Shoe fetishism, also known as retifism, involves being irrationally or abnormally fixated on shoes or other footwear to the extent it may interfere with sexual expression. Although shoes carry sexual connotations in mainstream culture, this is not generally considered to be shoe fetishism.
Shoe fetishists normally fixate on extreme shoes which are designed as fetishwear, although fixation on typical high-street shoes is possible. High-heeled shoess are often triggers for foot fetishists. High-heeled shoes or boots help to elongate the calf, creating a longer-legged appearance which is generally considered to be more sexually attractive.
They also reveal the sole of the shoe, which becomes an eroticised "second skin" taking on the erotic role of the sole of the foot.
This can be seen in a super-stimulus form within the adult entertainment industry, and particularly pornography, where women wear very high heeled shoes. It is not uncommon for actresses in modern pornographic movies to wear platform shoes with a platform of 3-4 inches and a heel height of 6-9 inches. Similar sized heels are often worn by exotic dancers and strippers. These exaggerated heels are not practical and are worn for the sexual gratification of the viewer.
One of the most common images of a dominatrix is of a woman in thigh-length high-heeled leather boots or riding boots. Thigh-length high-heeled leather boots are generally only worn as fetish wear.
One theory of shoe fetishism, as well as of foot fetishism, is that an infant's experience of their mother in many cultures may involve crawling around their feet. If sexual behavioral imprinting occurs during this time, it may lead to the feet or shoes becoming the primary object of arousal.
The British TV series The Avengers often featured fetishistic clothing, and Patrick Macnee and Honor Blackman released a single, "Kinky Boots". The Avengers also featured costumes by the fetish fashion designer John Sutcliffe, who at one time designed a "boot suit", which comprised a pair of thigh-length boots, which carried on to join at the crotch, and carried on upwards to become an entire catsuit with a hood.
