If you were buying two pairs of identical shoes......

[Rockdiamond]

I love Merrill Jungle Mocs.
Super comfy and they come in wide sizes....Here's my quandary.
If you buy two identical pairs and rotate them, will they last longer than if you buy two pairs and wear them consecutively?

I figure our diamond Prosumers contain many Shoe-sumers too

 

[msop04]

If I find a pair of shoes I love, then I buy two pairs... but I like to wear one pair until they're worn out, then I start fresh. But that's just me. Same with bags. LOL

 

[GreenPapaya]

I don't think so. They should last the same time, no? Isn't wear/tear based on the amount of wear, how you walk, surface you walk on, weight? I would think that alternating shoes would last just as long as wearing one until it dies and then wearing the second. The shoes will deteriorate with each wear? Oh now I don't know lol. However, if you do like them that much I would stock up. I wish I did with the discontinued H-Street by Puma.

 

[partgypsy]

I have heard that alternating pairs of versus wearing the same shoes on consecutive days, does make them last longer because they air out better. I have never tried this out myself, and again I think I would prefer to have a fresh pair, and an old pair, than two middling pairs even if they do last slightly longer, but that's just me.

 

[AV_]

I tend to buy this way. Perhaps it does make some difference to let leather soles rest some days between stints of wear, but I have never counted...

Shoes & I loath & mame each other!

 

[amoline]

Well, I can say for sure that this is the way it works with many golf shoes. If I give a pair a couple or few days of rest before I wear it again, it gives it a break from all the sweat, grass, water/dew, etc. and seems to help, especially for leather shoes.

YMMV tho, and I can't speak to other types of shoes.

 

[pearlsngems]

Shoes benefit from drying out between wearings, so I think alternating pairs would make them last a little longer.

 

[KristinTech]

Marathoners rotate shoes in, so that’s how I’d do it.

 

[Bron357]

Buy them in the same colour, not one pair black and the other blue.
One Monday morning as I trudged off to work bleary eyed it wasn’t until the wonders of Office lighting that it was pointed out to me
“Hey, you’re wearing different coloured shoes”.
And if I was hoping no one else would notice..........

 

[AV_]

one pair black and the other blue

Never did dark blue & black, but sure did sky blue & orange, white & anything etc. (same model, sandals)

 

[strawrose]

I love it when my favorite shoe gets discounted 8 months later.

 

[House Cat]

Why stop at two? When I love something, there are many multiples in my closet.

 

[missy]

I often buy 2 or 3 pairs of identical shoes and clothing items that I love. And when they go on sale if I love something I will buy 3 or 4 of them. And I get them in all the colors that I love too. I cannot pass up a sweet deal on a proven clothing or shoe item. In fact if you look at my closest you will see multiples of many of my clothing items. And I alternate wearing them.

I don't like to save them to wear after I wear one out because 1. I probably will forget I have it lol and 2. I don't want it collecting dust so I just wear them both alternating as I go. When I have a newer pair and an older pair I will save the older pair for bad weather days and wear the newer better pair on fairer weather days.

 

[monarch64]

@Rockdiamond why not get the waterproof version for winter/early spring and wear the regular version the rest of the year?

And (this may be something you already do) make sure you’re investing in and wearing wool socks, like Smartwool or Keen. The more you can move moisture away from the foot and out of the shoe, the happier your feet will be and the longer the shoe will last (inside, anyway).

 

[bludiva]

I think you'll get more use out of rotating them. A few of my nice special occasion or special use (snow, hiking) shoes deteriorated over time even with very infrequent use. I keep things forever if they are still functional though so ymmv.

 

[LLJsmom]

Rotating them is probably better for your feet. I do that with running shoes. I buy 3 if I like a particular year’s model.

 

[MissyBeaucoup]

There’s definitely a scientific answer on this one: you should rotate out your shoes. Feet perspire a surprising amount, and the shoes will last better and smell better if they can fully dry between wearings. This is why teenagers’ everyday tennis shoes smell awful, and why you can make your “Sunday best” shoes last forever.

 

[Diamond_Hawk]

Rotating the shoes seems to be a consensus answer here, and I have no reason to disagree.
Personally I would rotate them just to satisfy my intellectual curiosity over the whole thing - and I’d probably find myself encouraging one pair as their wearable life came near the end.

“C’mon pair A - you can do it!” You know, a little pep-talk to the that pair seemed to be lagging behind.

This could be a problem, I guess, as I might end up wearing two raggedy, falling apart pairs of shoes for awhile just to see which one could make it the longest!

 

[AV_]

I have no reason to disagree.

One reason: It is a chore to keep a 'shoe schedule'. (only Fashion is worse!)

Noticed that having several identical pairs does some good: shoes die one at a time & when one bites the dust ,) - its pair does not have to follow them to the netherworld.

Footnote: I can say for sure that not wearing shoes keeps them in better shape than wearing them ,)

 

[Indylady]

I have heard that alternating pairs of versus wearing the same shoes on consecutive days, does make them last longer because they air out better. I have never tried this out myself, and again I think I would prefer to have a fresh pair, and an old pair, than two middling pairs even if they do last slightly longer, but that's just me.

Genius.

I buy multiples of shoes all the time and alternate but that’s just cause I find it a little more convenient, also because it works out for me trend wise. I’m not super trendy, but I stay somewhere in the loop of whatever is current. Thigh high boots, d’orsays, slingbacks—easier to just alternate what’s working now so I can replace with a newer style later.

 

[luv2sparkle]

I have done that with running shoes, I think it makes them last a little longer. But I have found I would much rather have a brand new pair of shoes to wear when the others look worn. I have bought the same pair of slippers (old friend booties) about 6 times. I find they last me about a year. I am always so excited to get a new pair and feel the wonderful squishiness of the wool inside. I buy them ahead and store them and spray them with Apple garde, but won't let myself wear them until I start to wear through the bottom of the 'old' pair. LOL.

 

[bmfang]

Rotate. Rotate. Rotate. I have pairs of shoes that are at least a decade old now with nothing done to them more apart from re-soling them.