Toe Spacer Sock and Corrective Footwear

Abstract

An article of footwear, such as a sock, sandal, shoe or boot, contains built-in cushions or spacers to correct or protect the toes, or to provide the wearer better comfort. The cushions or spacers may be retained between the toes in a tube, formed integrally with the sock, which is everted to a position between adjacent toes. The footwear may have an integral toe-correcting strap built in to provide outward tension on the big toe.

I claim: 
     
         1 . An article of footwear having integral individual toe compartments sufficient for receiving the toes of a wearer, and at least one additional compartment between said toe compartments for receiving and retaining a cushion or toe spacer placed therein. 
     
     
         2 . The invention of  claim 1 , wherein the additional compartment is tubular, is longer than the other compartments, and is open at its distal end, whereby a cushion or toe spacer may be inserted into the compartment at the end of the compartment inverted to retain the cushion or spacer therein. 
     
     
         3 . The invention of  claim 2 , wherein the tubular additional compartment is connected to the footwear by a neck portion having a diameter substantially less than that of the tube, so as to retain the tube within the footwear once the tube is everted. 
     
     
         4 . The invention of  claim 1 , wherein the article of footwear is a shoe, a shoe insert, a boot, a sandal, a sock or a slipper. 
     
     
         5 . An article of footwear comprising a strap anchored to the footwear, said strap being connected to or forming a loop which extends around the big toe to prevent the big toe from deforming into a crooked bunion toe, or to correct a slightly bent one. 
     
     
         6 . The invention of  claim 5 , wherein the strap is elastic. 
     
     
         7 . The invention of  claim 6 , wherein the elastic strap extends from the loop, between inner and outer layers of the footwear, along an inside edge of the foot, around the heel, thence along the outside of the foot to an anchorage point. 
     
     
         8 . The invention of  claim 8 , wherein the strap is anchored to the footwear by a hook-type Velcro fastener element for engaging loops in the footwear material. 
     
     
         9 . The invention of  claim 5 , wherein the article of footwear is a shoe, a shoe insert, a boot, a sandal, a sock or a slipper.