Common Projects Leather vs. Gummy: 6 Months Later, Plus Some Thoughts On Alternative Offerings

Wapmaxi Time To Change 2015
Common Projects Leather vs. Gummy: 6 Months Later, Plus Some Thoughts On Alternative Offerings
About 6 months ago I posted a review of the Common Projects Achilles leather vs. their gummy / rubberised offering.A lot has changed since then – my wife and I sold our places in London & Amsterdam and settled in Paris. We also did a lot of travelling, which is where this follow-up fits in.With the exception of maybe 4-5 other pairs (SL Chelsea boots, Thom Browne brogues, Trickers Derbys, John Lobb boots), I pretty much only wear Common Projects Achilles or Derby Shines (my current summer and travel rotation can be seen here).We went to Canada not too long ago to visit her family. She’s from Northern Ontario, and her family owns a cottage there. I figured that this would probably be a great setting to put my darker gummies through the ringer (wet soil, grass, dirt, the lake…menswear hell for me). At the end of each day I wiped the shoes clean, and I stored them with cedar shoe trees.In my initial review I reported some “outward” creasing on the gummies – which has completely disappeared with wear (as you can see in this picture). I don’t know how or why the creasing / bubbling went down, but it did. I did nothing out of the ordinary (except for using cedar shoe trees for storage, proper rotation, etc).In the meantime, I also decided to try out some other minimalist sneakers, mostly ones that fall into the “more affordable” category: I received a pair of Axel Arigatos, which I abandoned after one wear. I am not going to get into details, but for $200 you can find better offerings – let’s just leave it at that.Last summer I bought 3 pairs of Zespas. Zespa is an interesting brand: Made in France, Margom soles, calf leather. The sizing is 1/1 with Common Project’s – one size down does the trick. While they wore pretty nicely for a while they did not hold up to CP’s built quality: the leather creased harder, and it almost seemed like some of the white “flaked off”. Again, I cared for the Zespas exactly the same way I care(d) for my CP’s. Now, their suede offering are a whole different beast: mine got destroyed after two months. Again, I used shoe trees, suede protector, a proper suede brush, etc. They may have met their untimely demise due to the fact that they became my dog walking shoes, so your miles may vary.Next, we have Erik Schedin: a lot of people “credit” him with creating the original “minimalist sneaker”. While he designed it in 2004, it didn’t see the light of day until 2008 – while the Achilles hit the shelves in 2004. I didn’t get a chance to wear Schedin’s offerings, I do however see them on a regular basis on a friend of mine. To me, they seem a bit too clunky, but that’s my personal perference. Quality wise, they seem to be holding up pretty well.Conclusion: Looks like the gummies can take a beating. The “coating” hasn’t come off, the “bubbling” has disappeared & I look forward to getting mine out again for the upcoming fall. The dark grey, as well as the black colourway both seem to be perfect for rainy days; the whites ones clean up just as well, but the laces will eventually take a hit, and I have yet to find laces that match CP’s 100% (spare laces only last for so long).Anyway, I hope this helps. People still PM me from time to time about my old post so I figured I’d put out an update. I would still heavily recommend the leather version to any first-time buyer, but again – that’s personal preference.Take care everyone!
Mens Hair Styles 2015
Submitted by FearAndSickness