Footwear consists of garments worn on the feet. It is worn for a variety of reasons, including protection against the environment, hygiene and adornment. Usually, socks and other hosiery are worn between the feet and the footwear, except for sandals and flip flops (thongs). It is sometimes associated with fetishism, particularly in some recent fashions in shoes and boots. Some people are very passionate about fashion footwear.
People who practice the profession of shoemaking are referred to variously as shoemakers, cobblers or cordwainers.
Footwear materials
Leather
Plastic
Rubber
Textiles
Wood
Jute
Metal
Footwear components
Adhesives
Air cushion
Buckle
Counterfort
Eyelet
Heel
Hook
Insole
Laces
Reinforcement tape
Sole
Steel shank
Tack
Toe puff
Tread
Welt
Types of footwear
Boots
Combat boots
Cowboy boots
Go-go boots
Kinky boots
Motorcycle boots
Platform boots
Riding boots
Derby boots
Thigh-length boots
Ugg boots
Valenki
Waders
Wellington boots
Winklepickers
Shoes
Athletic shoes (trainers) (sneakers)
Brothel creepers
Diabetic shoes
Espadrilles
Galoshes
High heels; Stiletto heels
Kitten heels
Lace-up shoes
Derby shoes
Oxford shoes
Brogues
Mary Janes
Moccasins
Monks (shoe)
Mules
Penny loafers
Platform shoes
School shoes
Skate shoes
Tap shoes
Sandals
"Mandals"
Flip flops (thongs)
Slide
Chaco
Indoor footwear
Slippers
Socks
Specific footwear
Clogs
Safety footwear
Football boots
Ski boots
Snowshoes
Surgical shoe
Pointe shoes
Climbing shoes
Swimfins (flippers)
Traditional footwear
Abarka
Geta
Socks
Trainer/Sneaker/Ankle Socks
Diabetic sock
Sandal (footwear)
Sandals are an open type of footwear, consisting of a sole held to the wearer's foot by straps or thongs passing over the instep and around the ankle. While the distinction between sandals and other types of footwear can sometimes be blurry (as in the case of huaraches—the woven leather footwear seen in Mexico), the common understanding is that a sandal reveals most or all of the foot (especially the toes) to view. People may choose to wear sandals for several reasons, among them economy (sandals tend to require less material than shoes), comfort in warm weather, and (especially for women) for reasons of fashion and attractiveness. If men wear sandals with socks, it is considered a Faux pas. This is especially true in European countries and in the United States.
Usually, sandals are worn in warmer climates or during warmer parts of the year, because feet stay cool and dry. The chances of getting a fungal infection on your feet (athlete's foot) is lower than with wearing an enclosed shoe, and wearing sandals may be part of treatment for a fungal foot infection.
Among the many kinds of sandals are:
clog, heavy, having a thick, typically wooden sole
patten, often with a wooden sole or metal device to elevate the foot and increase the wearer's height or aid in walking in mud
espadrille, flat, usually having a fabric upper and a flexible sole, often of rope
foothold, light rubber, with only a strap around the heel — called also tip
flip-flop, rubber, loosely fastened to the foot by means of a thong between the toes -- also called thong
huarache, low-heeled, often sling-backed and having an upper made of interwoven leather thongs
Mary Jane, low-heeled, broad-toed, of patent leather, with a single-buckle ankle strap for wear especially by young girls
T-strap, having a T-shaped part formed by a strap rising from the throat over the instep and either fastening to an ankle strap or dividing at the top to form an ankle strap
z?ri, flat and thonged, usually made of straw, cloth, leather, or rubber
Grecian sandal, consisting of a sole attached to the foot by an arrangement of interlaced straps crossing the toes and instep, and fastening around the ankle
Roman sandal, on which the vamp is composed of a series of buckled straps equally spaced
caliga, a heavy-soled Roman military shoe or sandal worn by all ranks up to and including centurions
tatbeb, ancient Egyptian
A sandal may have a sole made from rope (espadrilles), rubber, leather, wood (clogs or geta) or tatami (as in z?ri). It may be held to the foot by a narrow thong passing between the first and second toe, or by a strap or lace, variously called a latchet, sabot strap or sandal, that passes over the arch of the foot or around the ankle. Sandaling material may be woven in elastic strips. A sandal may or may not have a heel strap. It may have no heel, a high heel, or anything in between.
Members of certain religious communities, called “barefoot orders”, wear only sandals on the feet. Sandals may also be part of pontifical attire.
It is said that the New Zealand expression "jandals" for rubber sandals often used at the beach and called "thongs" comes from the expression "Japanese sandals." This is derived from the shape of jandals being similar to the Japanese z?ri, basically a rubber sole piece held on to the foot by two cloth thongs extending from the inner and outer side of the foot to the gap between the big toe and the second toe. This construction for footwear used to be the norm in Japan before westernization of clothing, with geta (wooden sole raised with one or two horizontal wooden pieces and attached to the foot with cloth thongs), and waraji (sole woven from straw with straw or cloth thongs, and sometimes extra ties over the foot and around the leg, often used for traveling).
"Saltwater sandals" are/were a popular children's footwear, originally developed (by the Hoy Shoe Company of St. Louis, MO) in the 1940s as a way of coping with wartime leather shortages, as they were designed to be made largely from the scrap leather left over from making men's shoes. They are still made by the original manufacturer.
There is a new type of sandal known as a Yoga sandal. They are sandals that have a thong between all the toes, not just the big toe and second toe. They were originally designed to help spread the toes for better balance during the practice of Yoga.
In the Mediterranean there are another kind of sandals, "albarcas" or "avarques" or "menorquinas" . It's a traditional footwear, it was first worn by farms workers, but over the years it has evolved to become an indispensable addition to summer clothing.
Barefoot sandals
Barefoot sandals originated in South Asia and are popularly worn at beach weddings and various religious festivites and events. They typically include an anklet and a toe ring connected together across the front of the foot with beads such as crystals and pearls.
Barefoot sandals are Western colloquialism for Indian jewellery worn primarily as jewellery rather than as footwear. The design implies that the wearer appears to be shod, but the soles of the feet remain bare. They are sometimes worn by barefooters in order to circumvent "No shoes, no service" policies.
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