Winklepicker
Encyclopedia
Winklepickers are a style of shoe or boot worn from the 1950s onward by male and female British rock and roll
fans. The feature which gives both the boot and shoe their name is the very sharp and quite long pointed toe, reminiscent of medieval footwear and approximately the same as the long pointed toes on some women's high fashion shoes and boots in the late 2000s. The pointed toe was called the winkle picker toe because in England periwinkle snails
or winkles are or were a popular seaside snack, which is eaten using a pin or other pointed object to carefully extract the soft parts out of the coiled shell
, hence the phrase: "to winkle something out", and from that, winkle-pickers as a humorous name for shoes with a very pointed tip.
s worn by the medieval French nobility, were a conspicuous contrast to the brothel creepers worn by Teddy Boys. The male shoes were lace-up Oxford style with a low heel and an exaggerated pointed toe. A Chelsea Boot style (elastic-sided with a two-inch, and later as much as two and one half inch, Cuban heel
) was notably worn by the Beatles, but although it had a pointed toe, was not considered to be a Winklepicker. Winklepicker shoes from Stan's of Battersea were also worn by the Teddy Girls as well as being a fleeting fashion for young women generally.
scene, where they are known as "pikes".
Winklepickers with stiletto heels for women swept the UK in the late fifties and at one stage the High Street versions were worn by virtually all the female English population who wore high heeled shoes. They were often manufactured in Italy, but the handmade versions, notably those from Stan's Shoes of Battersea were the most extreme, if somewhat bulky-looking at the toe compared with the Italian styles.
The original 1960s winkle picker stilettos were similar to the long pointed toe which has been fashionable on women's shoes and boots in Europe of late. The long sharp toe was always teamed with a stiletto heel
(or spike heel) which, as today, could be as low as one and a half inches or as high as five inches, though most were in the three to four inch range. The stiletto heels on the original 1960s styles were, however, much more curved-in at the rear (also sometimes sharply-waisted and slightly flared out at the top piece) than most of the recent pointy-toed fashion shoes, which often have straighter, thicker, more set-back heels, rather at odds with the look of the pointed toe. In most cases, too, the modern shoe toes lack the length of the true 1960s winklepicker, and bear more resemblance to the less pointed mass-produced versions of the era.
They attained some notoriety, when they first appeared, as a result of being worn in gang fights (sometimes by both sexes) though it seems that contemporary newspaper reports of such clashes were, as ever, sensationalised flights of the imagination on the part of bored journalists with nothing better to write about. In fact, although the Winklepicker looks lethal, it would be far more likely for damage to be caused to the delicately pointed shoe than to the opponent in any serious kicking incident, and it would be highly unlikely that a fashion-conscious person of the 1960s would have subjected a prized pair of expensive Italian imports or custom-made Stan's originals to this sort of abuse.
blazers, Western shirts, vintage T shirts, and skinny jeans
by many indie pop
bands, such as the members of Kings of Leon
, Kaiser Chiefs
, The Kills
, Mod Fun
, Neils Children
, Klaxons
The Horrors
and Daniel Johns
. The shoes are closely related to British Garage Rock
band The Horrors
who even went as far to have a winklepicker boot with three buckles on their official merchandise t-shirt along with the words "I am a horror." Faris Badwan
has personally endorsed Paolo Vandini Veers. They are also worn by English comedians Russell Brand
and Noel Fielding
; English DJ and TV presenter Alex Zane
.
Currently, Winklepicker boots are very popular in Germany among the modern Vogue Goth and Punk subculture
s who refer to the boots as "Pikes". In Britain they are often informally called "Pointies."
Although slightly pointed toes are often a feature of women's fashion shoes, they are usually nowadays "tamed down" or shortened (often with a sacrifice of comfortable toe space) for mass market appeal.
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
fans. The feature which gives both the boot and shoe their name is the very sharp and quite long pointed toe, reminiscent of medieval footwear and approximately the same as the long pointed toes on some women's high fashion shoes and boots in the late 2000s. The pointed toe was called the winkle picker toe because in England periwinkle snails
Common Periwinkle
The common periwinkle or winkle, scientific name Littorina littorea, is a species of small edible sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk which has gills and an operculum, and is classified within the family Littorinidae, the periwinkles....
or winkles are or were a popular seaside snack, which is eaten using a pin or other pointed object to carefully extract the soft parts out of the coiled shell
Gastropod shell
The gastropod shell is a shell which is part of the body of a gastropod or snail, one kind of mollusc. The gastropod shell is an external skeleton or exoskeleton, which serves not only for muscle attachment, but also for protection from predators and from mechanical damage...
, hence the phrase: "to winkle something out", and from that, winkle-pickers as a humorous name for shoes with a very pointed tip.
Origins
Winklepicker shoes, inspired by the PoulainePoulaine
Crakows or crackowes were a style of shoes with extremely long toes very popular in the 15th century. They were so named because the style was thought to have originated in Kraków, then the capital of Poland. They began in the late 14th century and fell from fashion after about 1480–90...
s worn by the medieval French nobility, were a conspicuous contrast to the brothel creepers worn by Teddy Boys. The male shoes were lace-up Oxford style with a low heel and an exaggerated pointed toe. A Chelsea Boot style (elastic-sided with a two-inch, and later as much as two and one half inch, Cuban heel
Cuban heel
Cuban heel may refer to:* Stocking with a heel made with folded over and sewn reinforcement* High-heeled footwear - Men* Heel - MaleSee also:* Beatle boots...
) was notably worn by the Beatles, but although it had a pointed toe, was not considered to be a Winklepicker. Winklepicker shoes from Stan's of Battersea were also worn by the Teddy Girls as well as being a fleeting fashion for young women generally.
1960s
In the early 1960s the winklepicker toe was popular with modernists, the forerunners of the mods. In the early 1960s the point was effectively chopped off (they hung on for longer than that in the UK) and gave rise to the "chisel toe" on the footwear of both genders. However, winklepickers with traditional sharp-point styles made a comeback of sorts in the late 1970s and early 1980s (either as previously unworn old-stock, second-hand originals, or contemporary-production attempted copies) when they were sold at London indoor markets like Kensington Market and Chelsea's Great Gear Market and worn by several subculture groups including Mods, Rockabillies, Punks, Rock'n'Roll Revivalists, and in the gothGoth subculture
The goth subculture is a contemporary subculture found in many countries. It began in England during the early 1980s in the gothic rock scene, an offshoot of the post-punk genre. The goth subculture has survived much longer than others of the same era, and has continued to diversify...
scene, where they are known as "pikes".
Winklepickers with stiletto heels for women swept the UK in the late fifties and at one stage the High Street versions were worn by virtually all the female English population who wore high heeled shoes. They were often manufactured in Italy, but the handmade versions, notably those from Stan's Shoes of Battersea were the most extreme, if somewhat bulky-looking at the toe compared with the Italian styles.
The original 1960s winkle picker stilettos were similar to the long pointed toe which has been fashionable on women's shoes and boots in Europe of late. The long sharp toe was always teamed with a stiletto heel
Stiletto heel
A stiletto heel is a long, thin, high heel found on some boots and shoes, usually for women. It is named after the stiletto dagger, the phrase being first recorded in the early 1930s...
(or spike heel) which, as today, could be as low as one and a half inches or as high as five inches, though most were in the three to four inch range. The stiletto heels on the original 1960s styles were, however, much more curved-in at the rear (also sometimes sharply-waisted and slightly flared out at the top piece) than most of the recent pointy-toed fashion shoes, which often have straighter, thicker, more set-back heels, rather at odds with the look of the pointed toe. In most cases, too, the modern shoe toes lack the length of the true 1960s winklepicker, and bear more resemblance to the less pointed mass-produced versions of the era.
They attained some notoriety, when they first appeared, as a result of being worn in gang fights (sometimes by both sexes) though it seems that contemporary newspaper reports of such clashes were, as ever, sensationalised flights of the imagination on the part of bored journalists with nothing better to write about. In fact, although the Winklepicker looks lethal, it would be far more likely for damage to be caused to the delicately pointed shoe than to the opponent in any serious kicking incident, and it would be highly unlikely that a fashion-conscious person of the 1960s would have subjected a prized pair of expensive Italian imports or custom-made Stan's originals to this sort of abuse.
Modern day
By the mid-2000s winklepickers were worn with 1960s modMod
- General :* Honour Moderations, a first set of examinations at Oxford University* Maximum operating depth, in scuba diving, the depth at which a gas mix exceeds safe limits* Ministry of Defence, the part of a government responsible for matters of military defence...
blazers, Western shirts, vintage T shirts, and skinny jeans
Skinny jeans
Slim-fit pants or skinny jeans have a snug fit through the legs and end in a small leg opening that can be anywhere from 9" to 20" depending on size. Other names for this style include pegs, drainpipes, stovepipes, Asian tight-pants, cigarette pants, skinny pants,insolent pants or skinnies...
by many indie pop
Indie pop
Indie pop is a genre of alternative rock music that originated in the United Kingdom in the mid 1980s, with its roots in the Scottish post-punk bands on the Postcard Records label in the early '80s, such as Orange Juice, Josef K and Aztec Camera, and the dominant UK independent band of the mid...
bands, such as the members of Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon is an American rock band that originated in Albion, Oklahoma but formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1999. The band is composed of brothers Anthony Caleb Followill , Ivan Nathan Followill and Michael Jared Followill Kings of Leon is an American rock band that originated in Albion,...
, Kaiser Chiefs
Kaiser Chiefs
Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 1996. They were named after the South African football club Kaizer Chiefs....
, The Kills
The Kills
The Kills is a rock band formed by American singer Alison Mosshart and British guitarist Jamie Hince . Their first three albums, Keep On Your Mean Side, No Wow, and Midnight Boom, have garnered much critical praise...
, Mod Fun
Mod Fun
Mod Fun are an American power pop/garage punk band from the New York City area. Mod Fun were originally active in the early to mid 1980s, and played an integral part in New York City's burgeoning garage rock revival scene of the time. By mid 1986 they were widely regarded as one the best known...
, Neils Children
Neils Children
Neils Children is an English post-punk band, founded by John Linger and Brandon Jacobs .-Career:Neils Children formed in 1999 at Harlow College in Essex, where John Linger and Brandon Jacobs were studying with Richard Hawkins...
, Klaxons
Klaxons
Klaxons are a British indie rock band, based in London. Following the release of numerous 7-inch singles on different independent record labels, as well as the success of previous singles "Magick" and "Golden Skans", the band released their debut album, Myths of the Near Future on 29 January 2007....
The Horrors
The Horrors
The Horrors are an English band from Southend on Sea, formed in 2005. Their debut Strange House, was released in 2007 and reached number thirty-seven on the UK Albums Chart, their second album Primary Colours was released in 2009 and peaked at number 25 in the UK...
and Daniel Johns
Daniel Johns
Daniel Paul Johns is an Australian musician, vocalist, composer, guitarist, and pianist, best known as the frontman of the rock band Silverchair. He is also part of The Dissociatives...
. The shoes are closely related to British Garage Rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
band The Horrors
The Horrors
The Horrors are an English band from Southend on Sea, formed in 2005. Their debut Strange House, was released in 2007 and reached number thirty-seven on the UK Albums Chart, their second album Primary Colours was released in 2009 and peaked at number 25 in the UK...
who even went as far to have a winklepicker boot with three buckles on their official merchandise t-shirt along with the words "I am a horror." Faris Badwan
Faris Badwan
Faris Badwan is a British musician, best known for being the lead vocalist for the English Alternative Rock band The Horrors, and more recently one half of his side project Cat's Eyes with Rachel Zeffira.-Early life:...
has personally endorsed Paolo Vandini Veers. They are also worn by English comedians Russell Brand
Russell Brand
Russell Edward Brand is an English comedian, actor, columnist, singer, author and radio/television presenter.Brand achieved mainstream fame in the UK in 2004 for his role as host of Big Brother spin-off, Big Brother's Big Mouth. His first major film role was in the 2007 film St Trinians...
and Noel Fielding
Noel Fielding
Noel Fielding is a British artist, comedian and actor. He is known for his roles as Vince Noir in The Mighty Boosh, which he co-writes with comedy partner Julian Barratt, and as team captain on the music panel show Never Mind the Buzzcocks.-Stand-up comedy:Noel Fielding performed regularly as a...
; English DJ and TV presenter Alex Zane
Alex Zane
Alex Zane is an English television presenter and DJ.-Background:Zane was born in Leeds and attended Boston Spa School before going on to study Medicine at University College London, a course which he left after a year, and then Media and Communications at Goldsmiths College.-Stand-up comedy and...
.
Currently, Winklepicker boots are very popular in Germany among the modern Vogue Goth and Punk subculture
Punk subculture
The punk subculture includes a diverse array of ideologies, and forms of expression, including fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film, which grew out of punk rock.-History:...
s who refer to the boots as "Pikes". In Britain they are often informally called "Pointies."
Although slightly pointed toes are often a feature of women's fashion shoes, they are usually nowadays "tamed down" or shortened (often with a sacrifice of comfortable toe space) for mass market appeal.
See also
- Chelsea boots
- Beatle bootsBeatle bootsBeatle boots are a style of boot that have been worn since the 1960s. The boots are tight-fitting, Cuban-heeled, ankle-high boots with a sharp pointed toe, made popular by the English rock group The Beatles, for whom they were originally made. The style can feature either zipped or elastic sides...
- Mexican pointy bootsMexican pointy bootsMexican pointy boots are a style of boots made with elongated toes that are popular footwear for men in parts of Mexico as well as in the United States. The boots are said to have originated in Matehuala in the Mexican state of San Luis Potosí...
- Western wearWestern wearWestern wear is a category of men's and women's clothing which derives its unique style from the clothes worn in the 19th-century American West. It ranges from accurate historical reproductions of pioneer, mountain man, Civil War, cowboy and vaquero clothing to the stylized garments popularized by...
- Leningrad CowboysLeningrad CowboysThe Leningrad Cowboys is a Finnish rock band famous for humorously making rock and roll covers of popular songs, exaggerated pompadour hairstyles, long, pointy shoes, often featuring a Russian military band, the Alexandrov Ensemble.-Beginnings:...
- 1945–1960 in fashion
External links
- Video: Behind The Seams – Mexican Pointy Boots, VBS.tvVBS.tvVBS.tv is an online television network owned by the Vice media conglomerate. The network produces original, short-form, documentary-style video content. Subject matter includes humanitarian issues, music, insider travel guides, and news. The creative director of the network is Spike...
, 1 April 2011