I love shoes, but as a vegetarian committed to buying only vegan shoes I often struggle to find ones that aren't either badly made or ugly (or both!). As I search the world for beautiful cruelty-free shoes, I write about my fab finds in this blog.
Aren’t these punk (or punk rocker) boots neat? These aren’t actually by Doc Martens, they are by TUK, although they look pretty damn similar, if you ask me. As far as I know, DM don’t make vegan shoes anymore, so this is one of your alternative options. Ironically, these are made in China and I do believe DM killed off their vegan line when they took production out of the UK and into China.
These boots have got it all, at least when it comes to methods of fastening – they have laces, straps and hidden inside side zips. The pattern is very goth rose, (literally. It has roses on it) but I find it quite unassuming, myself. The shape of the boot makes it lend itself to other looks apart from goth royalty, which is good, as there aren’t as many all out goths nowadays as there used to be back in the day.
How thoroughly odd. For some reason this post originally appeared empty but for a giant pic of these shoes. What can I say? My original intention was to include a somewhat more containable image of these and to write about how very jolly cute they are. They remind me of the dragon lady shoes by Melissa shoes, only they are flat. If you want to wear your heart on your, er, shoe but don’t like wearing heels, then now you can still sport a pair of bright red hearts (or different colour hearts, as there are a bunch of different options to choose from).
These are definitely pretty kooky, but you could still work them into an every day outfit if you wanted to be just a little bit different.
Aren’t these fun? Writing about summery jelly sandals has gotten me in the mood for summer…And in the mood for jellies. And there’s always room for jellies, right?
These are made in Brazil by the other “original jelly shoe company” as in, not Melissa Shoes.
It’s handbags at dawn in a to-the-death fight for the title!
As you’d expect from a Brazilian shoe, they’re sexy as hell and beach-ready, perfect to wear with your teeny weeny polka-dot bikini. Isn’t it funny how a little fake stone can totally upgrade a shoe?
Yes, in a hot country where women spend so much time tanning on the beach and walking around in the sun, you gotta put some thought into your sandals, cause they gotta be both practical and sexy. Well, here they are!
I know it’s not quite summer yet, but I’m hoping if I keep posting up pictures of gorgeous summer shoes, we’re all just going to will it to happen. The sooner the better!
Another pair of shoes for girls with a good sense of fun. These silly rubber pumps, apart from being cute, will also stop your feet from getting wet (in extremely shallow puddles), but let’s not pretend anyone would ever buy these for reasons of practicality. If you’ve got a hidden Strawberry Shortcake inside you, then you’ll love jumping about in these. Check out the neat polka dot pattern inside, too!
They also come in another loud pattern that’s definitely not strawberry-oriented, but is sort of retro 70s European mixed with chic green and white polka dots inside.
“Oh my god, I want these!” I cried. Yes, I actually did say this out loud when I saw these online. How cute? They come in a bunch of bold colours and they are just so summery and sweet.
I know summer in the UK seems very far off, but who cares? I could parade in front of the mirror in these and feel just as pleased with myself. I’m so totally in shoe-lust with these.
Leggings, skinny jeans, skirts, dresses, these would go with anything. The bow makes them somewhat retro, so I tagged them with that, though obviously they didn’t have shiny green PVC back in the 20s when art deco was the latest trend (these sandals are said to be art deco on the Chinese Laundry site). Either way, they fit the bill perfectly for a casual but different sandal.
Is that incense burning I smell? These casual, bohemian velvety quilted ankle boots definitely look like something out of an old Beatles video, which I guess is why they are called Penny Lane. They’re by Sugar who do specialise in that whole bedroom slipper boot look, but I’m willing to let that go for these, cause these look homey in a good way.
I like the mismatched retro buttons and the shape is pretty boho too…
I’d pair them with tights or leggings and some sort of oversized jumper, though I guess you could also put some flowers in your hair. Actually, why not go straight to the source for inspiration? I must say that I am thinking more Kings Road than Penny Lane, though. What’s with all the horses?
You can get these vegan bohemian boots from Cloggs.
These are so cute! You have to check out all the other photos, though, to appreciate their full cute glory. I mean, are these the cutest soles ever? Seriously, you gotta click through to the site then click “view all images”. Really, really cool.
The lining is great too. I just love the level of attention to detail that makes seriously cool shoes out of a very simple concept that’s practically been done to death.
What else can I say? These are very very girlie and cute, but also practical and fun without making too much of a fuss about being really really cool. they’re called sandy pump flats, which you’ll need to know if you want to find them on the site.
OK, I know it’s cheating to write about so many shoes from the same place over one week, but just this one more pair cause they’re so wicked. Vegan steampunk trainers, oh yeah!
I know it’s Valentine’s day, so I should really be writing about some shoes with a heart on them (like the awesome Melissa Dragon Lady), but hey, these are brilliant too and steampunk is (apparently) forever.
Check out the really intricate, delicate gear print. Nice!
I’m also liking the pinstripe / sort of aged, almost parchment combo. So now you can basically still look steampunk even when it’s trainer-weather and you’re in your street clothes looking a different kind of cool. The whole design is at once very modern but also somewhat old-school with the whole Spats look and Victorian charm.
Totally casual and neat and you can be sure no one in your vicinity will own a pair. There are a few other steampunk designs on there that are also worth a look, though these were my favourites so far.
Another good find on the Zazzle site. These Rasta-inspired trainers are soooo cute!
They have the right colours if you want to do the Jamaican thang, but also a cool pattern to go with, so you can wear them even if you just like the design and the colours and it won’t necessarily mean you’re overtly Rasta. So wink, if you may, or you could work them into a bigger Jamaican, Rasta look.
I like the cute red piping and the splash design. The base design of the trainer itself is pretty neat in a simple sort of way, making for a really desirable shoe.
How awesome! Vegan trainers printed with a bowling shoe pattern. I just found this site where I gather people can custom design trainers and then they are sold on the site. There are some super cool designs on there and I’m definitely going to be reviewing a bunch as I go through them.
I really like these, cause I really like bowling shoes. I actually have a pair of Rocket Dogs made out of old stock Chinese vegan bowling shoes, though they are single colour. These are not quite as cool as actual bowling shoes, but on the other hand they’re trainers and therefore more socially acceptable around people who don’t understand how cool those are to actually wear out, but can get down with the irony of wearing a trainer that looks like them.
Not cheap, but how many people you know have trainers that look like bowling shoes?
OK, these are weird. They look like normal trainers, but no! They’re all cut up, Kinda like the slashed T-shirts of days gone by or a canvas sneaker-sandal.
If you liked that 80s torn-up punk look, you can now have it on your feet as well, which is pretty exciting, really. They’re definitely eye-catching and different, but are they practical? Do we care?
Thinking ahead to a nice hot summer… We probably don’t. They’re flat and comfortable and they’d go with all your funky electro-punk clubwear.
They also come in white and there’s a rather loud 80s-tastic plaid version too.
Well, it was only a matter of time till I ended up writing about something of the canvas boot range that has been so extremely popular over the last few years. These flat vegan boots by Sugar I think are a particularly funky example, with a funky flowery pattern that makes them stand out.
Having canvas shoes become trendy is somewhat of a double-edged sword, as things that go into fashion tend to come out of fashion too, which is when vegan fashion victims risk looking somewhat like yesterday’s news.
I remember back in the day when I’d just turned vegetarian and stopped wearing leather, there were practically no non-leather shoes around. I was reduced to wearing Palladium shoes – sort of canvas walking shoes that came in black or tan. Then they suddenly became hugely popular and mainstream, which was great, as it resulted in there being lots of funky-coloured Palladiums about (which I bought), and wearing them became a fashion statement. Then they went out of fashion and wearing them became a totally different fashion statement.
And the moral of the story is? Well, for one, enjoy the golden age while it lasts and get yourself some nice canvas shoes in slightly more interesting designs than you otherwise would. Once the trend is gone, it’s up to you to decide whether to keep wearing them, depending on how much of a fashion victim you are. If your shoes are cool enough to match your look and be attention-grabbing enough on their own (which these certainly are), then you should be OK whatever.
OK, these aren’t actually mine. They belong to my friend, who was kind enough to model them for me.
These are by Italian label, Fessura (beware of somewhat shitty website that plays loud music at you and takes forever to actually show you any shoes) who seem to have a good range of vegan shoes among their flock.
These shoes are, as often is the case in this blog, of the “love em or hate em” ilk. As my friend says, “people either love them or think they look like a plaster cast”.
They are incredibly comfortable, hard wearing and can be worn in several different styles, as the elastic strapping is very versatile and can be changed around or removed altogether (although that just makes the shoes look like simple black pumps so isn’t nearly as exciting).
They make fine casual every day shoes, as they are comfortable and can be worn in any situation where you’d normally wear trainers (only obviously they are somewhat more unusual and exciting).
So where do you get them from? Well, they are called Fessura Shell Band, so happy hunting. My own googling efforts have only brought up some Japanese sites selling them (at least I think that’s what they’re doing) and an Italian website that used to sell them.
Not much help, I know, but at least now you know about the brand itself, which is good, as they do make quite a few other vegan shoes…
Well, Christmas is not long gone and if you’re in the UK, you’d have no doubt been surrounded by pantomimes, including this year’s hit Alladin, starring Brian Blessed and Pamela Anderson. Alternatively, you may have seen the trailer for next summer’s long-awaited Prince of Persia film. You know what I’m getting at, right? Do I need to explain the joke further? OK!
If you’ve been harbouring dreams of having your very own genie or being a grand wazir (or vizier, if you will), then here’s your chance to dress the part, or at least to top off your harem pants and embroidered vest with the perfect pair of matching shoes!
These pointy, spotty shoes are your magic carpet to a world of desert fantasy. They are by Irregular Choice and are called Mary Piper. These are one of the only pairs of shoes of theirs I’ve ever seen that don’t have some kind of hidden leather enemy conceleaed somewhere in the lining, which is a shame, cause some of their shoes don’t actually look like they were made by and for Disney.
I’m really not sure what you’d wear these with, but they’re vegan and weird so I’m going to write about them as I’m sure someone somewhere would be very excited to be able to wear them. Personally, I love the whole upward pointy toe thing, though I think I’d be happier with a less clown-like pattern on mine. Still, anything for a laugh, right?
Yes, it’s that time again when I write about another super cool pair of shoes by Melissa Shoes.
Here’s a sweet little pair of glittery gold shiny flats. They’re made of the flock material which is kinda velvety to the touch but actually made of special plastic. There’s contrasting toes and soles in the smooth plastic too and really cute ribbons to tie the whole thing together (pun somewhat intended).
They’re certainly unusual and funky. There are so many flat ballet pumps out there, but these have a nice twist and would make cute going out shoes or cute going home shoes if you normally like wearing heels when you go out.
They come in a few other colours too, including a very understated grey that you could probably even wear with work clothes. After all, these don’t actually look like they’re made of plastic!
Aren’t these punk (or punk rocker) boots neat? These aren’t actually by Doc Martens, they are by TUK, although they look pretty damn similar, if you ask me. As far as I know, DM don’t make vegan shoes anymore, so this is one of your alternative options. Ironically, these are made in China and I do believe DM killed off their vegan line when they took production out of the UK and into China.
OK, these aren’t actually mine. They belong to my friend, who was kind enough to model them for me. 
