As I was brainstorming ideas for the third blog of this semester, I was also getting my clothes out for school the next day and found myself trying to decide on the best pair of shoes to wear with my outfit. I then had the realization that said shoes would be a perfect blog topic because I have so many favorites. Thus, I will be ranking my shoes, not necessarily in order, but on the qualities that I think make me love them so much.
1. PRETTIEST
I wrote a blog last semester about the little things that make me extremely happy, and high on that list would be sunsets; therefore, obviously I had to include my shoes that look like a sunset first. These are the Air Jordan 1 High Craft Skyline (high referring to how high up on the ankle they go) that feature a light pinky-orange that fades into a light purple with blue at the very end, with the gradient being flipped on each shoe. The actual colored section is a denim texture, while the white is the standard leather. These shoes conveniently appear to be the Naperville North orange and blue, so they work really well for spirit days and NNHS gear. They’re also very comfortable once you break them in a little. Because there are limited colors, they are not super versatile compared to some of the other shoes on this list, but they are gorgeous so it balances out.
2. MOST VERSATILE
There are quite a few shoes that I have that could fit into this category, but I am only going to talk about the one pair that I like the most. These happen to be my newest pair that I got for Christmas. They are the Air Jordan 1 Mid Patent “Black Gold” with a typical black and white design except that the black material is patent leather, and the swoosh is metallic gold. The only problem with these is that patent leather can be kind of difficult to clean as it gets cloudy sometimes, but as long as you are careful they should be okay (but if you are not careful, a little dish soap and water on a washcloth works). Since they are just black and white, they go nicely with pretty much any outfit, plus I typically wear gold jewelry which matches the gold accents.
3. MOST COLORFUL
A lot of the pairs of shoes that I own tend to feature one or two main colors, except for this pair. They are the Air Jordan 1 Low Easter Pastel, as Jordan tends to release a lot of light-colored shoes in the springtime. There are many shades of pink, purple, and blue, and the colors aren’t consistent on both sides of the shoe as some sections switch. These are fairly easy to match with outfits, they just have to go with some sort of solid color since there is so much going on here. This is one of my favorite colorways because of all of the pastels, which also take up a lot of my closet.
4. MOST TEXTURED
Textured was really the only word that I could think of to describe this category, but it’ll make more sense in a few sentences. The next pair of shoes is the Air Jordan 5 Regal Pink that, which can be seen from the name, are a very light color of pink suede with accents of silver, purple, and blue. The reason why I say they have many different textures is because of all the different materials that can be seen on the shoe. There is a textured piece in the middle of the shoe and an air pocket in the sole. The tongue is made of reflective silver, and the bottoms actually glow in the dark. Thus, they fit this category perfectly. With all of those textures, you may think they are difficult to pair with outfits, but since they are so light they actually go with many different items. They’re also extremely comfortable and do not take the time to break in as Jordan 1s and other styles do. 5s are most well-known for the plastic piece that sits on the laces and keeps them together rather than having to tie them, and overall the shoe has a very interesting silhouette.
Although those are not even close to all the pairs of shoes I own (it’s honestly becoming a problem), those are definitely some of my favorites, largely due to the colorway of each of them. I know not everyone cares about the shoes they wear, but I find them to be a really fun way to add to what I am wearing and would highly recommend looking into getting a pair of nicer ones if you are interested.
kzhang1
Hi Alyza! Your blog was really enjoyable to read and I related to it a lot because I also heavily value my shoe game in my day to day outfits. Although I am not as big of an Air Jordan fan, many of the things that you said in the blog was similar to what I think about when I choose my shoes for my fits. The explanation for your Black Gold ones reminds me of my black high top converses, as they are also my most versatile shoes that go with pretty much every outfit. Very colorful shoes are also very important to me, and I think that they’re perfect for a solid colored outfit (I tend to accidentally dress in all black). I definitely agree with the importance of texture on a shoe as well. The texture of the shoe can completely change the vibe and the quality it is and can be a game changer for a fit.
aahale
I always remember you having great shoes in class, even way back in sophomore year in our first few weeks of homeroom together. Although I’ve never been much of a shoe collector, I definitely agree that shoes can make or break an outfit. I loved reading your categories that you organized your shoes into. Out of the ones you listed, my favorite would probably be your “Most Textured” category because my favorite color is pink! I love that your shoes are a wide range of colors; I feel like I tend to gravitate towards neutrals with my shoes because I wear a lot of colors, but I do love wearing a pair of pink shoes with a pink top (sandwich method!). Also, seeing as you listed mostly Air Jordans, I was wondering why they are your favorite style. They seem to have lots of differents color options and models, so I guess that’s part of it!
tdebnath
Hi Alyza, I can’t lie, when it comes to shoes, I am the farthest possible thing from a sneakerhead. It seems to be too expensive of a lifestyle to maintain and I commend anyone who can do it. For me, I usually buy a single pair of shoes every school year. Sometimes I can even make a pair last for two. However, I realized that while reading your blog, I tend to choose my shoes based off a couple of the categories you mentioned. I think the top of my list would be most versatile (just because I wear my shoes with literally any outfit wherever I go). However, I did like how you chose to break your list down into specific categories rather than just what was your overall favorite, it made for a much more enjoyable read.
Christian Stanicek
What a great topic to address , your shoes. I enjoyed the categories you placed them under. Thanks for a sharing your thoughts and the pictures of your shoes.
kcqueen
Alyza – I love hearing about people’s opinions about the shoes they wear and why they like certain aspects of the shoes they own. I personally am a Converse fan, so my closet is full of Chuck Taylors, but I think all the different Nike sneakers are just as cool. I really like the different categories you included to rank your shoes, especially the one about versatility. I think it’s fascinating how you can match even your gold jewelry to your shoes. That’s honestly really cool. Now that I own so many pairs of high tops myself, I find that I gravitate more towards high tops that are pretty and colorful over versatile just because I already own some pretty versatile shoes. When ranking my shoes, I take into account the memories I have connected to my shoes, so I’d love to know if you also have a pair of Nikes that are your favorite because of a memory connected to the shoe. All in all, super interesting and I’d love to sit down and talk to you about your shoes some more!