Big shout to our friends at Three Leaves and props for putting together such an awesome collection for this spring and summer 2013.  I’m baffled by how long it took for us to find such a place.  While there are some options out there of ethical clothing for guys, we are usually limited to an organic cotton tee or jeans here and there (I’m sensing that it’s a different landscape in Europe, which is ahead of us).  Fortunately, that is changing, and our options are growing.  Take for instance what we have here, gear we would describe it as sophisticated casual: well fitted dark wash jeans, smart button downs, simple but well thought out tees and caps.  The best part, everything is either 1) environmentally friendly, 2) fair trade, or 3) vegan.  Sometimes all three.  And it’s saying something that there are even enough small brands out there that can make this possible.  Of course, fair trade/organic comes at a cost.  Even though the price tags on some of these items can be hefty, don’t forget you are buying the best sustainable materials and fair pay for workers.  Plus you are supporting some amazing businesses, who we here at VK would love to see succeed and make mainstream this ethical fashion movement.

Peep the Look Book here.  See Below for some of our favorites of the season.

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Vegan Kicks is proud to give a huuuuge shout out to the venerable Farm Sanctuary and this unique special event they are putting together.  If you are in the New York City area, you gotta go to  FASHION LOVES ANIMALS, a benefit fashion show and cocktail party, on May 4th at SIR Stage 37 in Manhattan. This stylish night benefiting Farm Sanctuary will honor Vaute Couture President and Creative Director Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart, who made history this year with the first all-vegan label to show at New York Fashion Week.

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This season’s newest vegan/animal-friendly offering from Emerica for spring of 2013 is finally here.

The new shoe is called “The Tempster,” and is designed by legendary vegan skateboarder, Ed Templeton. Ed has always been a driving force in skateboarding – a true individual and artist. He is also the vegan skater’s skater. Never quitting and never selling out his vegan beliefs for a higher-paying/selling leather pro-model shoe. For this alone, we should always support him, his shoes, and Emerica for putting them out. Emerica is in my own personal opinion, the last real core skate shoe brand we have left.

I got to skate these new shoes a few short times on the streets and for a full 3-hour session at the park. Here are my personal thoughts as a long-time skater and vegan shoe wearer. . . .

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Following up on our last post, the good people at Emerica are so gracious as to hook us up for Vegan Kicks’ second shoe contest!  Our blogging is erratic right now, but we’re trying to make every one count!  We are psyched to be giving away one pair of Emerica Tempster (green or black), featured above and below.  This is one out of a bunch of Emerica’s vegan shoes (see our previous post on their newest offerings), and we all thought it was appropriate that this be the one, considering Ed’s longstanding vegan lifestyle.  I know that these shoes won’t be for everyone, but I know all the skaters out there will be chomping at the bits to get a pair.  So, onto the contest!

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Hey everyone!  Sorry for being radio silent for so long.  In case some of you didn’t think it was real, the above photograph was submitted by our 2012 Keep Contest winner Jon Clark of Ontario, Canada.  Jon got himself a pair of Elias in black Moleskin (and is modeling it quite nicely might I add!).  The dark high top with synthetic suede is suitable even for harsh winters.

Also, let’s give a big up to Jon for rocking his first pair of fully vegan kicks.  My man had a similar journey as a lot of us.  When confronted with the truth about our treatment of other animals, he had to make a change.  His transition to an animal free lifestyle is an ongoing process, but wasn’t too difficult for him as he had a lot of support around him.

Oh, and might I add, he took this photo while partaking in an Anti-Fur demonstration in his hood!  Good job man!

Thanks Jon and everyone who entered the contest.  We will be having more to be sure.  Be sure to contact us if you have any ideas or suggestions, especially if you are a vendor who wants to get some exposure!

Happy New Year!  First, just wanted to say thank you to all you guys.  Thanks for reading, commenting, emailing me, and being part of this site.  I hope that we can continue to bring some good solid recommendations and keep carrying the vegan shoe flag, whatever that is.  All in all, 2012 was a great year for us – we had our first giveaway, and more readers than ever.  Let’s keep it jumping in the year twenty thirteen!

To kick off the new year, we present – more boots.  Now, I will admit that my previous two posts on boots may not have featured the most stylish boots out there right now.  But we have a diverse audience, so we’re looking out for everyone out there, even you “hippies” out there.  We know you’re out there, and we stand with you.

But today we’re going to push some more “fashionable” boots out there for those who wear them not necessarily for the weather.  Girls got their boots in a zillion different iterations, so why can’t we guys have some fun with this as well?  Here are a few of my choice picks for those of you who still can’t get enough winter stylins.

The always classic Doc Marten 8 Eye Boot, looking super clean here, available at Zappos and Planet Shoes.  Also available in Cherry Red and Purple Cambridge.

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Congratulations to Jon Clark of London, Canada for winning the first ever Vegan Kicks holiday giveaway!  Courtesy of Keep, he will be receiving a free pair of vegan shoes!

When told about his lucky day, he had this very thoughtful and eloquent thought about his animal friendly lifestyle:

” I don’t understand people who regress to living against their values after learning the uncomfortable truths about our society’s relationship with animals. However, it did take me a while to finally confront and bring myself to witness the cruelty that I knew was happening. After enough education and some visceral reactions to videos and stories the choice was clear to me. Intrinsically, I knew for so long that I was ignoring the suffering of certain kinds of animals while caring deeply for others. I’m glad that I had so many good friends who helped me along the way.”

Right on brother.  Well, we are so super stoked about the reception we got about this contest.  People all over the world answered the call.  We are sorry we couldn’t make more of you winners.  You guys are the best.  Thank you so much for visiting, reading, following, and commenting.  You guys didn’t get the free shoes, but you are all winners in our hearts.

We fully expect to do more giveaways and contests in the future.  Please, readers – if you have any brands or shoes that you really want, comment or email us.  We will try to get you some free product.  Vendors, companies, marketers, advertisers, big wigs – if you want to get your brand out there, here is the place.  We have global reach, son!  We don’t care where you’re from or what your selling (so long as it’s vegan).  Just let us know and we’ll try to plug your goods.

Until next time!

To a skateboarder, shoes are like gloves to a sculptor’s hands. No other clothing component is more important to a skateboarder. Skaters’ feet are the connection to their craft – the art of how they skateboard. Skating in a shoe that is too padded and bulky, is like trying to grab detailed things with a mitten on. Skating in a shoe that is too thin, is like wearing a rubber glove to protect one’s self from the elements, or to grab that hot vegan dinner you have in the oven – you’re going to get burned, and you’re going to feel it too much. Then there’s the dreaded cupsole vs. vulc shoe battle – it just never ends! So just how how do we compromise? And how do vegan skateboarders fit into this equation? Through my next few blog posts I may be able to help you find those answers… but first, we must ask another more serious and important question:

Why are todays vegan skate shoes so expensive?

Do you ever wonder why a canvas skate shoe cost the same or more than a shoe made out of leather? It’s like getting a Veggie Delite at Subway for the same price as the next guy’s cold cut sub that has the same amount of veggies on it. You’re paying the same price for something that has meat, when there is no meat in yours at all! You’re basically paying for a condiment sandwich. In todays skate shoe world with canvas or synthetic shoes vs. leather shoes, you are paying for a condiment on your feet, as most all skate shoes have canvas or syn. textiles in them anyways – on the inside or outside. So the question here is, why?

Ripped canvas Vans, an all too familiar occurrence to the vegan skater.

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Vegan Kicks wants to wish a Happy Thanksgiving to those who are celebrating.  Here’s a picture of a “veggieducken” for your viewing pleasure (or gross out reaction). Let’s just be thankful that we don’t have to settle for saying “no” to turkey and that there are meatless options that are interesting and just as fulfilling.

If you haven’t entered into the Keep Contest, please do!  You still have over a week.  Send me an email and get in on the action!

Vegan Kicks is super excited to announce its first contest/giveaway ever!  We are even more stoked to be partnering with Keep, one of our favorite vegan shoes companies to feature on this site.  We will be giving away ONE PAIR of Keep shoes of your choice.  Check out their entire line here.  The Contest begins NOW, and ends December 1, 2012.  Perfect timing for the holidays!

VK has been around for a little over three years now, which is crazy itself.  Over time, we have been gradually building the site and gaining steady readership.  We are not web designers or coders.  We’re just a few regular people who saw a need for more info on vegan shoes, and started blogging about it.  We have tried to give you good, solid content on a regular basis.  We are also trying to build a bit of a community, a place where people can come to look, discuss, and learn from each other.

Of course we’re not all the way there yet, but the support and enthusiasm we’ve seen from readers all over the world has been so awesome.  We can’t believe how many people outside of the States is interested in this stuff.  TO OUR INTERNATIONAL PEEPS: Please enter!  Keep will ship to you!  In any case, we  are in debt to our readers for supporting us, and we felt that giving away a pair of shoes is the least we could do.  Hopefully, there will be more to come!

HERE ARE THE CONTEST RULES:

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