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!

Hey people, just a friendly reminder, today is the last day to enter the holiday contest to win a FREE PAIR OF KEEP SHOES.  Yes, many have entered but the odds aren’t too bad.  I highly encourage you to put your hat in the ring.  Let’s put it this way, your chance of winning is better than the Powerball.

Click here for instructions.  You have until 12:00 AM Eastern Standard Time.  I won’t hold your feet over the fire but I won’ take submission tomorrow afternoon.  Thank you for your support and good luck!

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.

Continue Reading…

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:

Continue Reading…

We haven’t been giving Macbeth much props on this site and I think that’s about to change.  Their shoes were a little bland for us before, but they’re upping their game now, putting out more sophisticated and varied selections.  Still they manage to stay true to their laid back, musical roots.

Currently we’re feeling the Matthew by Macbeth.  This vegan shoe is made out of (some) recycled canvas, and sports a low profile vulcanized look.  This is a pretty basic fare, but as such has broad appeal.  Unfortunately, the two-toned models are available only in suede, so you’re stuck with these three colorways (for now).  Hopefully they’ll expand the canvas line, but for now, enjoy these!

Black/Green and Black/white available at Zappos, dark grey/white available at Macbeth.

Continue Reading…

Hank (in army) by Herschel available at Zappos. Note that some models have leather inside.

I have on occasion strayed from the content of this site’s namesake and today I want to do a little show and tell on vegan wallets.  I am actually in the market for a new wallet, since my old one is on its last legs and is surviving on a bit of packing tape.  To save me from future embarrassment, it is time for me to renew and upgrade.

Continue Reading…

Ga Day!  Today we are featuring an exciting vegan, free trade, and environmentally friendly sneaker brand Etiko.  But before we get into that, I just want to note that things are returning to normal in New York in the aftermath of Sandy.  My Brooklyn neighborhood was spared entirely, as we had electricity, cable, internet, everything.  Others were not so fortunate.  Being from New Jersey, which was hit hardest, I know of people who are suffering immensely right now.  My heart and sympathy goes out to those who were affected, especially those at the shore.  My feeling is that things will never be the same, but I have faith that the people of this region will bounce back stronger than ever.

Onto more positive matters, today we are profiling Etiko Sneakers, which refers to the low tops and hi tops that bear a striking resemblance to the Converse Chuck Taylor All Star.  The difference in appearance is only obvious in the different logos on the inside of the hi-tops’ ankle.  However, the important differences are beyond what the eye can discern.  This Australian company is putting a lot of thought and conscience into their products.  When you buy a pair of Etiko kicks, you’re getting something that is 1) vegan, 2) free trade, and 3) environmentally friendly.  To wit:

Continue Reading…

Glazed and Confused, mens sizes only, available at Zappos, Sanuk, and Shoes.com.

As many of you may be aware, we here in the Mid-Atlantic coastal area (and beyond) are waiting out Hurricane Sandy, a/k/a “Frankenstorm.”  So far, it hasn’t been too bad for us here in Gotham.  The winds are a howlin’, and the rain is starting to come down.  We hope that there is no serious hurricane damage, especially flooding.  Oh, and we hope that the lights stay on.  Most disruptive thus far is the closing of the public transit system, which effectively leaves most New Yorkers stranded.  If there is any silver lining to this ordeal, it’s the fact that some of us get out of work.  As my Facebook wall can attest to, this development is highly welcome, even if it means hunkering down indoors for a day or two.

A day like this just makes you want to curl up on your couch, in front of the teevee, and marathon your favorite show.  Get cozy.  But wait, you need to get your popcorn out of the microwave and hot chocolate.  You lower your feet to the floor and… oh the coldness shoots up your body like darkness itself.  You need slippers!  A warm pair of fuzzy house slippers, preferably.  While it may not be dead of winter yet, this storm certainly augurs feelings of days of days spent indoors hiding from the elements.

A nice pair of slippers is a luxury, but after seeing these, they feel more like a must have.  Walking around barefoot in your house during the winter is no fun unless you have a) wall to wall carpeting, or b) the money to turn up your thermostat to 75° all day.  Those aren’t options for me at least.  Enter Sanuk’s Chill Collection Slippers.  This company is better know for its sandals and Sidewalk Surfers, and there are a great many vegan options there too, but those are topics for another day.  I can’t get down with those as much as their slippers.  I couldn’t resist, I’ve never seen anything like these before, especially the Glazed and Confused (see pic above).  Donut print?  Is this a nod to Homer Simpson?  Totally does not make any sense but I love it.

Every house slipper by Sanuk is vegan friendly.  The uppers are made of either canvas and the inners are faux shearling liner.  If that’s not warm enough for you, go with the outerwear inspired Get-Down, which features a nylon upper filled with synthetic down, and a polar fleece liner.  It even comes with an elastic drawcord to keep your feet nice and snug.  Comfort is always paramount, and each slipper features a nylon wrapped, soft, high rebound, molded EVA footbed.  Say what you will about the price point of these, but in my mind you’re getting what you pay for.

More pics and info after the jump!

Continue Reading…

True to my tendencies, I am about to do a fall post square in the middle of fall, rather than timing it before or at the beginning of the season.  For those of you who are regular visitors of this site, you’re probably used to my penchant for failing to follow to pay attention to such considerations.  Admittedly, I am shortsighted when it comes to planning to dress myself.  I never know it’s time to get warm clothes until it’s too cold, to buy boots until my canvas low tops are soaked through from the snow.  Anyway, it is (almost) fully fall here in New York, and our attention is turning towards the styles of autumn – tweed, flannel, earth tones, and the like.

Conveniently, Keep (one of our faves here at VK), has put together a nice page with their new fall faves.  There’s plenty here to like, with multiple blends of colorways and materials (including moleskin, their synthetic suede/micro fiber) for almost all of their models.  Beyond the fabrics you have expected from Keep, they’ve added some some handwoven Ikat dyed textile that is handwoven in Guatemala.  Tight.  As are true of all Keep shoes, the following are all vegan.

More pics after the jump, or see Keep’s page here.
Continue Reading…