Imagine disposing of your moldy old gym shoes, not by chucking them into a donation bin and hoping nobody sees you, but by watching them sprout into a patch of wildflowers in your backyard. OAT’s fully biodegradable sneaker collection, the first of its kind, has all the “good stuff Mother Earth has to offer,” according to the Dutch footwear company. Founded by designer Christiaan Maats in 2008, OAT’s mission is to connect people with their environment in an imaginative way. It does this through its innovative materials: soft, breathable canvas and flexible seed-embedded cork soles that literally go to pot when you bury them.

“It makes sense to make products that are part of the planet we party on,” says Maats. “We all like the nice bits in fashion, so why not make those bits fully biodegradable? You can call it a vintage-killer, but you leave something much better behind: a tree, flowers, or even a cotton plant that provides you with your new shirt.”

“You can call it a vintage-killer, but you leave something much better behind,” says Maats.

With multiple collaborations in the works, OAT will debut its Virgin collection in Europe come spring, with a limited 900-piece run that we’re certain will plant the seeds of something much.

Pictured above - OAT's new "Limited Skin" Collection is a series of high- and low-tops lined with organic-cotton fleece and soft pique cotton. The leathers, a product of Hulshof Royal Dutch Tanneries in Lichtenvoorde, are tanned using nontoxic agents and 100 percent biodegradable when you bury them underground.

You can buy a pair of these on their website here

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