shoe shoppin’

Tom just scored some new shoes, direct from the vegan link on the Vans site. I don’t know if you can tell, but the light bits are actually gray. He’s super happy with them after having some unsatisfactory experiences with Macbeth and IPATH (probably not the shoes’ fault—he’s got uneven feet). Skate shoes aren’t easy to begin with, let alone vegan skate shoes. One word about the Vans site: The vegan link is for boys only! Ladies are on their own to figure out what’s what.

I continue my search for the perfect shoe while wearing out my third pair of not-so-perfect Ben Shermans. They still don’t fit perfectly and they’re still not all that comfortable regardless of how many cushy inserts I put in them, but at $50 a pop for colors I’m happy with, each pair buys me another nine months of shoe-shopping time.

So where have I been looking?

If you’re ever in New York, you have to visit Moo Shoes. I haven’t been to the new location, but the old one, though small, still gave you that free feeling, the “I can buy anything in here!” feeling. And the cats loved lovin’. And I know it’s just a tiny little point, but when I ordered my first pair of shoes from them I also ordered a book. Instead of loading up on packing materials, they put the book in the shoe box, wrapped it in paper, then sent it on its way. It seems so obvious, but most places would have added another box and some styrofoam in the mix. So I say yay to Moo Shoes.

Zappos drives me nuts. They have different routes to getting to “veg” shoes…but sometimes they’re called vegan and other times they’re called vegetarian. Is there a difference, or are they lacking a copy editor? Their super-easy return policy and free shipping are a big plus.         

Vegan Essentials has a decent shoe selection. If you’re ordering stuff anyway, then shipping sort of melts away. I’ve only bought shoes I trusted through them so I haven’t really looked into the return policy. We have used it as a reference, a vegan stamp of approval on a shoe, then bought elsewhere. (Sorry, Vegan Essentials.)

I haven’t used the rest of these, but here are some other links to try. If you’ve found others, let me know and I’ll add them to the list.
Draven

Earth Shoes

Planet Shoes

Shoe Buy

Vegetarian Shoes and Bags

Vegan Wares (Thanks, Kevin)

Alternative Outfitters (Thanks, Destiny’s Vegan Kitchen)