The collapsible stiletto

For Ella Kilgour, it was one blister too many. After another of those painful late-night walks home, the 23-year-old design student decided something had to be done.

So she came up with the answer for women who are unwilling to compromise on fashion: Collapsible stilletos.

Miss Kilgour devised a shoe in which the heel folds down.

'We all know the pain of trying to walk home in heels,' said Miss Kilgour, a graduate of Brunel University in West London. 'I just thought I'd try to make a pair that could turn into flat shoes.' Miss Kilgour, of Gosport, Hampshire, unveiled her prototype last year.

She said she was inspired after suffering blisters from high heels when she walked home after a night out.

The shoes could be the answer for women only too familiar with the pitfalls of putting style before comfort.

They allow the wearer to look fashionable on a night out. But once the party's over, the stiletto is folded away into a recess in the shoe, leaving a much more manageable inch-high heel for the trip home.