These ultra-tough socks can probably replace your shoes

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You will look weird wearing them, but who cares?" read the email. "You'll be wearing the footwear of the future. Shoes are for Luddites anyways."

This was a pitch for a product called Skinners that initially grabbed my attention with the subject line "These modern socks replace shoes entirely. No more shoes." I get a ton of product pitches every day that I usually have to ignore, but that claim — along with the rep's willingness to admit that they do look kind of stupid — made me want to give this one a shot.

Skinners are basically stretchy socks with a super-tough rubbery material on the undersides. The claim is that they offer a more natural walking or running experience, similar to "barefoot" running shoes like the Vibram FiveFingers, and they also serve as a really portable form of footwear that you can just roll up and shove in a bag or pocket. You can wear them with or without socks.

The biggest surprise was that even after a few days' wear, they somehow didn't smell, even in a humid Japanese summer. I ended up washing them — you can put them in a regular washing machine inside-out — just because I felt weird not doing so rather than because of any, um, noticeable side-effects of their usage. This is a selling point of the product, with its primary material described as "odor-resistant and antibacterial with cooling effect," and at least for the early weeks of ownership I've found it to hold true. And while the rough underside surface does smooth out a bit eventually, this is said to be intentional as excess material rubs away. I can't see Skinners developing holes or tears without extreme, extended use.

Skinners are currently on Kickstarter — there's just over a day to go on the campaign, which at the time of writing has raised more than 55 times the $10,000 funding goal. Right now the cheapest option remaining gets you a single pair for $35 with December delivery; the retail price is estimated at $45.

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