An honest sock review requires wearing said socks at least a few miles, a few times and seeing how they hold over a few washes. Allow us a quick first impression. Any shoe-watcher worth their weight in soles has been eyeing Allbirds since they burst onto the scene with their “best slice in town” approach to marketing footwear with wool uppers. I’m a fan of their shop on Spring Street in Manhattan. We like what they’re doing with materials. We love how they responded to Amazon’s craven cloning with a bit of swagger. Allbirds open-sources their proprietary materials and Trino™ are their latest sock offering and they contain eucalyptus tree fibers combined with their favorite Merino wool and more.
Succulent Trino™ Tubers from Allbirds
A good sock often contains a good blend, like a good wine. These Tubers are 50% Tencel, 22% Merino, 17% recycled nylon, 4% recycled polyester, 4% polyester, 1% nylon, and 2% Spandex. That’s a lot of different grapes. Sounds like the sock scientists pulled all-nighters settling on that ratio! Bless them. Kathy, a retired RN from Brockton Massachusetts was kind enough to give us a few test steps in these Trinos™.
I like a good phone as much as the next guy, gal or gender X— just got this device a few weeks ago and was inspired to drop a little Who, What, When, Where, Why(in reverse order) for anyone interested. My first phones were rotary. Then came push-button. Cordless evolved into mobile with little retractable antennae, to flip & candybar to these infernal things we have now..
Smart. When I’m rolling with the Palm I get a feel of my favorite cell phone of yesteryear, the Motorola PEBL (which was an SUV’d-up RAZR). Knowing I have all the modern maps and apps at my disposal is a better feeling than using them frivolously. This isn’t a phone that begs for your attention, so we like it more. Someone was bound to do this sooner or later, and I’m happy with what the new iteration of Palm brought to market.
My favorite celly back in the day
WHY?
Because who wants to lug an impulse-driven power-phablet around all the livelong day especially since they’ve become so devilishly smart? Mentally the new Palm lends lends itself to the essence of what our mobile phones were circa 2005. It’s the tiniest a phone can be without even being a thing at all. A bit like the watch (on your bill at least), but something else (you could strap this to your wrist and make it so). Not every blip needs action, and this gives you plenty of options to let only VIPs through. Cloud notes can be scribbled for later access on bigger screens. Synced-up contacts and a simplified version of Android allow you to create a mini version of your phone, but one with a size advantage that can go any way depending on your imagination.
WHERE?
Wear wherever! Preferably pocket. The Palm is so small— uncased it could so so easily fall beneath a carseat, in a grate, down a chute— faster than you could say shh. It’s wearable in that it’s your responsibility to keep it from falling—or falling out of the wrong hands. This means you shouldn’t let anyone examine it, which is fine because since it’s barely a thing at all, it looks much better hidden. One of the reasons I wrote this article is to direct curious askers to it if they ask to see mine.
WHEN?
When you want to be polite, social, busy. When you bicycle, go to dinner, play handball. You can always switch back to your main phone when you’re done with your minimalist mission. Face it. Socially, once you’ve reached the people you need to be with, the big boppin’ phone isn’t always a good look. The Palm is great for times you want to go against the obsessive, phone-addicted, picture-fiend aesthetic that’s so common in today’s public spaces.
WHAT?
Palm calls this a cell phone the size of a credit card. They’re right. I’m using the companion version. It is also available as a standalone. It runs a simplified version of Android, has one single button and one USB-C slot.
WHO?
palm.com (no affiliation)
Less = more is my philosophy with this and I’m slowly adding apps based on how essential I deem them. “Subway Time” works fine on here as does the freelancer-friendly work app “When I Work”. I checked into flights, used the flashlight, took some pictures— having another smaller phone with the same number is something I’ve wanted as a consumer so I was happy to buy into this. I’m looking for suggestions on a good weather app. Feel free to tweet us with tips. Here’s a raw unedited Palm camera photo of the Ferris Wheel at the Brockton Fair a few days ago:
Popdiatry occasionally writes about apparel and accessories in our feature Off The Path.
I made my first sneaker purchase of 2018 and it was love at first fit. $150 factory fresh straight off the manufacturer’s site- no raffles, lines or reseller hijinks. From a distance, the average consumer wouldn’t even notice how hype they are, but up close the beauty blossoms, and on foot- they make me feel bad for other sneakers. Time reveals the true soul of a shoe so I’ve decided to rock these for a year before claiming they’re my favorite sneakers ever. Maybe I’d even buy a second pair- does anyone ever do that? Off the top, here’s why I think they’re so great:
They’re from a longtime maker of athletic footwear, but not the “big 2” (Nike & Adidas), who both frankly bore me these days.
The branding/logo is present, but very tastefully incorporated into the design to where a fool would have to zoom in to see what kind they were unless they were a sneaker hawk expert.
They’re majority leather (meaning cowhide, sorry PETA) – two different textures on the outer, and smooth leather on the inner lacedeck and heel. Meaning they’ll last better and won’t get stinky like your boy’s petroleum-based overpriced sneakers.
The removable insoles are leather topped. You have no idea how disappointing sneaker shopping can be when shoe after shoe asking over a hundred have the same chintzy fabric-coated insoles that you’d find on any Payless cheapos. Nothing feels better than leather- the perspiration absorbing qualities will keep your feet fresher longer while molding to the shape of your footprint in a way inferior synthetic coating could never.
The insides of the tongue are leather- a nice buttery padded leather that rests against the bony foot tops ever so lovely you can almost hear thy feet say “ahhh…” when I give that final tie-up.
The outside of the tongues are suede. After trying many brands of leather sneakers, my observation is that leather tongues (due to the nature of athletic shoe construction) rubbing against leather insides of the lacedeck can elicit a creaking sound while walking. A little dab of Obenauf’s or petroleum jelly has remedied this on past sneakers, but these with the suede up against leather- brilliant! No squeaks, no goo needed . The tongues never slide too much and they don’t even have nor need lace-slots.
The laces are perfect length. Minor thing, but seven times out of ten I replace the stock laces when I buy shoes because they’re usually way too long. Everyone removes their shoelaces and measures them upon purchasing right? They’re 49 inches and that’s the sweet spot between the 54″s that come stock with most sneakers and a more manageable (yet too short) 45″. Like Minnie Riperton sang “The simple things…”
They look killer and I feel like a superhero when I put them on.
So these sneaks are great at first step. I feel like I can wear them anytime with anything dressed up or down, but let’s see how I feel a year from now. Peace!
We love natural materials on the inside of our footwear. Leather, suede and cork do a superior job of molding to our footprint and absorbing perspiration. What about wood? A brand called Zederna manufactures these ultra-thin insoles made of cedar wood, and I’m giving them a good walk-around.
Cedar is the world’s go-to freshening wood. Layering a thin piece of 100% cedar over 100% cotton to create a shoe insole seems brilliant at first impression. The pleasant smell is there. The soles are stiff, pliable, and about as thin as a penny.
Zedernas come in fourteen different sizes (women’s 5 to men’s 14), and are not intended to ever be cut with scissors. This product worked best in shoes with a relatively neutral insole shape and would not be ideal for sneakers or footwear with orthotic-style footbeds. More on that later.
The packaging says you can wear these without socks. After trying them in a variety of different types of shoe, I gave them a long-term gig inside my Softstar Portlanders which I tend to wear sockless around at home during the warmer months.
The Hat Jack Hat Stretcher by Killer Incorporated is made in the USA out of wood and metal, and is exactly what I needed to expand some fitted New Era 59FIFTY caps back to wearable size.
The Hat Jack Hat Stretcher
“Headache Relief For Hat People”
The Jack comes in three sizes, and will set you back around 15 bucks. I used it to stretch, but like shoe-trees for kicks, it is an excellent device to leave inserted while storing hats between wears to absorb moisture and prevent shrinkage.
Get the appropriate size, stick it in your tight hat and hand-crank until it feels like it may rip. Get a teapot or pan with water boiling in the kitchen until some visible steam is produced
New Era 59/50 getting stretched
With this wool baseball cap, I held each side over the steam a little bit then used a wrench to carefully expand until I sensed the threads might pop. I let it sit overnight, and cranked it a little more in the morning.
Careful not to rip it money
No more torture on thy forehead; I knew there had to be a tight-hat solution and a Hat Jack was the answer. Whether you rock Stetsons, Yankee-fitteds, straw hats or mack-daddy felts, the Hat Jack is an excellent piece of hardware at a great price.
These paper thin Tyvek wallets are great for walkers who want a humble card & cash holder with minimal bulk and weight.
Mighty Wallets by Dynomighty are made of Tyvek, the hard-to-rip paperlike material spun from high-density polyethylene fibers and trademarked by DuPont.
Partially deconstructed NYC Subway Might Wallet
Tyvek takes well to printing, and there are more Dynomighty designs than you can shake a dollar at. These wallets cost around ten bucks; They offer customs, but I’ve only ever gotten stock designs.
I’m fond of the ones that resemble other folded paper, like the postal envelope and the subway map. When you’re on the move, there’s no benefit to using an obviously expensive wallet. By the time you whip these out and do your business, a casual observer may have barely processed that you pulled cash from a map, or cards from an envelope. Save your ostrich leather for special occasions. Dynomighty’s a good traveler. A folded up MTA map does not scream “rob me”.
NYC Subway map wallet with over a year of daily use
2 bill pockets, 2 card slots, and some other room to put flat things occupy the Mighty Wallet. My two cents: They’re the best wallets for people who hate wallets.
Popdiatry occasionally writes about apparel and accessories in this section“Off The Path”.
Check us on Instagram & twitter. We’ll be back soon with more shoe stuff.
AN HONEST TAKE ON WHAT THE BIG AMERICAN STORE HAS FOR FOOTWEAR ENTHUSIASTS
Coming from Boston Massachusetts, and living in New York City where there are no Walmarts, I had no idea what to expect when I accompanied a relative to WM store 2904 in Brockton Massachusetts on a quick mission to fill their levothyroxine prescription.
LOTSA LACES
I lied in the previous paragraph. I remember places like Caldor, Bradlees, Ames, Jamesway and Zayre and expected Walmart to be a jumbo Voltron of those.
I was impressed by the shoelace endcap – two actually filled with a wide variety of colors, lengths, and styles (think: dress, round, flat, oval, workboot, etc..). I got me these Kiwi 72″ leather laces ($4):
Kiwi leather laces (made in India)
These leather laces need no aglets could be cut to any size with a good pair of of scissors. At 72 inches, you could half them and end up with two pairs of short laces.
The trouble with ordering never-seen shoelaces online, is you might not be aware of the actual color, texture and stiffness. I find most of my favorite shoe-shops do not have a great selection of laces. I often scout the Duane Reade, CVS or Walgreens-type places for the randomly located shoelace endcaps; You know the ones. Walmart shoelace endcaps are Texas-size versions of those. I dug the big selection at Wal. I also bought some 45″ grey athletics ($3).
MANY SOCKS
Men’s socks at Walmart
I’m a man who loves buying quality made-in-USA products, and the mart had enough basic styles to hold me. I ended up picking up a six-pack of white made-in-USA Starter no-show socks ($7). I was surprised at the amount of USA-made options there were- at least in the men’s sock section. They also had a wide selection of diabetic friendly soft cotton socks by brands like MediPeds.
The women’s sock isle at Walmart
Keeping in mind many socks are unisex; some even listed as such, the ladies have their own sock section that is bigger than the guys’- it’s like a whole street. There weren’t as many women’s socks made-in-USA here; Even the American flag stockings on the rack below were made in China. To be fair, elsewhere in the store Walmart had some tee-shirts with a “Made in the USA” graphic on the chest which were in fact made in the USA.
Novelty socks at Walmart
Rubber Dotted Slipper Socks at Walmart
AS SEEN ON
Far away from the other shoes and socks, this Walmart had a small section displaying all kinds of products that are “As Seen On TV” – stuff advertised on television in the form of commercials or infomercials. I spotted these Miracle Copper Socks that I do remember seeing the ad for. The descriptive language used on the packaging is abjectly far-fetched. Metal used in fabric construction is nothing new. Some astronaut underwear contains silver. Miracle Copper Socks hit you with line after line that make it seem like their product will heal injuries.
On the back of the box there was a random Caduceus– the snake-pole insignia that I suppose is meant to give the impression that these socks are endorsed by a professional medical organization which they are totally not.
Endorsed by Dr. Who? (Pardon the blur)
Non-profit consumer watchdog group Truth In Advertising, Inc. says it best. “Miracle Copper offers no clinical data to back up the claims that their product reduces swelling, boosts circulation, or massages achy legs and feet”. The odor control claim has some validity, as copper may ward off bacteria, but Miracle couldn’t leave it at that. I’m sure they’re not the worst socks in the world, but the snake oily packaging kept me from copping a pair, although I’d happily accept a test pair from the company for a fair review.
WAL-o-SHOES
Shoelaces, socks, TV miracles- what about Walmart’s shoe selection? I’d venture a guess that If you’re reading this blog and other online content about shoes, you’d probably be into footwear more substantial than what Walmart offers.
Shoes hanging out at Walmart
One theme is that most of the shoes at this Walmart are boxless and hanging on racks priced around what you’d pay for an appetizer at P.F. Changs. It’s as if shoeboxes are banned from the store.
Faded Glory Slip Ons
I noticed a lot of the shoes were inexpensive versions of familiar name brands; like these (above) Faded Glory slip-ons which one could cynically call Canal Street Vans.
Inexpensive Avia sneakers at Walmart
Although designer footwear for kids is now a thing, I can see not wanting to overly spend on children’s shoes which they’ll likely outgrow or ruin before even grasping the abstract concept of fashion. Not for nothing, you could walk out with the whole cart pictured below with mostly Starter and Avia for under 200 bucks.
W-mart also had a decent insole and accessory collection, including plenty of Shoe-Goo, which I have fond memories of seeing my skater friends using to repair ollie damage back in the day.
Insoles and footwear accessories at Walmart
Based on my visit to this one store; Sneakerheads and shoe-freaks may not find any kicks to fall in love with at Walmart, but it may be worth a visit if you’re hunting down your dream laces, and want to stock up on some trooping socks.
I think I overhear much “debate” about Walmart in the papers and on the web. I can say walking around this particular store, I noticed nothing out-of-the-ordinary or outrageous. I was probably the weirdest cat in the building taking pictures of socks with my camera phone. To comment on socio-political aspects of Walmart is way beyond the scope of this blog. I spent 14 bucks and my relative got their script filled.
As a nod to baseball great Yogi Berra who died last night at age 90, allow me to offer my own version of a Yogi Berra-ism to end this piece:
Nobody likes Walmart because everyone shops there.
Why do we spend bundles on third-party insoles like the kinds shown above?
Our footwear had no insole of their own
Our insoles are lost, thrashed, or unsuitable
Once upon a time Dr. Scholl might had well been my podiatrist. I’ve tried everything from the gel heels to the thin, perforated cushiony things. No knock on Scholl’s and the like, because they all offer many useful products within and beyond the insole category. There are sole options sold at grocery and pharmacy stores, usually grouped with everything foot related- sometimes they were a quick fix, but left me largely disappointed for the following reasons:
The partial ‘heel-cushion’ ones never stayed well in the shoe
the super-thin ‘pillow’ ones never stayed well either
I hated walking with the gel ones, plus they never stayed well
Gluing these consumer products into your shoe is never recommended, for if the insole doesn’t work out, you’re stuck. Having to re-adjust cheap insoles every time you put on or take off your shoes is not good. Just a glance and seeing that bunched-up perforated piece of chintzy medical looking stuff won’t get you excited to put on your kicks and face the day. I tried the Superfeet product because I wanted something to stay solidly inside my footwear like it belonged there. I was loving the rounded heal shape as well.
Superfeet (no affiliation) come in different colors, each tone a different thickness and design. The Black and the Carbon (gray) are thinnest when it comes to maxing toe-room. You can pop these in and out of your shoes, stealthily adding ergonomic arch without neutralizing wiggle room. It’s what SF calls biomechanical support. The heel is rounded to better seat our round calcaneus (heel bone); Unless your feet are flat, the arch on a Superfeet can add great underfoot feel where before was fatigue.
Superfeet Black insoles were an excellent solution for my Frye Arkansas boots, which have no insole and were downright uncomfortable to walk a lot in before I found this solution.
Superfeet Black
Toe room, like leg-room on a plane is so key. I wondered if the Superfeet Carbon were even thinner than the Black.
Superfeet Carbon
Above pics from company site. Straight off the cell pics below:
Which are Thinner ?
The Carbons are; Their overall construction uses less substance than the Black. The heel material feels the same, but the foam used for the cushion body is honeycombed and squishier than that of the Black. The foamed/cushion part of both are approximately 1/16th of an inch thick in the all-important toe area. The Carbon are less dense and with the perforation, can be pressed thinner than the Black, making Carbon the thinnest in the Superfeet family.
DJ Squeaky Boot
One weird thing: The Carbons made a squeaking sound when I used them in my workboots (Chippewa and Frye). It seemed like the cupped shape of the heel interacted with the stiff inners of these kinds of boots in such a way that an audible sound happened as I stepped and they flexed. The occurrence was intermittent, but I imagined how it could even become embarrassing in a public setting where silence was required. The Black heel design features stilt-like stability construction which seem to keep the calcaneus part from flexing, and I experienced no such squeaking when I wore them in the same boots. The Carbons did not squeak when worn in the soft fabric inners of my New Balance sneakers. I tried them in two different pairs. Feet are shaped all manner of types, and different shoes are built in different ways so your mileage will vary. I’m curious to know others’ experiences in other kinds of shoes, so feel free to post in the comment section ladies and gentlemen.
To my naked eye and hand, I could discern no difference between the plastic-like material used in booth of these products’ heel.
I don’t blame Superfeet for calling the Carbons “Carbon” instead of “Gray”, and the loud light green color of the underside could have been any color, but they looked HD enough for me (Mr. consumer) to spend $50 for a pair online. Superfeet Black run around $30.
They’re both essentially fabric-covered foam beds attached to plastic heel/arch pieces- in other words the Black may contain the same carbon as the Carbons. I did not take materials to a lab for analyzation.
Measure Twice, Cut Once
As you can see, I learned to cut more carefully when I copped the Carbons. Unless your size is just right, you’ll want to trim your premium insoles with large high-quality shears, snipping slowly and carefully. Think slivers, not chunks
Popdiatry recommends trying these or any of the other pro-sumer insoles out at REI and LL Bean-type places (running shops, etc..) to ensure you have the right starting size. It’s always a great idea to keep whatever stock insoles came with your shoes to use as a tracer for cutting the Supers. If you don’t have the original, you can also try using some 99-cent cheapos as a guinea pig before you start hacking the expensive ish.
Superfeet also makes the Black DMP insoles (not tested, but felt), which are just the Black with memory foam instead of the regular fabric. This adds girth making the DMP thicker than the Carbons or regular Blacks- I narrowed this article down to the thinnest.
Mix N’ Match + Overtime
You should use these suckas for multiple pairs of shoes. Carbons are currently working full time in my New Balance running shoes, and pulling a second shift in some NB walkers. Chance are, one of the shoe pairs will die before the Superfeet, so they’ll occupy another pair someday soon.
The fabric material that touches your foot on both B and C have a solid synthetic sensation and feel good with a wide variety of my favorite socks.
Allow me to comment on the photo above. Some thoughts about foot powder are below. In an attempt to cancel the squeaking sound described before, I even cut corners off the bottoms of these (it didn’t work).
Avoid dumping large amounts of foot powder into your shoes/socks. A light dusting once every few days is plenty.
Most any body powder will be adequate for shoe use. Alternately, we would never use something designed as foot powder for the rest of the body.
More About Insoles
These days I love me a good leather insole, or some coated cork like Naot, Finn Comfort, and BIrkenstock does. I feel like when you start spending more than $300 on shoes- they should include an adequate insole. One nice thing about removable insoles is that you can remove them for an air-out. There are times though when you’re going to want to add sole to footwear that doesn’t have any, or upgrade to something more biomechanically respectful of the shape of the feet and make you feel a little more super.
Shout out to Dr. Scholl’s and Spenco. We look forward to trying more insoles of all kinds!
What’s to review about a shoelace? You loop them through your eyelets, tie them, and forget about them right?
The Ironlace company sells shoelaces which they guarantee to be the strongest in the world- unbreakable in fact! I bought a box of 54″ black ones from Amazon. The laces are rated for a 1,500 pound breaking strength, and are heat-resistant up to 630 degrees Fahrenheit. They’re made in the USA, and are resistant to fire, corrosion, various chemicals, and probably zombie eye-lasers.
I ordered them to wear, so my apologies if you wanted a see a true trial by fire. The measurement equipment to test the weight claims are beyond my capabilities, and I’m not going to throw acid on, or light them on fire today. The package says they are black, but out of the box they were more of a machine-like gray. They have a unique feel, much like waxed laces, but something heavier. Imagine a fabric version of aircraft cable.
Zamberlan Trekker laced up with Ironlace
You need to give them a good pull to get a secure knot, as the laces are coated. They even lightened further around the tying area and where the laces were stressed around the eyelets. I had no occurrence of them becoming untied. I bought them for some black boots, but they ended up looking better on a pair of hikers that I had. I called the toll-free number on the Ironlace box and was instantaneously connected to a knowledgeable rep from the company. He was aware of the color issue. Turns out dyes do not take well to the material used for Ironlace, and the company is keeping that in mind for future designs and product descriptions. No one- not even the ruthless Amazon commenters- doubts the strength and durability of the lace. They clearly market these for boots, so for something dressy you could look elsewhere.
Ironlace will be releasing some athletic style (flat) laces soon, and also a line of heavy-duty socks. I spent my own dough on these rounds that ended up looking cool for different boots than I imagined. That I was able to call the company and immediately speak to a rep, who took the time to have an honest discussion about the company and its products, earned my respect from a consumer standpoint. I’ll surely be keeping an eye(let) out for Ironlace and their survivalist, hard-to-kill products, so keep Popdiatry.com on your browser for the latest.
At a Manhattan pop-up last December, the friendly folks at Frigo were kind enough to flow me a pair of FRIGO 2 boxer briefs. We agreed that along with footwear, good underwear is a key ingredient for great walking. The Frigo 2s are 92% polyamide & 8% elastane (feels like spandex). The revolutionary feature on these drawers is the netted pouch with a patented “soft lock” adjustment system. I’ve been wearing them every couple of weeks for six months, and now that hot temperatures and high humidity are upon thee in the northeast, I’m happiest to have them in my rotation.
There’s an inner line of fabric that is adjustable by a button on each out side of the hip. These small buttons are unnoticeable while wearing. Guys! you put them on carefully and find the right adjustment so that your family jewels are comfortably supported, then you keep the adjustment as is with the buttons. There is some counting involved. The design thoughtfully and structurally acknowledges male anatomy, and is light years ahead of some pitiful dollar store endcap tighty whiteys. Imagine a time when you experienced chafing of the thighs while walking, or underwear discomfort while exercising… chances are underwear like this may offer an antidote for that. You’ve got a smartphone now, why are you still wearing dumb underwear? I like the way they provide a little lift, and are in no way time consuming to put on or take off.
REVOLUTIONWEAR Inside-Out
In my experiences, most boxer briefs are too short and/or without properly elasticized leg bottoms- they tend to inch up the thigh, leading to wedgie conditions. Longer legged boxers help against wedgies. The FRIGOs feature a 6″ inseam. Along with elasticized leg openings, they also have a strip of silicone material going around the inner thigh that successfully serves to keep the boxer legs from creeping toward the crotch during long wear. The strap-pouch gets all the attention, but these “stay4sure” hem stabilizers are just as cool of a feature- a good step in the war against wedgies.
No ride-up hem
Comes in a VHS style box
Many underwear companies now incorporate some sort of pouch for the male package. How are things in the FRIGO Zone? Keep in mind that these are the entry-level FRIGO “2s”. Their top of the line product has similar construction, but uses pricier fabric. I’m intrigued enough by the design to where I’d invest in a pair of the “1s”. The company is still new, so has an open horizon to grow the line and dream up more innovations. My bros and I are definitely starting to be more accepting of newer underpant designs. Some Joe Sixpacks may balk at the $100 price tag on the FRIGO 1s, but a little math containing X amount of lousy underwear the average dude has probably bought or been gifted, it’s freaking worth it for the long haul. MLB star Derek Jeter, a big investor in the company, is retiring from baseball after this season and- who knows- might devote more energy to Revolutionwear. More visibility and more adoption lead to higher chances that your family or loved ones may buy you some as a gift. Good luck.
Image from Freshpair.com
I washed them a bunch, air-drying each time on a wooden rack. Aside from a few very small fabric pulls, and a stray thread or two, the sewing has kept together fine. I envision these lasting for years. They are a great choice for walking. Once you put on your favorite overwear, and everything starts to settle, they offer a pleasant machine-like feeling that promotes healthy completion of one’s day.
