Best Foot Forward: A Sneaker Series (Part 11)

After what has been an unseasonably cool springtime in Georgia, the temperature is beginning to increase every day, and not every shoe in my collection is viable without risk of heat stroke anymore. I’ve sold some of my shoes recently and purchased more summer-friendly pairs which I’ve coveted for a long time. Part of these purchases were also rewarding myself for earning all As at school during the Spring 2020 semester, a feat I’m proud of given the circumstances and challenges presented by the pandemic. Let’s break down two of my collection’s most recent additions.

Pair 1 (Left): Air Jordan 5 Retro “Fire Red”

Nike’s SNKRS app which utilizes a raffle system to randomly give users the chance to purchase a pair of shoes hasn’t historically been kind to me. I can count the amount of pairs I’ve secured through this app on one hand, while the Ls I’ve collected using it are endless. Recently, however, I was lucky enough to pick up a pair of the classic “Fire Red" Air Jordan 5, one of my favorite colorways of this particular silhouette of all time. Black, white, and red are some of my favorite colors, and the details on this pair such as the reflective tongue and translucent icy outsole made this a must-cop in my opinion. Can’t wait to give these the wear and tear they deserve.

Pair 2 (Right): Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 V2 “Zebra”

One of the most highly-coveted Adidas Yeezy colorways of all time, the “Zebra” has been an elusive pair which I’ve been meaning to add to my collection since they originally released in 2017. The design here is both loud and lowkey, the perfect option to pair with distressed jeans or sweat shorts during hot summer days. While I don’t agree with Kanye’s current political views, I stand for the systemic change he promoted in his early days of rapping and producing. I guess you could say I miss the old Kanye.

And there we have it. Two of the newest pairs in my collection. I’m very grateful for the sneakers that I have, and for the amazing athlete and musician who made them as amazing as they did. Luckily, I’ll have another “Best Foot Forward” post coming soon, as these two pairs aren’t the only ones I’ve snagged recently. Stay tuned, and thanks for reading.

Best Foot Forward: A Sneaker Series (Part 10)

While getting used to my new daily schedule consisting of online homework and missing everyone due to social distancing, I’m going to attempt to continually post on this blog. Today, I’m bringing back my Best Foot Forward series to highlight two recent sneaker pickups of the Michael Jordan variety. One of a very highly-coveted collaboration, and another is a low key classic silhouette in a clean, understated colorway. Let’s get into it.

Pair 1 (Left): Travis Scott X Air Jordan 1 High Retro “Mocha”

Travis Scott is known for unconventional creativity, and his collaboration with Jordan on the Air Jordan 1 is no exception. Scott has quickly become one of the biggest collaborators in the sneaker world, as his popularity continues to grow in music, fashion, and pop culture. This pair features Cactus Jack branding throughout, an oversized backwards swoosh, and an intriguing mocha-colored upper with a cream-colored midsole. This pair can be worn boldly or subtly, and I’m lucky to have these in my collection.

Pair 2 (Right): Air Jordan 4 Retro “Black Cat”

Anyone who knows me knows how much I like to wear all black. When I saw that Jordan Brand would be re-releasing the Black Cat Air Jordan 4 after many years, I knew I had to add these to my collection. I find that the lack of color lets the shoe’s brilliant design shine on its own, as its sleek silhouette benefits from the minimalistic design of this pair. I can’t wait to beat these up.

I’m hopeful that there will still be exciting sneaker releases throughout the calendar year despite all that is going on in the world. For now, I’m going to continue appreciating what I have. Look forward to more posts coming soon. Stay healthy.

Best Foot Forward: A Sneaker Series (Part 9)

I’m delighted to be bringing back one of my favorite blog series for another installment today. Back in November, I posted what was, at the time, the last of my Best Foot Forward series. Luckily since then, I’ve been able to pick up a couple of long-awaited pairs which I will be showcasing in this post. I’m really lucky to have these two pairs. Let’s get into it.

Pair 1 (Left): Air Jordan 11 Retro “Bred”

By the time of the Chicago Bulls 1995-96 season, Michael Jordan was already a 3-time NBA champion and widely regarded as one of the best players of all-time. That year, MJ led the Bulls to a 72-10 record and an NBA title, all while wearing the Tinker Hatfield-crafted Air Jordan 11 silhouette, which is Jordan’s own favorite pair from his signature line. The black and red colorway featured here is one of the most iconic sneakers around, and I’m lucky to finally have these in my collection.

Pair 2: (Right): Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 V2 “Black Non-Reflective”

After releasing an abundance of similarly-hued 350 V2 silhouettes, Kanye West finally blessed those of us who had been waiting for another black Yeezy to release. If you throw black and red on any shoe, I’m automatically much more likely to try to get my hands on it. This pair is sleek and stealthy but still features loud design elements like the 3M lace accents and white boost on the bottom of the outsole. This may be one of my personal favorite shoes that Kanye has ever released, and I’m going to be holding onto these for a long time.

Straight to the point. Short and sweet. I only had two new pairs to feature here opposed to the usual four, but I think these two amazing pairs will suffice. Thanks for reading, and hopefully I will be back with Part 10 of this series soon!

Best Foot Forward: A Sneaker Series (Part 8)

The stage is set, and you know what that thumbnail means: A low-lighting and slightly blurry picture of four of my shoes signifies another new installment of my Best Foot Forward series. I knew this day would come eventually, but I have to admit it’s here sooner than I was expecting… this is going to be the last part of this series for a long time. I’m still going to be posting other topics regularly (especially once this semester wraps up), but I’ve simply run out of sneakers to cover after this post is uploaded. This is bittersweet because I wish I had more to share on the blog, but I’ve been able to reflect on the collection that I love so much. That’s okay, though, as there are many more series that I’ll be able to begin shortly. For now, lets check out these last four pairs.

Pair 1 (Upper Left): Air Jordan 6 Retro “Infrared”

These are the sneakers that Michael Jordan wore as he transcended the rest of the league and began what would go on to become one of the most prolific NBA Finals careers of all time. After years of coming up short of the finals, the 1991 Chicago Bulls made it to the biggest stage and beat the Los Angeles Lakers handedly in their series, 4-1. As we all know now, Michael Jordan went on to win 5 more final series without a single finals loss, but it all started with ring #1 in the Jordan 6. Happy to have this pair in my collection.

Pair 2 (Upper Right): Timberland 6-Inch Construction Boot in Black

All black everything. I talked about the brown alternative to these boots in this post, and even though they are the same model, these two pairs of Timberland 6-inch boots are entirely different vibes. This pair has become a streetwear staple in 2019 after years of popularity in the 2000’s. I like to pair these with rugged streetwear fits and pieces like my distressed black denim jacket. Perfect boots for frigid winter days.

Pair 3 (Lower Left): Represent Work Boot in Black Leather

To the untrained eye, these look incredibly similar to the black Timberlands I just talked about. That’s the case for the trained eye, too… the two are very similar boots. The main difference and reason that I like these so much, though, is that they’re able to be dressed up more than black Timbs but less than black SLP Wyatts. These are a perfect middle-ground pair of boots with a very comfortable and durable crepe sole. I need to show these more love.

Pair 4 (Lower Right): Nike Killshot II in Navy / Gum

Reddit’s favorite sneaker, and for good reason. This pair goes with almost every outfit. I primarily wear these in the summer and spring because the navy swoosh doesn’t go with my primarily black fall/winter wardrobe, but that isn’t to say they’re condemned to the closet for the cold months. These are very reasonably priced, look better with wear, and bring together most warm-weather outfits.

And that concludes Best Foot Forward: A Sneaker Series for now. I’m sure there will be occasional future installments as I add more pairs to the collection, but with my current mindset of quality over quantity, that may take some time. That’s okay, though. This series has allowed serious reflection on my collection and led me to be very grateful for the amazing and diverse collection I’ve been fortunate enough to cultivate. Thank you for reading, learning, and appreciating such a random thing like sneakers with me. You’ll hear from me again soon.

Best Foot Forward: A Sneaker Series (Part 7)

Spending yesterday’s rainy afternoon walking around SneakerCon Atlanta with my girlfriend has me excited to write and post Part 7 of Best Foot Forward. Two of the pairs that I will cover today are nostalgic to me, and the other two are new additions to my collection that I’m happy to have.

Pair 1 (Upper Left): Nike Blazer ‘77 in Vintage White

This 2019 release went under the radar to a certain degree. While the Nike X Off-White collaboration brought some attention back to the Blazer silhouette, this specific non-collaborative pair isn’t making many best-of lists for the year. That doesn’t take away from how much I enjoy this pair, though. A bold contrasting black swoosh stands out from the white leather upper, and this pair goes nicely with nearly any outfit. Perfect shoe going into the Fall season.

Pair 2 (Upper Right): Common Projects Achilles Low in Black / White

Since covering this pair in a recent clothing haul post, I’ve worn these multiple times and I’m loving them. A simple black and white color scheme pairs perfectly with monochromatic looks, and the sleek silhouette of the CP Achilles will never go out of style. Not much else to say here besides the fact that I see these getting a lot of wear over the next couple months.

Pair 3 (Bottom Left): Air Jordan 3 Retro “Black Cement”

This specific pair of Jordan’s are one of the first Jordan shoes I remember discovering, and upon seeing them I thought they were one of the coolest and most unique designs I had seen. Black and red is hard to mess up, but introducing elephant print is certainly a gamble. Luckily enough, the Jordan 3 pulls it off, and this iconic pair is one of the biggest streetwear staples.

Pair 4 (Bottom Right): Nike Air Force 1 High “Wheat”

This is a simple pair of Air Force 1s in a simple light brown colorway, but there is more significance that makes this pair special to me. I wore these a lot right around the time I met my girlfriend two years ago, so I associate them with very nostalgic and happy times. This will always be a special pair to me for that very reason.

What makes a pair of sneakers special isn’t how much they cost or how hyped up they are, but instead the personal significance they have to you. Every pair that I have in my collection makes me happy in one way or another, and I love being part of a sneaker-loving community who shares the same passion as I do for what is such a trivial thing to the average person. Thanks for reading my post!