels? If so, that might explain why men seem to love them so much.

For my part, I'd KILL for a pair of shoes that look like something a woman on the street who's not in "the trade" would actually wear. This design has eluded the Poser shoe designers ever since I've been a Poserite (2001).

Best of luck!

As to semi-normal shoes, how do you like these:

I'm a bit flabbergasted that King Louis XIV wore 5 inch heels. I'm familiar with high heels on men in a lot of classical art but - wow, I guess I never quite thought about exactly how tall those heels were.

 If you model them, I will buy! (I'll even beta test and STILL buy them!)

Err, those are already done actually (that's a render).  You seem to have just volunteered to test them for me I think.

 Gladly! I just sent you my email address.

Attached Link: Super Fly fashion

They are damn nice.  Grand work there. 

Attached Link: http://www.zappos.com/lumiani-cypress-black-patent

But...I have one pair of heels that I adore.  
A little backstory...
I spent my teenage years in a house full of girls.  And I was the only one with an odd foot size.  So, I couldn't borrow any of my sisters' shoes, because they'd be too big.
So, I fell in love with Mary Janes.  And, in the 90's, that meant the soles were chunky and high enough that they could have been heels, but still kept that innocent quality about them.
That doesn't mean I didn't have heels.  I was a cheerleader.  I was in a "Pageant" family.  Of COURSE I had heels.  I could run in heels.  
However, over the years, the opportunity, and need, to wear heels has dwindled.  But, I'm still a sucker for Mary Janes, especially patent leather ones.  But, no one makes them in my size :(

Until about a year ago.  Kind of.  I found these gorgeous black patent leather Mary Janes.  That happened to have a 4" heel.  Sexy without being too vixenish.  Perfect for every dress I own.

And  I've worn them once, to a funeral.  :glare:

The years not wearing heels, coupled with spending 9 months with my center of balance off-kilter, haven't facilitated the wearing of heels...but, hopefully, I'll get back in practice ;)

As for my Poser folk, lol, I almost never buy shoes for them, unless it's something I'd wear.  So, um, there are boots for my folk in my runtime.  :/

That seems to me to be very nearly the same shoe design except the heel's a bit thicker and there's that strap across the instep.  Nice shoes there of course :)

 lol, that's kind of why I shared the disjointed story, and link, LOL.  Thats the first thing I thought of when I saw the shoe.

Nicely done, BTW.

Oh thanks :)

Quote - High heels for men were very briefly popular in the 1970s.....

Yes I know these shoes well I had 3 pairs of them with the suits, if that's what you want to call it, to go with them it was during the "Saturday Night Fever" rage.

  pjz99 if you're on a kick for creating non-silly shoes then go for it. Sure as heck they are needed and I'd be your biggest fan.  Sure would be nice to see styles woman actually wear to use in poser scenes.

Much as I find your sci-fi fantasy items interesting, these I find incredibly beautiful and practical... I can't think of a scene where these wouldn't figure Prominently.
Love to trial/test these for you - or buy them, if the trial/test period is over.

ETA: I already have a shader for them, depending on how many material zones they have, Parmatic-ready.

Just now posted as a comment in my gallery:

Quote - Superb modeling as always FF, but those would be perfect with a 4 or 5 inch heel instead...

He's not the only one either.  Sigh I suppose I could try to build in a morph to adjust heel height, I've done it before.

I personally hate pointy heels. They look ridiculous. But i like the ones like the ones you posted in your first picture, those look good cause they kinda match the foot. But the pointy ones are ridiciouous, makes women look bad.

I bought some pointy heels for some poser character once. ANd i use them but then i found other heels that are less pointy and now i don't go back to those pointy ones

Quote - I personally hate pointy heels. They look ridiculous. But i like the ones like the ones you posted in your first picture, those look good cause they kinda match the foot. But the pointy ones are ridiciouous, makes women look bad.

I bought some pointy heels for some poser character once. ANd i use them but then i found other heels that are less pointy and now i don't go back to those pointy ones

I personal like pointy heels - I have a favourite black pair, but the heel-tip's come off so I have to get it repaired.

I guess it's all in the eye of the beholder, I suppose.

I don't see the link with breastesess...unless as counterweights...;)

Actually, the overall effect is to call attention to the legs, and...er...well, where they meet...;)

No taller than my black ones (missing the heel tip :crying:)

Quote - Added a morph - while these are really unreasonably tall, I guess people want this stuff ^^

My almost 50-year-old mother-in-law wears heels like that on a daily basis.  Unreasonably tall would be en pointe ;)

Quote - > Quote - Added a morph - while these are really unreasonably tall, I guess people want this stuff ^^

My almost 50-year-old mother-in-law wears heels like that on a daily basis.  Unreasonably tall would be en pointe ;)

It's a girl thing, Jen.

Getting those shoes fixed tomorrow - going out on Friday for the first time in months,and I need those shoes! :biggrin:

Quote -

It's a girl thing, Jen.

Kinda glad I'm not a normal girl, LOL.
I will SO stick to my all-stars (wearing my red ones for the holiday.  What?  This is my girly space.  I have 5 pair of All-Stars.  This is my splurge :P)

One thing I've noticed on many of the high heels created for poser gals is that it seems the heel is not even with the sole of the shoe. Because of this the sole area makes little true contact with the ground and makes the toe area bend up un-naturally. Also the fitting of the shoe to the foot is un-natural in the arch area there should be no big void where the arch of the shoe and the arch of the foot meet. Boy I hope I made myself understood sometimes it hard to put things you see into just words and no illustrations lol.

 beautiful pair of shoes

With real shoes there is some leeway, because the "counter" (the inner stiffening part that cups the back of the heel) is not really part of the sole; the shape of the sole right under the heel is kind of arbitrary really, since the counter can be any shape, and can be quite strong (very hard plastic).  For the part of the sole under the ball of the foot and the toes, I try to make sure that is very flat and looks natural when the character is posed and looks like it's actually bearing weight - that up-turned toe thing bugs me too.

Quote - High heels for men were very briefly popular in the 1970s.....

I would kill for those types of clothing for my poser figures!

No, I am not kidding, I have a story that I wrote that took place in the early '70s.

These would be perfect!

Hmm I suppose I could do something for you if you killed whoever dreams up those really shitty "Made For The Sy Fy Channel" movies.

While you're at it, the people responsible for plotting train wrecks like Lost and the updated Battlestar Galactica could take a dirt nap too.

I just got back from the grocery store, and while at the deli counter I chatted with the woman behind the counter - she is quite a small woman, although not skinny, closer to the traditional "hourglass" actually.  I asked her how tall she was (hard to judge really, behind a counter) and she's 4 feet 11 inches.  I steered the conversation towards shoes, and she told me her favorite shoes are 8 inch (!!) platform stiletto heels.  "They're fun," she tells me with a smug grin.  Something that adds over 10% to your height has to do some crazy stuff to your center of balance.