Finding hardwearing sandals to last all year - how hard can it be?

So if you’re a regular reader you’ll remember that about a month ago I posted about my sandals dying. 

Now it is always annoying when a pair of shoes you love finally give up the ghost but for me this was an even bigger deal than usual because these sandals were one of 5 pairs of shoes I’d allocated myself to wear over the whole year of my capsule wardrobe challenge and the only open toed pair.

I don’t know about you – but I really can’t bear having sweaty feet, or even feet that are slightly warm – so I wear sandals pretty much from March to late October every day except if it rains (boots/ trainers) or I need to look polished (high heels). I bought myself a pair that had fairly thick cork soles just before I started the challenge, and felt pretty confident they’d last all year.

Given that you’re reading this post you’ve probably guessed – they didn’t. (you can read about how they died & me having a moan about it here)

Technically when an item breaks I can ask you to vote on whether I can do a straight swap for a similar item. But I felt like asking to do this 2 months into the challenge wasn’t really cricket. After all what’s to stop me ‘wearing out’ everything in the capsule? So no. I might come back and ask later in the year if I’m really struggling but in the meantime I decided that I could sacrifice a winter jumper for a new pair of sandals. But these needed to last a full bloody year!

So my requirements were (I thought) pretty reasonable. All I wanted was comfort, durability and not being so ugly that I hated myself everytime I put them on. In an ideal world I wanted to actively LIKE the way they looked but I figured that wasn’t essential.

I started by googling hardwearing sandals, walking sandals and durable sandals. I got pretty predictable results here, so Merrel and Keen walking sandals in colours that would be guaranteed to distract people from anything I’m saying. (“didn’t hear a word of her presentation over the screaming of those yellow shoes”). Don’t get me wrong I am a huge fan of walking sandals – but not to wear to work everyday for the next 6 months .

A friend recommended Camper and Ecco sandals so I ordered a couple of pairs online, I also ordered some L’Arche sandals ( oh they are lovely – but oh are they expensive. Too much for dirtying up on North East London pavements certainly).  Had a bit of a Goldilocks moment with 5 pairs of sandals in front of me with all of them being too big, too small, too ugly or too narrow – so I sent them all back.

And still had no sandals. 

So I got on with wearing the broken one’s which still hurt and (added bonus) had leaked gummy glue everywhere since the insoles melted in the sun. Everynight I had to go at my heels with a nailbrush to get rid of the gunk. This did not make me feel my most attractive ever!

And then one of my friends told me about Duckfeet. Apparently people in the 70’s wore them for years wandering around south East Asia and they still make them exactly the same way! I love their classic designs and they are so comfy. These are my lovely new shoes.

I’m really hoping that they last the distance cos if they do – these are going to be my 36^th Birthday present to myself.

Roll on May 2016….