If you’re anything like me, your feet haven’t spent much time inside shoes this year. At this point, my collection of fine, welted footwear is more like a china cabinet full of antiques than a closet full of wearable things. Nonetheless, there are still occasions when I have had no choice but to venture outside. And while my Birkenstock Radius™ (the distance from my front door that I am willing to travel while wearing sandals) has been expanding at an unprecedented rate, sometimes I’m able to muster up the wherewithal to put on some sneakers. This year, that sneaker has been the Sweyd 055.
The market for “miNiMaLisT LuXUrY” sneakers is totally saturated, to say the least. There are probably over a hundred options these days, and many of them are perfectly good at doing what they set out to do. Given the somewhat sterile aesthetics that this style tends to lend itself to, I was on the lookout for something that was in this vein but had a bit of character. That search is what led me to Sweyd.
Sweyd is a Stockholm-based footwear brand that makes a small but handsome collection of shoes in Florence, Italy. They have six silhouettes, each of which available in a variety of shades. Most of their styles feature suede leathers in a delightful palette of colors (I had such a hard time deciding on a color that I had to use a lifeline with an instagram poll). They’re priced in the middle of the market, around $250-350, which seems fair given the materials and Italian provenance. After a few months of hemming and hawing I decide to bite and ordered a pair of 055s in Crema suede (though Pietra was a close runner-up).
The first impression of the shoes is solid – they look pretty similar to all the Common Projects-esque varietals on the market, but the warm suede color and texture gives it a bit more life. The silhouette is a bit less dramatic as well, with a slightly more organic shape than the angular Achilles Low. The inside of the shoe is lined in a natural-colored calf leather, and this is executed well (the inside is often where you will see signs of messy construction). The insole is also easily removable. The sole is glued and stitched to the upper with a 360-degree stitch, as is typical with shoes in this price bracket. The eyelets on my pair aren’t perfectly straight, but not off enough to be an issue. There aren’t any loose threads or anything like that, and overall the shoes look great out of the box.
For me, what drew me to Sweyd over the many other options was the materials they used. The colors of suede are right on the money and really make these sneakers look good. While the suede itself isn’t anything super fancy (like a a CF Stead Janus Calf or something), it’s definitely of good quality and gets the job done. The nap is short and tight, like you would expect for a sneaker. And while the pristine off-white color didn’t last long on San Francisco streets, I don’t mind the look of well-worn sneakers.
As far as sizing goes, I ran into the usual ambiguity that presents itself with these Margom-soled sneakers. They’re only available in full EU sizes, so those of us with half-sized feet have to gamble on whether to go up or down. The general advice for these types of shoes is to go down, though the Sweyd size chart suggested I go up. I followed their advice and ordered a size 42 for my 8.5US feet (even though the normal advice would be to size down to a 41). Upon wearing them a bit I would say they feel a touch large – not problematically so, but enough that I probably could have managed with a 41. I would say take your normal size, and size down if you’re in-between (unless you have a wide foot).
The options for plain, simple leather sneakers are so vast that it almost seems pointless to write a review at all. There are good options if you’re looking for the best shoe at the lowest cost, or the most luxurious option, or the most recognizable. I think Sweyd is a good option for someone that isn’t looking to optimize on price or provenance, and simply wants a well-made shoe that looks a little more interesting than the standard options while still being simple and neutral. And in these “Unprecedented Times,” any shoe-wearing at all is a special occasion, so you might as well reach for something nice.
