
Winklepickers, or winkle pickers, are a style of shoe or boot worn from the 1950s onward, especially popular with British
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...
fans such as
teddy boys. The feature that gives both the boot and shoe their name is the very sharp and long pointed toe, reminiscent of
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
footwear and approximately the same as the long pointed toes on some women's high-fashion shoes and
boots in the 2000s.
The extremely pointed toe was called the ''winkle picker'' because in England
periwinkle snails, or winkles, are a popular seaside snack which is eaten using a pin or other pointed object to extract the soft parts out of the coiled shell carefully, hence the phrase: "to winkle something out", and based on that, ''winklepickers'' became a humorous name for shoes with a very pointed tip. Other countries had other humorous names, e.g. in Norway and Sweden they were called ''myggjagere'' or ''myggjagare'', literally "Mosquito chasers". They are still popular in the
goth,
raggare
Raggare is a subculture found mostly in Sweden and parts of Norway and Finland, and to a lesser extent in Denmark, Germany, and Austria. Raggare are related to the American greaser and rockabilly subcultures and are known for their lov ...
and
rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...
subcultures. In some parts of the U.S. they are called "roach stompers".
History
Origins
Winklepickers, inspired by the
crakow
Crakows or crackowes were a style of shoes with extremely long toes very popular in 15th century Europe. They were so named because the style was thought to have originated in Kraków, the then capital of Poland. They are also known as poulain ...
es worn by the medieval French nobility, were a conspicuous contrast to the
brothel creepers worn by
Teddy Boy
The Teddy Boys or Teds were a mainly British youth subculture of the mid 1950s to mid 1960s who were interested in rock and roll and R&B music, wearing clothes partly inspired by the styles worn by dandies in the Edwardian period, which S ...
s. 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 may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean
* Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent
** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof
* Cuban citizen, a perso ...
) 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 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
Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...
, teddy boys and
rockers
Rocker or rockers may refer to:
Places
*Rocker, Montana, a neighborhood in Butte, Montana, United States
People
*Rocker, a British drummer, formerly of The Flatmates
* Fermin Rocker (1907–2004), painter and illustrator
*John Rocker (born 1974) ...
. 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 all 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) and worn by several subculture groups including mods, rockers, teddy boys, rockabillies, punks, rock'n'roll revivalists, and in the
goth scene, where they are known as "pikes".
Winklepickers with stiletto heels for women swept the UK in the late 1950s, and at one stage, the High Street versions were commonly worn by a large part of the adult female populace of the UK. 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 winklepicker stilettos were similar to the long, pointed toe that has been fashionable on women's shoes and boots in Europe of late. The long, sharp toe was always teamed with a
stiletto heel
A stiletto heel, or just stiletto, is a shoe with a long, thin, high heel. It is named after the stiletto dagger.
Stiletto heels may vary in length from 2.5 centimetres (1 inch) to 25 cm (10 inches) or more if a platform s ...
(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), although there is some question as to the accuracy of contemporary newspaper accounts. 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.
Modern day
By the middle of the first decade of the 21st century, winklepickers were worn with 1960s
mod blazers,
Western shirt
Western wear is a category of men's and women's clothing which derives its unique style from the clothes worn in the 19th century Wild West. It ranges from accurate historical reproductions of American frontier clothing, to the stylized garmen ...
s, vintage
T shirts, and
skinny jeans by many
indie pop
Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and su ...
bands and musicians, such as of
Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon is an American rock band formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1999. The band is composed of brothers Caleb, Nathan and Jared Followill, and their cousin Matthew Followill.
The band's early music was a blend of Southern rock and ...
,
Kaiser Chiefs
Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 2000 as Parva, releasing one studio album, ''22'', in 2003, before renaming and establishing themselves in their current name that same year. Since their formation the band h ...
,
The Kills,
The Horrors
The Horrors are an English rock band formed in Southend-on-Sea in 2005, consisting of lead vocalist Faris Badwan, guitarist Joshua Hayward, keyboardist and synthesizer player Tom Furse, bassist Rhys Webb, and drummer and percussionist Joe Sp ...
,
Jack White
John Anthony White (; born July 9, 1975), commonly known as Jack White, is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the duo the White Stripes. White has enjoyed consistent critical and popular success and is widely c ...
,
Mod Fun,
Neils Children,
Blanaid Montague,
Klaxons
Klaxons were an English rock band, based in London. Following the release of several 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 ...
, and
Daniel Johns
Daniel Paul Johns (born 22 April 1979) is an Australian musician, singer, and songwriter best known as the former frontman, guitarist, and main songwriter of the rock band Silverchair. Johns is also one half of The Dissociatives with Paul Mac ...
. The shoes are closely related to British
Garage Rock
Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...
band
The Horrors
The Horrors are an English rock band formed in Southend-on-Sea in 2005, consisting of lead vocalist Faris Badwan, guitarist Joshua Hayward, keyboardist and synthesizer player Tom Furse, bassist Rhys Webb, and drummer and percussionist Joe Sp ...
, who even went as far as 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
Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian and actor known for his flamboyant, loquacious style and manner. Brand has received three British Comedy Awards: Best Newcomer (2006), Best Live Stand-Up (2008), and the award for ...
and
Noel Fielding
Noel Fielding (; (born 21 May 1973) is an English actor and comedian. He is best known for his work with The Mighty Boosh comedy troupe alongside Julian Barratt in the 2000s, and more recently as a co-presenter of '' The Great British Bake Off ...
and English DJ and TV presenter
Alex Zane.
Winklepicker boots are very popular in Germany among the modern Vogue
Goth and
Punk subculture
The punk subculture includes a diverse and widely known array of ideologies, fashion, and other forms of expression, visual art, dance, literature, and film. Largely characterised by anti-establishment views, the promotion of individual freedo ...
s, who refer to the boots as "pikes".
Although slightly pointed toes are often a feature of women's fashion shoes, they are usually nowadays "tamed down" or shortened (often sacrificing comfortable toe space) for
mass market
The term "mass market" refers to a market for goods produced on a large scale for a significant number of end consumers. The mass market differs from the niche market in that the former focuses on consumers with a wide variety of backgrounds wi ...
appeal.
See also
*
Pointed shoe
*
Pigache
*
Chelsea boot
Chelsea boots are close-fitting, ankle-high boots with an elastic side panel. They often have a loop or tab of fabric on the back of the boot, enabling the boot to be pulled on. The boot dates back to the Victorian era, when it was worn by both me ...
*
Beatle boot
*
Western wear
Western wear is a category of men's and women's clothing which derives its unique style from the clothes worn in the 19th century Wild West. It ranges from accurate historical reproductions of American frontier clothing, to the stylized garmen ...
*
Leningrad Cowboys
*
1945–1960 in fashion
References
External links
*Video:
Behind The Seams – Mexican Pointy Boots',
VBS.tv, 1 April 2011
{{Goth subculture
British clothing
San Luis Potosí
Boots
Shoes
History of fashion
2010s fashion
2000s fashion
1960s fashion
1950s fashion