Etiquette and a Noble Bearing

Yes, shorter skirts did come into style, yet women still have problems learning to walk gracefully in ill-fitting shoes, which damage the feet and make the problem worse. The image above shows instruction from a 1950’s charm school. It’s called the “Walking Pivot”– “One good effect of short skirts, if ever generally adopted, will be to force women to learn how to walk well. At present they shuffle, mince, turn in one foot, do everything but walk. Nothing commands more respect than dignity of carriage, always excepting elegance and dignity of speech; and when my sex discovers that feet have a higher mission… the reign of noble bearing may set in.”
–Image source, Pinterest

The Mudless Gown

One good effect of short skirts, if ever generally adopted, will be to force women to learn how to walk well. At present they shuffle, mince, turn in one foot, do everything but walk. Nothing commands more respect than dignity of carriage, always excepting elegance and dignity of speech; and when my sex discovers that feet have a higher mission than to be crowded into boots and shoes too small for them, and that corns are an offence against nature, the reign of noble bearing may set in.

“It’s the rarest thing in the world to find a foot with straight toes among women,” say chiropodists. “They lap and over-lap, and frequently are doubled under. As for bunions, well, they are the rule.” No woman with a distorted foot can walk naturally, and it stands to reason that such torturing of the extremities must conduce to physical ailments of various kinds. So turn it which way we will, tight boots are an abomination. Let the apostle of the mudless gown but introduce a fetching covering for the feet and prove herself mistress of the art of walking, and she will go a long way toward breaking down those most formidable of barriers, tradition and prejudice.– Kate Feild's Washington, 1891

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia

The Etiquette of Gracefulness

“Of course, you have been told, not only by me but by many others, to balance a large book on your head. It certainly will do much to restore evenness and grace to your walk. When you stand, stand erect, let your mind call your body to "attention"; When you sit, compose your hands, relax your body, be sure that your feet are neither in your own nor anyone else's way. The old etiquette bars the crossing af ankles, but I think most of us do, and I think, too, it is rather more graceful than to place both feet on the floor. If you think about what you are doing you will speedily develop good posture and bearing, and this is not the least of beauty.” – Helena Rubinstein

Do You Stand and Walk with Proper Grace?

By Helena Rubinstein 

Florenz Ziegfeld, who selects the loveliest of lovely girls each year for his musical comedies and revues, claims that there is nothing so rare as the young woman who stands, sits and walks with poise and grace. The average woman, I know does not. Perhaps she does not think of it. I am sure that we should not see so many awkward , almost repulsive positi0ns , if the world were full of mirrors. Do you think, for instance, that a woman would sit with her knees apart if she knew how ugly it was? Do you think she would still insist on very short, very tight skirts, if she knew that when she sat down they rode way up and exposed her knees and thighs? I think not not if she realized that there were probably six girls in a hundred who have really pretty knees, and no girl who can look anything but a little blatant, a little common, a little ugly when she assumes these positions. 

Standing seems simple enough, doesn't it, but I am sure that half of the world, fully half of the time, stand a little crooked, the weight shifted over one hip. If you see it, you won't do it. It is most ungraceful. And then we come to walks. In southern Europe, Hawaii, and the South Seas, women have an exquisitely beautiful carriage. They have learned to walk evenly and smoothly through, balancing weights on their heads. Their limbs are lithe and free, their movement beautiful. The Indians have the same splendid carriage, but we, who are of the effete civilization, have sacrificed much to high heels, binding garters and tight skirts. 

Of course, you have been told, not only by me but by many others, to balance a large book on your head. It certainly will do much to restore evenness and grace to your walk. When you stand, stand erect, let your mind call your body to “attention”; When you sit, compose your hands, relax your body, be sure that your feet are neither in your own nor anyone else's way. The old etiquette bars the crossing af ankles, but I think most of us do, and I think, too, it is rather more graceful than to place both feet on the floor. If you think about what you are doing, you will speedily develop good posture and bearing, and this is not the least of beauty. – San Bernardino Sun, 1928

🍽Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J Graber of The RSVP Institute of Etiquette, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia 

Etiquette for a Graceful Walk

 Attendees in 1936, practicing a "charming" walk and posture, at a London finishing school.

I have a friend who was always identified as “an American woman” by the local men when she traveled abroad to Italy and France. Curious as to how the always knew she was American before she ever spoke to them, she asked them just how they knew. “American women walk like men, not women.” they replied. Wow! That's very telling. It got me to thinking: Is how we walk just as important as our focus on walking to get where we are going? I decided to dig through my old, bygone era, charm-school books and see what they had to say about a woman's walk. I wonder if we can still apply these techniques today, with, or without books on our heads?  

Corseted or not, we need to amend how we walk.

As pointed out by a friend, undergarments like corsets and girdles affected how women walked when this book was published, however, corseted or not, I strongly feel we need to amend how we walk today, because there is something to be said for a woman walking gracefully while getting to where she needs to go.

Charts For Correct Foot Positioning

One can use a piece of chalk or a strip of tape to create a straight line for practicing the correct walk. 

Top 10 Tips for a Graceful Walk

1.  The body must be correctly aligned, with the back as straight as possible. To start, the knee bone should be over the ankle bone, the hipbone over the knee bone, shoulder bone over the hipbone and the head over all. Maintain this torso alignment while the legs are in motion.

2.  The step should be no longer than your own foot so that the distance between the heel of the forward foot and the toe of the back foot this not exceed the length of the foot. Do not reach for your steps and do not mince along.

3.  The toes should point straight ahead or be turned slightly outward as models and dancers walk.

4.  There should be no perceptible change of weight from one foot to the other. This can be best achieved by keeping the weight on the balls of the feet and by "pushing off" with the ball of the back foot.

5.  The knees are kept flexed so that they may act as the "spring" for the body to give a smooth, glide appearance.

6.  One foot is placed directly in front of the other on one line. This method gives a feminine look, and when done with balance and grace, might be called "showgirls walk."

7.  The legs swing forward from the waistline so that the hips also move forward and forward. They do not move from side to side, nor do they undulate. This avoids hosiery rub. When the right leg comes forward, the right hip comes forward.

8.  The arms move in opposition to the feet for balance so that when the right foot is forward, the left arm swings forward and vice versa. The hand should swing forward to the toe and backward to the heel. The more vigorous the walk, the more vigorous the hand swing.

9.  The arms should swing relaxed from the shoulders with the elbows held fairly close to the body, but not tight. They should remain relaxed should not bend as the arm comes forward.

10.  Float from the waistline up. Walk from the waistline down. The head, shoulders and upper torso move forward smoothly as though disconnected from the rest of the body.  The control of the walk comes from the midriff, and the leg moves forward from the waistline.

"From here on out, your success will depend upon practicing the foregoing techniques until you have a 'naturally' beautiful walk.

Your walk tells a great deal about you. It reveals carelessness, timidity, shyness, aggressiveness; for it can bespeak the loveliness of you. It is worthwhile to learn "to walk in beauty.'"

From "University Beauty College Guide to Beauty Charm Poise," 1962

By Etiquipedia contributor Demita Usher of Social Graces and Savoir Faire