Men Take a Higher Stance

By Kjeld Duits, Wednesday March 24, 2010 - trends fashion

Japanese men are going for high heels on their footwear.

I took a long walk through the roomsLINK EXHIBITION at Roppongi Academyhills 40, located in the famed Roppongi Hills. Here I ran into fashion designer Shun Nakagawa of banal chic bizarre.

Nakagawa-san told me that their high-heeled shoes have become extremely popular among men recently. He had a few samples in his show space, and I immediately fell in love with these gorgeous red ones.

The heels on these babies are nothing like what you find on boots. Just look at these heels, they are high!

I’ll keep my eyes open on the street for men wearing high heels—should look pretty cool.

About the Author

Inspired by the stunningly creative street fashion that exploded on the streets of Tokyo and Osaka in the late 1990’s, photo-journalist Kjeld Duits launched JAPANESE STREETS in 2002. This makes JS one of the first fashion blogs on the net, and the very first to cover Japanese street fashion.

Comment （日本語もOK）

I don’t think that will swing well with some men in the USA. It may be a personal thing when it comes to what you want to mix and match with. Either way, I don’t see why its not a bad idea to add a few inches. Just as long as it doesn’t make the men look like women…I don’t see a problem with it.

a*@rayis
Apr 2, 2010 (3954 days ago)

@a*@rayis: Absolutely agree, although I think we’re in a period of time when gender lines in fashion are about to change again. So the idea of what constitutes a male or female look may become very different over the next 50 years or so. Looking back, much of what European men wore through the 1600s and 1700s would be considered quite feminine today.

Kjeld Duits (author)
Apr 2, 2010 (3954 days ago)

@Kjeld: I agree. Fashion is a cycle in so many ways, including which gender wears the brighter, more ostentatious clothing. Men’s jeweled buttons of the past come to mind…

kagitsune
Apr 4, 2010 (3952 days ago)

@kagitsune: I have always been in love with the male clothes of the European Renaissance period; I would love it if some of that flamboyance could be reintroduced into menswear. When I look at what male Japanese office workers wear, I feel depressed. They all look like grey mice who have been locked up too long and have lost all enthusiasm for life. Not a thread of imagination left…

Kjeld Duits (author)
Apr 4, 2010 (3952 days ago)

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