What not to wear on your feet

Warning! Warning! DO NOT leave your house without taking a good look at what your wearing on your feet. History has proclaimed some shoes "fashion disasters" and these should NEVER leave the house. We all know we are supposed to learn from past mistakes, so unless you have a really great excuse like "my house is on fire" DO NOT get caught wearing the following footwear.

Shoes trends which shouldn't set one foot on the sidewalk (in no particular order of hideousness):

1. DR MARTENS WORN WITH EVERYTHING-in the late eighties and early nineties women wore these heavy combat style shoes with everything, including feminine dresses. The two looks simply don't go together and thankfully have not made a come back.

2. SNEAKERS WITH HEELS-sneakers are worn for comfort, whereas heels are usually worn for sex appeal. Combining the two by simply taking the bottom half from one and sticking it to the other resulted in a fashion experiment gone wrong. Sketchers are noted for bringing out a shoe which literally looked like a sneaker with a high heel glued to the bottom.

Another look that isn't so great is the platform sneaker. The Spice girls made these shoes popular in the late nineties, but these women have all restyled their look for a reason. Make sure you do the same. If you want a shoe that is comfortable, but still attractive stick to shoes that have blended these characteristics successfully like ballet flats.

3. SANDALS WORN WITH SOCKS-although not a shoe style on their own the sock and sandal look is definitely worth a mention. It inspires images of unfashionable elderly men with socks pulled up to their knees. Unless you work as a geisha then this is not a look you want to try.

4. CROCS-these rubber shoes with large open holes almost look like they belong in an alien movie. What's worse is that they seem to be coming out with new even uglier styles. There's the Croc which is lined with sheepskin and more recently Croc high heels. Unless you are cleaning the pool, gardening or lounging around the house then these shoes should not make an appearance.

Yes they might be comfortable, yes they allow your feet to breathe, but they are also hideously ugly and they aren't as practical as you might imagine. In Japan they have issued a safety warning about this type of footwear. Many children have received injuries to their feet when their Crocs have gotten caught in the moving parts on escalators.

5. JELLY SHOES-unless you are less than nine years

of age these shoes will make you look juvenile and unfashionable. This shoe trend was initially born out of necessity when leather was in short supply post World War II. Shoe manufacturers were forced to make shoes from plastic. In the 1980s transparent plastic shoes in bright colours and often a touch of glitter became popular. Besides appearance these shoes had other negative side effects. Shoes are made from leather for a good reason; leather lets your feet breathe. Plastic shoes do not let your feet breathe which leads to increased sweating, smelliness and fungal infections.

6. EXTREME PLATFORMS- this style first made an appearance in the 1970's and had a revival on the catwalk in the 1990s. Shoes over six inches in height are simply not practical, even supermodels toppled over walking down the catwalk in these styles. Thankfully practicalities have meant revivals on this trend have been very short lived. Please don't be tempted to go crazy with shoe height just because your short, you don't want to resemble Minnie mouse on steroids.

7. FUZZY BOOTS-these shoes which look like furry ugg boots were made popular by the rave set a few years back. They seem to be currently having a revival with teens seen wearing them at local malls. This style tends to make people think your wearing some form of road kill on your feet. This should be enough said.

8. CLOGS-perhaps these shoes had a place in traditional Europeans villages like a century or two ago, but the trend of wearing these in the 70'd and 80's is something many people cringe about now.