I can't believe i found a pair of comfortable minimalist shoes with a totally normal, neutral colored upper! yay!

Okay, so lately my feet have been getting used to and really liking (certain) minimalist shoes. I have tried many & settled on a few that I like. But I have been desperately looking for a pair of comfy minimalist shoes that are aesthetically pleasing in a neutral tone for daily wear. NOT an easy thing, let me tell you.  Most running shoes, especially the minimalist style ones, are athletic colors like blue/black/grey or VERY BRIGHT NEON colors---which is not really my thing & certainly not something I want to be wearing all day every day. I have some asics in dark gray with green & yellow contrast that are cute and I love the fit (neo 33's), and a pair of New Balance WT10's in a more subdued light grey with yellow contrast, and as far as running shoes go lately they are way less obnoxious looking than most. I am quite happy with the fit of both pair but I really don't want to be limited to wearing those colors every day.

I saw these during my internet searches but decided to pass on them initially, i instead tried a few others that i really liked the look of. I ordered a pair of minimalist style Merrell's that are a beautiful maroon color, I love the styling and they had very good reviews...it turns out they were SO stiff in the upper and they were cutting my ankle bone, aside from that I didn't really dig the feel of the footbed. Then I tried a pair of brown Onitsuka tigers which are made by asics,  traditionally the Onitsukas get great reviews for their comfort and I own a pair of asics that I love so I gave it a go.....ugh. they too were uncomfortable, it felt like the inner arch was pressing in HARD on my foot, even with my foot still raised in the air---then when I stood up-ouch! Sadly both pairs had to go back.

Since I already know that my feet like another pair of New Balance WT10's, I decided to try these. They have that big New Balance "N" in the design, I wasn't sure I would like that and also the contrast color looked greyish on my monitor. So I had passed on them previously. But at this point they seemed like my best option since I seem to have picky feet. I knew the fit might turn out to be different due to the upper being made of leather, but I ordered them with my fingers crossed that they would fit the same as my other WT10 pair...

I just got them in the mail today and they fit true to size, i'm an 8 in my other pair & got these in 8 and the fit is perfect.  The leather upper feels a little more stiff than the other pair i own around the tongue/ankle part, I can feel it with my fingers when I put them on because the other pair are thin material, very soft & pliable. But I found that it's not detectable to my feet or ankles when i'm wearing them. It doesn't rub or press in on my ankle or constrict the top of my foot when I walk. No blisters have formed & I do not have any pain or discomfort. They are keepers. Granted i've only used them for walking around the house & running errands so far, but they are excellent for that purpose and that is what I was looking for.  (It's possible they might need a bit of breaking in for long or intense workouts due to the leather upper, if i ever use them in such a capacity I will update my review to report my findings.)

And as for the color, they are a deep dark brown color with a light tan contrast. Again, it was hard for me to tell what color was, I was hoping for tan but was afraid it might turn out to be the weird light greyish hue that appeared on my computer monitor. Rest assured that they are in fact dark brown with tan and the "N" in the design doesn't bother me at all. They look better in person than online. In fact I think they look great, I really wish they made these shoes in more earthy tones like tans, maroons, greens...I would buy them all :)