It's days like these I wonder why I'm always talking about Sydney's fabulous weather.
As I sit typing with soggy feet I find myself longing for a beautiful pair of gumboots. There are a couple good options on the market with some interesting, and different, sustainability approaches.
Roma Boots
These gorgeous boots are made of natural latex rubber (no plastics here!) and manufactured in a fair trade factory in China. To up the feel good factor, Roma operate on a one-for-one basis - for each pair of boots sold they provide one pair of boots to a child in need. And to crank it up another notch, 10% of all sales proceeds go to Roma for All Foundation, a charity set up by Roma for education in poor communities that desperately need to break the cycle of poverty.
The boots come in a range of colours, both matte and gloss, and there are children's sizes available to purchase as well.
Kamik
This Canadian boot company has made a real mark using sustainable materials in their wet-weather boots. Kamik has its own unique PVC-free synthetic rubber that is 50% lighter than natural rubber and 30% lighter than other synthetic rubbers. The boots are all 100% recyclable, and if you send yours back to Kamik when you've worn them out, they will be made into new boots. They make over 2 million boots from recycled plastic each year! The manufacturing process is run sustainably as well, using hydro-power for the plant and recycled water in the cooling systems.
There are a variety of styles of Kamik gumboots (and other boots) in multiple colours and patterns for women, men and children.
Now the big question . . .
Which brand do I buy?!
It's a toughie. Kamik are slightly less money than Roma, but they don't have the amazing one-for-one system or the charity contribution (both are less expensive than Hunter boots, which have set the standard for stylish rain boots). And I can get either one shipped to Australia. I'm probably leaning toward Roma at this stage.
Which pair would you buy? And do you know of any others?
Stay dry out there my Sydney friends.
xxLisa
As I sit typing with soggy feet I find myself longing for a beautiful pair of gumboots. There are a couple good options on the market with some interesting, and different, sustainability approaches.
Roma Boots
These gorgeous boots are made of natural latex rubber (no plastics here!) and manufactured in a fair trade factory in China. To up the feel good factor, Roma operate on a one-for-one basis - for each pair of boots sold they provide one pair of boots to a child in need. And to crank it up another notch, 10% of all sales proceeds go to Roma for All Foundation, a charity set up by Roma for education in poor communities that desperately need to break the cycle of poverty.
Kamik
This Canadian boot company has made a real mark using sustainable materials in their wet-weather boots. Kamik has its own unique PVC-free synthetic rubber that is 50% lighter than natural rubber and 30% lighter than other synthetic rubbers. The boots are all 100% recyclable, and if you send yours back to Kamik when you've worn them out, they will be made into new boots. They make over 2 million boots from recycled plastic each year! The manufacturing process is run sustainably as well, using hydro-power for the plant and recycled water in the cooling systems.
Now the big question . . .
Which brand do I buy?!
It's a toughie. Kamik are slightly less money than Roma, but they don't have the amazing one-for-one system or the charity contribution (both are less expensive than Hunter boots, which have set the standard for stylish rain boots). And I can get either one shipped to Australia. I'm probably leaning toward Roma at this stage.
Which pair would you buy? And do you know of any others?
Stay dry out there my Sydney friends.
xxLisa
Hi, on my search for sustainable/fair gum boots I also stumbled over mygumboots.com. Those are made with recycled waste chewing gum and for every pair bought they will give one pair to a child in Romania. Unfortunately they only seem to ship within the UK.
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