PSA-Keep your Crocs out of the dryer!

Public Service Announcement:

If you child comes in from playing outside and you decide to wash her Crocs in the washing machine , make sure that you take BOTH out of the load before it goes into the dryer.

Unless of course, your child has once elf foot that you have been trying to find a shoe for, for years.

I am going to pop them in the mail to the Soles United Program that crocs has to recycle old crocs into new crocs and & donate worldwide.

Mammoth Crocs

Saturday night I was over at Kristin and Michael's house for dinner and Kristin had on her new red Mammoth Crocs! I commented that I was REALLY wanting some but that they were more than I wanted to spend ($40 on the Crocs site and locally!)

She told me she got them on Amazon for $25!

I've purchased a lot of things on line, but never shoes!!! Sunday morning I found some that were various prices. I wanted a khaki or light blue pair. Both were for sale.

I choose the light blue. The Khaki were $24.99, and thus would not quality for free shipping. The light blue were $25.90 and therefore did qualify for free shipping! That made the decision easy!

I got an email today that the Crocs were shipped and will be here by Wednesday! Talk about a painless transaction!

Croc Update

Apparently everyone's children are wearing Crocs. Here are 3 email responses I received in addition to the comments in the original croc post:

"I can't believe I can actually add to this. So Kobe has some of these shoes. He's had them for a year and they look good. He wears them all the time too. I guess the tread at the bottom is worn somewhat smooth, but not so bad that I would consider replacing them. I think it's more surprising that he hasn't grown out of them."

"Let me start off by saying.... I LOVE CROCS! Not the fake ones, the real ones. Yes, they are a little more expensive (and NO, they are not made of the same material.... more on that later) I bought a pair for myself, my son, and my daughter about 1.5 years ago. My son wears them occasionally, I wear mine only in the house (bought for house shoes) and my daughter wears hers EVERYDAY! She loves them! She loves to decorate them with the Jibbitz (talk about expensive, but worth it if she likes to wear the same shoes everyday!) The tread on the bottom is only starting to wear (slightly, after 1.5 YEARS!!!! I'll take that anyday!) She is now just growing out of them (they are meant to be a little big, that is why the size is 6/7, 8/9, not just a 6 or a 7!) I just went on CROCS.com and bought her 4 new pairs (you spend over $100 and shipping is free). I bought her 3 different colors (to coordinate with outfits) and a Dora pair. She LOVES them all and wears them EVERYDAY! I figure if I spend only $100 in a whole year on shoes for 1 child, that is more than a bargain!

Now, about the material..... Crocs uses a patented material that does not mold, mildew, stain, or smell. It is wonderful, and the BEST part (which, Chrissy, you will love) is that when you outgrow the Crocs, you can send them back, and they will RECYCLE THE MATERIAL!!!! Isn't that great! Talk about 'Going Green'! And, Crocs also sells Crocs that are already made of recycled material! These are the best things going, in my opinion! And, my kids love them!!!!"

"Julia has a pair of real crocks. Doesn't wear them everyday but I'd say 3-4 days out of a week. She's had them since spring and they seem to be holding up pretty well."

Ok friends, thanks for the input! When I was at Wegman's this evening I looked at a pair (yes, my grocery store sells Crocs!) and the bottoms do seem to be a bit harder than the ones we have. I also really like the Soles united program that Jacquie was referring to as well.

So maybe Crocs are not a Crock!

My $145 Shoes

Yes, unbelievably, I am the owner of a pair of $145 shoes.

Mind you, I didn't buy them for $145. While on vacation my MIL took me to an upscale clothing store and there they were in the back of the store in a clearance pile. It was a really fancy store so the clearance pile was in a dark recessed corner. I think most of the women shopping in the store probably didn't even venture to that part of the store lest someone think THEY were perusing the clearance stuff. But I'm not proud. I found the shoes. They were $20!

The woman at the cash register reminded me of what a great deal I was getting even though the original price was on the bottom of the shoe (and at the same time, judging me, I imagine for my very poor choice.)

Anyway these are really cute shoes. I did not have occasion to wear them until last night at a dinner party we hosted in our home. I never wore them outside. I have hardwood floors. I didn't run or dance in them. During a game of Apples to Apples, the heel broke! I was sitting down. I was leaning on it a little with my foot. It was a skinny heel. BUT IT BROKE THE FIRST TIME I WORE IT.

Having never before owned a pair of $145 shoes I must say I expected a little more life out of them (Ok, perhaps that is why they were on clearance!) But can you even imagine what kind of PO'd I would be had I spent that much (or even half of that!) Heck, if a pair of $20 shoes from Target break I would take them back.

Anyway, I suspect these are some more cheap crap shoes made in a foreign country with questionable labor practices. Some joker just found out a way to charge even more for them than the cheap shoes you expect at Payless or Target. People in upscale shops are paying more than I spend on groceries for something the same quality of the shoes all of the rest of us wear.

And now I am even more convinced that labels and prices tell us very little about the quality of our clothing and exist more to make you feel good about the exorbitant price you are being charged.