I sometimes buy trainers second hand via eBay. I know, I know - I used to think it was gross too. However, I've realised that there are lots of people who will wear a pair once or twice and for whatever reason immediately sell it on. It's cheaper and less wasteful, plus I always wear them with socks, so it's not like there's direct skin contact. Up until now, I've been delighted with the condition of every pair I've received.
A few days ago, I ordered and received a white pair of Nike AF1s to replace a pair that's been going for 12 years. They looked good on the pics, and they look fine in real life too - not brand new but white and no major damage.
The problem, however, is that they STINK of (what I assume is) bleach. Wearing them is smell hell, my socks honk when I take them off, I can't even be in the same room as the trainers (or the socks!), and whenever I pick them up to move them to another room/into a bag, I need to wash my hands afterwards.
I should mention that I am not someone who is sensitive to smell, I happily lived about a fishmonger during my final year at uni... If anything, I find a bleach smell reassuring, but this is just so overpowering and disgusting.
So my working theory is that they've been bleached to death. However, if I wear white socks with them, the socks are covered in yellowy-brown stains afterwards, even after a 30min round trip to the nearest shop (I haven't gone any further in them due to the smell!) What's that all about?
So... what is going on here? I guess I'll contact the seller to complain, but before I do so, I want to make sense of what the hell has happened to these poor AF1s...