French chic, where are the heels?
Posted by Ellee on Mar 30, 2008 in updates | 25 comments
The outfits were elegant and demure 
and deliberately understated to accommodate the renowned British reserve. But one thing stood out and disappointed me about Carla Sarkozy‘s carefully planned wardrobe during her visit to the UK last week -where were the heels?
I only started wearing flatties after I began to carry babies around on my hips. Up until then, I always wore the right colour killer heel with every outfit. Even when cycling around Cambridge on journalistic assignments. And I certainly still do when the occasion demands. I would certainly never dream of attending a formal evening in dull flatties. I own dozens of gorgeous stilettos in every colour you can imagine, some more comfortable than others. These are essential accessories that complete an outfit, even more so than a handbag. And I’m afraid that’s where Carla let herself down – literally – even if her soft pumps were made by Dior.
There are occasions when a woman has to wear heels, h
owever 
short her partner. How long before Carla develops the hunched shoulders that Princess Diana did during her marriage to Prince Charles who she also dwarfed? Can tall women wear heels when they marry much shorter men? I think sometimes they have to, especially if they want to look glamorous. Glamour and flatties do not go together.
*I also have a black pillbox hat I bought a few years ago, is this the start of a new fashion craze? And don’t you think her sleeves are too short on her purple coat which I read cost £2,000?
No respectable woman would be caught dead in that outfit without heels. They are what complete the look.
Pip, I’m not sure about The Hitch, but I certainly don’t think Boris would feel intimated by a taller woman in stilettos.
I think stacked heels on a man are a sure sign of insecurity. Christopher Hitchens is only about 5’8″ and can strip a woman naked at 30 paces. He sure as hell doesn’t wear stacked heels. Doesn’t need them
And Boris wouldn’t be intimidated by a tall woman in heels 
I think she looked stunning and made the Windsor women, weighed down by their jewellery, look ridiculous.
We’ll see how long she submits to her husband for.
I am sure it is because he is a shorty. He always wears heels and his shoes have special platforms built inside to try and make him taller. Like a lot of short men who think they are important, he wants to appear taller than he is.
… and Italian women.
Ellee – I’m surprised – her beau is not tall. The French and Russian women are sensitive to their men, an art many in the west have lost.
I think that Carla played it right with her slightly low key approach.
She has plenty of time to get used to her new role and I’m sure she’ll play it very well; especially given the maturity with which she’s approaching it.
i would guess the low heels are something to do with the height of her husband..
I don’t really think the low heels are so bad, since I never wear high heels myself and never did, but the sleeves are definitely too short on that coat. She’s very good looking and her outfits are very smart so she can get away with anything as long as the hems are adjusted correctly.
Well spotted – sleeves too short. And heels? Definately! i have a definate weakness for shoes and would love a pair of Jimmy Choos or manolos. I would be 6’2″ in Manolos. carrie Bradshaw has nothing on my shoe collection. Come on ladies, who is going to admit they own shoes they’ve never worn? They bought these darling heels simply because they were pretty? Oh if only I went out!
Hi Ellee, before I forget there’s something for you over at my place, so come and get it! ;D
I love the look of heels, but because of spinal stenosis absolutely cannot wear them higher than 2″. Here in Western Canada styles are so casual that one can usually get away with dress pants and a dressy top so flats go with the outfit. But in a dress, it’s much nicer to wear a heel. Maybe France is just ahead of the rest of the world in fashion and this is what’s “in.” I think she’s lovely and looks great in everything she’s wearing.
I think you just need to wear the right shoe with the right outfit that is where Carla has gone wrong!
The Queen even at her age often looks glamorous, I don’t see any high heels
Just my opinion
Eeeeek! A woman after my own heart. (I even have a different site under the psudenom (?) of Sliver Stiletto.. grin.
I’m tall, and I love being taller – lets me spot all the bald patches well in advance. Good to meet you.
Emily, it’s true if you can’t walk comfortably in heels, you are not going to look good. A lot of fashion shoes today are flatties, like flowered wellies (which I would wear) and those plastic Crocs (which I wouldn’t be seen dead in, they are so sexless).
I don’t know if it’s because I’m young but I never wear heels. I would say it’s got more to do with the fact I can’t walk in them
A look that certainly wouldn’t be glamorous. I think it’s better to feel comfortable in what you’re wearing, maybe she wouldn’t if she were towering over her husband 
Liz, at £2,000, surely Carla’s coat would have been made to measure specially for her long limbs.
Correction: look excessively long!
High heels are much more alluring and sexy and go well with glamorous outfits.
Is it me or do her arms long excessively long? Which would explain why the sleevs of her coat look short. Although not if it were designer-made.
Sally, you would look stunning in heels.
I dont think there are any occasions when a woman has to wear heels…. and think Boni’s comment is totally true
Well Boni, there is always a time and place for flatties, and I have my fair share of them too, but a former model should know that strappy evening shoes with heels would look best with her stunning evening gowns. But will she ever be able to wear them again now she is married to a much shorter man?
Well Ellie, I am a flat shoe short of person, I confess, and have never looked back from the moment I gave my heels away. I love to run for the train, walk London quickly, and jump on and off the buses. No heels would allow me to do this. And yes, even socialising, I wear my flaties, they are all the rage these days. This is liberation for women, and what a welcome revolution it is.
Certainly worth reading Matt’s follow-up on this and his excellent research. All I can say is, “sacre bleu!”