With Birkenstocks making a cool comeback in recent years, it's understandable that you might find yourself rocking a pair of these sandals throughout the warmer months. However, if you're basically living in them, you'll probably want to know how to make your Birkenstocks not smell, because nobody is immune to stinky sandals.
As a human being, your feet are likely going to sweat during summer — it's just what bodies do — so you'll surely experience an occasion when, possibly post exercise or during a particularly sweltering day, the stench of your feet makes your eyes water. Don't sweat it; there's no need to be embarrassed about your natural bodily functions. However, the odor of your feet might become a problem if it embeds into your beloved Birkenstocks. You may be surprised at how sandals can become smelly considering they're open to the air, but it does happen, so you'll need a contingency plan if you find yourself in this predicament.
The slightly frustrating thing about stinking sandals is that the stench can be difficult to hide. When your gym sneakers pong to high heaven, it doesn't matter so much when you're wearing them (unless they're really whiffy) because your feet make it more of a challenge for the scent to escape. But, with sandals, the funk can diffuse outwards more easily as they're much more open to the elements.
Don't worry: There are some things you can do to rid yourself of the smell. Check out the cool no-more-stanky-feet tips below.
Borax Paste
This tutorial shows how to create a Borax paste by mixing Borax Detergent Booster and water together, then applying a couple of layers to the footbed of your Birkies. See the video for full (and simple) instructions to get your Birkenstocks squeaky clean again.
Rubbing Alcohol For Rubber Sole Birkenstocks
This video provides a quick and easy fix to take the stink out of your sandals. Although it's worth mentioning that rubbing alcohol may affect the suede soles of regular Birkenstocks, but it'll likely work a treat on the rubber sole Birkenstocks that are a vegan friendly style too; just check them periodically while drying to ensure the rubbing alcohol hasn't caused any damage.
DIY Shoe Powder For New Birkenstocks
This DIY powder will help to keep your footwear smelling fresh instead of funky. I'm not sure how useful this will be on old Birkenstocks that are seriously stinky — it's probably still worth a try though — so it might be a good idea to use this from the get go with a new (or fairly new) pair of Birkenstocks that haven't got a strong odor yet.
Show your fave sandals some love and follow these tutorials to get your Birkenstocks feeling and most importantly, smelling, like new again. Stinky sandal feel will be a thing of the past.
