Women's shoes are available in a wide range of different styles, including sport shoes, slip on shoes, slippers, saddle shoes, sandals, high heels, sneaker boots, mules, slingbacks, ballet flats, court shoes, and many more. Women's shoes are often categorised according to their function, with some categories including formal shoes, work shoes, active shoes, and walking shoes. Many of these styles are almost unisex in their appearance, especially many of the sports and athletic shoe variations.
However some other designs, high heels being the most obvious, are only ever worn by women. Many women shoes (this page offers a lot of choices) are worn for both practical reasons and fashion, with many local shops and Internet retailers stocking a range of different styles and brands for consumers to choose from.
Along with differences in style, shoes are also made from a variety of different materials. Traditionally, natural materials such as leather, wood, and canvas were used in the manufacture of shoes. However, there are now a number of new materials that are also commonly used, including plastics, rubber, and other synthetic materials. Women's shoes are available in all of these materials, with different styles of shoes often utilising different materials to create different aesthetic effects. While petrochemical derived shoes are widely available, materials like leather and canvas continue to be popular around the world.
There are a number of variants on the traditional high heel style, which is probably the most iconic style of footwear worn by women around the world. Some of the variants include such shoes as stiletto heels, wedge heels, and kitten heels. Stilettos are shoes that feature a very narrow heel post, often worn for formal events and special occasions. Kitten heels feature a much smaller heel that is typically between one and a half and two inches high, with wedge heels featuring a wedge shaped sole rather than a heel post. High heels and other womens shoes like ballet flats and mules are available all over the world, with Internet stores selling an increasing selection of different styles and materials all the time.