The modern man's saddle shoe?

February 28, 2008 8:15 PM

Help me find some hip sneakers?

I live in a college town, and I always see these college kids with the skinny jeans and the swooshy hair and the sullen half-dazed look and almost universally they are wearing awesome sneakers. These sheos, they've got bold colors. They're flashy, but not gaudy. They make a statement. That statement is, "I'm cool."

I am not a hip chick. But I want the hip shoes.

And so: I'm looking your suggestions for the most cutting-edge or trendy in sneakers; for hip, youngish-looking, retro- or futuristic-inspired shoes. Ideas? Websites? The pair you've been secretly eyeballing for the past three months?

posted by irregardless to clothing, beauty, & fashion (22 comments total)

Funny, I just went through the same question, and almost asked on Mefi too. I'd suggest browsing the websites of sneaker companies -- stores often have limited selections, but the company's websites (or other online stores) carry everything. I especially like Amazon, since they let you sort by "50-70% off"! For my money, Adidas is the best bet for "hip and flashy but not gaudy" styles.
posted by tweebiscuit at 8:17 PM on February 28, 2008

Zappos.com is where I find my awesome shoes, and you can find some pretty good deals. Onitsuka Tigers seem particularly hot right now.
posted by EL-O-ESS at 8:30 PM on February 28, 2008

I don't know if you're talking about scene kids.. but you might want to reconsider the whole "cool" thing. But if you insist... the gaudier stuff includes Nikes, Lakais, and multicolored Converse Chuck Taylors and Vans.

I urge you to buy a couple pairs of NORMAL-COLORED vans and connies (if you don't have them already) and break em in. Save money, match all your jeans and shirts. Done. If you already have them, just buy some NICE shoes! Jeez.

I love your handle, btw.
posted by crunch buttsteak at 8:32 PM on February 28, 2008

I'm probably going to get beat up for suggesting this, but I think Bapes are really fun. That website, I can almost guarantee, only sells knockoffs. I think the real things only come from the Bathing Ape stores. The actual Bathing Ape website is bape.com but they make you download something to look at it, which is weak sauce.


also, i bought the dopest pair of adidas the other day from motive807, which coincidentally just opened an online store.


I will say this though: sometimes I feel like I'm not cool enough to wear fun shoes. Also, I've heard on the internets that Bathing Ape is for white people who want to be black. So, you know, caveat emptor and all that.
posted by hapticactionnetwork at 8:34 PM on February 28, 2008

The first pair of shoes that come to mind when I think about bold colors are Pumas, Onitsuka Tigers, and Roos. I'd second the vans and chuck taylors though if you're just looking for something hip.

Also if you're buying bright colors you should try and stay away from suede if you want to keep the same level of brightness past a couple of rainy days.
posted by woolylambkin at 9:04 PM on February 28, 2008

My first thought, and you can all berate me if you want for not really being cool, was, "buy some canvas sneakers and hand-paint them yourself." At least my way is cheap. ; )
posted by misha at 9:14 PM on February 28, 2008

Listen to Nelly, it's all about the Air Force Ones.
posted by Frank Grimes at 9:21 PM on February 28, 2008

Creative Recreation and ALIFE are big. Creative Recreation are available here and other places. Nike, Reebok, Asics; all are getting on the hipcolor bandwagon.
posted by wemayfreeze at 9:33 PM on February 28, 2008

Karmaloop.com always seems to have online what I see in a lot of local boutiques, and for cheaper. Their shoe selection is pretty good, and they frequently have sales.
posted by Hackworth at 9:43 PM on February 28, 2008

Seconding Tigers. Super-hip.
posted by doppleradar at 9:48 PM on February 28, 2008

Heh, sneakers. I collect sneakers. Sounds like we don't have similar taste, but I can give you some suggestions as to what is currently big in the sneaker world, and maybe you might like a couple.

Starting with what your local douche indie kids might be wearing, there are the marc jacobs vans. here's an example.
http://www.pickyourshoes.com/vans/vans_classic_slip_on_mj_wingtip.htm
ooo! irony! There are a whole bunch of these. just google "Vans LX" or marc jacobs vans" and you should find some vans that don't suck or are available at hot topic.

Also, there are the dunks. These have been big for a while. Here's an example:
http://www.pickyourshoes.com/new2/nike_wmns_dunk_lo_cerise_blk_gum.htm
or
http://www.rareairshoes.com/Casual/Casual%20Pages/Dunk_SB_Tiffany.htm
They come in millions of different animal skins, colorways, whatever. Literally, millions. If you live in LA, SF, or NY, try local shopping at UNDFTD, Nort, or Supreme. (undftd.com, reconstore.com, and supremenewyork.com)

Currently, among the apeshit collectors, New Balances, Particularly Japanese New Balances, are hot. check out stuff like this:
http://www.hypebeast.com/tags/New-Balance?page=1
Pages, and pages. I just picked up a pair myself.

Lastly, there's the adidas oddity collection, if you are really shooting for just plain colorful.
http://www.pickyourshoes.com/size/adidas_all_black.htm

And, as always, I am a hater when it comes to onitsuka tiger. I even have a pair, they're beautiful, but they are the most uncomfortable shoes ever. Yech. Oh yeah, and don't actually buy the shoes from pick yourshoes.com. I am pretty sure they're fake. Use something a little more reputable, like the sites mentioned by others. And, of course, for the rare, there's always flight club. http://www.flightclubla.com/

Good Luck!
posted by wuzandfuzz at 10:17 PM on February 28, 2008 [2 favorites has favorites]

Onitsuka Tigers are the generic cool choice. Lightweight, not too expensive, absurd range of colours to suit any outfit! I recommend white with blue / red details for a blue jeans sort of thing. And disagreeing with wuz, my Tigers are super-comfortable - I suppose it comes down to your foot shape. I'd stay away from Dunks if you're otherwise a plainish dresser, they're pretty gaudy. Otherwise there are Adidas and Puma sneakers that are similar in concept to Tigers, if you want to browse around.
posted by nicolas léonard sadi carnot at 10:50 PM on February 28, 2008

Onitsuka Tigers are super trendy, although wuzandfuzz nailed it: they aren't super comfortable (they have no arch support, what-so-ever). I actually kind of feel like a ninja when I wear them. Woolylambkin named 4 of the shoes I immediately thought of: Roos, Tigers, Chuck Taylors, and Pumas. My brother has a pair of Roos, and whenever I've snagged them they're very comfortable. His are bright blue with yellow accents, talk about colorful. Give woolylambkin a sweet glowy box around their post, because that's what you're looking for.
posted by whiskey point at 10:53 PM on February 28, 2008

i think you might be talking about multi-color Reeboks like these or these Kanye West designed Reeboks
posted by gnutron at 11:09 PM on February 28, 2008

I still thought sauconys were hip. Am I passe?
posted by DanielDManiel at 1:06 AM on February 29, 2008

There are also Reebok Freestyle Hi, which is what I pictured when I read the question. I had the hot-pink pair I linked above, in 1986, but they made a comeback I guess.

Nike Blazers, Dunks and Air Force 1s are also good. My all-time favourites, though, are Chuck Taylors.

Beware: opening yourself up to the world of sneakers inevitably leads to incurable kicks fetish. It's brutal -- a few years ago after I bought a couple of cute pairs of Blazers for cheap at a Marshall's in the US, I found myself with saved searches on Ebay emailing me and everything. BE CAREFUL.
posted by loiseau at 1:44 AM on February 29, 2008

Sounds like you need some gaudy vintage style Nikes. As mentioned, AF1s, Dunk Hi's, Blazers, Vandals, Court Force, Jordan Retros ect will do the trick.

A quick google wil give you a million stores but fill yer boots at Shoe York and just keep on going....
posted by brautigan at 3:51 AM on February 29, 2008

This is going to sound lame but I have a wicked cool pair of leather shoe sneakers that I got from Timberland. 2nd cool Italian looking pair of Timberland shoes I've had and they last forever.

They are not supremely cool, they are kind of understated cool.
posted by sully75 at 5:50 AM on February 29, 2008

I've been trying to get my hands on a certain pair of Supra Skytops.

A few websites I check semi-regularly:

Female Sneaker Fiend
NiceKicks
Sneaker News

Other resources available at Sneaker-Websites.
posted by healthytext at 7:51 AM on February 29, 2008

"[Onitsuka Tigers] are the most uncomfortable shoes ever."

My heart cried a little when I read wuzandfuzz's comment above. I love my tigers, and I think they feel great! I definitely recommend at least trying a pair of the Mexico 66's on and seeing for yourself.
posted by mehum at 1:04 PM on February 29, 2008

Puma - Speed Cat

The coolest.
posted by clearly at 3:17 PM on February 29, 2008

Hip shoes no one knows about yet, directly from japan i present you Dragon Beard.
They're still a small brand but they certainly want to get in that hip market.
posted by SageLeVoid at 10:25 PM on February 29, 2008