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Females both girls and especially women throuhout the 20th century have been more adventurous with their footwear when compared to men and boys. Footwear in the early 20th century was still veey staid, in part because skirts were so long. Younger children, both boys and girl might wear strap shoes, almost always with sandals. When after World War I, hemlines began to rise the feet and ankles became more visible, This made footwear an increasingly important fashion accessory. This was especually true of women where fashion often exceeded practicality in importance. Girls footwear tended to be more practical, but even for girls, fashion was never absent. A major innovation begun in the 1910s was the sandal which unlike the earlier strap shoe, was commonly worn without socks, especially during the summer. Both sandals and strap shoes were commonly worn by girls in the inter-War era. Women often chosen to wear high heeled shoes for a variety of reasons including giving the optical illusion of a longer, slimmer leg, a smaller foot, and a greater overall height. High heeled footwear were not consider proper for girls, both because of safety and health concerns and the fashion appropriateness. We also see girls wearing practical low-cut oxfords. These basic trends continued after World War II into the 1950s and 60s. A major shift occurred in the 1970s when trainers (sneakers) became popular both as comfortable footwear and as a fashion statement.
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