I do not wear flip flops. I don’t think they’re very comfortable, and would much prefer the familiarity of tennis shoes. I want my feet to be covered, not just…out. I’m not coming from a place of self-consciousness, either: My viewpoint is that all feet are ugly. Mine maybe moreso than others, but not enough to where I would be embarrassed by them. I just like the feeling of a securely-trapped foot, rather than one held in place by a single rubber thread.
The one exception is when we take our family vacations to the beach. That’s a place where flip flops are a virtual requirement. I maintain that they’re still not very comfortable, but the open design sure beats having to constantly dump sand from your shoe. Or voluntarily creating an enclosed sweat pit from the constantly brutal humidity. (I’d actually prefer barefoot over flip flops, but there are obviously many times where this isn’t smart.)
That’s where Dollar Tree steps in. They offer a variety of styles and colors for every member of the family (well, maybe not babies), and at a price that’s perfect for occasional wearers like me. While any style technically would have sufficed, I wanted something a little more “beachy”. So I settled on the cool blue leaf tropical pattern pictured above. Hey, might as well look the part!
Like most flip flops, they’re crafted with what is essentially a foam pad on the bottom, and a rubber strap that “secures” it to your foot. The foam pad is soft, but doesn’t really give much in the way of “support”; long walks on the beach can lead to sore legs afterwards. (Or maybe that was just from the act of walking longer distances than I’m used to. Either way, I doubt the sandals did much to offset that.) This becomes more and more apparent the more and more one wears them.
Really, they’re about what one should expect at this price point. It’s a basic flip flop. There’s nothing fancy about them, nor is durability really a concern for the manufacturer. These aren’t going to last you several years, or even several months with any sort of consistent wear. They’re not intended for that. But they are perfect for people like me, who just need a pair to get through the occasional week in a beach/tropical setting.
One thing I didn’t really like – though it might be standard across flip flops – is that these come in “double sizes”. You know, instead of, say, size 11, there’s “size 10-11”. I’m usually around a size 11 – sometimes 12 depending on company – but didn’t see any available, so I had to settle for 12-13. It was admittedly a little big, but for the most part I didn’t have any troubles keeping them on.
I’m trying not to call them “disposable”, although I guess they pretty much are. My pair suffered a small rip at the top of the sandal, from the strap hole to the front, a couple of days after returning home from the beach. The cause is still unknown. They are still wearable, though confined mostly to household chores where shoe wearing is temporary and/or optional, like taking trash out. (They did get used during a trip to the public pool, as well.) Obviously, this rip is only going to get worse with time, but they’re valiantly carrying on as long as they can. I’m also noticing rocks are stabbing through the foam padding with relative ease. They might not be fully penetrating – these are still better than wearing nothing – but
And I’ll continue to wear them until they completely fall apart, the same way I use all my shoes.
Overall: 5.5/10. These flip flops serve as a perfect example of why Dollar Trees exist in the first place. They’re cheap, and perfect for people like me who only wear flip flops once or twice a year. Why would I spend more elsewhere? I don’t need (or want) a pair that’s going to last me years, because they would just get lost or collect dust in a closet. These aren’t the comfiest pair, and wear down rather quickly, but they’re still better than going barefoot. If you need a temporary, disposable pair of flip flops, these will do you well for an appropriately disposable price.
