Krazy Mary's Boutique is bringing fashion and philanthropy together this weekend.

This Saturday, Aug. 1, from 3 until 8 p.m. the ladies of the trendy boutique and its sister store Sugar Shack will be hosting an awareness and pre-sale event to help bring attention to the popular eco-friendly shoe line's charitable efforts.

Started in 2006, the TOMS footwear line began when founder Blake Mycoskie visited Argentina and was struck by the amount of people who didn't have something that many people take for granted: shoes. He decided to redesign the "alpargatas," the flat moccasin-like shoes typically worn by locals, and started his "One for One" program that donates one pair of shoes to a child in need for every pair purchased.

Since the program began, TOMS has donated more than 140,000 shoes to children in countries like Argentina and Africa during their shoes drop tours. Sacramentans will have a chance to contribute to the next one in Argentina, scheduled for September.

Debbie Millanova, a sales associate at Krazy Mary's and the main coordinator for the event, said that the event is important to the boutique not only to meet the recent high-demand of the shoes but because it is for such a good cause.

The shoes normally range from $40 to $70 and are available in a variety of colors and fabrics. Rope, canvas, rubber, hemp are just some of the materials used to design the shoes.

The boutiques began carrying the footwear since fall of last year but experienced dismal sales until TOMS began receiving more public recognition. The shoes have recently been splashed across the pages of fashion magazines, and Mycoskie is currently featured in an AT&T commerical praising the company for their service that helps him do his job.

Seven new styles of the footwear will be brought in for Saturday's event and shoppers will be able to pre-order styles from the not-yet-seen fall collection. While the boutique normally only carries the women's lines, they will be pre-selling and showing men's designs for the first time, after receiving many calls from customers searching for them in the past few months.

A fashion show, with makeup and hair done by Sacramento's Moxy Hair salon, will incorporate the shoes, and DJ Roger will be spinning indi-pop beats throughout the evening. As a reminder that the event is about more than just fancy footwear, a TOMS promotional video explaining the company will be played during the event.

A TOMS rep will be on hand to answer questions about the shoes and the company, and after the fashion show a raffle will be held to giveaway TOMS t-shirts.To beat the heat, ice cold lemonade and fresh fruit will be served to shoppers.

TOMS shoes are also carried at Madame Butterfly in the Pavilions shopping center in Sacramento. Whole Foods Markets sells an exclusive line of TOMS, which are made of hemp and other non-leather materials. The TOMS line also offers childrens shoes, called Tiny TOMS, which can purchased on their website at www.tomsshoes.com.

To learn more about the company and find out how to get involved, watch the TOMS story

Krazy Mary's is located at 2527 J St.

 
Image of Krazy Mary's current TOMS window display, courtesy of Krazy Mary's