Frank's Sweet T Heels

D'Orsay (pronounced "door-say") is a style of heel where the sides are cutaway on the vamp. You can read more about its 19th century origins and history here. 

Terry de Havilland (aka the "Rock-n-Roll cobbler of the 70s") was an English shoe designer (1938 - 2019). You can read more about his amazing career here.

Frank's Sweet T shoes are D'Orsay style platform heels designed by Terry de Havilland. They feature a very small, triangular peep-toe opening that is hard to discern from the side view (like the red shoes below). 

The modern "Lena" line by Terry de Havilland is similar in many ways, but not an exact match. Most of the newer lines have a larger, curved toe opening (like the silver shoes below).

Newer D'Orsay styles by Terry de Havilland	Vintage peep toe shoes with a triangular opening

Mick Rock was on the set during the filming of Sweet Transvestite so there are a lot of photos taken directly on the set while filming. 

The lab shoes seem to be identical, except in solid black. The boots are also peep-toe. And the floorshow heels seem to have some slightly different shaping, but are also made by Terry de Havilland (see them here).

Frank's Shoes (Research)

These are the best screen captures I currently have of Frank's Sweet T heels.  Black glitter on the platform and upper, white glitter and rhinestones on the heel (I only see clear rhinestones on the heel, but I'll keep looking).  There are also black rhinestones on the vamp.  There is no glitter on the ankle straps.  Rhinestoned buckles.  The heels are chunky, but straight (good luck!)

His shoes in the creation scene are nearly identical except they are solid black with glitter and have a rectangular buckle (p. 137 of the Mick Rock book).

Frank's Shoes (Tutorial)

Finding the right shoe

The chunk heel and platform are the most important features when searching for a suitable shoe.  The rest can be modified.  Color doesn't matter; focus on shape. Pleaser has a lot of shoes and frequently runs in large sizes, check out Snaz75.com for a huge selection.  Several versions of their "Dolly" shoe can be modified quite easily.

Cutting the toe open (if needed)
Neither leather nor pleather will fray.  Carefully cut out the toe area with a blade.  Straps can also be moved if needed, but it might be better to have a shoe repair shop stitch that down for you.  Since women's feet are typically narrower than men's, you may also need to install an elastic gusset on the vamp like Tim's.

Painting the shoe
The sole should be black; paint if necessary or your finished shoe will look weird.  Paint the outside heel area white (use tape to protect the shoe upper, sole and the heel tip).  Spray paint is easiest.  The lining of the shoe is silver.

Adding glitter
I prefer Super-77 spray glue by 3m, but if you're going to spray you need to conceal the other areas really well with tape, etc.   I also recommend covering your work area with a paper grocery bag to catch the excess glitter.  When you sprinkle the glitter on the glued area, press the glitter in firmly.  Tap the shoe on the table/counter to get the excess off.  I did the black areas first, then very carefully did the white heels.  The straps do not have glitter on them.

Shellac
Cover the shoes with multiple thin layers of a clear coat.  This will minimize any further glitter shedding.  The key word here is thin.  If you spray too many layers too quickly, or too thickly, it will turn yellow and dull and pretty much ruin everything you've done.

Adding rhinestones
Use e6000 or any jewel-tack glue to apply the clear rhinestones to the heel.

Buckle
If you're lucky to find one on other shoes you've got it made.  I haven't even had much luck on eBay or Etsy.  You can at least paint the existing buckles silver (if they aren't already) and glue some tiny rhinestones on the top bar until something better comes along.

Heel covers
I've never experimented with heel covers (to consolidate the shoe change between Sweet T and the Lab Scene), but I've heard of some pretty clever solutions that seem to work well - and please feel free to add any tips in the comment section!

Frank's Shoes (Research)

Frank wears 4 pairs of shoes in the film; all of them are platforms with peep toes and chunk heels.

The first are the iconic "Sweet T" heels with the white glitzy heels.  They're platforms with a chunk heel and a rhinestone buckle.  It looks like a glittered base with a few scattered rhinestones.  If you're working with all-black shoes you'll want to paint the heel white before applying the white glitter, otherwise it will look splotchy.  You'll also want to shellac/clear coat them to reduce "shedding" - but do this in very light layers or it will turn yellow and dull.

Pleaser shoes have a "Dolly" series that all have the platform and chunk heel, but it's hard to find the right toe/heel combination.  Check Snaz75.com or eBay.

The second, worn for the duration of the lab scenes up until the dinner scene, are almost identical, but without the white heels.  You can buy two pairs of the same "Sweet t" shoe, or you can devise  a removable white "heel cover" for Sweet T.

He wears boots with the dinner corset.  The boots are knee high, again with the platform and chunk heel.  His ankle bracelet is worn over his right boot.  They look 'skin tight' (stretchy?) and have lacing up the front back that wraps around and ties in the front - though a zipper has got to be in there somewhere.


And finally the floorshow heels.  They're similar to the Sweet T heels - but black with red rhinestones.  They also have a rhinestone buckle. The Anal Retentive Costume Site has photos of the actual shoe, which is more  helpful than any screen cap, and you can see how  the edges are scalloped.  You can also see where Sue Blane inserted some gussets in the side of the vamp to accommodate the width of Tim's feet, and may be done on the other heels as well.