What Makes a Shoe Feminine?

It isn't always easy to find feminine shoes. Some of us used to be tomboys – or still are – and we aren’t particularly up to date with feminine fashions. If this sounds familiar, and you are looking to improve your wardrobe, then you will find this article useful. Today, we are going to explain to you which features to look for when choosing feminine shoes.

They’re Slim and Contour the Feet

The first thing to note about feminine shoes is that they are slim. The material hugs the silhouette of the foot. You can clearly see a shapely outline. Contrast this with a more masculine shoe, such as a pair of sheepskin ankle boots (we won’t name names for obvious reasons) or biker boots. The latter are much chunkier and the foot isn’t very well defined.

Slim shoes will create a beautiful contour that shows off the delicate shape of the foot. It will create the "hourglass" figure equivalent for footwear.

Softer leather shoes tend to be better at doing this than other types of material, so if you can find shoes in soft leather, the bet is that they’re feminine. For example, you'll see that Gabor ladies shoes tend to be made of softer leather than their male counterparts are. Once you notice this, you'll be surprised by how many brands appear to follow this rule.

The Toes Are Relatively Pointed

In footwear fashions, squared toes tend to have a masculine feel. It seems to be a feature of the human brand that square things are considered masculine and rounder/finer things are considered feminine. The same is true of shoes.

Rounded toes tend to sit somewhere in the middle. They suit both masculine and feminine outfits without sitting squarely in either.

Pointed toes, on the other hand, have a feminine appearance to them. Part of the reason for this is that they elongate the foot and the legs. This makes the feet and legs appear slimmer and more svelte than they would in a round or square toe.

You will notice that many of the high-end fashion houses only sell pointed toe shoes for women. It’s because they help to create a beautiful and feminine appearance.

They Have Interesting Embellishments

Delicate embellishments on footwear is generally the reserve of female fashions. For example, the addition of a jewel or a perforated flower pattern would be fairly common in female fashions, but not so much in male fashion – the exception is the brogue, but you'll notice that brogues tend to have large holes, while the female perforations tend to have a finer point.

Buckles are common on both masculine and feminine shoes, but you will notice that they're different between both types. Feminine buckles tend to be small and delicate, while masculine buckles are large and chunky.

They Come in a Range of Colours

With the exception of trainers, men’s shoes tend to come in brown or black. Feminine shoes, on the other hand, come in a wide range of colours. It’s common to find shoes in burgundy, green, and navy blue – again, check out the Gabor ladies shoes in order to see what we mean.