Today I picked up my shoes from being repaired. It felt a little strange when I told someone at work I was going to get them and they said, “You still do that?” Yes I do. I think they were more asking if you could still do that, and, Yes you can. And, Yes you should.
From the picture of a certain presidential candidate on this Treehugger survey, you can see that resoling your shoes will put you in good company.
After a minimal repair charge I now have what look like brand new, black leather work shoes. In fact the replacement soles look better than the originals. I saved a little bit of money doing this rather than buying new shoes, but It’s mainly a principle thing. I want to reuse stuff. Oh, and they’re already broken in.
There are some repairs on certain items that cost nearly as much as a new replacement but sometimes I will pay anyway, because I don’t see any alternative to creating a ‘reuse’ economy. We have to start rewarding vendors who build things that last, and build things that can be repaired, and people who invest their lives in learning that craft.
I’ve made it to three soles before, and we’ll see how far this pair goes. What are you reusing and recycling?
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