| Shoes as everybody knows, are an accessory | | | | all this changed with the arrival of the industrial |
| that were invented to protect feet from the | | | | revolution. Now suddenly shoes could be mass |
| elements as well as the terrain. It is not known | | | | produced with machines such as the sewing |
| exactly when humankind first started to wear | | | | machine. Along with tools there was new |
| shoes. Historians believe that humans may have | | | | materials available such as vulcanized rubber, |
| started to wear shoes as far back as 30,000 | | | | adhesives and eventually plastic. These new |
| years ago. Of course in those days they didn't | | | | materials eventually replaced leather. Nowadays |
| wear the fancy shoes we have nowadays, they | | | | leather is mostly used to make expensive dress |
| were generally made from raw animal skin or | | | | shoes. |
| certain types of tree bark. The way they were | | | | One of the major changes in shoe design |
| "worn" was by simply wrapping the feet with it. | | | | happened when shoes got a sewn on sole. This |
| Tying it involved using a string, which was usually | | | | trend started in the 17th century and remains as |
| a vine, by wrapping it around the leg. | | | | an integral part of shoe making to this day. Along |
| Some of the ancient cultures found in Egypt, | | | | with the sole another major design change was |
| China and India were perhaps the first people to | | | | the foot specific shoe. Before the 19th century, |
| actually wear a shoe in the modern sense of the | | | | shoes were not made specifically for the right or |
| word. These were more intricately designed and | | | | left foot. The shoe could be worn on both the |
| built accessories that could be worn by simply | | | | right and left foot. In the 20th century, more |
| sliding ones feet into them. They were mostly | | | | materials such as polyurethane fibre and other |
| made out of leather or some sort of cloth such | | | | advanced plastics were brought in to make shoes. |
| as silk or cotton fabric. There is archaeological | | | | As mentioned earlier, before the industrial |
| proof of this that date back around 3-4000 years | | | | revolution, making a shoe was a laborious process |
| ago. Those early shoes were considered | | | | that could take several days. Nowadays with |
| expensive and generally only royalty or | | | | equipments such as leather processors and shoe |
| aristocracy and maybe a few wealthy merchants | | | | forming machines, a pair of shoe can be assemble |
| could afford them. | | | | in a matter of hours. As far as prices of shoes |
| This relative high cost of shoes continued for | | | | go, a simple pair made out of a cheap material |
| centuries. The reason for the high cost was | | | | such as jute will cost only a few pounds. A good |
| because of the cost of labour and materials that | | | | quality dress shoe made from leather can cost |
| went into making them. Like with many products, | | | | hundreds of pounds. |