Comfort & Style In The Same Shoe

Everyone thinks of Crocs shoes as ugly. And you know what? They are. At least, their original style was hideously ugly (IMO). For those who aren't aware of them, Crocs is this brand of rubber shoes that came out several years ago touting their comfort and practicality over style. They were billed as the most comfortable shoes you'll ever own. And everyone I knew who could bring themselves to try them on agreed.

Now, the pair I tried on rubbed awfully on my feet in several places, so I didn't think they were comfortable on top of thinking they were the ugliest shoes I'd ever seen. I still remember the first time I had ever seen them. I was at the airport with my ex-boyfriend, Sterling, and he pointed them out to me on another traveler. He asked me some kind of question regarding how much ugly I'd be willing to put up with in favor of comfort. I don't remember his exact wording, and I don't remember my exact answer, but the general idea of my answer was that I would not put up with that much ugly for comfort. And I was not known for having exceptional taste in footwear either.

So I outright refused to even consider this new brand of shoes. I felt that, if these shoes were so damn comfortable, the manufacturers could at least make an attempt coming in the neighborhood of what was considered fashionable.

And, a few years later, they did.

Crocs is now the makers of a whole line of different style shoes, many of which are still ugly. But many of which are quite attractive, and a few that are somewhere in between. I used to wear a pair of pretty ugly (but not as ugly as Crocs) sandals that I found in Cozumel when I took a cruise and discovered that I had forgotten to pack sandals for the trip. They were your basic flat sole with straps over the top of the foot, flip-flop type sandal.

They did not have that little bit that goes between your toes, which I hate. They were rubber, and they convinced me of the ultimate utility of wearing rubber shoes in florida - they never rotted or needed special care and I could get them wet or dirty without damage and if I got caught in the rain or wore them to the beach, they would not bother my feet like cloth shoes that got wet and they dried out very quickly, even while wearing them. They also had a bit of arch support & "massage nubs" to the insole and so were comfortable. Their only downside, as far as I was concerned, was that they were brown, and I wanted black shoes to match more of my wardrobe.

So when my sandals finally wore out, although I knew where to replace them right here in Florida, I searched the internet for black rubber sandals, and I came across Crocs. I was shocked to find that Crocs had styles of shoes now! I had written them off years ago as those hideous rubber clog-looking shoes and it never occurred to me that they had evolved, since more and more people were still wearing the ugly first generation style Crocs. Hell, they sold them at the theme parks with licensed characters & character colors on them! How was I to know that they had other styles now?

I discovered that there was a Croc store in a mall nearby, so I went down to try on the sandals and, sure enough, they had everything I liked about my ugly brown sandals and nothing I didn't (namely, the color). They were basically the same style, gender-neutral with two straps across the top, but somehow they managed to look less ugly, more, I dunno, shoe-like than my brown sandals. They were more expensive, but I bought them anyway. These were called Cleo, but Crocs is now on to the Cleo II, which has 2 straps cross the top of the toes in addition to the hinged strap that can be worn either over the bridge of the foot or behind the foot as a heel strap. I have those too, when I lost my Cleos for long enough that I'd given them up as gone for good & had to buy a replacement pair. I have since found my Cleos so now I have both pairs.

And I can't rave about these sandals enough. I've had that first pair for a few years now and they're still in great condition. I wear them every day that I leave the house when my attire doesn't require specific shoes (i.e. work requires steel toe boots or close-toe shoes and dancing requires dance heels), and I even wear them around the house when I'm doing chores or cooking that requires me to stand on the tile for long periods of time. When I hosted my Butterbeer party, I had to stand for hours mixing and stirring different recipes of butterbeer for the taste test, and after about 30 minutes barefoot, my back, shoulders, and knees were aching. In a spurt of inspiration, I put on my Crocs and almost instantly all the pain disappeared, and I could stand on that tile for several more hours.

These are the most comfortable pair of shoes I have ever owned, and I have owned some comfortable shoes. I have back, ankle, and knee issues, so I actually invest a decent amount of money into quality footwear. Stagehands and soldiers will both tell you the value of good footwear and caring for one's feet. They say that women obsess over shoes, but I tell you that I have never heard as many conversations about shoes from women as I have from the men I work with - what's comfortable, what's affordable, what's practical, what will get the job done and still look nice? Maybe they don't gush over how cute the shoes are, but good shoes are an endless topic of conversation among men (and women) who spend all day on their feet on concrete or rough terrain, and I tell you that Crocs are worth it.

Then, one day, a female friend of mine was talking about her shoes. I don't normally pay attention to talk of girlie shoes unless they're dance shoes, and this friend is ultra girlie in her fashion. But I heard the magic word "Crocs" and my ears perked up. She was showing off a pair of high heeled shoes that she insisted were Crocs brand. She told us all how she wears this same pair of heels, and only these heels, all weekend long at Dragon*Con (a sci-fi convention) without any problems. They're so comfortable & fashionable that she won't wear any other shoes at 'con!

I was intrigued ... stylish heels that can be worn for more than 5 minutes and with lots of walking? It couldn't be! But it was! So I went back to the Crocs store and the Crocs website and discovered that they had expanded their selection once again. Now they had dress shoes and sneakers and boots in addition to their wide variety of sandals, and yes, their classic ugly clogs.

I go ballroom dancing. When I do ballroom dancing, I wear high heel dance shoes. These are worlds more comfortable than regular heels (with the possible exception of certain brands of ladies dress shoes that also emphasize comfort but are very expensive), but their special dance sole means that I can't wear them off the dance floor. I have to wear other shoes from the car to the venue, change into my ballroom shoes, and then change back to walk out to the car. And no matter how comfortable ballroom dance shoes might be, 4 or more hours of dancing leaves these feet that are accustomed to sandals & sneakers aching and sore. So the last thing I want to do is put on another, more uncomfortable pair of heels. So I had been wearing my black Crocs sandals. But I really wanted to find a nice pair of shoes that would still allow me to be "dressed up" even after I took off the dance shoes.

After much debate, I finally settled on these black, high heeled wedges. And I couldn't be happier with them! They don't just feel comfortable, they feel good. By that I mean that I don't just feel relief when I take off my dance shoes and put these on, I feel better. I feel like my aches have been reduced by half immediately and that I could keep dancing for another couple of hours. I have been known to take off my dance shoes after a night of dancing, positive that I would have to be carried out to the car, only to put on these wedges and walk up and down the street, amiably chatting with my companion, for another hour or two. I feel happy when I put on these shoes. I feel like bouncing.  I usually do bounce my first few steps in these shoes, out of sheer joy & comfort.

So now I'm convinced, Crocs are the most awesome shoes in the world. All they'd have to do is make a rated pair of steel-toe combat-looking boots and a high-top Converse-like sneaker and I wouldn't buy any other shoe ever again. Oh, but they have recently come out with Crocs insoles! As a miser living below the poverty line, I typically don't pay more than $5 for insoles (they're memory-foam insoles and I love them), but to turn all my shoes into Crocs shoes? I'm willing to pay the 20-bucks, once I have the money.

I should point out here that Crocs are technically not "rubber", they are a resin that is "hermetic and antibacterial", as well as non-toxic, which means that they never smell like feet or any other body odor. That makes their entrance into the insole business an especially fortuitous move. Their sports shoes have an additional antifungal additive that prevents athelete's foot & fungal infections.

I'm also looking into a white or silver pair of dress shoes for those 2 or 3 outfits I have that are not black or dark colored and for which my black wedges don't really match as well as a light pair of shoes would. And if the Crocs store would just carry their leather boots in stock so I could try them on to see if they're as comfortable as all their other shoes, I'd get those too!

It seems as though Crocs has paired themselves with a line of shoe-shoes that are not all rubber, do not have their characteristic Crocs sole, and do not appear to have their characteristic Crocs rubber insole with the massage nubs and rubbery-cushy-bounciness. But if Crocs makes it, with their committment to comfort, I at least want to try them out.

Don't think they saved all their style for women's shoes either! Men have quite the range of non-ugly shoe styles as well, including sneakers, sandals, boat shoes, golf shoes, and boots. They even have Converse or Vans style sneakers. In addition, Crocs shoes are made in 3 different widths - standard, relaxed, and roomy, so that even my friends who complain about regular-length but wide feet (especially those friends) find these comfortable. I have fairly narrow feet with very high arches and I also find them extremely comfortable.

So I recommend heading down to your nearest Crocs store and trying on a variety of styles to find one that fits your style and comfort needs. If you can find a style that you like, I really think your feet will thank you for it. I won't say these are the last pair of shoes you'll ever buy, because, frankly, I still like a few other brands for different reasons. But I think I look forward to putting these on more often than any other shoe I wear (especially since I'd really rather be barefoot most of the time), and I often wish that Crocs made some of my other favorite shoes. Although, now that Crocs makes insoles, that just might solve this last remaining "problem".