June 1st, 2009 
Spooky 
Believe it or not, shoes can be a luxury item in poor countries. But we humans are resourceful creatures, so we rarely let lack of money stand in our way. Case and point, these guys in poor African and South-American countries use old tires to make their own slippers. Sure they may not make to a fashion presentation in Milan, but I’m sure they’re a lot more durable than what we buy from the shop.
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Actually this was a fashion style in Hawaii perpetuated by kids from lower income families during the 60’s.
I have seen it mentioned in accounts of the great depression & dust bowl of the 1930’s…
Looks like something from Mad Max. Odd enough I’d buy a pair of these!
i with you jelly i would buy a pair… just so say i have em!
can you imagine how much NIKE would charge for a pair of these. I agree the rustic look is my style
This is definitely cool, but not so new. My parents grew up in Pasadena, Texas in the 60’s and 70’s, and there was a “ma and pa” type company that made shoes out of tires and inner tubes called Tiddies. They’re actually still around, the design hasn’t changed, and I own two pairs. Super comfy.
It’s nice to see people taking the initiative in recycling these things.
You are way behind in the times. We would see tire tracks in the middle of the jungle in Viet Nam, no roads within miles. Actually it was the VC and NVA sandals. They were a very resourceful enemy, and you had to respect that. That was back in the 60s & 70s.
Though I have been freegan or local-buying for a good while, I would certainly pay these humans a handsome fee for this fare. This is the mindset the whole world needs to get into if we are to live sustainably. Reduce, reuse, THEN recycle. Where can I get a pair / learn to make my own from the nearest highway?
I saw these sold in the markets of small towns in Ghana when I was there this past December. From the background of some of these pictures, I would say this is in Africa someplace.
I would buy some if I new it was helping somebody poor. They’re like the cheap version of crocs.
I live in Pasadena, Texas. Small world. =]
Spelling the English word tyre as tire is American, and therefore almost forgivable. But spelling crisis as crysis, that’s just plain weird.
And they probably last forever.
Going back to the whole “Nike charging a buttload thing”, that’s not a bad idea. Mark ‘em up, sell ‘em high, but take the proceeds and — with great fanfare and publicity — put the money back towards helping poverty in Africa. They’d sell decently well just so people could be seen doing something to help out, if for no other reason.
Very durable shoes. But truly not so new. This has been around for years already. I was still a teenager when this was the craze in our country.
I heard about a company on NPR:
http://greensoulshoes.wordpress.com/
I think it’s pretty clever to recycle tires instead of filling the landfills with it.
hahaha, “taking the intiative in recycling things” Dude, these people are fucking poor. Excess is what creates all the landfills.
I owned and wore ‘treads’ in the 70’s. Tire soles with woven leather and suede uppers. Love to have a pair now.
same shoes we had in Viet-Nam 69-70
One place with instructions is here: http://www.instructables.com/tag/?q=tire+shoes&limit%3Atype%3Aid=on&type%3Aid=on&type%3Auser=on&type%3Acomment=on&type%3Agroup=on&type%3AforumTopic=on&type%3AforumTopic=on&sort=none
There’s other sites if you look for a bit that have instructions on how to make them too.
As to Tiddies, in the 1980’s I knew them as an over priced flip flop sandal sold in South Texas. The preppie, frat boys always wore them. If they had tire sandals I probably would have bought some.
I recently got a pair of sandals made by a company called Simple. They’re made from recycled tires – didn’t even realize it till I wore them for a few days and took them off and noticed the soles – http://www.simpleshoes.com
What I want to know is how many thousand miles are they good for?
Sweet. Where can I get a pair?
Hey CAF, are you sure it wasnt all the niggers that gave it away? Might be a better hint than the background lmao
I’m actually wearing a pair as we speak – a friend brought them back for me from Uganda.
Believe it or not, they are the most comfortable sandals I have ever owned.
I was clued in by the paragraph stating these images are from Africa and South America
Best idea I’ve seen in a while, It should be implemented not only in low income areas, but in areas capable of of recycling tires. most boots look like they were made from truck tires anyway.
actually Tiddies are not made from tires they are made from surgical rubber tubing and 2-3 types of foam rubber. they used proven grass root construction know in many parts of the world. but made them more comfortable with foam. there was a short time were they looked a tires but felt they were to heavy
I also had Treads! They are the only thing you NEVER see in any op shop or anywhere for that matter! Has anyone ever seen them since the 70s??
the weather are hot,so need that shoes,but the people are poor
Good Idea, I wish they have a “Good Year” lolz
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