Intro
BigRob welcomes you to his Added Inches guide of Twelve Tremendous TALL ideas about adding height and wearing elevators. This guide is about Getting the Max from your elevators: good quality elevators are an investment you won’t regret. So you will want to get the very most from adding height.
Why this guide? Well it’s handy to know about the day-to-day things that can help you get the most from your added height. Throughout, I link to longer pieces I have written on subjects in the guide. LOADS to read…
It brings you the facts from a guy who wears elevators every day and just LOVES doing so. That’s me! I have learned over the years from (minor) errors and from things that ensure max comfort and minimum detection. This guide helps you through all that and a bit more besides…
About me
I’m BigRob and I write regular pieces for the GuidoMaggi site. I have been adding height since I was 17, almost 20 years.
I myself travelled an interesting journey. Elevators were a big no no when I started 20 years ago (they were *$@#&* awful) so it was lifts. I work in nightclubs and party organizing and am based in the UK and Europe – in came the great period of flared jeans revival so I could add way more lifts than normal, all hidden in boots under an enormous flare. Once flares gave way to skinnies I had to think again! Having added up to 3” in lifts I did not want to drop down. No way. So I looked again at elevators and WOW it had all changed in 10 years: my choice was GuidoMaggi. OK, expensive…but quality and choice and something totally new in elevators. Style. Mainstream and fashion. Choice. Sizes. At last.
4” Ischias in black, then a year or so later 5” Shanghais in a steely grey…and then my prized 6” Hong Kong boots. I also wear the Giant Cougar sneakers as well. I go up and down a bit around 4” to 6” – that’s me. And I LOVE IT!
So here it is…
1 Quality – avoid the rubbish out there
Firstly, all good elevators, like those at GuidoMaggi, are made specifically to accommodate in comfort the added height.
https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/quality-is-the-key-every-time/
Some elevators are cheaply made in places like China and are hashed together to add height but in a way that is uncomfortable and badly designed.
Cheap elevators stick an insole into a normal shoe using low grade materials which is just no way to treat your feet. You cannot walk in them for long and they look bad. Once, this was all you could get. This kind of stuff is still very much out there, so avoid it at all costs.
The new generation of elevators gives both quality and variety, using good materials…and above all the footwear is specifically designed to allow the space for height addition – it is categorically NOT a normal shoe with an insole stuck into it. You can walk perfectly in any properly made elevator.
2 Comfort – you will be amazed
Understandably, one reservation that guys have is ‘how comfortable are they gonna be?’. Although I always suggest you have a period with lifts before you go up a bit higher with elevators, the fact is that lifts above a very low level can be very uncomfortable. While elevators are very comfortable. https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/will-i-be-able-to-walk-won-t-they-ruin-my-feet/
When I got my first pair of elevators – they were the 4” Ischia wingtips/brogues in black – I was stunned that they were my most comfortable footwear. The relief for me of no longer having stand-alone lifts in all footwear was incredible.
Going for a walk in them was just amazing. Because they are constructed with the foot in mind (and are no just normal boots with lifts jammed in them) they feel perfect on the feet. I challenge anyone who has them to tell me otherwise!
3 The trade-offs – understand them
Everything is a trade-off above a certain amount of added height, around 3” imho: if you add a couple of inches or so, up to 3”, your footwear and overall extra height will be pretty undetectable. You can more or less do everything that you can do without added height. But the taller you wanna get above that, the more things that you have to trade off. Every half inch above 3 inches and you need to consider lifestyle, how much you walk, the degree to which you do sport, what the rest of your clothes are like etc.
https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/exploding-the-myth-of-set-and-low-limits-in-height-addition/
For example, I wear 6” boots and just love them – but I have to accept that I cannot run in them, and I HAVE to wear them with casual clothes because they are thicker soled: I could not (even if I wanted to) wear these and take them off to play sport and put them back on again. Or with a suit. I would worry that the height difference would be just too great.
Those trade offs are for you to decide – 3” is a fabulous addition to your height, and maybe 4” or more is for special or nights out for you. Think this through for your own journey.
4 Fear of Flying – don’t worry
Fears about detection at the airport are the thing I have been asked about most by guys getting in touch through my articles on the GuidoMaggi site.
https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/fear-of-flying/
They will tell me: “You get to security at the airport and they are BOUND to notice if you’re wearing elevators”. I fly all the time and it has never ever happened to me. Shoes off, in the tray, through scanner and out and then back on the feet. In 2019 I caught 18 flights in total and not once did anyone say a thing or even appear to notice. It’s not what they are looking for and they are specifically trained not to embarrass or be personal. The only issue is that I hate losing the height even for 10 minutes so am anxious to scurry over to the seat and put my boots back on!
This is very difficult for guys to understand – one was so worried he asked me several times as if I had not told him: “but so they will for sure notice, I mean, of course…”…but then finally he did it and admitted “No problem”.
5 Shhhh… tell no-one
The real point about wearing elevators is that they add inches UNDETECTABLY. I don’t know any situation where it’s worth telling people you wear them. Tell one person and you’ve told the world.
This is one of those personal things where no benefit comes with spilling. Don’t fear someone will notice on your first day in a pair of elevators and so think you have to say something before they do! Once you realise they do NOT notice, then you realise you need to say nothing. https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/who-do-you-tell/
Most people are not good at noticing things about others – there’s loads of reasons for this, basically it is because people are too wrapped up in themselves. In the 2nd guide we looked at ways to plan your added height. Follow a plan and you will have no problems at all
6 Discretion – starts at home
Discretion starts at home. Do NOT leave your footwear lying around with obvious lifts in them. This may seem obvious, but it’s too easy to casually leave stuff lying around. The GuidoMaggi lifts are made to fit very well in the footwear, like they are part of the structure, but importantly they are separate and can be removed (and should be when you are not wearing them!).
https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/detection-security-making-sure-no-one-knows-part-2/
So if someone then happens to look in your shoes, they see something that looks basically normal – if you have removed them. And with added lifts not designed for the shoes you are wearing, or separate shoelifts, it really stands to reason that they be removed. Keep them in some neutral place, in a dark bag or box with other stuff. Just concealed and where no one looks. It’s a useful discipline.
And do this even if you put your shoes under the bed or in a cupboard.
In the event that your partner knows or might be aware, then STILL do not leave stuff lying around, or they can assume that you do not mind ANYONE knowing. https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/aaargh-will-my-new-girlfriend-notice/
7 The thin insoles – a great disguise/double bluff
Some guys worry that people might know they are adding height. Trust me, this is rare. But here is something that I do.
You know those thin insoles you get to put in the bottom of shoes. They are for support and comfort. If a mate sees you buying a pair of those really thin insoles in a pharmacy or supermarket it draws attention away from the idea of lifts for added height. Or maybe even in passing producing them to make a point. And you say casually: “Really annoying, I have to wear these – my doctor says I have to because of my feet” – this kinda neutralizes something and diverts attention from the real issue of adding 10cm to your height!
It’s not over-elaborate and only do it if you feel you have to – it just helps you in case you feel you want to make the point. I carry a pair a lot of the time and have only very rarely ever resorted to the tactic
8 Interested in height? Me?
This is very important. Whatever you do, do not show interest in height. Your own or others’.
Learn to “not be aware of it” even if you are! Now anyone reading this is way more interested in height than the average guy (and the average guy IS very interested in height). So, if anyone asks you how tall you are, you simply reply: “I haven’t measured, OMG, since I was 13 at school. Must do it some day”. I have this more because I am already tall, and I make myself extremely tall, but I have been told it happens quite frequently among guys who are shorter as well. Have your reply ready.
And do not show jaw-dropping awe or amazement at some huge guy that comes in. Just the usual kinda agreement or even acknowledgement if someone says they wish they were that tall: “I suppose it is a plus, but some people who are very tall tell you they worry about being too tall. I have a mate like that”.
9 Sock lifts…sound crazy but useful
Now don’t reject these out of hand. Sock lifts: you put a small – and quite comfortable – lift in your socks for padding around the home. They are quite useful if you want to retain SOME of your added height at home in some situations without shoes.
Basically they are designed to go into socks and give you about an inch or so. They are worth bearing in mind as a possible to keep up an image of added height in the home. I have two contacts who wear them and say they are great when they have to take off their 8cm boots at home.
The drop is not as great as going straight to flat, and no-one notices.
10 The 6” (or 5”) boot – for you?
Right. My daily territory now. I wear 6” boots almost every day. I love the added height and they look great. But they come with challenges. I am going to tell you about them. Most of the rules apply to the 5” boot as well. The extra height is stunning, and if you have already been adding height they are a great way to get to your max.
https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/the-joys-of-my-6-inch-elevators-an-update/
With rare exceptions, do not buy 6” boots as your first elevators. Have a flatter soled 4” pair like my Ischias.
You do not run in them. Except for when it’s fashionable (eg the big boots and suit look) you do not wear them in for formal stuff. Truly heroically fab for nights out to impress.
Always bear in mind that although they are thicker soled, they are no more so than Timberlands, Doc Marten or even Nike sneaker styles. Do not think that that shouts “added height”. It does not.
11 ‘Shoes-off’ homes – just say no
In the UK where I live, it’s rare to be asked to take your shoes off when going in to someone’s home. We tend to regard it as a bit unhygienic. It is also regarded as slightly ‘suburban’ (a snobby type of criticism, I suppose). When you are dressed up for a party, the last thing you want to be doing is padding around barefoot or in your socks, male or female. You are dressed to party and the shoes are part of the image.
If you are wearing elevators you simply do NOT want to remove your footwear.
If this is thrown at you, then an excuse (“sorry I have broken my toe and cannot go without my footwear”) made firmly and with great apology and conviction works well. Of course, what you CAN also do, assuming this is about not bringing dirt inside, is to have another clean pair with you to change into. And make this clear.
12 Casual – sneaker time
Sneakers are a must for many guys (but not for all) and until recently have been a kind of weak link in terms of added height. Partly this is because sneaker culture generally tends to revolve around certain much-hyped brands, so only allowing for added lifts.
https://www.guidomaggi.com/blog-en/sneaking-up-in-height-my-great-new-sneakers/
Ironically some of the brands have sneakers that have the biggest natural added height of any footwear.
But now GuidoMaggi have the first real range of sneakers allowing you up to 5” added lift
and they are a great addition to the wardrobe because sneakers are just so everywhere and have been for 30 years.
