So, what's the big deal about Toms?
Zulily ran a Toms special about two months ago. I snatched up two pairs for my daughter at about $18 each, plus shipping. (This is as much as I've EVER spent on shoes for her.) I bought the canvas and petal pink colors. With white shoe season finally here, I put the canvas Toms on her the day after they came in the mail. After wearing into ONE store, for less than ONE hour - the canvas colored Toms were GREY all over the toes.
Ok, so you might say it's MY fault for putting a child in canvas colored shoes, but truthfully, I've purchased other brands of white canvas tennis shoes in the past and did NOT have this problem.
On a positive not, they're super cute and she says they're comfy. *smiles*
Via Pinterest, I stumbled upon the Toms Online Outlet! Yup, that's right. Discounted, cheap, on sale, affordable Toms! Mostly, they carry women's but I've seen men's too.
Because of the whopping $50-60 per pair I discovered every time I found Toms in a retail store, I never was willing to spend the money. But when I saw the price of just under $18 each plus shipping (which was $7.50 each) I snagged a grey and silver pair! I'd seen the SAME SHOE on Zulily during their sale, but they were around $35 plus shipping.
Promptly, my package arrived from China, registered mail. The boxes were really squished. But the shoes were in perfect condition. With excitement, I tried on my Toms. Both shoes were the same size. The silver Toms were super tight, while the grey Toms were super loose! Hmmm...
I decided to wear the silver shoes out that afternoon. (Yup, I'd heard that Toms are supposed to be a little tight at first, but will stretch after wearing them.) Uhm...I got blisters after a couple hours of wear on places on my foot that have never seen a blister. The side of my heal and the top of my foot!
Also, I didn't find them to be thaaat comfortable. No thick cushioning to speak of, no arch support. They're not uncomfortable, but nothing like Ecco or SAS.
Since the grey pair were definitely too large, they'll be on the auction block pretty soon. *sigh* And as for the silver ones, wear #2 was mucho better. They didn't blister my tootsies this time. Not A+ for extra-comfort though. Certainly an A+ on cuteness and a go-to-to-go-with-everything shoe. *grins*
On the upside Toms are incredibly light-weight, so for packing they would be wonderful. The style goes with shorts, pants, skirts, pretty much everything!
If you have a long walk ahead or need comfort because you'll be on your feet all day, I think I'd skip on Toms. They have great marketing I guess. *winks*
All in all I'm giving Toms Shoes 3 stars outta 5.
***Toms Tip: Buy the sparkle shoes a size bigger and the regular canvas shoes your regular size. Odd, but they run differently.
