By: Flip & Flop
Sea Sense is a British flip flop company set to save the oceans from the perils of plastic while producing amazing flip flops. As I’ve shared before, I’m always skeptical of “do good” focused businesses because the focus is usually not on making a quality product, which is why effective altruism… well isn’t effective. This is not the case with our friends at Sea Sense.
I say friends because the good folks at Sea Sense have followed our Instagram account, DoLifeRightHQ, for years and have liked and commented on many of our posts, as we’ve done theirs. We reached out via social media to let them know that we’d love to review a pair of Sea Sense flip flops. They very generously sent us two pairs, one men’s which is reviewed here, and one women’s which will be featured in a future review.
To do this review right, I brought the Sea Sense flip flops along with me on a family vacation to Oahu, Hawaii. In typical Chief Dude fashion, I packed 3 pairs of flip flops for the weeklong trip. First in the bag were my tried-and-true Olukai Ulele’s, winner of the 2020 Flip Flop of The Year (FFOTY) award. I knew they were bomb-proof and wouldn’t be an issue if the Sea Sense flip flops didn’t pan out. I also packed the very fancy Italian leather Olukai Kulia, with visions of basking in their sheer luxury as I strolled along the beachside sidewalks of Waikiki.
We arrived in Oahu around 10:00 p.m. and headed to the hotel and checked in. Not too tired and hungry for dinner, due to the 3-hour time difference between home and Hawaii it was only 7 p.m. our time, we decided to explore the area around the hotel in search of food. I swapped out of my running shoes (see our guide to flying in flip flops for more information on that choice) and into my fancy Italian leather Olukai Kulia’s. I’d not yet worn the Sea Sense flip flops and didn’t want to risk blisters and a bad experience. This turned out to be a bad decision. We walked about 10 blocks, and my feet were battered and blistered from the leather Olukais which, like dress shoes that haven’t been properly broken in, were merciless on my feet.
The next morning it was time to give the SeaSense’s a test drive. Unfortunately, my feet were already blistered between the toes and on the heel from the not yet broken in Olukai Kulia’s I’d worn the night before, so I bandaged up the blisters the best I could and slipped into the navy blue SeaSense flip flops.
The first thing I noticed is how light and comfortable the natural rubber was on my feet. Though they were soft and light they didn’t feel delicate, quite the opposite, these suckers felt like they were up for anything. So out the door I went.
It was love at first step. These deceptively simple flip flops wear like a premium pair of flip flops. I’d expected an experience closer to the classic Havaianas but instead it was much closer to Hari Mari or Olukai’s. How could this be?
First there are the proportions. Footbed, sole, strap, toe post all work together, each doing its part to make the whole greater than sum of the parts. Very great in fact.
The footbed is embossed with horizontal squiggles that run width-wise from toe to heal to ensure solid contact between foot and shoe with every step, in wet or dry. One additional benefit of these squiggles is that it allows sand and water to shed away rather than getting caked on the bottom of the foot. Obviously, these were built for the beach.
One detail that drives comfort is the slightly higher than typical toe post, which is part of the one-piece toe post and strap. It sits a bit higher it rests more on the top of the foot taking pressure off of the more sensitive area between the toes. This was greatly appreciated by me in my first couple days of use since the Olukai’s had ravaged my poor toe crotch the first night.
“What a wonderful flip flop.”
The sole, where quite literally the rubber meets the road, is pressed with a tiny, elongated brick-like pattern from heel to toe. This provides excellent traction on all surfaces, even wet slippery tile poolside decks. The combo of natural rubber and brick-like tread works together to prevent slips. In fact, I found I had much better traction poolside in my SeaSense’s than barefoot. What a wonderful flip flop.
Speaking of water, these flip flops take to water like long days to summer. They were made for it and look their best wet, though they look amazing anywhere and under any circumstance. They dry quickly, don’t squeak when wet, and don’t slip or slide. I could almost feel them smiling as I walked along the beach, in their element. If you’re going to the beach and want just one pair of flip flops, SeaSense is the answer, case closed. Though they aren’t limited to the beach because they have an effortless style to them that works in anyplace that is flip flop friendly. Unlike the more austere Havaianas which, in some settings are akin to wearing cargo shorts to a black-tie event, the SeaSense could pull it off – they are effortlessly stylish.
What began as almost an obligation to test out these flip flops, transformed into a flip flop love affair. I love my SeaSense flip flops. During my just over a week in Hawaii, I wore them everyday and everywhere. The other two pair of flip flops I brought weren’t even in consideration after my first day in the SeaSense’s. This was the case for the rest of the summer, SeaSense are my daily driver flip flops.
These are amazing flip flips for flip flops full stop, not for “green” or “British” or “rubber” or any other qualifier. These are amazing fucking flip flops and a serious contender for Flip Flop of The Year. Thank you SeaSense for this contribution you’ve left the flip flop world better than you found it and I suspect you’ll do the same for the oceans. Keep up the good work, you certainly know how to Do Life Right.
