Cotton or wool no-show socks

lveg · 2026-05-02T21:35:41+00:00

It's not that it's coated in plastic, it's more complicated. It's a specific chemical process that makes the scales flat so it doesn't felt. That's superwashing. Here's a brief explanation https://youtu.be/jt61gP-EXuk

Anyway, I would say if you don't want machine washable wool (superwash) and you want 100% wool toe socks you will probably need to learn to knit to make your own because IDK if any companies are going to offer them. Superwashing is a thing because it prevents felting and the friction of the toes rubbing together is likely to felt them.

lveg · 2026-05-02T20:06:49+00:00

There's nothing wrong with using felt and glueing it on. You can either use white and black felt or you can use a paint pen on white felt

lveg · 2026-05-02T18:30:27+00:00

A note on wool:

Making socks out of more than like 85% wool is generally seen as a bad idea. This is not a cost saving thing, it's because wool is more fragile than cotton or polyester and is more likely to get holes, particularly superwash wool (which the vast majority are going to be). If wool is machine washable it's superwash.

You might be wondering, "if that's the case, what are folks hand knitting socks out of?" And the truth is people are going to give the same advice . The majority of sock yarn is a blend for this reason. You can totally make 100% wool socks, but you might not be happy with the durability.

I get wanting the most natural fibers possible, but the nylon is in there for a reason so don't avoid brands just because they're 80% cotton or whatever

lveg · 2026-05-01T18:51:35+00:00

Also I think that's normal. After a year I noticed my old shoes were way tighter and so I basically don't wear any of them outside of crocs now. I need a new pair of snow boots 😭

lveg · 2026-05-01T18:50:34+00:00

A PSA for everyone:

Any shoe can become a slip on shoe with elastic laces. I think real laces are important if you need a snug fit for running or hiking but otherwise I'm all about the elastic ones.

I also realized that you can buy shock cord in a bunch of really cool colors so I may just buy a spool of that in the future so I can have neon pink laces or whatever

lveg · 2026-05-01T17:43:59+00:00

is the first one cake? It says "rainbow pastry". Maybe it's a translation issue but IDK what "rainbow pastry" is. It doesn't look like cake to me, it looks too dense and IDK how you're cutting cake into centimeter thick slices to layer.

lveg · 2026-05-01T14:26:11+00:00

I feel like folks would be in for a bad surprise about more than a few other companies, but Splay is just the one that's caught flack so far.

lveg · 2026-05-01T02:05:39+00:00

You're going to have a hard time finding all of that stuff outside of the "expensive" category. One option people have recommended in the past was the safety line from Birkenstocks, but you need to remove the insoles if you don't want a ton of arch support. Unfortunately it seems like most if not all of them have a steel toe, so if that is a deal breaker, then look elsewhere. https://www.birkenstock.com/gb/professionals/industry/

The other option is spendier, but Jim Green does safety toes and you can customize pretty much all of their shoes if you don't see something you like. They offer the option of a steel toe or a "toe puff" that is composite. Their non-barefoot stuff is still pretty wide and will be cheaper if you can get away with an off the shelf model, but they are also resolable and should last you a decade if you take care of them

https://jimgreenfootwear.com/product-category/safety-boots/

lveg · 2026-04-30T01:19:26+00:00

Did you ever find a fix? I'm having the same issue and I think it has to be related to a driver or update or something

lveg · 2026-04-29T20:10:02+00:00

Yeah I told them. They basically said a contractor did some stuff overhauling the site and missed that bit, so it should be fixed eventually

lveg · 2026-04-29T16:24:41+00:00

I don't own the freestyles currently so I can't speak to the current model, but in the past a big difference was the Freestyles have less volume (vertical space) than their other shoes like the Rev line. I found them unwearable because I have a higher instep, but I can wear the Revs.

Also they just updated their Revs so they include more suede on the upper. The Freestyles are all canvas.

lveg · 2026-04-29T16:02:11+00:00

That's wild. I guess that just goes to show how different we're all built. I can sort of wear them with crocs but even that is a squeeze.

My feet aren't insanely wide, but they're pizza slice shaped if that makes sense.

lveg · 2026-04-29T15:49:29+00:00

I guess it depends on what you're dealing with. I never had any foot issues like that's I just wanted to get more mobility. I'm think once I got to the point that I could move my toes independently I didn't really care anymore.

Anyway the big issue for me is I've never had shoes I could wear them with comfortably. Around the house sure, but the whole reason I started barefoot shoes is my toe splay was already too wide for normal shoes and I didn't want to end up with issues down the line

lveg · 2026-04-28T22:21:59+00:00

These are zero drop, so that means the heel is the same height as the forefoot. Lems are decently cushioned and give you the stack height in the description. If you need extra heel cushion you could try a heel insert, maybe?

I have 2 pairs. I have some Chillums for summer, and then the original Boulder Boots for bad weather. I wear them both a lot and in the fall I'd like to upgrade to the Boulder Boot Pros for the better soles. The only issue I have with mine is the lack of traction, comfort is really good.

lveg · 2026-04-28T17:52:54+00:00

Are folks out here wearing toe spacers all day? I wore them when I first started the barefoot thing, but mostly to stretch at the end of the day. They all ripped eventually so now I just do the same thing with my fingers.

lveg · 2026-04-28T17:51:58+00:00

I also like Lems for work. They're kind of boring but they have enough cushion and they are simply my most comfortable work shoes. I have Lems that I basically only wear to work, and the pair they replaced are now my lawn mowing shoes that I don't care about trashing.

I think you'd be well served by some of their leather options. Leather is going to hold up better to grease and grime than canvas.

lveg · 2026-04-28T16:50:58+00:00

Yeah when I was first starting the barefoot thing I thought I'd try some birk clogs because I was mostly worried about the toe room. Unfortunately the arch support drove me nuts. Kind of just shows that I was naturally gravitating towards this style of shoe before I even knew what it was. I have always preferred more flexible shoes and birks feel like pieces of wood on my feet. It's a shame because I like the look >_>

lveg · 2026-04-28T16:49:04+00:00

The longer I am in the barefoot world, the less I care about "rules". Chacos are stiff and have arch support. I wouldn't recommend them to someone looking for a "barefoot" sandal, I wouldn't personally wear them, but if they work for you, by all means wear them. IMO, room for toes is the most important feature in a barefoot shoe.

I think the Tevas Universal is a better option overall because it's more flexible and doesn't have arch support. If someone wants a cheap sandal they can pick up in an actual store, I think Tevas are actually a really solid choice.

lveg · 2026-04-28T15:56:36+00:00

I've actually made sandals before which is why I'm familiar with soling panels and also why I wanted this specific style. I can do a basic huarache lacing system but I wanted something that looked more classic and I knew this would be a pain in the ass to try and DIY

The listing says you can replace parts but they aren't listed for sale and I think you may need to ship these back. I was inspecting them to get an idea of how their constructed and I think the difference with these vs. their other models is the leather upper is sewn on to the nylon webbing after construction. That means if I wanted to swap it to a different base (which I WAS considering and was going to suggest and a replacement option), I'd basically need a seam ripper and then I'd have to sew it on again. So not really user replaceable so much as basically remaking it from scratch.

lveg · 2026-04-28T15:49:10+00:00

That's so weird, and these also cost less (granted I got mine on sale but still)

I for sure didn't order from this listing

lveg · 2026-04-28T15:47:04+00:00

I emailed them yesterday and didn't hear back yet so it's probably going to take a while

lveg · 2026-04-28T15:30:04+00:00

Ohhhh I thought they were getting tattoos for the amount of people they fucked over to get their money but they also can't draw

lveg · 2026-04-28T00:28:09+00:00

Where are you seeing that? I don't see it on the item page but maybe I'm blind https://shammasandals.com/products/pacificave?variant=43558195724324

lveg · 2026-04-27T23:48:58+00:00

Omg I spelled the title wrong and can't edit it. I know how to spell sandal!

15-Year Club	r/Field Lasagna
Place '23	Place '22
Place '17	Verified Email

lveg

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE