Changes are afoot at the Softstar workshop! If you follow us regularly then you know we spent most of 2016 renovating a historic building to be the new home of Softstar Shoes (originally a roller skating rink from 1950 that shut down many years ago). As much as we loved our cozy space in the small town of Corvallis...

As December comes to a close, we find ourselves reminiscing about everything that happened this year. Between the exciting summer Olympics, a long election season and bittersweet farewells to some of our favorite celebrities, 2016 is certainly a year to remember. Don't even get me started on my hometown Chicago Cubs winning the world series for the first time in...

Had your fill of cookies, carols, and couch-surfing with the relatives? Ready to tackle those New Year's wellness resolutions, but not sure how to start? Getting active after the holidays is great, but you don't need to shell out for a gym membership when you've got the whole big, wide world as your playground! We've got the PERFECT belated gift to...

Softstar is proud to feature this guest essay by Jennifer Gwirtz, Mind/Body Professional, Facilitator and Teacher (Pilates, GYROKINESIS®, performance and therapeutic movement). Over her 15+ years of experience, Jennifer has delighted in exploring the relationship between mental and physical balance, particularly at the origin of stability: the foot.  Understanding Resilience: Follow the Bouncing Ball... Resilience has been on my mind a...

It's the end of the year, holidays are fast approaching and our new workshop is sooooo close to completion! Utilities are up and running, the new showroom is ready to greet customers and our fancy green slide is mounted in place. We're all ready to move, but we're waiting for our holiday rush to be over to maintain the sanity of...

In our previous "Natural Learning" post, we explored the rise of outdoor schools, or "forest kindergartens," across America (and their origins abroad). Even after all that research, we still had some questions about what it's really like to opt into this alternative learning setting. We asked Soft Star's good friend and natural living inspiration, Katy Bowman, to discuss her family's first-hand experiences...

If you're not already familiar with Katy Bowman then I highly recommend looking her up, especially if you crave a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle. The renowned biomechanist has published several books on natural movement and human development, and her research has been a big inspiration for our shoe designers at Softstar. We have been sharing Katy's work on this blog...