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I wouldn’t call myself a sneaker-head, but I’ve definitely become more of a comfy shoe girl than I used to be. Heck I mean this weekend, I went out of town and the only shoes I brought besides my slippers, were sneakers! Literally my Nikes, my Cariuamas, and my Vejas. Why did I need to bring two pairs of white fashion sneakers? i just did, okay?! If you would have asked me that a couple years ago, I would have laughed and said that you were crazy. I would never do that! Yetttt here we are.

veja sneaker review, v 12, lments of style, ellemulenos, tennis shoes, tie dye sweater, light jeans, white sneakers

Veja V 12 Sneakers | Madewell Tie Dye Sweater | Madewell Light Wash Jeans | Aerie Sunglasses

I love sneakers, because there are so many cute ones out there, you can literally wear them with anything, and they are usually comfy and practical. These days you can get away wearing them with anything from shorts to dresses. I recently wore mine with a dress here!

I’m not sure where I first saw Veja sneakers, but I have had my eye on them for a while. I finally decided to pull the trigger on them over Christmas and wish I had done so sooner! Sure I was drawn to their sleek design and color pops (though they make plain color ones!), but I was also very intrigued by their sustainable approach to fashion!

Veja up-cycles, meaning that they re-use and re-cycle fabrics. They make textiles out of plastic bottles, but also use previously used cotton and polyester. They do use leather, but they make sure to know where it comes from to make sure it is as ethical as possible. Additionally, they take great care in how it has been produced and what is in it. Their leather comes from a Brazilian factory that follows strict non-toxic protocol. This is amazing, considering how much toxic waste the fashion industry produces. If you are looking for a leather alternative, Veja also has “vegan” leather! Most V leathers actually create just as much, if not more waste. Veja makes theirs out of corn waste, which creates less waste and actually lasts longer than traditional V leathers.

Besides the product, Veja as a brand is transparent and ethical. They use fair trade suppliers and try to make the supply chain economically equitable for for all parties involved. For example, they produce their shoes in Brazil. If they were to switch to a non-fair trade factory in China, their product would be about $10 less per unit! Sure the product costs more, but the money you are paying is able to more directly affect sustainable companies! Also, Veja doesn’t pay for advertising, which is what most of the profit for other sneakers go to. By cutting out a marketing budget, the money you spend truly is creating change! There are a lot of cute and moderate to expensive sneakers out there. I’d much rather put my paycheck towards producing a shoe that is environmentally friendly and made according to fair trade principles. Using mainstream principles, Vejas should be selling for about 5x more. Thank goodness they aren’t! Guess that means I can grab about 5 more ;)

Okay so you’ve heard all these good things. What do I think?

PRICE:
Most Veja sneakers are between $120 and $150, with a couple topping out at $200. For a nice pair of sneakers, I think this is pretty reasonable.
FIT / SIZING:
Honestly, sizing was kind of confusing. They are European sizes and I wasn't sure what I would need, especially since I’m a half size. They recommend sizing down if you’re a whole size, so I thought I’d be a 39, but some websites (other than Veja), suggested that you should size up, because they run small. So did I need a size 38?! I am a size 8.5, so I ordered both sizes to test it out. Size 38 was way too small. 39 (a size 8) worked great and is what I chose to keep. Some companies share them as American sizes and that gets confusing! Ultimately, I would go off the sizing on the Veja website, because that is what worked for me. The ones I ordered were leather and I will say those probably fit a little tighter than a mesh version. I’m sure the leather will stretch a little over time, but don’t expect much. But again, I’m a half size and sizing down worked well. My foot is not wide though, so keep that in mind.
QUALITY:
These sneakers are very well made and I think it might even be better than the price point it sits at. When they come in they look as good in person as they do online. The fabrics are so nice, you would never guess they were sustainably made. Here’s to changing the mindset of what recycled fabrics look like, as well their quality.
COMFORT:
Okay, so this is the only area where I would not rate them 5/5. I mean they are sneakers, so yes they are comfortable in that aspect, but you do have to break these in. Comparing them to something like my Vince Warren Sneakers that have no break-in time is just hard. Now, it didn’t take a super long time, but I probably wore them at least 5 times before the tongue stopped bothering me. Ultimately, if you can slide the tongue over to the side, versus it being straight up on your ankle, you’ll be happier. When I first wore them, I put band-aids on the top of my ankles to help. You can wear taller socks if you want, but they are a low ankle shoe…Now, maybe I’m sounding winey, but I will say that it never rubbed blisters on my heels, which is nice! Just so you know it isn’t a total dud in this category!
SUSTAINABILITY:
I pretty much already touched on this, but Veja is a leading brand in the sustainable category and quietly paving the way.

Overall, I would very much recommend Veja. I think they are a great shoe and I already want another pair!! I have my eye on this chartreuse V V10 model! I like to buy mine from Shopbop or Neiman Marcus. Madewell and Lou and Grey has some cute exclusives too!