Thousand Fell Sneaker Review

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It’s about time I had a good fashion review go live! They are some of my favorite articles to write, as I love analyzing why something might be a good purchase. Today I’m going to be reviewing Women’s Lace Up Thousand Fell Sneakers in black back. I purchased them over Black Friday, but due to supply chain issues (that most brands faced end of 2021), I didn’t receive them until early January. That being said, I’ve had almost 3 months of experience wearing them and am excited to finally share my thought. I’d love to eventually share a YouTube video review with you, but I’m going to have to check with my bosses (the twins) on that. Until then, here’s my in-depth, written review! Enjoy and let me know if you have any questions I didn’t cover.

Keep reading to find out why I like Thousand Fell sneakers and what makes them cool.

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Thousand Fell Women’s Lace Up Sneakers in Black | Everlane Denim Coverall (c/o, old similar here and here) | J. Crew Cardigan (old, similar here) | Senreve Aria Belt Bag | Aerie Black Sunglasses

Over the past few years, I’ve definitely hopped on the sneaker train. Late 2019 I bought a pair of fashion sneakers and haven’t looked back. From dresses to even suits, sneakers are no longer reserved for sweatpants or sweating for that matter. I’m here for it, because once my twins are mobile, it is game over! Mama is going to need all the help she can get and cute, comfy shoes are at the top of my needs list.

I believe I first found Thousand Fell from an Instagram ad. I thought the tennis shoes looked really chic, so I clicked on the link. I very much expected them to be at least $200, if not $300+. To my surprise, they were only $120, which is truly just $100 since the $20 is a recycling deposit. When you send your sneakers back to be recycled, you receive a $20 giftcard to use on your next pair. Just be sure to create an account and register your shoes here.

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BRAND HISTORY

Founded in 2018, Thousand Fell was created to bring fashion full circle. With footwear experience in their back-pocket, Chloe Marie Songer and Stuart Ahlum set out to build a sneaker brand that didn’t live longer in your garbage can than its actual lifespan. The truth is that 97% of sneakers end up in landfills, so they made a product that could actually be recycled. Why does this matter? Well, sneakers are just a part of the equation. 11M tons of clothing and shoes wind up in landfills each year. It takes 40 years for leather to decompose and 80 years for rubber to decompose. If not used for other projects, thousand Fell sneakers decompose in less than one year.Need I say more?

Crafted from coconut husk, sugar cane, and recycled bottles, TF sneaks are able to be recycled or upcycled if you will. Once you are done with your shoes, you can send them back to the brand (via this portal) for them to recycle and make more shoes. At this point you are given back your $20 recycling deposit and can use it towards another pair of shoes.

I think many people like the idea of recycling, but in most cases it costs money that people would rather use towards other purchases when it gets down to it. I love that Thousand Fell bakes the recycling aspect into the cost, so it is more likely to occur. How did they do that while still managing to stay at a reasonable price-point?! On top of producing a sustainable product, Thousand Fell also operates as a sustainable brand. They use methods like bike messengers for delivery (locally in NYC) and shipping globally in plastic-free packaging 100% recyclable.

Additionally, Thousand Fell is currently pending as a Certified B corporation and is a part of the Textile Exchange and 1% for the Planet.

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THOUSAND FELL SNEAKER REVIEW

Enough about the brand side, because quite frankly, it speaks for itself. What do I think about the product? The headline is that I do like Thousand Fell Sneakers and I would recommend them! The first time I wore them was at the airport from LAX to DAL. I was approached by several people asking where I got them / what brand the were. No joke! If that doesn’t answer your looks question, I don’t know what does. Here are my thoughts about the shoes broken down into categories:

• PRICE:

  Thousand Fell sneakers currently range from $120 - $130. Like I mentioned above, I think that they look more expensive and they seem to be great quality too. Worth the price in my books, especially since when you turn them back into TF to recycle, they give you $20 to use towards your next pair.

• FIT / SIZING:

  Offered in women’s sizes 5-10 and men’s sizes 8-13, including half sizes, I found that they run true to size. I bought my regular 8.5 women’s sneaker.

• LOCATION:

  The brand is headquartered in NYC. Though the shoes are designed there, they are produced in Brazil.

• QUALITY:

  Thousand Fell touts that they are made to withstand wear an be stain resistant. They also clame to be breathable and oder resistant due to an aloe vera liner that wicks away heat The shoes have a quartz finish that naturally make it scuff proof and water resistant too. TF tested their sneakers at 10,000 steps a day and say they last 240 days or 240,000 steps. I’ve only had mine for 3 months, but I haven’t had any quality issues.

• COMFORT:

  Thousand Fell says they produce comfy shoes and they weren’t lying! The sneakers are comfortable and required zero break-in time on my end. I love this, because though I love my Vejas, they did require some serious wear time before they were even somewhat comfortable. I’d say it was just the fact that the TF shoe backs don’t rub on my heel, but they also have a special foam padding that is made from castor beans.

• SUSTAINABILITY:

  The brand as a whole practices sustainability from recycling products to packaging, to even ensuring materials from sneakers to stickers all align with that of a sustainable brand. Based on the knowledge I shared above, it is easy to see that Thousand Fell gets a 5/5 for sustainable effort.

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MY OVERALL THOUGHTS ON THOUSAND FELL SNEAKERS

I like them a lot!

I mentioned it above, but the comfort level is amazing. Without break-in time, you can immediately wear and enjoy these. While I didn’t experience the shoes to be scuff proof entirely, I was able to get the smudges out with a quick swipe of a Mr. Clean magic eraser. Perhaps the finish just makes sure that it doesn’t cut deep and is easily removed? Either way, I’ll take it! I don’t think you’ll have to shine these shoes like traditional leather sneakers thanks to the coating, so that is nice too.

The main thing I am not sure about is how long the shoes hold up in the long run. I believe their wear tests, but I’ll have to see how they hold up for myself. People wear their shoes so differently and wearing for 10,000 steps indoors is very different than 10,000 steps on gravel or concrete. They didn’t specify how they tested / I assume they did different variables and averaged the wear, it just very much depends how heavy your step is and how often you wear them and manage their upkeep. I keep my clothes and accessories for a very long time, including shoes. I understand that often due to finishes, leather doesn’t break down and it isn’t the most eco-friendly of fabrics; however, in my experience it lasts so much longer than non-leather goods. I love to keep shoes forever and just have them cleaned, shined, and re-healed. TF claims that their tennis shoes are the same or better than leather wear, so only time will tell. I’ll be sure to update this as time goes on.

Personally I also struggle with companies that produce faux “leathers” or even bamboo products as they often greenwash. This means they make it sound like they are better than their counterparts by using unregulated descriptors like “clean” or “green”. Often times their “vegan leather” actually brings about more waste and chaos than leather itself, so the fact that TF was able to make a product that looks and feels good and supposedly lasts is definitely a feat. I think that Thousand Fell is the real deal and they do their due diligence. I’m excited to see where the industry takes them and hope their zero waste and all encompassing sustainable mindset catches on.

One other small thing is that I found it kind of difficult to discover how to send the shoes back to recycle. When you receive the shoes, you should make an account for their recycle program. You will have to create another sign-in even if you create an account to buy you TF’s. Scroll through and identify the sneakers you own, which will then live in your shoe library for future use. My main point in explaining is that it is separate from the main website. I hope there is a future integration that automatically does it for you since it is such a huge part of their business model. I’m combining the two is no small feat as they likely have to run on different systems, but making the user experience easy is key to making it work. Again, not a huge deal, just something I wanted to mention.

Have you tried Thousand Fell sneakers before? What did you think? Do you have a pair you think I should review? Let me know. I’m always down to be your guinea pig! Thank you so much for reading. XOXO

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