in Accessories, Contests, Designers + Brands, Footwear

Surfer-tested Eco Splaff Flopps

by Delia Montgomery May 12, 2009, 7:21 pm 109 Views

It was 1997 when Splaff Flopps joined the green wave, — and in more ways than one! El Presidente Cliff Drill and El Ambassador Craig Wallace got creative in a garage. Their materials and tools were a tire, a bike tube, and a shoe knife. Indeed they had a vision. The goal was to make durable, comfortable and reasonably-priced sandals from recycled materials.

Their vision of sustain ability for our planet and the human race is honest. These guys collect, sort, cut, and clean the recycled tires and bicycle inner tubes themselves. That guarantees the quality of their recycled materials.

The garage and entrepreneurs moved to Baja, California where they hand craft Splaff Flopps today. Recycled car tires are converted to soles; used bicycle inner tubes are made into straps; hemp fabric is in the foot beds, covers the straps; and the mid sole is made from Regupol®. That’s a brand name for a cushioned material developed from used tires. All this spells waste-free production!

Why sufer-tested? That’s because the Splaff Flopps are actually field tested by surfers. The surfers literally live in their flops and typically nothing else on their feet. So add strong and comfortable to describe these functional styles. They offer a six month guarantee with respect for our environment. Better than a few testimonies; huh?

El Presidente Cliff happens to be the designer also, but he’s a bit modest about it. Check out the style options for in or out of the water and see if you’re compelled to nominate Cliff for Splaff Flopps as the Best Sustainable Footwear Designer in the Chic Eco contest poll. Reminder: competition deadline is before June 1st.

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Written by Delia Montgomery

I am Delia, d/b/a Chic Eco on www.ChicEco.com, and established myself as an eco fashion guru by learning "who makes what in the world of environmental fashion and design."

Enjoy reading some of my freelance writing about environmental design, fashion and art -- from both consumer and supplier perspectives. You may notice I focus most on individual eco designers, movers and shakers.

From sustainable fashion apparel to paint and flooring, discoveries are a rush. I get my kicks this way. I also offer sales representation of earth-friendly designed products for wholesale buyers. Retailers may take advantage of my services with factory-direct pricing. Spend less time sourcing and prevent green-washed purchases!

My other forte is connecting suppliers with business-to-business tools. Aspects of my business vary with consulting services while I'm proud to be the aide that embraces unique and innovative gigs.

I'm originally a Kentucky Blue Grass gal who relocated to Maui early 2006 and the tropical Puna District of Big Island, Hawaii late 2007. Walk the talk is my motto here.

Early 2009 I constructed a yurt home office in a semi-urban setting on a tiny lot. My water comes from the sky, contained in a catchment that's not likely to dry in this rain forest. The electric is designed for solar conversion. I grow about 30% of my food organically, compost, and recycle to the hilt. Permaculture with a full eco system is my gardening style.

In fact, gardening is my ultimate joy. I seek gigs like design, weeding and planting between other jobs. My love is Hawai'i which has more climate zones than any state. There are frequent earthquakes here, typically under a 3.0 magnitude, and I happen to dig the vibrations. It's a wonderful simple life in paradise. As I grow older and wiser, I become more and more grateful.