Over-the-knee boots (or cuissardes, which include thighboots, top boots, hip-boots, and waders), OTK boots, are long boots that fully or partly cover the knee. Originally created as a man's riding boot in the 15th century, in the latter part of the 20th century, the style was redefined as a fashion boot for women. Over-the-knee boots are also used as a work boot in circumstances requiring additional protection for the legs (e.g. fishing waders).
Over-the-knee boots first became popular as riding boots for men in the 15th century, when the growing popularity of doublet and lightweight hose meant that extra protection was required for the legs when on horseback. This was also linked to the decline in the use of full plate armour as the use of firearms became more widespread in warfare. Heavy cavalry in the 16th and 17th centuries had only limited armour, in the form of a helmet and breastplate, or cuirass. Thigh-length boots in heavy leather provided additional protection for the legs. Today, many cavalry regiments still retain these high boots for ceremonial dress. [1]
Riding boots of this style were widespread in the 17th and 18th century, and remained in common use through to the late 19th century. They are the likely source of the term bootlegging , which originally came from the practice of concealing hip flasks of alcohol in the legs of boots. Because of these historical associations, cuissardes came to convey an image of potent masculinity, conjuring up images of cavaliers, pirates, or musketeers.
The earliest examples of women wearing over-the-knee boots come from the traditional principal boy role in pantomime theater, in which the young male protagonist of the play is played by a young actress in boys' clothes. These breeches roles were also a rare opportunity for an early 20th century actress to wear a revealing costume, potentially increasing the size of the audience. [2] When playing historical characters such as Dick Whittington, the principal boy would often wear over-the-knee boots as part of her costume, [3] emphasizing her swashbuckling, heroic character.
The adoption of over-the-knee boots as a fashion item for women began in the early 1960s. In 1962, Balenciaga's fall collection featured a tall boot by Mancini that just covered the knee [4] [5] and the following year, Yves Saint Laurent's couture collection included thigh-length alligator skin boots by designer Roger Vivier. [6] [7] [8] These were based on a design originally produced by Vivier for the dancer Rudolf Nureyev in the ballet Swan Lake. The adaptation of hyper-masculine boots as fashion footwear for women has been interpreted as part of a broader 1960s trend against the femininity of Dior's post-war "New Look". [9]
Rising hemlines and the availability of new, brightly colored artificial materials such as PVC, [10] combined to make boots an attractive fashion option for younger women. As skirts became even shorter in the late 1960s, there was a resurgence of interest in thigh-length boots or cuissardes. [11] [12] Pierre Cardin featured shiny black PVC thighboots as part of his futuristic 1968 couture collection [13] and Beth Levine designed seamless, stretch vinyl and nylon stocking boots tall enough to do double duty as hosiery. [14] [15] [16] The tallest boots from this period were so high that they were equipped with suspenders to hold them up. [17] [18]
Over the next three decades, the popularity of over-the-knee boots as a fashion item for women waxed and waned. In the early 1970s, the multi-colored suede and canvas over-the-knee boots produced by the London store Biba [19] were so sought-after that queues would form outside the store when a delivery was due. [20] The end of the decade saw a second-wave of over-the-knee and thigh-length boots; these were a longer version of the stack-heeled knee-length boots popular in the late 1970s and were usually worn over jeans. [21] [22] In the late 1980s, over-the-knee boots made a reappearance; these were loose-fitting, low-heeled styles in suede, [23] often brightly colored or decorated with brocade. [24] By 1990, Karl Lagerfeld had included thigh-length satin boots in his Fall/Winter Couture collection for Chanel, using the boots as an alternative to leggings; [25] there was a brief vogue for thigh-length "riding boots” in the early 1990s [26] and over-the-knee styles were intermittently popular throughout the first decade of the 21st century. In 2009, thigh-length boots were a subject of major attention by the fashion press, [27] [28] [29] [30] [31] [32] receiving guarded approval and a level of mainstream acceptance that they had never previously achieved; this trend continued in 2010 [33] [34] [35] and by the following year, over-the-knee styles had become commonplace.
Thigh-high boots are more flattering on women with longer legs: "The shorter you are, the less leg there is above the top of the boot, when wearing footwear that ends above the knee. A very high heel helps to give the illusion of height, but when there is much more boot visible than leg; the effect is to optically foreshorten you." [36]
Hip boots (sometimes colloquially called "waders"), are a type of boot worn by river fishermen. Hip boots are typically made out of rubber, and cover the legs to the tops of the thighs or to the waist. They are designed to protect the fisherman when wading into deeper waters and keep the feet and legs warm in autumn and winter. Hip boots are also worn by ecologists and environmental scientists who do tests in swamps or lakes to determine the quality of water.
In contrast to hip boots, waders are waterproof boots that extend from the foot to the chest. Waders are available with boots attached or can have attached stocking feet (usually made of the wader material), to wear inside shorter boots. In addition to being used for leisure purposes, such as angling or waterfowl hunting, industrial, heavy-duty waders are used as protective clothing in the chemical industry, agriculture and in the maintenance of water supply, sewerage and other utilities.
Fetish fashion is any style or appearance in the form of a type of clothing or accessory, created to be extreme, revealing, skimpy, or provocative in a fetishistic manner. These styles are by definition not worn by the majority of people; if everyone wears an item, it cannot have fetishistic, special nature. They are usually made of materials such as leather, latex or synthetic rubber or plastic, nylon, PVC, spandex, fishnet, and stainless steel. Some fetish fashion items include: stiletto heel shoes and boots, hobble skirts, corsets, collars, full-body latex catsuits, stockings, miniskirt, crotchless underwear, jockstraps, diapers, garters, locks, rings, zippers, eyewear, handcuffs, and stylized costumes based on more traditional outfits, such as wedding dresses that are almost completely see-through lace, or lingerie for men.
A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearly distinguishable from the rest of the sole, even if the two are made of one piece. Traditionally made of leather or rubber, modern boots are made from a variety of materials.
The Wellington boot, often shortened to welly and also known as the gumboot, is a type of waterproof boot.
A miniskirt is a skirt with its hemline well above the knees, generally at mid-thigh level, normally no longer than 10 cm (4 in) below the buttocks; and a dress with such a hemline is called a minidress or a miniskirt dress. A micro-miniskirt or microskirt is a miniskirt with its hemline at the upper thigh, at or just below crotch or underwear level.
Thigh-high boots, known also as thigh-length boots or simply thigh boots, are boots that extend above the knees to at least mid-thigh. Other terms for this footwear include over-the-knee boots, a name originally used for 15th century riding boots for men. These are sometimes called pirate boots, especially when cuffed. Over-the-knee boots are sometimes abbreviated to OTK boots. Lengths vary from reaching just over the knee to reaching almost to the crotch.
Bell-bottoms are a style of trousers that become wider from the knees downward, forming a bell-like shape of the trouser leg.
Hip boots, or hip waders as they are sometimes called, are a type of tall boot initially designed to be worn by river fishermen. Hip boots are typically made of rubber, they may also be made of PVC, nylon and/or polyester. Other materials, such as wool, cotton and foam, are used to add warmth and comfort. The boots completely cover the legs, up to the tops of the thighs or all the way up to the waist. Hip boots are designed to protect the wearer from water, and allow wading out into deeper waters. They also help to keep the feet and legs warm. Hip boots are also worn by many ecologists, environmental scientists, and aquatic biologists who do tests in swamps or lakes to determine the quality of water.
Boot fetishism is a sexual fetish focused on boots. Boots have become the object of sexual attraction amounting to fetishism for some people and they have become a standard accessory in BDSM scenes and a fashion accessory in music videos. Boots are seen as perhaps the most fetishistic of all footwear and boots are the most popular fetish clothing attire.
Knee-high boots are boots that rise to the knee, or slightly thereunder or over. They are generally tighter around the leg shaft and ankle than at the top. Originally made of leather, versions made of a synthetic rubber, they are used by fishermen, dairy workers, stable hands, duck hunters, clammers, etc. to protect the feet from water, mud, manure, etc. and to provide traction on slippery surfaces. Most slip on, but there are varieties with buckles or zippers, and those that lace up. They may, or may not, have high heels or platforms.
High-heeled shoes, also known as high heels or pumps, are a type of shoe with an upward-angled sole. The heel in such shoes is raised above the ball of the foot. High heels cause the legs to appear longer, make the wearer appear taller, accentuating the calf muscle.
Fashion in the 1990s was defined by a return to minimalist fashion, in contrast to the more elaborate and flashy trends of the 1980s. One notable shift was the mainstream adoption of tattoos, body piercings aside from ear piercing and, to a much lesser extent, other forms of body modification such as branding.
The ballet boot is a contemporary style of fetish footwear that merges the look of the pointe shoe with a high heel. The idea is to restrict the wearer's feet almost en pointe, like those of a ballerina, with the aid of long, slender heels. When upright, the feet are held nearly vertical by the shoe, thus putting nearly all of the body's weight on the tips of the toes. However, a properly tight fit will hold the shoe to the wearer's instep and heel, thereby reducing the weight on the wearer's toes.
Jodhpurs, in their modern form, are tight-fitting trousers to the ankle, where they end in a snug cuff, and are worn primarily for horse riding. The term is also used as slang for a type of short riding boot, also called a paddock boot or a jodhpur boot, because they are worn with jodhpurs. According to Tara Mayer, "Jodhpurs … exemplify the material and cultural exchanges between Britain and its Indian colony in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries."
Fashion in the 1970s was about individuality. In the early 1970s, Vogue proclaimed "There are no rules in the fashion game now" due to overproduction flooding the market with cheap synthetic clothing. Common items included mini skirts, bell-bottoms popularized by hippies, vintage clothing from the 1950s and earlier, and the androgynous glam rock and disco styles that introduced platform shoes, bright colors, glitter, and satin.
Roger Henri Vivier was a French fashion designer who specialized in shoes. His best-known creation was the stiletto heel.
Go-go boots are a low-heeled style of women's fashion boot first introduced in the mid-1960s. The original go-go boots, as defined by André Courrèges in 1964, were white, low-heeled, and mid-calf in height, a specific style which is sometimes called the Courrèges boot. Since then, the term go-go boot has come to include the knee-high, square-toed boots with block heels that were very popular in the 1960s and 1970s; as well as a number of variations including kitten heeled versions and colours other than white.
A fashion boot is a boot worn for reasons of style or fashion. The term is usually applied to women's boots. Fashion boots come in a wide variety of styles, from ankle to thigh-length, and are used for casual, formal, and business attire. Although boots were a popular style of women's footwear in the 19th century, they were not recognized as a high fashion item until the 1960s. They became widely popular in the 1970s and have remained a staple of women's winter wardrobes since then.
Russian boot is the name applied to a style of calf- or knee-length fashion boot for women that was popular in the early part of the 20th century. Russian boots fell out of favor in the 1930s, but were the inspiration for the high-leg fashion boots that returned to popularity in the 1950s and 60s. Today the term Russian boot is sometimes applied to the style of low-heeled boots worn by some folk dancers.
Herbert Levine is an American luxury shoe label founded in 1948 by Herbert Levine and his wife Beth.
The 2010s were defined by hipster fashion, athleisure, a revival of austerity-era period pieces and alternative fashions, swag-inspired outfits, 1980s-style neon streetwear, and unisex 1990s-style elements influenced by grunge and skater fashions. The later years of the decade witnessed the growing importance in the western world of social media influencers paid to promote fast fashion brands on Pinterest and Instagram.