In the quest for a perfect shoe lay many opportunities to take an already great pair to the next level. You can upgrade laces, get the stock insoles coated with leather, or get elements dyed to the color of your choice.
We loved these Mauri patent leather/ostrich-leg toe sneakers. The snow-white leather inners gives them a great orca look on the shelf, but like your favorite white tee neck- they’d be hard to keep clean for the long haul.
The white leather was supple and soft. My shoe doctor Boris at East Village Shoe Repair combined some black dye with a little thinning agent (to open the pores), and applied the mixture using a soft brush.
All visible white leather was turned just as black as the outers; The wearability and likability was Darth Vadered up something serious.
They were given a finishing rub with a horse hair brush then left to dry for a couple.
For the first few wears, we’d avoid light-colored socks as there will be naturally be a little rub-off from the dye job.
Like a great stylist for your hair, an experienced cobbler will know exactly what can be done to custom dye your kicks. Thanks to East Village Shoe Repair at 1083 Broadway in Brooklyn, New York for letting us snap shots. I’m sure your smartphone can help find a capable cobbler near you.
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!
DJ Freddy Blassie with some perfectly untied Nikes
Why not use a baby Doc as a pen holder like Bleecker Street Records?
A leather belt I got for $14 at Marshalls is being sprayed with Meltonian #651 to match some very special shoes… Thanks East Village Shoe Repair.
Here at Popdiatry, we’ve been writing about the Berry Amendment, and the sense of having U.S. armed forces gear being domestically made. But I go to a store and see these cheap made-in-China boots branded by the US Army- with a dog tag? I’m writing my congress person ASAP! These boots are hideous, and whoever OK’d this should be peeling potatoes.
First off, this post was created using Handcrafted Artisanal Internet:
Take a close look. Take a closer look. The ones on the left are animalistic, but use no real animal parts. They ones on the right are worn by the dreamer upper of both pairs- Rachel Eisley for Gotham City Leatherwork.
Ernie Papp, the lead singer of Ten Ton Mojo performs barefoot at Trash Bar in Brooklyn last Thursday.
Pardon the blur. Some faux-didas repping PR spotted in the East Village Shoe Repair deadpile.
We started an Instagram for Popdiatry. At first I wasn’t sure what I should post. Good pictures would be used here, but since I started writing for Pop D, I’ve been spotting more discarded footwear than ever. So our Instagram will be mostly abandoned, thrown away shoes- like these above spotted on Broadway in Brooklyn, NY.
NBA is back in a couple weeks! Didja see the clip of Laker’s Ronnie Pricethrowing his Nike (after it fell off) at Golden State Warrior Andre Iguodala?
The company is Rollasole. Their line of ballet flats, also available at select brick & mortar spots, now come rolled up plastic cans along with cloth a protective bag ($20- $40) out of a pink swirly machine. They’re perfectly aimed at the “My feet are killing in these heels” demos that roam areas like Vegas, SoCal, and beyond.
Over at 8473 Melrose Avenue in L.A., a man is standing on a circular surface wearing socks that look like something Spiderman would sport to an Oakland A’s game. A state-of-the-art 3D scanner orbits around his feet and takes over 150 detailed pictures from the ankles down.
Said man is taking the first step in getting a pair of custom dress shoes made in Portugal by an American-based company called the Left Shoe . A 3D image of his foot is processed through proprietary software and becomes the foundation (the last) on which the pair will be built.
Guys can pick the color combinations, and even get a custom message laser-etched into the insole of the right shoe.Check out their website(where I got these images)to view all of the styles available.
A couple of imaginative designers have come up with a system that’ll create a pair of kicks faster than an orthodontist can mold a dental retainer.
The system is called Don’t Run, and is the beta design project of Eugenia Morpurgo and Juan Montero from Europe. A laser cutting machine and some 3D printing guided by computer numerical control lets a creative person participate in making their own shoes like never before.
A single cut piece of leather is folded over over a sandwich of custom cut sole materials connected by small pegs that resemble board game pieces.
The whole enchilada is then secured by a shoelace, which also serves as stitching for key points on the upper. No glueing or machine sewing is involved.
Example of some finished Don’t Runs
The mobile “factory” resembles more of a print shop, with leather instead of paper, ethylene vinyl acetate instead of cardboard, and spools of lace instead of staples.
http://www.dontrun-beta.com/
The system has been travelling around in the mode of an art exhibit, with accomplished designers taking a swing with their own blueprints. It’s certainly the beginning of an interesting experiment. I can’t picture your jogging sneakers of hiking boots being replaced by what is more of a beefed up slipper, but the Don’t Run model shows what is possible using fresh technology. Along with showcasing a streamlined model of production (therefore consumption), it may make going to brick and mortar shoe shops exciting to a new-school consumer who would just assume click “buy” on a Zappos app.
Replacing your factory footwear insoles with third-party products can be hit or miss. Insoles are often built around a native piece of material that goes perfectly with that particular shoe. I have a great pair of Zamberlan Trekker boots. After a year or so, the insole fabric started to separate from the insole mold. I brought them to East Village Shoe Repair, where Boris replaced the fabric with soft leather cut from an old jacket.
Fabric is ripped off the insole to get ready for replacement @ EVSRInsoles stripped and ready for a new coat An old soft leather jacket is about to have the arm material become replacement insolesCut piece from jacket on the EVSR operating tableRubber cement gets applied to the stripped insoleRubber cement applied to the piece of leatherThe leather is pressed onto the insole moldAfter a quick dry, EVSR cuts around the leather to fitBlam- new and improved
This operation took about as long as it takes to boil a pot of water. Now I have better insoles than I could have ever bought off the racks. Nothing beats a leather insole, but many of our favorite kicks don’t come with them.I treated them with a very small amount of Obenauf’s leather preservative- now I’m ready to go on a trek. Big shout out to East Village Shoe Repair (now located in Brooklyn, NY). You might want to have this procedure done on some of your kicks.
East Village Shoe Repair is located on 1083 Broadway in Brooklyn, New York attached to the Brandhunters fashion complex.
The brand with the three stripes is releasing an app this summer that’ll let users get custom photographs printed on a pair of Adidas ZX Flux sneakers.
Customization is getting crazy with the MiAdidas photo print app coming this summer for Android and iOS
I doubt the brand with the swoosh will ever release high-top golf spikes like the ones pictured below. More likely the image serves as a symbolic reminder that Jordan did enter the golf space this year. The brand’s first sponsored pro Keegan Bradley has been Instagramming a few pics of actual sneakerish golf shoes with the familiar jumpman logo on them.
The Motley Fool does report this week that Adidas’s market position is weakening compared to Nike’s due in part to performance in the golf category. As Nike’s Jordan takes more steps on the course, Adidas swings its putter with the less buzzy TaylorMade brand.
Heartland Footwear, Inc. manufactures rubber-based industrial boots right here in the USA. Over the years, they’ve provided go-to protective footwear for those in the food processing industry, and any job that involves oily, chemical environments. This season they escape the workplace with a new line of women and children’s waterproof boots that will stylishly protect casual wearers from dreaded rainstorm wetfoot.
Waterproof and made in the U.S.A.
Another brand known more for work footwear, Wolverine’s Cat (Caterpillar), unveiled their own sporty spring/summer boot line at a fashion show in Grand Rapids Thursday. This pic below has me thumbing through the imaginary rulebook to see if work boots without socks is okay. Since there is no proof that he may be wearing no-show socks, we must withhold judgement at this time.
Under the JMZ train that runs along Broadway like a zipper attaching the Bushwick and Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhoods of Brooklyn New York, an old NYC favorite has popped back up to continue doing what they’ve expertly done for years.
Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled footwear yearning to breathe free
The same footwear stretchers, buffing equipment, and years of experience that the fellas commanded on St. Mark’s Place has been transplanted to 1083 Broadway in Brooklyn, NY as part of the Brandhunters consignment store complex. Think of East Village Shoe Repair as a hospital for your beloved kicks. Barring complete obliteration- there isn’t much that can stop EVSR from bringing your footwear back from near death. Resoling, re-lacing, regluing, reattaching, re-whatever it takes to get your favorite kickers back on the path- using top notch equipment from yesteryear- these guys can find a way if there is one. You might have another couple years left in those oxfords..
Though shiny thong sandals were on Alison Ernst’s feet, it was an orange and black athletic shoe that she chose to pull from her purse and throw at Hillary Rodham Clinton last Thursday during some industry convention speech in Las Vegas. If the flying shoe was an Asics, Adidas, New Balance, NIke or Puma, it could have been made at a Yue Yuen Industrial factory in China, Vietnam or Indonesia. Those wondering how a seemingly infinite stream of new styles from the world’s biggest brands appear on shelves with such rapidity- consider Yue Yuena manufacturing power pitcher- employing over 400,000 workers to meet brands’ needs, and faraway demands of sneaker super-consumers camped in long lines outside stores on new-release eves.
Law enforcement meets workers. On the other side of the world they meet buyers.
Monday, at a Yue Yuen production facility in China’s Guangdong province, a number of thousand workers organized a strike. Issues pertaining to pay, social security, and other workplace concerns landed on the negotiating table. Read what U.S. based not-for-profit organization China Labor Watch announced about the situation. One wonders what a Yue Yuen worker might think if they’d seen coverage of a Supreme Nike Air Foamposite release in New York City a couple weeks ago that was shut down due to safety concerns (crazy line). Whether supplying in Guangdong or demanding on Lafayette Street, I’m confident things will proceed in a peaceful, fair direction. There’s never been a better time to be cognizant of the true purpose of footwear- the truth of what you’re buying and making. What does it mean to you? Does your relationship to a certain brand come from deep within? More likely, it’s a certain style you like. Let your sensibilities guide you.
Less more much? LIke what you like. Explore best versions of styles you gravitate toward.
A liar is someone who claims they never searched for the perfect shoe. Why pay attention to the craft of your footwear the way you pay attention to your health? They are you. That nicely boxed product could be an investment, not disposable socks with tread stuck on them to be Ebayed or Craigslisted- rather like property or hairstyles that flux with you. Popdiatry imagines footwear as an almost extra skin. Like horse’s hooves, they become your exo-layer on this giant treadstone Earth, providing shelter for two vessels requiring air, water and sun. Think of our ancestors walking long before the days of branding. What would they think of Old Navy two dollar flip-flop sales ? Would they think we’re brilliant eagles for selling a pair of foam-molded vessels on an electronic-bidding site?
It may help dodging flying shoes if you avoided wearing high-heels like the ones pictured in the coming-soon image for “Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe “- an exhibit exploring chopines, stilettos and life showing this September at Brooklyn Museum (curated by Lisa Small). Killer like killer app, not killer like the Texas woman who was convicted last week of killing her boyfriend using a high-heeled shoe for a tomahawk. Apparently, certain types of high-heels contain a mysterious power that raises wearers’ superego- if not center of gravity- while increasing the risks of injuring the ankle and/or developing knee osteoarthritis. The taste for danger explains a little. From what I hear these babies are often uncomfortable, and unsupportive to the point you’ll see gals barefooting through public parks carrying rather than sporting. Even Dr. Scholl’s compares them to evil monsters in their new Dreamwalk insoles for women advertisements.
Dear Dr. Scholl, I would like a prescription for one Dreamwalk promotional USB stick to give to my aunt for Christmas.
Image from http://instagram.com/evcurlgurl
What do I like? What you like. There is no right shoe.
In a continuing effort to foster understanding about why humans wear mega-heels for prolonged periods, I look forward to watching some of the short films that will be presented along side the objects at the Brooklyn exhibit. Hopefully no one will be buzzed by a flying platform shoe, or threatened by that Louboutin Printz; wearing some protective gear couldn’t hurt- maybe some boots with wings would emit mercurial yin for the high-heeled yang, and enable flights to neverland- a world where everyone has a few really great pairs of shoes and the people who made them are happy.
Spotted at Brandhunters “Night of Fashion” – Curtis and his tricked out boots
Hopefully you are happy with your footwear. Why suffer for or of it?
We loved these Mauri patent leather/ostrich-leg toe sneakers. The snow-white leather inners gives them a great orca look on the shelf, but like your favorite white tee neck- they’d be hard to keep clean for the long haul. 
The white leather was supple and soft. My shoe doctor Boris at East Village Shoe Repair combined some black dye with a little thinning agent (to open the pores), and applied the mixture using a soft brush.
All visible white leather was turned just as black as the outers; The wearability and likability was Darth Vadered up something serious.
They were given a finishing rub with a horse hair brush then left to dry for a couple.
For the first few wears, we’d avoid light-colored socks as there will be naturally be a little rub-off from the dye job. 
