The greatest sneakers that ever existed..... just out of my grasp.

June 21, 2024 6:46 PM

I'm looking to buy another pair of the most beautiful perfect shoes that ever existed. Help me find them somewhere out there! They're sneakers by Camper, in a navy blue sparkley color with dark blue soles.

5 or 6 years ago, i bought a pair of Camper sneakers in Prague. They are the best shoes of my life. So comfortable, so versatile, and every time I wear them, I get compliments. They're technically sneakers but you can wear them with a dress too. But now, alas they are falling apart and ready to be tossed.

I MUST find another pair! I've looked through Camper's website with no luck. I did find the exact shoe listed on Poshmark here but its juuuuuust a little too small. I'm an 8.5 and these are an 8. I'm so mad!

I emailed Camper and the Poshmark seller, asking if they have any suggestions, but I'm not hopeful I'll hear back. Anyone have any suggestions of where I could find them, or I guess suggest a similar shoe? The parts I like are the sparkley blue color and the dark sole. And the dark, no-tie shoelaces. UGH they're so great.

posted by silverstatue to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (8 answers total)

This style is called Camper Hoops if that helps at all. It looks like there aren't many online which makes sense given how long ago you bought them.

DSW has these which have a similar vibe. If you're willing to compromise on the dark sole, Ked's, Converse, and Superga all have options. You can put dark no-tie shoelaces in any shoe.
posted by notjustthefish at 7:12 PM on June 21

In case black-on-black is an adequate substitute, maybe this suede pair from Cariuma would work? Or if you really want blue but can forego the dark sole, there are two options in blue canvas: 1, 2. They also do a lot of seasonal/limited edition colorways, so it's entirely possible they might come out with a blue-on-black option at some point as well.

I am crazy about my Cariumas -- they are the only stylish sneaker I've found that actually fit well, are extremely comfortable, and look great. In my experience, they run a tiny bit narrow (which is fine for me, hence why they actually fit properly) and a tiny bit short (I go up half a size).
posted by paper scissors sock at 7:51 PM on June 21

Check eBay and save a few eBay searches, like "Camper Hoops" "Blue Camper" "Camper Sneakers" "Camper Trainers" "Navy Camper" "Camper 8.5". Keep in mind that many clothing resellers just buy random stuff at garage sales and thrift shops, so they don't know the official model, age, or colour name of the items they're selling. This means it's best to be quite general in your search terms, even though that will of course give you a lot of hits for the wrong shoe. On eBay, you can set alerts so you get an email every day with any new Campers that get posted.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 7:52 PM on June 21

Oh and here's the model number: SKU: Camper K200604-009 Navy/Silver.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 7:56 PM on June 21

Not a direct answer but the shoes you linked are not dissimilar to my dr martens black canvas sneakers which are mega comfortable and get me.compliments too. They could absolutely be laced in a similar elastic manner.
posted by Iteki at 1:05 AM on June 22

seconding the incredible power of ebay alerts-
set some and wait. i will say that affordable, comfortable shoes are a zone of ebay alert that is less fruitful than obscure pins, electronics, or other vintage clothing, but it does happen.
posted by wowenthusiast at 5:39 AM on June 22

Vinted is the place to be for European 2nd hand stuff:
Check these:
https://www.vinted.nl/items/4458784871-camper-shoes-woman
posted by Thisandthat at 7:34 PM on June 22

OMG Thisandthat! What a great find! I never even heard of Vinted. I just messaged the seller, asking if they ship to the US. As long as they say yes, I will get my shoes! Thank you soooo much :)
posted by silverstatue at 11:58 AM on June 23