Posts Tagged flip-flops

I’m picky about my flip-flop sandals because a) I have short toes and I think my foot looks ridiculous in open-toe sandals that show too much space between the tops of my toes and the top of the shoe and b) I get cranky if the strap (thong) between my toes chafes — that “toe post” must be super-comfortable for me to want to wear this type of sandal style regularly.

With that said, I packed a couple of pairs of thong sandals in my bag for a recent trip to California to test firsthand:

Ocean Minded: This Ladies’ Seaweed style from Ocean Minded is sporty and really comfortable. The environmentally minded company uses Croslite material in its molded, anatomically correct footbed (same stuff you find in Crocs), and this foam resin is soft, lightweight and odor resistant. The nylon toe post is made from recycled plastic bottles (cool!) and the wide nubuck strap is quite soft.

These sandals are water resistant, so you don’t have to worry about getting them wet. I love how the water theme is carried through in the top soles: the wavy grooves in the shoe not only emulate running water, but they’re designed to help water flow through the shoe and circulate the air, keeping your foot dry.

I wore these walking up and down State Street in Santa Barbara for hours last week, and they remained comfortable on my feet from the beginning of my excursion to the end. I adore the sporty look that is at home on the beach, at the pool or in any seaside town. A huge bonus for me: the width accommodates my fat foot and the length, my short toes. They look good on my feet.

Ocean Minded is actually retiring the Seaweed as it exists today, and launching the Seaweed II this spring. The new-and-improved version will feature an even better fit and more recycled material — including a midsole made from 25 percent post-industrial recycled foam, and an outsole made from 25 percent post-industrial recycled rubber.

Purchase the current Ocean Minded Seaweed sandal on Amazon.com for $35.95. Plenty more summer and fall styles can also be found on Backcountry.com.

Aetrex Sandalistas: This style of thong sandal comes from Aetrex, a company that’s been producing “pain-relieving footwear” since 1946. The Schwartz family manufacturers running shoes and “athletic walkers,” for men and women, as well as sporty and casual flats, wedges and sandals for women There’s some serious technology going on in the footbed of the Aetrex shoes, including the Sandalistas.

The sandal I tested, the classy Montserrat in black, has a Memory Foam footbed that contours to the wearer’s particular gait pattern. The footbed provides plenty of arch support, as it’s anatomically shaped and contoured to match the human foot (eliminating pressure points). Indeed, when I put these sandals on, I feel like my foot is cushioned and enveloped in coziness (sounds totally cheesy, but it’s true).

Another cool feature: the suede footbed is removable and customizable. That is, if you do feel any uncomfortable pressure points on your sole, you can remove gel plugs (there are 8 in each shoe) and put the footbed back in, relieving the pain.

I really like the style of these Montserrats, with the thick, leather-strap uppers and cute button closure (so you can fully remove footbed). The subtle wedge heel means that I can go dressy or casual with these shoes, which offers great versatility for travelers.

Unfortunately, this style is designed for people with much longer toes. There’s no way I’m snapping a photo of my wide foot and stubby toes, but you’ll have to trust me when I say there is about an inch of black suede footbed showing above each of my toes — they just look silly. I can highly recommend these sandals to my long-toed readers, but if you’re short-toed like me, I’d reconsider spending the $134.95 on these shoes, available for sale at Foot.com.

Ocean Minded Ladies Seaweed at PlanetShoes.com

Related post: Spenco Total Support Sandals