Fashion boot#Ankle boot

File:Woman with boot flask.jpgs", 1922]]

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, ankle and calf-length boots were common footwear for women. Rising hemlines made longer styles of boots popular. In 1913, Denise Poiret, the wife of celebrated French couturier Paul Poiret, caused a sensation in Paris and New York by wearing knee-length boots in wrinkled Morocco leather. Designed by her husband, made by the bottier Favereau, and styled with a low heel and a square toe, she had versions in red, white, green, and yellow.{{Cite web|url=http://www.metmuseum.org/special/poiret/king_of_fashion_gallerytexts.asp |title= Poiret: king of fashion |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=17 July 2010 }}{{Cite web |url=http://fashionmuseum.fitnyc.edu/code/emuseum.asp?style=browse¤trecord=1&page=search&profile=objects&searchdesc=boot&quicksearch=boot&sessionid=4104294B-655B-46F3-9F81-A23D2185BBD5&action=quicksearch&style=single¤trecord=5 |title=inventory #2005.45.1: boots by Paul Poiret, c. 1916 |publisher=Museum at FIT |access-date=17 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719192958/http://fashionmuseum.fitnyc.edu/code/emuseum.asp?style=browse¤trecord=1&page=search&profile=objects&searchdesc=boot&quicksearch=boot&sessionid=4104294B-655B-46F3-9F81-A23D2185BBD5&action=quicksearch&style=single¤trecord=5 |archive-date=19 July 2011 |url-status=dead }} By 1915 The New York Times was reporting that, inspired by Mme Poiret, women had adopted these "Russian boots" as an acceptable alternative to baring ankles and calves.{{Citation | title = Short skirts, higher boots | newspaper = The New York Times | date = 11 April 1915 | url = https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B0DE4DD153BE233A25752C1A9629C946496D6CF | access-date = 17 July 2010 | archive-date = 10 November 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121110101715/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B0DE4DD153BE233A25752C1A9629C946496D6CF | url-status = live }} By the 1920s Russian boots were available in a variety of styles, calf- or knee-length, with a Cuban or Louis heel,{{Cite book| last = Cox | first = Caroline | title = Vintage Shoes | publisher = HarperCollins | location = New York | date = 2008 | page = 45 | isbn = 978-0-06-166576-9 }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=68930&sos=3%2F |title=black leather Russian boot, 1925 |author=anon |publisher=London College of Fashion Shoe Collection |date=n.d. |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=16 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716230327/http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=68930&sos=3%2F |url-status=live }} which could be pull-on, or zip-fastened for a closer fit.{{Cite book | last = Steele | first = Valerie | author-link = Valerie Steele | title = Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion | publisher = Charles Scribner's Sons | location = New York | volume = 1 | date = 2005 | page = [https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofcl00vale/page/175 175] | isbn = 978-0-684-31394-8 | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofcl00vale }} Worn with knee-length skirts, they often featured decorative features such as elaborate stitching or fur trims.{{Citation | title = Russian Boots With Fur Collars | newspaper=The Manchester Guardian | date = 9 September 1926 }}{{Citation | title = Russian Boots: New Fashions With Laced Tops | newspaper=The Irish Times | date = 15 February 1926 }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.britishpathe.com/video/boots-boots-boots-latest-russian-boot-styles |title=Boots, boots, boots; latest Russian boot styles for Eve |author=anon. |publisher=British Pathe News |date=1920 |access-date=17 July 2010 |archive-date=30 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930005101/https://www.britishpathe.com/video/boots-boots-boots-latest-russian-boot-styles |url-status=live }}

Russian boots were popular during the 1920s{{Citation | title = High Boots The Style For British Women | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 26 September 1925 }} and the emergence of these tall boots for women was interpreted by some contemporary writers as a consequence of women's transition from the "leisure class" to the world of business.{{Citation | title = Boots for Women Sign of Changes | newspaper=Los Angeles Times | date = 30 December 1927 }} But as their popularity grew, concerns over quality{{Citation | title = Russian Boots: The Question of Cost | newspaper=The Manchester Guardian | date = 20 February 1926 }}{{Citation | title = "Russian Boots:" Trade Criticism Shoddy Footwear and Ill Health | newspaper= The Scotsman | date = 18 February 1926 }} meant that where protection from the elements was needed, Russian boots were increasingly replaced by fashionable variants of the rubber Wellington boot.{{Citation | title = Rubber Boots | newspaper=The Manchester Guardian | date = 29 October 1928 }} As roads were surfaced and horse-drawn transport gave way to the motor engine, the additional protection provided by boots was no longer needed. Boots were seen as restrictive and uncomfortable when compared with the new styles of fashionable shoe that complimented a more streamlined and simplified look for women's clothing.{{Cite book | last = Quinn | first = Bradley | title = The Boot | publisher=Laurence King Publishing Ltd | location = London | year = 2010 | page = 25 | isbn = 978-1-85669-663-0 }} Although they were still popular as late as the beginning of the 1930s,{{Citation | title = Puss in Boots Again | newspaper=The Manchester Guardian | date = 14 January 1930 }} within a few years Russian boots had fallen out of favor.

Though Perugia had briefly produced couture-quality, fitted, high-heeled, upper-calf-height boots in 1948 to be paired with Dior and Schiaparelli ensembles,{{cite book |last1=Howell |first1=Georgina |title=In Vogue: Sixty Years of Celebrities and Fashion from British Vogue |date=1978 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England |isbn=0-14-004955-X |page=221 |chapter=1948-49 |quote=The dress of the moment is a tailored shirtwaister ... worn with ... boot-shoes from Perugia.}}{{cite book |last1=Howell |first1=Georgina |title=In Vogue: Sixty Years of Celebrities and Fashion from British Vogue |date=1978 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England |isbn=0-14-004955-X |page=222 |chapter=1948-49 |quote=Christian Dior: 'Pencil slim' black wool dress with a check envol jacket ... Perugia's check wool and patent leather boots.}}{{cite book |last1=Mulvagh |first1=Jane |title=Vogue History of 20th Century Fashion |date=1988 |publisher=Viking, The Penguin Group |location=London, England |isbn=0-670-80172-0 |page=203 |chapter=1948 |quote=Dior's pencil-slim black wool dress topped with a black-and-white ... checked wool 'envol' jacket. ... and Perugia's check wool and patent-leather boots.}}{{cite book |last1=Howell |first1=Georgina |title=In Vogue: Sixty Years of Celebrities and Fashion from British Vogue |date=1978 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England |isbn=0-14-004955-X |page=222 |chapter=1948-49 |quote=Schiaparelli's slim silhouette with jutting collar and peg-top skirt. Perugia's boots, fitting like a stocking at the [calf-length] hemline.}} American designer Beth Levine is widely credited as the first person to introduce boots into Haute Couture.{{Cite book| last = Verin | first = Helene | title = Beth Levine Shoes | publisher=Stewart, Tabori & Chang | location = New York | year = 2009 | page = 43 | isbn = 978-1-58479-759-3 }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.dexigner.com/news/19331 |title=Beth Levine, First Lady of Shoes |publisher=Dexigner Network |date=23 November 2009 |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=12 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812203446/http://www.dexigner.com/news/19331 |url-status=dead }} As early as 1953, Beth Levine introduced under the Herbert Levine label a calf-length boot in white kidskin,{{Cite web |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_herbert_levine/objectview.aspx?page=4&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=levine&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80046242&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |title=Accession # 1977.287.14a, b: Beth Levine white boots, 1952 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=28 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628191534/http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_herbert_levine/objectview.aspx?page=4&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=levine&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80046242&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |url-status=live }} which sold poorly. Most retailers saw boots as a separate category of footwear from shoes, to be worn for protection from bad weather or for work. By contrast, Levine argued that boots were shoes and could be an integral part of a woman's outfit. In 1957, Herbert Levine produced an entire collection of based around fashion boots,{{Cite web |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/shoes_herbert_levine/objectview.aspx?page=3&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=levine&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80046211&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |title=Accession # 1976.166.12a, b: Beth Levine fashion boots, 1958–60 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=28 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628192338/http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/shoes_herbert_levine/objectview.aspx?page=3&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=levine&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80046211&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |url-status=live }} and despite widespread skepticism on the part of other designers and manufacturers,{{Citation | last = Sheppard | first = Eugenia | title = Shoes, Like Sundials, Tell Time | newspaper=Hartford Courant | date = 22 August 1967 }} calf-high, kitten-heeled fashion boots for women{{Cite web |url=http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82785&sos=17%2F |title=brown mock-croc calf-length boot, 1963 |publisher=London College of Fashion Shoe Collection |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=16 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716230521/http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82785&sos=17%2F |url-status=live }} began to grow in popularity in the late 1950s and early 1960s.{{Citation | last = Sloane | first = Leonard | title = Women's Boots Take Big Strides – Wide Variety Offered | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 12 May 1963 }} In 1962 Balenciaga's fall collection featured a tall boot by Mancini that just covered the knee;{{citation | last = Molli | first = Jeanne | title = Noted in Paris: Sleek Wigs and Boots | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 29 August 1963}}{{Citation | title = Fashions: Balenciaga By Day |magazine=Vogue | pages =88–89 |date=October 1962}} the following year Yves Saint Laurent's couture collection included thigh-length alligator skin boots by designer Roger Vivier{{Cite book| last = Cox | first = Caroline | title = Vintage Shoes | publisher=HarperCollins | location = New York | year = 2008 | page = 139 | isbn = 978-0-06-166576-9 }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_roger_vivier/objectview.aspx?page=2&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=vivier&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80038237&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |title=Accession # 1976.360.440a, b: Roger Vivier black alligator leather thighboots, 1963 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=2 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202160305/http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_roger_vivier/objectview.aspx?page=2&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=vivier&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80038237&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |url-status=live }}{{Citation | title = Paris: The First Full Report: Vogue's First Report on the New French Clothes and the Fresh Excitement of Paris |magazine=Vogue | pages =164–181, 243, 245 |date=September 1963}} and Vogue was able to announce that boots of all lengths were the look of the moment.{{Cite book| last = Howell | first = Georgina | title = In Vogue | publisher=Penguin | location = London | year = 1978 | page = 280 | isbn = 0-14-004955-X }}{{Citation | title = Boots Take Over: For Every Weather, Total Chic |magazine=Vogue | page = 46 |date= August 1963}} The re-emergence of boots as a fashion item in the 1960s has been interpreted as an antidote to the femininity of Dior's post war "New Look".{{Cite book | last = Quinn | first = Bradley | title = The Boot | publisher=Laurence King Publishing Ltd | location = London | year = 2010 | page = 7 | isbn = 978-1-85669-663-0 }}

Rising hemlines and the availability of new, brightly colored artificial materials such as PVC{{Citation | last = Emerson | first = Gloria | author-link = Gloria Emerson | title = Paris Adds Finishing Touches to Fall Lines | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 4 August 1966 }} combined to make boots an attractive fashion option for younger women. In 1963–64, André Courrèges released the first of his iconic white leather calf-length boots{{cite book |last1=Mulvagh |first1=Jane |title=Vogue History of 20th Century Fashion |date=1988 |publisher=Viking, The Penguin Group |location=London, England |isbn=0-670-80172-0 |page=274 |chapter=1957-1967: 1963 |quote=Paris raved about white kidskin boots from Courrèges}}{{cite book |last1=Howell |first1=Georgina |title=In Vogue: Sixty Years of Celebrities and Fashion from British Vogue |date=1978 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England |isbn=0-14-004955-X |pages=284–286 |chapter=1960-1969: 1964 |quote=The year of Courrèges. ... Vogue says, 'White sets the pace at Courrèges - tweeds, gloves, kid boots, shoes, trousers are all white. ...' From now on sixties fashion will revolve around ... white leather boots}}{{cite book |last1=Mulvagh |first1=Jane |title=Vogue History of 20th Century Fashion |date=1988 |publisher=Viking, The Penguin Group |location=London, England |isbn=0-670-80172-0 |page=279 |chapter=1957-1967: 1964 |quote=Courrèges hit the headlines with his 'Space Age' collection. ... [W]hite trousers slashed on the instep of the white kidskin boots}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_andre_courreges/objectview.aspx?page=3&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=courreges&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80096165&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |title=Accession # 2009.300.3380a, b: André Courrèges white leather boots, 1967 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=2 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202162906/http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_andre_courreges/objectview.aspx?page=3&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=courreges&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80096165&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |url-status=live }} and designers such as Mary Quant, who launched her own "Quant Afoot" line of footwear in 1967,Mendes, Valerie; de la Haye, Amy (2010). Fashion Since 1900 (World of Art). London: Thames & Hudson. Fig. 187 {{Cite book|isbn = 978-0-500-20402-3 |title = Fashion Since 1900 |last1 = Mendes |first1 = Valerie D. |last2 = Haye |first2 = Amy De La |year = 2010 |publisher = Thames & Hudson }} produced inexpensive, machine-molded plastic boots in a variety of different colors to be worn in tandem with miniskirts. The rising price of leather during the 1960s made these plastic and vinyl boots{{Cite web |url=http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82788&sos=7%2F |title=black plastic knee-length boot by Rayne, 1968 |publisher=London College of Fashion Shoe Collection |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=16 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716230350/http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82788&sos=7%2F |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82802&sos=8%2F |title=brown plastic knee-length boot by Bata, 1968 |publisher=London College of Fashion Shoe Collection |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=16 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716230406/http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82802&sos=8%2F |url-status=live }} a popular alternative to more traditional footwear.{{Cite web|url=http://www.buckscc.gov.uk/bcc/museum/object/object.page |title=plastic knee-high boots by Mary Quant, 1965 |publisher=Buckinghamshire County Museum |access-date=10 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629185733/http://www.buckscc.gov.uk/bcc/museum/object/object.page |archive-date=29 June 2011}} As skirts became even shorter in the late 1960s, there was a resurgence of interest in thigh-length boots or cuissardes.{{Cite book| last = Cox | first = Caroline | title = Vintage Shoes | publisher=HarperCollins | location = New York | year = 2008 | page = 138 | isbn = 978-0-06-166576-9 }}{{Cite book| last1 = Blanco F. | first1 = Jose | last2 = Leff | first2 = Scott | last3 = Kellogg | first3 = Ann T. | last4 = Payne | first4 = Lynn W. | title = The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Clothing Through American History, 1900 to the Present | volume = 2 | publisher=Greenwood Press | location = Westport CT | year = 2008 | page = 201 | isbn = 978-0-313-35855-5 }} Pierre Cardin featured shiny black PVC thighboots as part of his futuristic 1968 couture collection{{Cite web |url=https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O139785/pair-of-boots/ |title=Accession # T.667:1&2-1997: Pierre Cardin black pvc thigh-length boots, 1968 |publisher=Victoria & Albert Museum |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=2 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110102203807/http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O139785/pair-of-boots/ |url-status=live }} and Beth Levine designed seamless, stretch vinyl and nylon stocking boots tall enough to do double duty as hosiery.{{Cite book| last = Verin | first = Helene | title = Beth Levine Shoes | publisher=Stewart, Tabori & Chang | location = New York | year = 2009 | pages = 132–133 | isbn = 978-1-58479-759-3 }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_beth_levine/objectview.aspx?page=7&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=levine&fp=6&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80096166&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |title=Accession # 2009.300.3381a, b: Beth Levine thighboots, 1968 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=2 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202163348/http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_beth_levine/objectview.aspx?page=7&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=levine&fp=6&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80096166&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |url-status=live }}{{Citation | last = Crenshaw | first = Mary Ann | title = The Boot That Kept Growing | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 7 September 1967 }} Levine also showed thigh boots in dressier fabrics like velvet,{{cite journal |last1=Taylor |first1=Angela |title=Before, At and After the Coty Awards |journal=The New York Times |date=1967-09-27 |page=66 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/09/29/archives/before-at-and-after-the-coty-awards.html?searchResultPosition=7 |quote=...Beth Levine...picked up her [Coty] award in a short brown velvet tunic with matching thigh-high velvet boots...}} as did designers like Oscar de la Renta, who presented jeweled boots to the upper thigh.{{cite journal |last1=MacPherson |first1=Myra |title=They Loved de la Renta, but They Didn't Wear His Clothes |journal=The New York Times |date=1967-10-09 |page=83 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/10/09/archives/they-loved-de-la-renta-but-they-didnt-wear-his-clothes.html?searchResultPosition=8 |quote=De la Renta's...thigh-high...jewel encrusted...evening boots.}} The tallest boots from this period were so high that they were equipped with suspenders to hold them up.{{Citation | last = Emerson | first = Gloria | title = The Collections Are on in Rome: Coats Long, Boots High | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 17 July 1967 }}{{Citation | title = Fashion Forecast: The Next Directions |magazine=Vogue | pages =36–65 |date=July 1968}} Leather pants with their own attached foot piece and sole, essentially forming a waist-high boot, were also seen.{{cite journal |last1=Peterson |first1=Patricia |title=This is the Look from the French Couture for Fall '64 |journal=The New York Times |date=1964-08-07 |page=32 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/08/07/this-is-the-look-from-the-french-couture-for-fall-64.html?searchResultPosition=10 |quote=There...were...pants in leather with their own boots...attached.}} High laced boots, similar to those worn in Edwardian times, were also popular.{{Cite book | last = Nunn | first = Joan | title = Fashion in Costume, 1200–1980 | publisher = The Herbert Press Ltd | location = London | year = 1984 | page = [https://archive.org/details/fashionincostume0000nunn/page/239 239] | isbn = 978-0-8052-3905-8 | url = https://archive.org/details/fashionincostume0000nunn/page/239 }}

File:Northampton Museum 1979.123.1 womens boot 1970s.jpg

File:Pan-T-Boots DSCF2201.jpg

Although fashion boots and particularly "go-go boots" are often described as "typical" of 1960s fashion, it wasn't until the 1970s that boots became a mainstream fashion staple for women;{{Cite book| last1 = Milinaire | first1 = Catherine | last2 = Troy | first2 = Carol | title = Cheap Chic | publisher=Harmony Books | location = New York | year = 1978 | pages = 40–41 | isbn = 0-517-52453-8 }} for many women in the 1960s, boots were seen as "a superfluous accessory" more suitable for teenagers and college girls than a grown woman{{Cite book| last = Dariaux | first = Genevive Antoine | title = Elegance | publisher=Doubleday & Company | location = New York | year = 1964 | page = 21 | isbn = 0-385-03910-7 }} while, in 1968, 75% of office managers surveyed by The New York Times disapproved of their female staff wearing boots to work.{{citation |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1968/07/14/archives/management-views-office-fashions.html |title=Management Views Office Fashions |newspaper=The New York Times |date=14 July 1968 |url-access=subscription |access-date=10 February 2022 |archive-date=10 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210003918/https://www.nytimes.com/1968/07/14/archives/management-views-office-fashions.html |url-status=live }} By contrast, in 1977, boots made up 20 percent of all women's shoe sales in the United States{{citation | last = Ettorre | first = Barbara | title = Shoe Industry Lifted by Return of Skirt | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 29 July 1978}} and the end of the decade saw fashion boots occupying multiple pages of mainstream mail-order catalogs by companies such as Sears,{{Cite book| last = Smith | first = Desire | title = Fashionable Clothing from the Sears Catalogs: The Early 1970s | publisher=Schiffer Publishing Ltd | location = Atglen PA | year = 1998 |pages=138, 143–144, 147–148, 150, 158–159 | isbn = 0-7643-0520-4 }} Wards,{{Cite web |url=http://coololdstuff.com/gogoboots.html/ |title=Go-Go Boots: A Foot-First Jump into the Wacky World of Mod Footwear |author=Ward, Glynis |publisher=CoolOldStuff |access-date=10 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100510202535/http://coololdstuff.com/gogoboots.html |archive-date=10 May 2010}} and Kays."Step into Autumn – In Boots!" Kays Catalogue, Autumn Winter 1975

The early 1970s were typified by tight-fitting, vinyl boots rising to the knee or higher.{{Cite book| last = Peacock | first = John | title = Fashion Accessories: The Complete 20th Century Sourcebook | publisher=Thames & Hudson | location = London | year = 2000 |pages=114, 125 | isbn = 978-0-500-01997-9 }}{{Cite book| last = Smith | first = Desire | title = Fashionable Clothing from the Sears Catalogs: The Early 1970s | publisher=Schiffer Publishing Ltd | location = Atglen, PA | year = 1998 | page = 148 | isbn = 0-7643-0520-4 }}{{Cite web|url=http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82778&sos=13/ |title= beige thigh-length boot, 1970|publisher=London College of Fashion Shoe Collection|access-date=10 July 2010 }} These sometimes had mock lacing on the front and zipped up at the rear; they could be worn under the new maxi dresses, which had slits in them to show the leg.Florence Ledger, 1982. Put Your Foot Down, p.178. Melksham, The Uffington Press, 214pp An even higher combination was the Pan-T-Boot, a single garment combining stretch tights with boots.{{cite magazine|title=Modern Living: Stretch Pants with a Sole|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,910024,00.html|access-date=9 May 2017|magazine=Time|date=20 September 1971|archive-date=14 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414220505/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,910024,00.html|url-status=live}} In summer, pale, high-legged boots in printed or open weave fabric were teamed with summery dresses;{{Cite web |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_jerry_edouard/objectview.aspx?page=2&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=boot&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80094199&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |title=Accession # 2009.300.1610a, b: Jerry Edouard leather and cotton knee-length boots, 1975 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=2 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202163957/http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_jerry_edouard/objectview.aspx?page=2&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=boot&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80094199&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |url-status=live }} these often had extensive cut-outs, so that they were more like high-legged sandals than conventional boots.{{citation | last = Crenshaw | first = Mary Ann | title = Well, They Don't Have to Look Like Boots... | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 24 February 1971}}{{Cite book| last = Ledger | first = Florence | title = Put Your Foot Down | publisher=The Uffington Press | location = Melksham | year = 1982 | page = 178 | isbn = 0-85475-111-4 }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_k_geiger/objectview.aspx?page=3&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=boot&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80096738&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |title=Accession # 2009.300.3897a-d: Kurt Geiger black silk sandal boots, 1968 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=2 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202165214/http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_costume_institute/boots_k_geiger/objectview.aspx?page=3&sort=0&sortdir=asc&keyword=boot&fp=1&dd1=8&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=8&OID=80096738&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0%2F |url-status=live }} Platform-soled styles{{Cite web |url=http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82781&sos=14%2F |title=white leather platform over-the-knee boot, 1974 |publisher=London College of Fashion Shoe Collection |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=16 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716230452/http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=82781&sos=14%2F |url-status=live }} were also popular. The multi-colored suede and canvas over-the-knee boots produced by the London store Biba{{Cite web |url=https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O133353/pair-of-boots/ |title=Accession # T.67&A-1985: canvas boots by Biba, 1969 |date=19 April 1969 |publisher=Victoria & Albert Museum |access-date=11 July 2010 |archive-date=15 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110815122720/http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O133353/pair-of-boots/ |url-status=live }} were so sought-after that queues would form outside the store when a delivery was due.{{Cite book| last = Cox | first = Caroline | title = Vintage Shoes | publisher=HarperCollins | location = New York | year = 2008 | page = 152 | isbn = 978-0-06-166576-9 }} By the late 1970s, form-fitting, shaped-leg boots were being replaced with straight-legged designs,{{Citation | title = Shoe Signals |magazine=Vogue | page = 98 |date=July 1977}}{{citation | last = Nemy | first = Enid | title = Boots Have Changed - Especially in Price | newspaper = The New York Times | date = 20 September 1974}}{{cite book |last1=Peake |first1=Andy |title=Made for Walking |date=2018 |publisher=Schiffer Fashion Press |location=Atglen, Pennsylvania |isbn=978-0-7643-5499-1 |pages=113–115 |chapter=The New Ease in Fashion |quote=Saint Laurent's [1974 Russian-themed] collection featured...a new, and very distinctive, style of knee-length fashion boot....[T]he new boot was loose-fitting, touching the leg rather than clinging to it, and falling in extravagant folds as the soft leather crushed around the ankle....[T]he new boots quickly became known as 'Cossack boots'...In 1975, the New York Times was referring to the style as the 'Boot of the Year.'...[T]his was by far the most common style of fashion boot from the mid-1970s...'Baggy boots' is how the U.K. fashion press and mail-order catalogs were referring to them in 1974 and 1975...}} frequently worn over jeans or other pants, which were often pulled-on rather than zip-fastened.{{Cite book| last = Peacock | first = John | title = Fashion Accessories: The Complete 20th Century Sourcebook | publisher=Thames & Hudson | location = London | year = 2000 | page = 192 | isbn = 978-0-500-01997-9 }} As well as high-heeled dress boots, more rugged designs, by companies such as Frye, were widely worn.{{Citation | last = Sanders | first = Michelle | title = Vogue: Last Look |magazine=Vogue | page = 394 |date = October 2002}}{{citation | last = Roiphe | first = Anne | title = Tweedledum and Tweedledee | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 25 January 1976}}{{cite journal |last1=Klemesrud |first1=Judy |title=In Pioneer-Style Boots, the Klutzy Look is Chic |journal=The New York Times |date=1976-02-17 |page=52 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/02/17/archives/in-pioneerstyle-boots-the-klutzy-look-is-chic.html |access-date=2022-02-10 |quote=...Frye boots are the 'hot boots' this season, the boots that everybody has to have... |archive-date=11 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211083408/https://www.nytimes.com/1976/02/17/archives/in-pioneerstyle-boots-the-klutzy-look-is-chic.html |url-status=live }} The end of the decade saw a growth in popularity of shorter, calf-length boots,{{Citation | last = Crenshaw | first = Mary Ann | title = Lesser Boots | newspaper=The New York Times | date = 2 November 1975 }} often worn layered with socks and tights,{{Citation | title = Fall report on shoes/boots: all the news and more.... |magazine=Vogue | pages = 154–161 |date = August 1978}}{{cite journal |last1=Crenshaw |first1=Mary Ann |title=Fashion |journal=The New York Times |date=1975-10-12 |page=279 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/10/12/archives/fashion-warmups.html |access-date=2022-02-10 |quote=Fashion's leg warmers come in wonderful patterns, in solid colors for more subdued warmth, and can be worn thigh‐high over tight pants (by the very young) or pushed low over boots or shoes. Some of the best leg warmers are hand‐knit and ethnic‐patterned. |archive-date=11 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211083406/https://www.nytimes.com/1975/10/12/archives/fashion-warmups.html |url-status=live }} and a revival of interest in over-the-knee and thigh-length boots,{{Citation | title = July Finds: Walk Right In.... All the Terrific New Stockings & Socks, Shoes & Boots |magazine=Vogue | pages =142–143 |date=July 1977}}{{Citation | title = Paris/Milan: The New Soft Dressing |magazine=Vogue | pages =128–143 |date=August 1977}}{{cite magazine |title=Great New Fall Boots |magazine=Harper's Bazaar |date=1 July 1977 |quote=Boots go everywhere, and to all lengths, from ankle to thigh. ... 'The length of boots is based on the proportion of the clothes they are to be worn with ...' – Yves Saint Laurent. Over-the-knee tan suede-and-calf boot ... [w]ith leather thongs to tie high or low, tight or loose ... [b]y Yves Saint Laurent. ... Mid-calf luggage boot in calf leather ... [b]y Yves Saint Laurent...}}{{cite journal |last1=Morris |first1=Bernadine |title=Preview What's Coming in Fashion |journal=The New York Times |date=1977-04-10 |page=SM39 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/04/10/archives/preview-whats-coming-in-fashion-paris.html |access-date=2022-02-10 |quote=...[L]egs are invariably clad in heavy ribbed tights, leg warmers and boots. Over‐the‐knee and calf‐high are the newest heights for boots, but they do not exclude anything in between. |archive-date=11 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211085216/https://www.nytimes.com/1977/04/10/archives/preview-whats-coming-in-fashion-paris.html |url-status=live }} which were popularized by punk and new wave performers such as Blondie's Debbie Harry.

In contrast to the preceding decade, the 1980s saw a sharp decline in the popularity of high-legged boots, a direction that began with the introduction of shoulder-padded 1980s styles in fall of 1978.{{cite journal |last1=Morris |first1=Bernadine |title=The Message is Clear, But How Will It Be Received? |journal=The New York Times |date=1978-04-16 |page=70 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/04/16/archives/message-is-clear-but-how-will-it-be-received-skirting-the-mini.html |access-date=2021-11-15 |quote=Knee‐high boots have...waned, replaced by ankle‐high ones, which can he called high shoes or low boots. |archive-date=26 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220226200936/https://www.nytimes.com/1978/04/16/archives/message-is-clear-but-how-will-it-be-received-skirting-the-mini.html |url-status=live }} Instead, ankle boots in a variety of styles were particularly popular, as were low-heeled, calf-length, pull-on styles.{{Citation | title = Changes...New Choices |magazine=Vogue | pages = 134–143 |date = July 1981}}{{Citation | title = Shoes Are Big News |magazine=Vogue | pages = 204–215 |date = July 1982}} Knee length boots, if worn at all, tended to be low-heeled, pull-on styles, sometimes referred to as "riding boots", that were combined with long skirts. In the late 1980s, over-the-knee boots made a reappearance; these were loose-fitting, low-heeled styles in suede,{{Citation | title = View: Sure Shoe-Ins |magazine=Vogue |pages=132, 134 |date = July 1988}} often brightly colored or decorated with brocade.{{Citation | title = View: The Romantic Spirit of the Elizabethan Age--High-Collared Blouses, Gilded Boots, Jewelled Cuffs |magazine=Vogue | pages = 178–180 | date = November 1988}} In 1990, Karl Lagerfeld included thigh-length satin boots in his Fall/Winter Couture collection for Chanel, using the boots as an alternative to leggings,{{Citation | title = Vogue's Point of View |magazine=Vogue | page = 327 | date = October 1990 }} but it was not until the following decade that the inherent elegance of classic dress boot styles was rediscovered.{{Cite book | last = Quinn | first = Bradley | title = The Boot | publisher=Laurence King Publishing Ltd | location = London | year = 2010 | page = 30 | isbn = 978-1-85669-663-0 }}File:Rachel Ray boots 2009.jpg, in knee-length, black leather fashion boots, January 2009]]

The early 1990s saw an explosion in dance club culture and its associated fashions, many of which looked back to the 1960s and 1970s for inspiration, as well as drawing on fetish-themed elements. Knee-length go-go boots, platform-soled boots, and even thigh-length PVC boots were worn by clubbers, but although some designers flirted with these styles of footwear (e.g. Gianni Versace) mainstream take-up was limited. Nonetheless, by 1993 boots were popular enough for Vogue to declare that it was "The Year of the Boot",{{Citation | title = Vogue's Last Look: The Year of the Boot |magazine=Vogue | pages = 600–602 |date = September 1993}} with a wide range of styles from ankle-length to over-the-knee, designed to be worn at any time and with any hem length.{{Citation | last = Kaznjian | first = Dodie | title = Getting the Boot |magazine=Vogue | pages = 230–235, 310 |date = August 1993}} Knee-length boots became commonplace again, initially as lace-up styles{{Cite book| last1 = Blanco F. | first1 = Jose | last2 = Leff | first2 = Scott | last3 = Kellogg | first3 = Ann T. | last4 = Payne | first4 = Lynn W. | title = The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Clothing Through American History, 1900 to the Present | volume = 2 | publisher=Greenwood Press | location = Westport CT | year = 2008

| page = 234 | isbn = 978-0-313-35855-5 }} which were subsequently replaced by zip-fastened boots in the second half of the decade. In 1995, Versace's Fall/Winter collection featured slim-fitting, spike heeled boots, rising to just below the knee,{{Citation | last = Spindler | first = Amy | title = Versace: Clean and Mean for Fall | newspaper =The New York Times | date = 8 March 1995}} which were a precursor of the commonest style of dress boot for the next 10 years. Just as boots in the 1960s were seen as an antidote to the femininity of the 'New Look', this early nineties resurgence was linked to the development of lighter, more feminine clothing styles that were contrasted and complemented by wearing boots.

By the turn of the 21st century fashion boots in a variety of styles were back to the same level of ubiquity that they had enjoyed in the 1970s.{{Citation | last = Woods | first = Vicki | title = Year of the Boot: Romping, Stomping Boots (From Tall and Spindly To Ruggedly Road-Ready) Are Replacing The Lowly Shoe |magazine=Vogue | pages = 684–695 |date = September 2001}} A pair of knee-length boots, often with metal accents, was widely regarded as a must-have wardrobe item for the clothes-conscious woman,{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/shoppingandfashion/3344479/The-ten-best...-boots.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130505074734/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/shoppingandfashion/3344479/The-ten-best...-boots.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=5 May 2013 |title= The ten best... boots|author=Baker, Sarah|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=UK |date=21 September 2005 |access-date=10 July 2010 }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/style/3315502/Fabulous-looks-to-fall-for-this-autumn.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120911050426/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/style/3315502/Fabulous-looks-to-fall-for-this-autumn.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=11 September 2012 |title= Fabulous looks to fall for this autumn |author=Coulson, Clare |work=The Daily Telegraph|location=UK |date=30 September 2003 |access-date=10 July 2010 }} paired with knee length skirts and dresses for business and casual wear.{{Cite book| last1 = Blanco F. | first1 = Jose | last2 = Leff | first2 = Scott | last3 = Kellogg | first3 = Ann T. | last4 = Payne | first4 = Lynn W. | title = The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Clothing Through American History, 1900 to the Present | volume = 2 | publisher=Greenwood Press | location = Westport CT | year = 2008 | page = 242 | isbn = 978-0-313-35855-5 }}{{Citation | author=Mead, Rebecca | title = Strategy Session: The Pipeline | magazine = The New Yorker | date = 10 January 2011 }} Ankle boots also remained very popular and in the latter part of the first decade knee-length styles worn over pants,{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/stellamagazine/3349317/Boots-advantage-points.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130421090257/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/stellamagazine/3349317/Boots-advantage-points.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 April 2013 |title= Boots advantage points |author=Picardie, Justine|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=UK |date=29 January 2006 |access-date=10 July 2010 }} especially jeans,{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/trendspotting/3346989/How-to-do-skinny.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090123170402/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/trendspotting/3346989/How-to-do-skinny.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 January 2009 |title= How to do skinny |author=Coulson, Clare|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=UK |date=16 November 2005 |access-date=10 July 2010 }} were common. In 2009 thigh-length boots were a subject of major attention by the fashion press,{{Cite web |url=http://www.coutorture.com/Fall-2009-Trend-Report-Over--Knee-Please-2984254 |title=Fall 2009 Trend Report: Over-the-knee please |publisher=Coutorture.com |date=30 March 2009 |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=24 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100724055516/http://www.coutorture.com/Fall-2009-Trend-Report-Over--Knee-Please-2984254 |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.whowhatwear.com/website/full-article/trend-report-over-the-knee-boots/ |title=Trend Report: Over-the-knee boots |publisher=WhoWhatWear.com |date=4 November 2009 |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100713211406/http://www.whowhatwear.com/website/full-article/trend-report-over-the-knee-boots/ |archive-date=13 July 2010 |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.focusonstyle.com/Call-My-Stylist/over-the-knee-boots |title=How to wear over-the-knee boots |author=Haver, Sharon |publisher=Focus on Style.com |date=19 December 2008 |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-date=12 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100412085803/http://www.focusonstyle.com/Call-My-Stylist/over-the-knee-boots |url-status=live }}Reach for the Thighs. Marie Claire, October 2009, p. 26{{Cite web |url=http://www.mystyle.com/mystyle/b565_these_boots_were_made_strutting.html |title=These boots were made for strutting |author=Datu, Danielle |publisher=MyStyle.com |date=7 January 2008 |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726160354/http://www.mystyle.com/mystyle/b565_these_boots_were_made_strutting.html |archive-date=26 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/fashionnews/5788076/Trend-alert-Over-the-knee-boots.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090714185145/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/fashionnews/5788076/Trend-alert-Over-the-knee-boots.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 July 2009 |title= Trend Alert: over-the-knee boots |author=Bergin, Olivia|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=UK |date=10 July 2009 |access-date=10 July 2010 }} receiving guarded approval and a level of mainstream acceptance that they had never previously achieved; this trend continued in 2010{{Cite web |url=http://www.timesoftheinternet.com/briefs/winter-2010%E2%80%99s-recurring-trend-over-the-knee-boots/ |title=Winter 2010's Recurring Trend: Over The Knee Boots |publisher=Times of the Internet |date=9 November 2010 |access-date=22 November 2010 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20101113065110/http://www.timesoftheinternet.com/briefs/winter-2010’s-recurring-trend-over-the-knee-boots/ |archive-date=13 November 2010 |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |url=http://wvgazette.com/Life/201011121151 |title=Fall's hot foot fashions from high to low |work=The Charleston Gazette |date=13 November 2010 |access-date=22 November 2010 |archive-date=17 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101117160631/http://wvgazette.com/Life/201011121151 |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |url=http://www.freep.com/article/20101219/FEATURES01/12190354/1026/FEATURES01/Over-the-knee-boots-have-sky-high-style|title= Over-the-knee boots have sky-high style |work=The Detroit Free Press |date=19 December 2010 |access-date=21 December 2010 }} and by the following year over-the-knee styles had become commonplace. Also in 2011, ankle boots were being promoted as a popular summer alternative to sandals.{{Cite web |url=http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/article/TMG8474134/Step-into-this-summers-must-have-ankle-boots.html |title=Step into this summer's must-have: ankle boots |author=Bergin, Olivia |work=The Daily Telegraph|location=UK |date=26 April 2011 |access-date=26 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430151040/http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/article/TMG8474134/Step-into-this-summers-must-have-ankle-boots.html |archive-date=30 April 2011}}

File:Fashion boot terminology.png

Fashion boots generally employ the same range of soles and heels as are found in shoes. The defining character of the boot is the length of the shaft. Ankle boots generally have a shaft height of less than 8 inches (20 cm), calf-length boots 8–15 inches (20–38 cm), knee-length boots 15–19 inches (38–48 cm), while over-the knee boots have shaft lengths of 19 inches (38 cm) or more; however these divisions are arbitrary and at the boundaries the decision as to whether a boot is, for example, calf-length or knee-length is largely subjective.

The shaft of a fashion boot can be fitted (i.e. following the curve of the wearer's calf), straight-legged, or loose-fitting (or "slouchy"). In close-fitting boots, flexibility is achieved by the use of gussets; slits in the material either at the top of the shaft (in knee-length boots), or wider panels at the sides of the shaft (in ankle boots), which are backed with elasticized fabric. Compression folds around the ankle allow for movement of the foot. In over-the-knee boots, flexion of the knee is usually attained by a vent at the back of the boot, running from the top of the shaft to the back of the knee. This may be closed with laces, elasticized, or left open. Where a vent is not used, freedom of movement is achieved either by having the top of the shaft flare outwards above the knee, or making all or part of the shaft out of a stretchable material.

A variety of fasteners are seen in fashion boots. Laces are commonly used in ankle boots, but are too time-consuming for longer styles. Zip fasteners are widely employed in all styles of boot – they may run the entire length of the shaft, or just the ankle and lower calf – these partial-length zips make it easier to insert the foot into the toe of the boot by relaxing the fit around the ankle. Pull-on boots have no fasteners and tend to have a looser fit than zip or lace-up boots; they sometimes have a loop of leather at the top of the shaft, called a boot-strap, to assist with pulling the boot on. Finally, button-fastened boots were common at the beginning of the last century but are rarely seen today. If present, buttons are usually employed as design accents on boots; other decorative features include straps, buckles, studs, and decorative stitching.

These are the most widely worn style of fashion boots, usually under pants.{{citation | last1 = Woodall | first1 = Trinny | last2 = Constantine | first2 = Susannah | title = What Not To Wear | location = London | publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson | year = 2002 | page = 140 | isbn = 0-297-84331-1 }} Ankle boots are also the only type of fashion boot commonly worn by both men and women, and the only one to have remained popular without a break since the 19th century. They vary in length from booties or shoe boots (effectively a shoe that skims the ankle{{Cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/g2/story/0,,2184051,00.html |title=Pick of the week: Shoe-boots |author=Fox, Imogen |work=The Guardian |location=UK |date=5 October 2007 |access-date=13 July 2010 |archive-date=20 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141220105948/http://www.theguardian.com/g2/story/0,,2184051,00.html |url-status=live }}) to boots that cover the lower part of the calf.

Because the top of this boot hits the curve of the leg at the widest point of the calf it is regarded by stylists as particularly challenging to wear; even average legs can look fat. For this reason, calf-length boots are usually worn under pants or with long skirts that cover the top of the boot.

{{See also|Knee-high boots}}

These come in a wide variety of colors and materials (e.g. leather, suede, fabric) and can be worn with skirts or dresses of any length, under or over pants, or with leggings. A boot that hits the leg just below the knee is thought to be particularly stylish.{{citation | last1 = Woodall | first1 = Trinny | last2 = Constantine | first2 = Susannah | title = What Not To Wear | location = London | publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson | year = 2002 | page = 141 | isbn = 0-297-84331-1 }}

{{See also|Over-the-knee boot}}

Also known as thighboots or cuissardes, these boots were originally worn by men in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries to protect the legs while riding{{Cite book| last = Cox | first = Caroline | title = Vintage Shoes | publisher=HarperCollins | location = New York | year = 2008 | page = 38 | isbn = 978-0-06-166576-9 }}{{Cite book| last = Steele | first = Valerie | author-link = Valerie Steele |title = Shoes: A Lexicon of Style | publisher=Rizzoli International Publications | location = New York | year = 1999 | page = 140 | isbn = 0-8478-2166-8 }} before being adapted as a fashion item for women in the 1960s and 1970s. In this context they have sometimes been considered provocative or daring because of past association with fetishism and the sex industry{{Cite book| last = Steele | first = Valerie | author-link = Valerie Steele |title = Shoes: A Lexicon of Style | publisher=Rizzoli International Publications | location = New York | year = 1999 | page = 132 | isbn = 0-8478-2166-8 }} and so have had patchy mainstream acceptance. Even when popular, a combination of one or more features such as lower heels, softer materials (e.g. suede), muted colors, and avoidance of skin exposure (by wearing over pants, leggings, or opaque hose){{Cite web | last = Summer | first = Sydne | title = Would you wear it? Over-the-knee boots | publisher = My Style.com | date = 3 September 2009 | url = http://www.mystyle.com/mystyle/b3856_would_you_wear_it_over_the_knee_boots.html | access-date = 13 July 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100706202907/http://www.mystyle.com/mystyle/b3856_would_you_wear_it_over_the_knee_boots.html | archive-date = 6 July 2010 | url-status = dead }}{{Cite web | last = H. | first = Lauren | title = Duke It Out: Over-The-Knee Boots | publisher = College Candy.com | date = 24 July 2009 | url = http://collegecandy.com/2009/07/24/duke-it-out-over-the-knee-boots/ | access-date = 13 July 2010 | archive-date = 21 November 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101121110728/http://collegecandy.com/2009/07/24/duke-it-out-over-the-knee-boots/ | url-status = live }}{{Cite web | last = Schiavone | first = Kristyn | title = How to wear over-the-knee boots | work = Chicago Tribune | date = 10 March 2011 | url = http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/tribu/ct-tribu-how-to-high-boots-story,0,655869.story | access-date = 16 March 2011 | archive-date = 24 March 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110324074406/http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/tribu/ct-tribu-how-to-high-boots-story,0,655869.story | url-status = live }} is usually employed to avoid the so-called "Vivian" effect (a reference to Julia Roberts' character in the 1990 movie Pretty Woman).

• List of shoe styles
• Boot
• Go-go boots
• Knee-high boots
• List of boots
• Platform boot
• Russian boot
• Thigh-high boots
• Over-the-knee boot

{{reflist}}

• [http://digilander.libero.it/guido_1953/pics/boots/boots-girls.htm Women's fashion boots of the 1960s and 1970s]
• [https://virtualshoemuseum.com/type/boot/ Boots at the Virtual Shoe Museum]

{{Footwear}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fashion Boot}}

Category:20th-century fashion

Category:21st-century fashion

Category:Boots

Category:Footwear