The shoelace: the workhorse of the modern wardrobe. They keep our shoes on and functional as we navigate our day-to-day lives, unnoticed and unappreciated. Our main goal here at Whiskers is to change that perspective. As a small team, we shoot and edit the majority of the content you see featuring our laces. And as a byproduct, we are constantly swapping out stock laces for ours, and it never ceases to amaze us just how little thought goes into laces, both from a functional standpoint and as a design piece. After 20+ years of footwear experience at both Nike and Crocs, I can tell you firsthand that the first place a shoe company cuts costs to hit a price target on a shoe is the shoelace, and then the insole. We’ve all experienced the frustration of shoelaces fraying rapidly or breaking unexpectedly. This exact issue was the genesis behind why we started Whiskers Laces – so let’s dive a bit deeper into the shoelace and how we approach creating high-quality, well-designed, unique shoelaces. Then, I’ll give you a crash course on how to step into the “Lace Age” and rock our laces with any outfit and any pair of shoes.
As I stated, the genesis behind Whiskers Laces was solving the problem of cheap laces in shoes that deserve better – shoes we spend good money on, only for their stock laces to fail us, leaving us searching for a better (or even equal) replacement pair. Far too often, shoelaces are made of just cotton. Cotton is tough in a shoelace because it lacks durability, and pure cotton weaves will always loosen eventually, allowing the laces to puff out in areas or fray completely. All of our laces are created using recycled plastic polyester and nylon, with a weave created in the manufacturing process that stays tight and won’t fray easily. Our factory in North Carolina has been manufacturing shoelaces since the early 1900’s, using the same machinery we use today. These machines are the top of the line, and their stellar workforce is dedicated to producing high-quality, American-made products. They have a ton of pride in their factory in their small town, and it shows in every shoelace they make.
Our next major objective with Whiskers Laces was to bring color and FUN to the constantly overlooked and underappreciated shoelace. As you peruse our site, you’ll see we have a color and pattern for just about everyone – and we’re just getting started. This was a bit of a riskier move from the start, but we were pleasantly surprised with the traction and love you all showed, and it was clear that the people were ready to embrace the shoelace, finally. Your input and purchases have a real impact on what you see on our site, what products we get rid of, and what new products we have in the pipeline. We pride ourselves on having colors for every occasion, from tan, black or brown laces, to some of our funky, crazy patterned styles. We strive to provide any pair for anyone and any occasion.
HOW TO WEAR ‘EM
From a color standpoint, our most popular styles always have blue in them. So anything blue is a safe and fun place to start. Garnet, purple, and red are always in the mix too. A couple of “rules” for determining your lace colors are pretty simple. You can go with a pairing color, and match the lace with your shirt or top, or an accent on your shoes. Just got a new blue shirt you want to rock in your next outing? Get a nice pair of blue laces. Another option is to use your laces as the accent piece in your outfit. For example, if you wear a black, gray, or white top/shirt with denim or khaki bottoms, you can pop whatever brighter color in your laces for a really nice color pop and finishing detail. At the end of the day, it’s all about your own personal style. We love that any of our laces can be that detail that gives any outfit that polished, finished look. Whenever I see someone looking sharp without a pair of laces to compliment their outfit, I think it’s a miss that they didn't get that level of detail. It truly goes a long way.
“But Mike, you have 200+ laces on your website. Where do I start?” Great question, hypothetical person. A good place to start is on the homepage, where our laces are divided into categories: Dress Laces, Sneaker Laces, Boot Laces, and Golf Laces. We do this so you can focus on a particular solution for the shoe you’re looking to upgrade. None of these categories are concrete, however. You can easily toss our Boot Laces into a pair of sneakers, Dress Laces into golf shoes, etc. We designed each lace to look and perform best in their respective shoe categories, but we encourage everyone to get weird with it. They’re just shoelaces! Let’s have some fun people. Now, let’s dive into some of these categories.
DRESS LACES
The round shoelace is the primary lace style for dress shoes and has traditionally been the style of choice. Right now, we only have round Dress Laces, but may introduce some cool flat styles in the future. Next, let’s talk patterns. You can always do the tried-and-true criss-cross lacing pattern, but if you want to take it up a notch and show people you know what you’re doing, the Straight Bar lacing pattern is great in almost any dress shoe. See below for a look at this style, and click here if you want to learn this easy style.
ATHLETIC/RUNNING SHOE LACES
For our Athletic Laces, we chose the athletic oval shape for the more active and durable lace. This lace is great for running, hiking, golf, or any other high movement-oriented activity. We love this style of lace for two specific reasons: they stay tied and hold knots better than most, and the oval design provides relief on the top of the foot when tied tightly. This shape disperses pressure on the foot, providing a cushion while staying tied nicely. If you want to get extra crafty with these, here’s a little video showing how to lace your shoes to prevent any kind of heel slippage.
SNEAKER LACES
The flat lace in the modern sneaker is an absolute staple. It looks great and performs very well. We love our new collection of All Pro Laces in any pair of stylish sneakers, and we now have 41 colors on the site in this style. From Air Force 1’s and Stan Smiths to a dressier Cole Haan leather sneaker, this lace just looks great. The weave in our All Pros elevates the look and (not to toot my own horn), I love them in all of my shoes. You simply won’t find this quality of lace in any shoe you buy, and is an all-time best lace for your sneakers. *Toot toot*. Also, with our huge color selection, you can have a ton of fun with the lacing patterns in your sneakers. Here's one of our favorites!
If you need help deciding what color or style of lace to get, you can always hit up the AI stylist on our site, Nigel. Nigel will take you through a series of questions to find a solution to your lace-related problems, and recommend the best laces for any shoe. Our new All Pro Laces aren’t currently in Nigel’s database yet, but we’re working on it! There are just so many… But give Nigel a try here!
