Lacoste is one of those companies that seem to go in and out of fashion all the time (unless you’re one of those people who’s still living in the 80s on a yacht in a Miami marina, in which case it never went out of fashion). I just got given a Lacoste t shirt by a friend and it’s turned out to be surprisingly versatile and in keeping with my current style. So you can imagine my joy when I saw these for sale, reaffirming my belief in the power of living retro. They’re called “Womens Lacoste Millyann Mary Jane Trainers” (which you’ll need, to search for them on the site) and they are just about cute and different enough to make up for the fact that plims have come back into fashion and are probably going out of fashion again (or would be, if hipsters had something to replace them with).
Apart from these pretty yachting colours, they also come in a black, white and purple combo, which is pretty damn cute too. Perfect every day, casual shoes.
You can get them from Schuh.
Here’s a pair of fun trainers by Ed Hardy with one of their trademark tattoo flash designs worked into it. I’m always looking for interesting trainers, because, let’s face it, these sort of canvas trainers are among the most common vegan footwear around. I like it when you can have casual, comfortable shoes that still look funky and different enough so you don’t have to feel like a clone while wearing them. These are slip ons, as they don’t have laces, which makes them even more casually comfortable.
These are actually for women, as far as I can tell, not unisex. They come in a whole range of colours. I obviously went for the black and red, but there are also greens, purples and yellows that are pretty damn neat. I’m pretty sure most, if not all of the Ed Hardy shoes are vegan. I’ve written about some heels here before and I’m sure I’ll be delving into the Ed Hardy world again soon enough.
In the meantime, you can get these of Amazon/Endless
You may remember the totally very beautiful and unique recycled rice bag shoes I wrote about some time ago. Well, here’s another take on the genre, this time from Keen shoes, who seem to make sort of outdoorsy, sporty shoes. These effectively mary jane trainers and are made with woven strips of recycled rice bags. Apparently each one is slightly different, because of the different bags they use. Very cute concept. They remind me of those recycled bags you can get sometimes.
I don’t like these quite as much as the Wear Every Day ones, but they do look sporty and are especially designed to be comfy, plus apparently Keen are big on social responsibility and ethics.
You can get these straight from the Keen site.
Happy new year everyone!
We’re off the Office shoes sale and straight into the Schuh sale.
Because I’ve said I’ll write more about vegan men’s shoes, I thought I’d start the year with a pair. Start as I mean to go on and all that.
This post is actually coming at you from the past, as I have prepared it in advance, knowing fully well that I am probably way way too hungover and asleep to actually write anything right now. Thank you, WordPress schedule feature!
Anyway, I really like these. Shame they are only for men. The white and orange combo is really neat (orange soles, how cool?) plus, these “roger” high-tops by Momentum also have a cute skull eyelet on each shoe. I also like the high-top shape which is noticeably different from the usual Converse style.
At the time of writing there seemed to be plenty of these in stock. Hopefully, there still are, but at £15 a pair, you never know!
Get them (if you can) at the Schuh sale.
I spotted a pair of these in a shop window yesterday and managed to track them down online. As if moulded rubber lace up trainers in all kinds of mad and bright colours weren’t great enough, these ones are actually called “The Dude”, which reminds me of Big Lebowski and is therefore super uber great.
The downside is that they seem to come in only 3 sizes – small, medium and large. Handy if you’re more or less one of these sizes, not so much if you’re not. The larger sizes will fit men.
You can get them from OldgOLD.
Actually, these are technically unisex, but I am calling them men’s shoes because A. they look pretty manly and B. it’s been a while since I’ve had anything about vegan men’s shoes on here and I’ve just picked up some new Twitter followers who are decidedly male.
These high tops are made by Vegetarian Shoes in Europe out of hemp and microfibre so are eco-friendly, durable and ethically produced. They are nice and chunky and, while supposedly casual / skate shoes, are actually quite smart-casual. You could totally rock a hipster look in these.
You can get them from Vegetarian Shoes.
Another Christian Siriano and Payless collaboration. This time it’s these simple but funky trainers. The colour is certainly unusual and I love the vegan patent and zipper accents.
As Payless isn’t usually the place to shop for the ultra-stylish, high fashion shoe, I think you could easily get away with buying these and being the only one of your circle of friends to have them.
Here they are on the Payless site.
Hellooooo Topshop! I’ve not checked you out for a while, but hidden among your predominantly leathery shoe collection are these cute glittery high top trainers that are all nice and vegan. Simple yet effective and, let’s be honest, there’s nothing that can’t be made better with a bit of glitter really.
I like the shape as well. Different enough from the converse look to be interesting.
They also come in a crazy white and gold combo.
You can get them from Topshop.
Did you need any further proof that the 90s are back? These cute fabric high tops will lead you down the time tunnel of 90s fun in relative style. Great for the straight out of bed look cause they kinda look like slippers.
I’m not quite sure what I’d wear them with, apart from jeans or a black outfit, probably with some sort of flowery accents if I could find any that matched.
They also come in plain black, though I reckon if you’re gonna go there, go all out and get these.
You can get these from Schuh.
OK, I’ll be honest. I actually really like the looks of all those leather converse trainers. Shame they’re leather, huh?
Well, here’s ones that are made out of fake leather, for you guys who think canvas may look a bit… immature for some occasions and want to sport something a bit more grown up.
These are pretty neat and they’re also pretty cheap.
You can get them from the H&M site.
Here’s another cool take on a modern classic. These are unisex and have a cool lacing thing going on instead of your usual criss cross variety, plus a front zip.
I guess these sort of Converse-like trainers will never go out of style, so you may as well keep wearing them and keep finding slightly different and new ways to augment the look. I’m liking the patch on the side as well.
You can get these from Draven shoes.
I usually don’t like prominent logos on my clothing, but when a company goes by the name of NAE (No Animal Exploitation) and puts that message in very obvious letters across a cute, unisex vegan trainer then all I can say is Bring it on!
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a pair of shoes that had an actual message on them. Usually that is reserved for T-shirts.
The closest I’ve seen is the Vegetarian Shoes logo, which can be read as more of a statement about the materials used than an actual message and is therefore somewhat less cool.
All NAE shoes are made ethically in Spain and Portugal and the company is run by people who care deeply about people, animals and the environment. Good luck, guys!
Check out the NAE site for these and more shoes.
Ooooh! These have a bit of the lumberjack about them, do they not? They make me think of log fires, comfy sofas and hot toddies. They are unisex and come in both men and women’s sizes. They are called The Guerra and come in a host of different fabric patterns that are perfect for fitting in with both an urban and a rural style.
They’re made by ethical, cruelty-free company Keep.
You can get them from the Keep website.
I gotta say, I am really rather fond of Babycham’s shoes. So here’s another one from their range – a funky and colourful sci-fi / robot themed black trainer. As usual, there is great attention to detail, with star-shaped multi-coloured eyelets, an amazing sole (check out the gorgeous design by clicking through), colourful lacing and piping and a bright pink lining.
These shoes will certainly stand out and they just look cooler every time you look at them.
You can get them from Amazon.
I didn’t even have time to get over the shock of finding yesterday’s canvas DMs and here’s another new thing for me – DM skate shoes!
These neat white trainers for women have a cute alien print with a ray gun and everything and sport a chunky, bouncy sole. Definitely a hip twist on a trainer classic that will make any outfit just a little bit more street, maaan! Totally cool.
You can get them from James and James.
