Edit - I just got back from wearing these to a music festival. Poured rain all day and we were on the beach. Although they are not waterproof, I had great traction and support for the entirety of the festival day and would definitely wear them again for an event like this! Ill preface my review by saying that I am a masc presenting lesbian, so Im not entirely the target demographic for these but man, did they hit the mark! I cannot believe the price and quality of these shoes. I got a size 7, which translates to a womens 9 and the fit was good. A tad big in the front because of the wide toe box, but with socks on it seems to be ok and comfortable. I plan to wear these around and then come back to update this further Read more
So I have been on the hunt for a pair of minimalist shoes for months, but had yet to pull the trigger due to the ridiculous cost. I am an avid CrossFitter and typically wear NoBull shoes, but let me tell you! There's no way im going back to NoBull. These are honestly a high-quality shoe that is truly minimalist. They are built extremely well, are comfortable, very fashionable, and well-priced. I'm so glad I bought these and I would highly recommend them. Keep up the good work WHITIN! Read more
Really good shoe: resilient, great material, comfortable. BUT..... (read on) I got these flat bottom shoes for squats. And they support my feet well and comfortably with heavy squats. HOWEVER, for some reason they look like Clown Shoes! The toe area LOOKS exaggeratingly huge when I look down at them in the gym. Yet they are conforming, comfortable, sized well. Maybe it's an optical illusion? The photographs don't present what I see in the gym (clown shoes). I'm still giving them 4 stars due to pricing and the surprising quality of the shoe. I only wear these to the gym twice a week. But material seems strong, supportive... etc. Read more
Honestly, I hate soles that offer less protection than most house slippers, but I need zero drop and a roomy toe box (granted, not quite as roomy as this one but I'm used to the paddlefoot look). Thing is, I also need high tops. If I have to get away from a turtle hurtling at me on a mountain trail, I am less apt to run out of my shoes (not "run out of shoes" - believe me, that will never happen). Why might I run out of my shoes? Well, like most shoes, these are not made for tall, aka high instep (NOT high arch) feet like mine. So I have to buy a size that is too long - and occasionally too wide. And zero drop is only a thing - so far - in "minimalist" styles: minimal manufacturing process, minimal engineering, minimal design, minimal materials, minimal quality, minimal life span, and -happily - for most, though far from all, brands, minimal cost. This means in compensating for soles that are thinner than some serious winter wool socks, I can only fit 2 cheap or 1 expensive foam inserts in them. I knew that, but I needed a gray pair, and if they were ever offered in the women's version, they had white soles. (One reason I buy gray is that I don't want to spend my time cleaning, and let's face it, these are not meant to go in a washing machine over and over and over.) I don't like the knit material, and would much prefer canvas. Aside from being aesthetically unappealing, knit first became popular as bunion shoes, which early on were always dowdy - I mean sensible looking. Then, because the only way they get people to buy polyester (and no one would mistake this stuff for anything else) was to pair it with "breathable" so, hey, great idea! All running shoes then had to be knit. Apparently knit offers flexibility (not really enough for people with bunions, butmaybe too much flexibility for runners, especially ones with pronation issues, who need "structure"). My point is, knit is not a good look. What passes for shoelaces is tape, a narrow, flimsy version of the flat, ribbon like twill that covers the seams inside better T-shirts. And it's not one long piece of tape. It's short pieces stitched together. They must only be supplied in the size meant for non-high tops, because these are not long enough to reach the two top holes - at least on feet like mine. On average height feet, they might reach all but one hole, or maybe all of them on people whose feet are so narrow they likely would not be buying this type of shoes to begin with. Furthermore, the holes the laces go through are just raw, eyelet/grommet free holes, and very tiny ones. Even the aglets on the tips of regular shoelaces require patience, dexterity, and a steady hand. Lastly, the tongues are the same thin, floppy knit, so a piece of fake suede (that will probably develop pills soon, with the shoelaces constantlyrubbing on it) is stitched on top. Otherwise, the tongue would end up down inside the shoe. The fake suede doesn't go all the way to the edges though, so the tongues curl in on the sides. Whether they would have still done this had they not arrived squished inside shrink wrap, who can say? Once you get real shoelaces long enough for all eight holes installed, you need to reach in and flatten the sides of the tongues out as you're tying them. These days, trends offer maximum profit. By making a trillion of something, the price can be low. If the price is low, a whole lot of people will buy it. Once a whole lot of people buy it, we're tired of it and ready for something new. So only the products that have serious sticking power get a second run. I learned my lesson: if you find something you like, buy multiples. If the product is available later, your choices may be fewer and you may pay more. And really, you will probably need to replace it, maybe more than once. My instinct tells me this product line, (maybe even this brand, we'll see) is way past its peak and probably near the end of its life cycle. My eyes and hands tell me it has devolved. If this were the first pair of Whitins I'd bought, I would not be enthusiastic about buying more. Read more
My husband LOVES these! He was SO shocked that I got them off Amazon and at such an affordable price. He now has several shoes from this company, but he really prefers the high-tops. He is really picky about shoes when it comes to how easy/difficult it is to take on and off. I was concerned for this reason with these being high-tops, but they have been super easy for him to get in and out of, and I am SO relieved! He says they are his most comfortable shoe, by far, and that he was really surprised at how great they feel to wear. My husband has more of a wide shaped foot, so the wide toe-box was really a great selling point on buying from this company. He currently owns the barefoot running shoe as well as the low-profile version of this shoe. They have lasted and held up extremely well. We will continue to purchase from this brand and maybe try a few more styles! Read more
