I personally dislike the flimsy, plastic sandals you can buy at most department stores.  They aren't even that comfortable- just cheap and badly made, and usually not recyclable. I don't even know why I use to buy them. I still have some of mine because I can’t bare to throw out a pair of  “good” sandals.

I have been contemplating purchasing a new pair that would be eco-friendly, last many more years, actually be comfortable, and not feel like I am walking on cement. I figured I would wait until my current collection died.

I was recently contacted by Planetshoes.com about doing a review for a pair of shoes. At first, I thought “I don't really need any shoes.” I went for a walk and came back with sore knees and back from my sandals. That is when I decided to find a pair of sandals on their site.

I was torn because I am still three quarters through my waste-free year, Project Green Foot, and technically taking the sandals does go against the the “rules”! I felt that my sore knees and back outweighed breaking a Project Green Foot “rule”.

I naturally gravitated to their Patagonia collection. They go beyond making eco-friendly products for their customers, they seem to really care about their environmental impact. They try and use recycled materials whenever possible, while trying to reduce their carbon footprint in the process.

They accept all Patagonia clothing and shoes back through their Common Threads Initiative program to first be repaired, and if that is not possible, they recycle the materials into new and exciting clothing and shoes. How great is that?

I finally decided on the Patagonia Reflip sandals. The main reason for choosing this particular sandal was the fact they were vegan. The next best thing was that the toe post/foot thong was made from recycled-nylon and the footbed and outsole were made of a high-density PLUSfoam™. What is  PLUSfoam, you ask?

According to PLUSfoam.com, (their) “compounds are 100% recyclable. EVA and PU foams are not. These other foams can only be reused by grinding used material and processing it into a virgin batch of new product. When these other compounds are reclaimed, only 30%-50% of the manufacturing scrap and/or post-consumer waste can be recycled into new product. The rest is trash that must be transported and/or disposed of at a considerable cost to the environment. PLUS compounds are 100% recyclable.”

Therefore, my sandal can be recycled into another product and a percentage of my current sandal is already made from recycled foam. This pretty much won we over.

The sandals are super comfortable- seriously. Just like slippers, and I am not just saying that. They are a million times better than any of the cheap sandals I use to wear! My feet are loving them.

The draw back of the sandals was the smell and packaging. For an eco-friendly company like Patagonia, I was disappointed with how large the box was for one pair of sandals and the fact they came wrapped in a plastic bag. I would suggest using a box about 4 times smaller and skipping the plastic bag. That would be perfect!

The smell. Once I opened the box I felt like I was being slapped in the face with some horrible odor. It had that new car smell. You know the one I am talking about? I immediately decided to put them outside to off-gas for a week. After this time, I couldn't really smell whatever that was and was able to wear them headache-free.

Aside from the packaging, which can easily be improved, and the smell which was rectified, I truly enjoy these sandals. And I didn't get any blisters from the my foot rubbing on the thong part of the sandals. This is a major bonus.

Would you like to get your hands on a pair of sandals? PlanetShoes.com is giving away a pair of Patagonia Reflip sandals (men or women) to one of my lucky readers.

How to enter:

I am not going to make you jump through too many hoops to enter; I am going to keep it as simple as possible. Leave me a comment telling me what 120 divided by 2 plus 5 is.

Seriously-  I am not kidding. Canada has some weird rules and you have to answer a skill testing question to win- it can’t just be by pure luck apparently. Seeing as I am a rule follower, if you don't answer the question even if you are from the United States, and I select your number you will not win. I will move on to another.

Besides that, write whatever you like; say Hi; tell me what other shoes you love; tell me that I am great….I will leave the rest of the comment writing up to you.

If you would like to follow me, or PlanetShoes.com on twitter or like me, or PlanetShoes.com on facebook, please feel free. I will leave that at your discretion. It will greatly be appreciated and will most definitely put a smile on our faces. If you decide to however, leave a separate comment letting me know for each action.

Oh and tweeting about the giveaway, won’t gain you anymore entries, but it sure will make this green girl jump up and down with joy!

No purchase is necessary to enter, must be 18 years or older to participate and this giveaway is open to U.S and Canadian residents except Quebec. They have some funky rules that I don’t want to get involved with. The winner will randomly be selected using random.org and the skill testing question will be verified before the winer is announced. Entries will be accepted until midnight EST on May 25, 2012 and the winner will be announced the following day.

So let the commenting begin!

The contest is now closed! Thank you to everyone that took the time to enter. I appreciate it. Drum roll please- the winer is Wendy #14! Congratulations!