Earth Shoes

Earth shoes were designed and developed by a Scandinavian yoga instructor, Anne Kals, and introduced to the public in 1957. Earth shoes were not so-named by their designer, but were named earth shoes on an Earth day celebrated in New York city, when the earth shoes were introduced to the US in 1970. Earth day celebratory crowds were gathered near the New York store when the manager was first selling them, and he very appropriately named them Earth shoes.

Earth shoes were the first shoe designed and manufactured with the heel portion of the shoe being lower than the sole. This earth shoe design was thought by its designer, and later by others, to create better posture because of the way the earth shoe positioned the body. The yoga instructor who designed the earth shoe claimed the earth shoe design was orthopedically better than designs with a higher heel. It is not really certain whether the earth shoe enjoyed the popularity it did because it actually improved body posture, or simply because like many fads, the earth shoe caught the imagination of the public at the moment.

The environment of the 70's was a good time for introducing the earth shoe, and earth shoes instantly became extremely popular. They were available in every type of shoe, including sandals and clogs. Earth shoes were created as hiking shoes. Earth shoes were even available in fleece-lined ankle boots. Everybody was wearing earth shoes of one type or another.

Like many fashions, earth shoes soared in popularity and then the demand subsided. However, in the 1990's in the US, earth shoes regained popularity with some segments of the population. Vintage earth shoes began to be seen fairly frequently. Outside the US, and the country of origin, earth shoes have been popular in Japan as well.

Nothing could be further in design from earth shoes than the current fashions of extreme high heels, yet they are widely accepted and worn by millions of women. No one could argue, however, that extreme heels are orthopedically good for one. Fashions like earth shoes come and go, as do the extreme designs favored today. It is not often, however, that a particular fashion gains extreme popularity as the earth shoe did because it is thought to be orthopedically good. In all probability the earth shoe became widely popular because the name and connotation were popular at the time. As fashion moves in cycles, perhaps the earth shoe with its negative heel design will once again become popular .

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