Are Synthetic Soles Slippery?

Synthetic Soles are mostly made of a special material called Ethyl Vinyl Acetate (EVA) which is a low-density material that’s so great because of its high elasticity and softness under the feet.

These synthetic soles are known to be slippery at times, especially when they are first gotten but they are not overly so.

Yes, synthetic soles are slippery when you wear your shoes for the first time and/or when you walk on really slippery surfaces.

This is also to let you know that synthetic soles actually do have great traction and balance when you wear them, so they are not that slippery.

Are Synthetic Soles Slippery

Some people report that their synthetic soles are not slippery to walk on at all; it all depends on your location (where you walk), when you bought your shoes, and the weather conditions at the time you are using your synthetic soles.

Advantages of Synthetic Soles

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Synthetic soles are a new rage now in the fashion industry because of how awesome they make the bottom of the shoes feel when one wears their pairs of shoes.

Because of the many advantages of these kinds of soles, many shoe companies have started new designs that will bring synthetic shoe sole material further into the light.

The advantages of synthetic soles include:

Long-Lasting Design Quality
Uniquely Comfortable Cushioning
Lightweight Texture
High Level of Flexibility for Increased Comfort
Shock-Absorbing Balance

Long-lasting design quality

Synthetic soles have all the properties of shoe soles that are built to last you for a long time. These soles won’t chafe or break down under your feet as soon as you get them or any time soon because they are structured with great durability that will make you enjoy shoes for a really long time.

The soles of the shoes are the one part of the shoes that tends to wear and tear easily due to the constant direct friction with the ground.

With synthetic soles, you don’t need to worry about having your shoes break down at inappropriate times, these soles are quality enough to give you long-standing value.

Uniquely comfortable cushioning

The comfortable cushioned feel of synthetic soles is one major reason why people love them so much. Customers rave on and on about how cozy and breathable the bottom of their shoes feels whenever they put on shoes with synthetic soles.

The materials used for making synthetic soles are of a distinct and superior quality that gives shoe wearers all the comfort and balance that they need under their shoes. It literally feels like walking on the balanced foam when you walk in shoes with synthetic soles.

Lightweight texture

Synthetic soles are not heavy on the feet that wear them at all. Because of how cool and soft the EVA shoe sole material is, you almost won’t even feel like you are putting anything on your feet due to how lightweight the soles are.

When you have synthetic soles like this which are lightweight and very breathable, you can really get to enjoy your shoes on a whole other level. Many people love this lightweight feel they get with their synthetic soles.

High level of flexibility for increased comfort

Yes! This is another reason many people love getting shoes with synthetic soles. These kinds of soles are very elastic and flexible on the feet whenever you get them and whatever weather you wear them.

Although synthetic soles have a solid structure that is meant to last very long, they are still quite flexible and fluid in a way that gives much joy to the shoe wearer.

Synthetic soles really do boost the comfort levels of the shoes when they get flexible enough to make movement much more balanced and easy to make.

Shock-absorbing balance

The EVA material in synthetic soles means that most (if not all) synthetic soles come with the natural ability to absorb the shock that occurs when the feet hit the ground as movement is made.

The shock-absorbing cushioning in synthetic soles gives customers more balance and stability as they move in their awesome shoes.

People using synthetic soles really do appreciate just how protected and cozy their feet feel when they know they are safeguarded from the shock waves, traumas, vibrations, etc. that could damage the feet and potentially ruin the shoes in no time.

How you can make synthetic soles less slippery

Synthetic soles are often only slightly slippery when you first get your shoes, but after a while, they should get more balanced and effective to wear anywhere you go.

Provided you don’t walk on surfaces that are too slippery, you shouldn’t really feel that your synthetic shoe soles are slippery at all.

If you find that your synthetic soles are slippery to wear, there are several ways that you can easily correct that. Some of those ways are –

Wear the shoes for some time to break them in properly
Spray the soles with hair spray
Scruff the synthetic soles with sandpaper
Frequently walk on hard and rough surfaces
Glue some parts of the shoe soles with flat non-slip materials

Wear the shoes for some time to break them in properly

This is the first thing that you have to do whenever you notice that your shoe soles feel a bit slippery.

All you need to do is to break them in properly by wearing them around so that they become more accustomed to your feet and less slippery over time.

Often, your synthetic soles are only slippery because you have not broken them in, or you haven’t broken them in properly.

Simply walking in the shoes (and on the synthetic soles) for some time after your initial purchase should give them all the balance that you require to make them stable on the ground.

If you fail to break in your shoes after you buy them, there could be some more complications that would arise as a result if you are not careful.

Synthetic soles tend to become better after you have broken in your shoes in the most appropriate manner you can. Therefore, wear the shoes often and maintain them properly till they are broken in to become less slippery.

Spray the soles with hair spray

Before putting on your shoes, spray the synthetic shoe soles with several coats of hair spray in order to make them less slippery to wear.

Once you have sprayed one coat of hair spray on the soles, wait a while for that coat to dry up before you apply the coat of hair spray on the synthetic soles.

The chemicals contained in the hair spray (like this one on Amazon) will react with the EVA shoe sole material and then thicken it enough for it to be more balanced on the ground and less slippery.

Several coats of hair spray should do the trick for you in a way that truly satisfies you.

However, you should take note that this is a temporary solution that can only be used once or twice. You often have to spray the shoe soles with hair spray anytime you want to wear them out and this may become stressful for you even though it works.

Spraying the synthetic soles is a temporary solution to the problem but is really very effective and hopefully, your shoe soles will get to become slippery by the time you have done this technique about three times.

Scruff the Synthetic Soles with Sandpaper

Using abrasive materials like sandpaper to functionally scruff the synthetic soles thoroughly is another proven way to make them less slippery.

When this is done, the material becomes more rigid and more accustomed to wet surfaces because of how abraded they have been.

Scrubbing the soles with sandpaper before each wear is an excellent solution that is cost-effective and very quick to do.

Once you abrade the synthetic shoe soles with sandpaper about three times (just like with the hair spray), your shoes should actually become less slippery to wear.

The beauty about this is that you can get sandpaper anywhere for this task. Once you do this, your soles won’t be as slippery as they were before you abraded them with the sandpaper.

Frequently walk-on hard and rough surfaces

Walk on hard and rough surfaces like concrete, granite, etc. So that the texture of your synthetic soles will become tougher and tougher as you wear them.

It is highly recommended that you do this even when you don’t feel that they are slippery at first because these will actually help your shoes to fit better.

This is another easy way to abrade your shoe soles very quickly. Once you do this quite often, you should have no trouble with your synthetic soles at all.

Walk on these rough surfaces as often as you can to properly toughen your shoe soles and begin to enjoy the beauty of having great synthetic shoe soles under your feet.

Glue some parts of the shoe soles with flat non-slip materials

This is a sure-fire way to make your synthetic soles less slippery whenever you wear them. You often don’t need to go this far, but to be on the safe side (and to be triply assured), you might need to get a professional to help you include some comfortable non-slip materials to the bottom of your shoes.

The Non-slip materials that you add at the bottom of your shoes have to be flat and abrasive like sandpaper.

Actually, sandpaper (and its variants) is often a good choice for this task. All you need to do is to line up some parts of the soles (under the heel area, at the top, etc.) with the abrasive materials and your shoes will automatically become less slippery on your feet.

This method is often a permanent solution to the problem and it will safeguard your shoes from any kind of slips in the future once it is done.

Conclusion

Although synthetic soles may appear and feel slippery to you at first, they will definitely tend to become tougher and more balanced on your feet once you wear your new shoes around for some time after you have bought them.

If you duly follow the instructions that have been listed out for you here, your synthetic shoe soles should not give you any problem at all when you walk in your shoes.

Synthetic soles are really great products that can really bring out the best in your shoes at all times.

We hope that you get to duly enjoy your synthetic soles.