So many vegans, vegetarians and animal lovers take a stance by not eating meat, avoiding animal by-products, banishing fur from their closets (and often protesting it on the runway), and trying to be ethically minded in their shopping endeavors, but how often is it that we believe we can’t get around the fact that leather is necessary when it comes to our shoes?

Luckily, in today’s green-conscious world, sacrificing a cow to make our mules is no longer an issue.

The Alternative

Beyond Skin is an ethical footwear label that hand-produces shoes out of England using a variety of man-made materials. Their footwear is made from animal-free fabrics, among them satins, synthetic leathers, and organic cottons.

Their satins are made from polyester rather than the commonly-used chemically processed viscose. Their synthetic leathers are developed from cotton-backed polyurethane which resembles PVC, a chemical commonly used in footwear to create the faux-leather (pleather) look.

(Pleather, by the way,  is progressively moving away from being a great alternative to real leather due to containing, chlorine, supposedly causing asthma. Perhaps not so great after all?)

Turning animal hides into leather is an obvious no-no when it comes to animal activists, but another ethical reason to avoid purchasing leather goods is the negative environmental factors it entails. When leather is tanned it goes through a highly toxic process which renders it non-biodegradable. Beyond Skin points out that farming animals such as cattle for human uses produces large amounts of waste. In turn, this pollutes the ground and surface water, contributing to the overall effect of global warming.

Fashion Faux Pas?

These alternative materials may be eco-friendly, but are they, well, fashionable? Having been highlighted in high-end fashion magazines such as Marie Claire, In Style and Vogue as not the typical Birkenstock-esque shoe, Beyond Skin’s footwear isn’t the typical stereotype of what normally dons the environmentalist’s foot.

These shoes come in peep-toed, sky high stilettos, ankle boots, all in a variety of not-so-natural vibrant colours.  They even offer custom made wedding shoes which can be matched with the fabric swatch of your dress, or made from a selection of their vintage fabrics.

If you’re aiming for animal-free alternatives, stay home, save the gas, and click over to Beyond Skin for your latest contribution to sustainability.

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For more information about eco and vegan-friendly footwear, check out:

Eco-friendly shoes built for comfort

Our review on Style, Naturally: a great eco-guide for fashionistas

The low-down on vegan fibres and fabrics

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