I’ve always been hesitant to the idea of owning a pair of dress sneakers. I’ll just come out and say it— they’re not my fave. I needed to come across the perfect shoe (in my opinion) in order to give the dress sneaker a chance. I can now safely report that I have indeed found that shoe. I’ve owned the Vinnie by Marc Nolan for a couple of weeks now and I’d like to share my honest thoughts on it.
1. Aesthetics
Feels like this is starting to become a trend. Regardless, this is what people care about most, and honestly, this was the biggest hurdle that needed to be cleared in my eyes. As I mentioned earlier, dress sneakers were never really my cup of tea. They would always give me old man vibes. I guess, it’s because most people that I’d see wearing them were, well, older men.
But as soon as I came across the image of the shoe on my Instagram feed, my thumb slammed against the phone screen, stopping the flow of the page on a dime.
I was smitten.
Everything about that photo was perfect. So much so that my body just took over, and I commented how I’d style the shoes and make them look even better. It was no joke.
The shoe is described as grey—but from what I’ve experienced, depending on the lighting that you find yourself in, the shoe can also come off as being brown. Now, what I’m about to say is based on personal experience and could be completely incorrect, so keep that in mind.
I’ve noticed, that in dimly lit areas, (like where I shoot YouTube videos) the shoe tends to lean towards a grey color, with hints of brown tones throughout. If I’m in a brightly lit area, mainly with a ton of natural sunlight, then the shoe will lean more towards brown, with grey tones throughout.
With this being said, I don’t want any of you to think that this can present a problem. Oh no my friend, it’s quite the opposite. This pearlescent approach, if you will, opens up so many more possibilities with your outfits. You can now toe the line between pairing with brown tones and grey tones, without having to stick to one color palette. I also like the idea of combining grey and brown-like clothes—then watching the shoe’s hue adapt, ever so slightly to its environment.
The shoe is dotted with perforated holes around the top of the upper, near the eyelets, surrounding the ankle, and around the forefoot, thus creating a cap toe look. This is a subtle way to add interest to the model while still keeping things minimal.
The upper is then attached to an athletic sneaker sole, that doesn’t contrast heavily from the overall approach of the shoe. That’s been one of the biggest issues for me when it comes to dress sneakers—the midsole would either be too chunky, or too athletic, which would create way too much of a contrast in the shoe. The blend is somewhat of a soft landing, being able to retain as much of the classy visual of a dress shoe as possible.
2. Price
One of the main positives that Marc Nolan has going for themselves, is the price point of their shoes. To my understanding, their highest priced item comes in at $150, while the majority of their other shoes clock in around the $110 mark. For how good their lineup is, that’s immense value. The Vinnie is no different. This beautiful shoe will set you back $125. You can pay in installments with Afterpay, or you can pay everything up front. Either way, it’s an absolute steal in my opinion for what you get.
3. Comfort
It’s always such a relief when you purchase shoes that don’t require a break in period. Some shoes just arrive at the doorstep of your feet, already comfortable. As a slight wide footer, I can get pretty nervous about how tight of a fit a dress shoe can have when I first purchase it. The leather is typically super stiff and doesn’t offer as much give as other leather footwear.
Not only is the Vinnie comfortable around my foot, but it’s athletic EVA sole provides a soft cushioned landing spot for my feet with every step. Because of this, I’m able to strut my stuff for prolonged hours. Brunch is a breeze, and a walk through the mall is child’s play. I’ve worn the shoe as much as I could over the past few weeks and I’ve never felt the need to take them off due to discomfort. Usually it hurts to look good, but not in this case.
4. Quality
The leather starts out with a bit of a stiffness to it—which isn’t uncommon amongst leather goods, especially those that are made from a decent piece of leather. The stiffness can mainly be found around the ankle area of the shoe. It was a little difficult to get on at first, even with the shoe horn; but once in, the forefoot didn’t feel stiff at all. Walking was a breeze. The leather has remained somewhat stiff to a certain degree since that first wear, but in a good way.
Another example of the quality of the leather comes from its iridescent-like color blending and it’s patina aesthetic in certain parts of the shoe. Like I’ve stated in my YouTube video, in certain lighting, the shoe looks grey, and in others it looks brown. It could just be me, but I’ve never seen that effect on cheap leather goods. The shoe also has a patina effect going on near the toe portion and the heel of the shoe. The EVA insole always provides quality comfort, with the wax laces adding a nice touch. High quality materials on this model and I expect nothing less from the folks on over at Marc Nolan.
Overall, especially for the price point, I think that this shoe is an absolute no brainer. It’s easily the best dress sneaker that I’ve come across so far, with a colorway that blows all of the others out the water. I do hope that this review was able to shed some decent light onto the model, and maybe you’re able to walk away with a better understanding of whether or not you’d like to purchase this shoe or not.
For my initial impressions, be sure to check out my YouTube video that’s linked here.
As always, thank you guys so much for reading and supporting everything here at Piece Of The Puzzle. I hope that this review served as a pretty informative piece of information. I will leave links down below to all of the places that you can find me at, as well as any links that I can find for these Blazers. You all are amazing. Until we put the pieces together again.
Similar articles: https://pieceofthepuzzlesc.com/nike-blazer-move-to-zero-review/
Marc Nolan Vinnie: https://marcnolan.com/products/vinnie-grey-quarter-brogue-sneakers
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