What do you get when you combine the upper of the perfect dress shoe with the sole of a casual sneaker? The perfect summer shoe that’s what! We’re gonna deep dive into the ins and outs of the Marc Nolan Kyler double monk sneaker, and see just what this bad boy is about. So let’s hop on into this Marc Nolan Kyler Sneaker Review!
1. Looks
Let’s just go ahead and get the easiest part out of the way first. Not only is this style of footwear unique, but my god does this particular model look incredible! The shoe is more so attractive in its simple but captivating design, than if it was loud and obnoxious. The color scheme could have been all white, but yet the upper is a pearl colorway instead. Most of the other colorways of this model come in a standard smooth leather, but this one offers a tumbled or “pebble” leather upper.
The gold accents on the buckle shimmer in the light. All small shifts that allow this shoe to pop even more. It’s different. And I’ve been quoted with saying “different doesn’t always mean good,” but it surely does in this case. There’s almost nothing quite as comforting as that off scene “oh!” from a passerby who ganders at your feet for the first time. We’ve all been there. And we’ve all grinned coyly in our minds as that sound gently pierced our eardrums. Yeah, I’ve experienced a few of those already with these shoes. You can be safe with the standard casual white sneaker, but who wants to be safe? Take it up a notch. You’ll be glad you did.
2. Construction
This shoe turned out to be more than meets the eye, or I suppose in my case it was less than meets the eye? Seeing as I ordered the shoe online, I didn’t get a chance to actually hold it and inspect it as I normally would with an in person purchase. I was under the impression that it would basically be a double monk dress shoe, just with a rubber sole; meaning that I expected the straps on the upper to be an actual portion of the shoe that is needed to actually put it on and secure it to your foot. But that’s not the case at all.
Usually, a double monk’s upper is split into three pieces; a left, middle and right, with the left and right usually being the straps themselves. But this shoe is basically a slip-on sneaker, that happens to have two “straps.” Now, I was taken aback a little because, while the buckles are functional, they aren’t exactly needed to put the shoe on or take it off. Hell, you can probably snip them and they’d still fit the same way. It’s functional, as it does buckle and unbuckle, but it’s more of an aesthetic feature than one that will be used. The insole has a small Marc Nolan engraving in a gold color to zhuzh things up a little. The midsole and outsole do however attract dirt very easily.
Other than that, the shoe construction is very simple. It’s essentially one single upper. According to the specifications online, the entire upper is made from calfskin leather. This creates a very soft shoe, almost buttery soft, especially around the tongue area. The leather is very soft but doesn’t feel flimsy, and it becomes very taut around the collar of the shoe, helping to prevent it from warping severely in any one direction.
3. Material Quality
As stated earlier in this Marc Nolan Kyler sneaker review, the upper is constructed using calfskin leather, in a tumbled pattern. The best judgment of the materials is in the tongue of the shoe. It’s thin but just thick enough that it’s able to stand confidently on its own. If there’s an area that may feel flimsy, it’s the tip of the straps, but you honestly have no business unbuckling it so don’t even worry. The positive thing about tumbled leather is that it’s more forgiving against creases in the forefoot as it tends to blend in and look more like how the shoe naturally came.
The midsole is firm and has a solid heftiness to it. You won’t mistake it for a modern running shoe, but it still feels light once on your feet. As stated before though, the midsole and outsole do get very dirty very fast. I don’t even remember walking through dirt, yet you couldn’t tell that I didn’t if you looked at the shoe.
4. Comfort
This is one of the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever worn, and I’ve worn an unhealthy amount of shoes. Fresh out the box, easily a top 10 in comfort. The upper isn’t snug, it’s inviting and although the website doesn’t specify, I believe the shoe has some form of a TPU foam insole which does the heavy lifting in the comfort department. The website doesn’t carry half sizes, and so they suggest that you size down instead of sizing up. Heed their words. I went with a 9 instead of my typical 9.5 and it’s perfect. There’s a tiny gap between my ankle and the collar, but that’s to be expected since I’ve only worn no show socks with these so far. But I’ve already spent multiple hour sessions in these bad boys and never was I in a rush to take them off.
5. Extra goodies
As you may have noticed from my unboxing video, I always appreciate it when a company includes little knick-knacks with your purchase. That’s extra resources that can be used elsewhere, that they just throw in for free. In other words, that’s money being used. I guess the return on those extras would be the hope that you appreciate the little gifts and you return to buy more of their products. I know I am. And the best part about these little gifts is that they serve a purpose.
Dustbags help keep your shoes fresher and attribute to a longer shelf life. Shoe horns aid in you slipping your heel in and out without having to bend and crush the back of your shoe as you jam your feet inside. You can also use those gifts with other shoes in your collection! Like people always say, it’s the little things that matter.
And with that, we’re now at the end of yet another blog post! Thanks so much for reading my Marc Nolan Kyler Sneaker Review! I love making this kind of content for you guys and the support means absolutely everything to me! If you want to check out my unboxing video for these bad boys, then head on over to my YouTube channel here! If you’re interested in more style guides then click here and here!
Till we put the pieces together again peeps! Stay safe!
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