7 Slipper Facts You Never Knew

At Heat Treats, we are renowned for our eclectic range of slippers.

From a microwavable boot to a novelty gorilla, we are confident we could satisfy anyone in the world with a top-quality slipper.

Nonetheless, 900 years ago, one might not have been so happy to receive such a gift... 

Sinister Slippers

Slippers originated in the 12^th century. A rich sultan from Vietnam forced his concubines to wear them as a means of keeping the women captive.

They were soft, thin-soled and slippery to prevent them from escaping across the surrounding rocky terrain outside their harem (quarters specifically for the concubines.)

Slipper Origins

The word ‘slipper’ in English dates back to 1478, originating from the verb ‘to slip,’ presumed by the easy motion of putting on the garment.

However, ‘to slip’ could also mean ‘to strike or beat with a slipper.’ Slippering was a common form of punishment in schools for naughty children.

As late as 1980, a school in Liverpool issued 1,800 slipperings in a year!

The World’s Most Expensive …

Two of the most expensive pairs of shoes in the world are actually slippers.

Coming in at 2 million is a custom pair of Tom Ford’s, created by jeweller Jason Arasheben for America’s Got Talent host, Nick Cannon.

They took 2,000 hours to hand-craft and exhibited 14,000 diamonds set on white gold. The shoes had a staggering total carat weight of 340!

However, jeweller Harry Winston surpassed this with a replica of the illustrious ruby slippers featured in The Wizard of Oz. Unlike the movie originals which were made of sequins, the slippers boasted 4,600 rubies.

With 1,350 carats of rubies plus an additional 50 carats of diamond, the slippers were a fair commemoration of the film’s 50^th anniversary.

The Monster Slipper

One of the largest slippers in the world was actually made by mistake following a mis-read of a decimal point.

Tom Boddingham was surprised to receive a size 1,450 ‘Monster Slipper’ the size of a car when the manufacturer misread Boddingham’s bespoke order for a size 14.5.

The national papers quickly tore the story to shreds however, noting that ‘Tom Boddingham’ bore an uncanny resemblance to the company’s website manager. Cynics claimed it was nothing more than an elaborate PR stunt!

Slipper Etiquette

In Japanese homes, each family member will have two pairs of slippers. One is used for general wear around the house, but a separate pair specifically for when using the toilet.

It is considered bad etiquette not to change in and out of your specific slippers for every trip!

Inside Japan wrote, “accidentally forgetting to take off the toilet slippers after leaving the WC is pretty much the most mortifying thing you can do!”

The Slipper Man

Derek ‘The Slipper Man’ Fan holds the world record for the longest duration of time wearing slippers.

Fan’s achievement was verified by the Guinness Book of Records in 2007, clocking up 23 years inside the soft soles!

Slipper + Study = Success!

The world’s most successful exam taker credits his success to slippers.

The academic has an impressive 70 O-levels, 16 A-levels, an S-level as well as a degree under his belt and states that “it is important to have comfortable feet.”

Amazingly, research actually supports his statement. Studies have found comfortable clothing can have a profound effect on academic performance. There is correlation between formal/uncomfortable clothing in exams and lower than expected grades.

At Heat Treats HQ, all our staff are strong advocates of this. We each have our own pair of slippers, ready and waiting under our desks to slip into on a morning!