Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Used Boots: Cheaper and Eco

Some people might find it repulsive, nasty or creepy to wear a strangers shoes instead of buying brand new slave made footwear - but ya'll need to get over it! Buying used shoes from your local thrift store, Ebay, or Etsy has pros that far exceed the cons. They've already finished out gassing their "new" smell (which translates into no toxic VOC stink), they are cheaper, someone broke them in for you and your feet won't hurt, you are not supporting the manufacturing of more junk to crowd landfills with, little children won't be forced to make them in dark unhealthy factories again, and best of all it's usually WAY cheaper!

I am a huge fans of eco made shoes (like Terra Plana) that are on the market right now but I can safely say they are light years out of my price range - therefore the best planetary support I can give while maintaining my obsession for a sweet pair of boots is buying second hand.


Here's a sample platter of what the used boot world has to serve up:

VINTAGE REPEATS: "These vintage ankle boots were made by "Two Lips". I believe they are a size 7. They have red leather uppers with a lacy cutout pattern. Silver trim accents the elaborate cutouts. The boots have 4" zippers in the backs and 3 1/2" stiletto heels...

MY FAVORITE VINTAGE: "Chocolate Brown Granny Boots Made in Italy, size 7 1/2."



DEWBERRY VINTAGE: "Grey Slouchy Boots, Soft gray suede and leather boots with spiked heel. Leather at toe and detail leather band across calf. Wonderful condition with little to no wear on soles. Size: 8 Narrow"
FIRE GYPSY VINTAGE: "Vintage 1960s 0r 1970s Super Retro Boots are Cowgirl Western styled with Boho flare. They have Feather Accents -Size 6, Length of shaft: 12, Length of sole: 9.5 inches, Calf diameter: 14.5."



PUNK VOUGE: "These are an amazing, unique pair of Doc Marten Boots. They are black, with the British flag on the toe. They have 8 holes. They are a size 10 in womens 9 in men. Boots have minor scuffs. "

XOXO

7 comments:

Colleen said...

Aw yeah! I'm buying my wedding dress on eBay (hopefully, I have to win!!!!) TODAY!
I've been searching their vintage dresses for months and now might have a little problem with buying vintage stuff on eBay. I've bought three other dresses already just for whenever. Oops.
(Still have my used DM boots from the Salvation Army-- which sounds gross but they were brand new when I got em)

Miss Voodoo said...

OH Colleen, how freaking cool! Can you put a link up here of the dress once you win it? Is it vintage or used? 80's puff sleeve with lots of sequins ;)
Used boots just never sound gross to me... when I get them from the thrift and they are dusty or smelly I give them a wipe down with vinegar and hang them in the sun for one day and they usually are perfect after that.
Remember how back in the day you could find beautiful wedding dresses at thrifts stores for like $10 ?!!! New Orleans had the best ever on Magazine street at the second hand stores.

Anonymous said...

For MCSers, it's important to find out if people had fabric softener saturated socks in any used footwear before buying. There's no way to remove those residues.

james rowland said...

thanks for justifying our existence.

Miss Voodoo said...

Hey Linda-
It's good to note that sometimes you can request a seller doesn't put newspaper or scents in the shoes... one time someone stuffed mine with dryer sheets which took forever to air out.
Most thrift store smells seem to air out pretty well in the sun with a wipe down for me. But the super sensitive would have a hard time with those old funky smells.

James- Your Welcome... bad ass shoes ya got over there.

Unknown said...

Amazing got to check those Shoes at ebay....thanks

lace wedding dresses said...

Some really nice collection. You can also buy new stuff from HouseOfBrides.com at most affordable prices. Staff their is really friendly and helpful.