Point of View

I’m pretty happy with my shoe collection.

I’ve got a good variety. I’ve got summer shoes. I’ve got winter shoes. I’ve got high-tops. I’ve got low-tops. I’ve got shoes that are crazy as well as shoes that are muted. I like to think that my collection is diverse, and that I’ve got a fresh pair for any outfit or occasion.

However, like most sneakerheads, there are a few pairs that I badly want and don’t have. They may have been within reach before and I just didn’t pull the trigger for whatever reason, or they might never have been close to being in my grasp. There have been lots of shoes I wanted and didn’t get over the years, but 3 pairs stick out more than any others. Here’s 3 shoes i really wish I had. read more

No matter how careful you are about making sure your kicks stay clean, they’re bound to get dirty sooner or later. When that happens, you need to be prepared. No, you don’t need to freak out. No, you don’t need to run to the store and cop a new pair. You need to sit down and get your kicks cleaned up. There’s a simple process to it, and today we’re laying it out step-by-step-by-step-by-step (that’s 4 steps for those of you who can’t count) so you can make sure your favorite pairs stay crispy no matter how much you wear them. A full-fledged guide on cleaning your kicks (because we love you). Let’s get it. read more

There’s no denying it: signature shoes are expensive. Very expensive. An NBA player’s name and logo on a sneaker can fetch a price point that’s unthinkable to some casual consumers … but that player’s fans will continue to buy the shoe.

The most expensive signature shoe line on the market belongs to none other than the King himself, LeBron James. King James fetches a whopping $200 a pair for his kicks, severely lightening the wallets of young fans across the country. read more

Unless you were born into wealth, there was probably a point in time when you were younger that you couldn’t always afford the kicks that you wanted. Spending upwards of $150 on a pair of kicks wasn’t always feasible for you or your parents. So how did you manage to get fresh on a budget? If you’re now in your mid 20’s, you know there was only one thing to do back in the day: go to Champs for that 2 for $89.99.

As a young whippersnapper, there was no deal more lit. You could get two pairs of kicks for the price of one, and get a little rotation going for yourself so you didn’t have to wear the same thing every single day. Need a pair of Adidas? Wanted to channel your inner streetball legend and rock some And 1’s? Prefer to get on your 80’s steez with some Filas? No matter what you wanted to do, you were covered (if you were wondering, our favorite shoe on the deal was always the Fila F-13. No lie, they were crispier than Air Force 1’s to us). read more

So you’re heading out to a sneaker photoshoot. You’re going to get high-quality pictures of your fire jawns, and you couldn’t be more excited. We know the feeling. Shooting with our friends for the KicksOneTwo Instagram is one of our favorite things to do, and since we’ve been doing it for a while, we thought we’d compile 5 things for you to bring to your sneaker photoshoot so that you have the best experience possible too. Let’s get right to it.

1. Multiple Pairs Of Kicks read more

We’re product nerds here at KicksOneTwo. We like finding about what exactly goes into a shoe and how various sneaker technologies work.

One of our favorite things about shoes are the cushioning systems used. From Max Air to Lunarlon, to Zoom Air, to DMX, to Bounce, we love it all. We’d be hard-pressed to pick a favorite, but if you made us choose … we’d have to go with Boost.

That’s right, Boost. Adidas’s revolutionary cushioning system, designed in partnership with NASA. It’s billed as a “revolutionary cushioning system that returns more energy per foot strike than traditional EVA foam”. It’s also more resilient than standard foam, and will not lose its cushioning after multiple wears. Adidas promises that no matter the temperature or conditions, Boost will be the softest and most comfortable ride available, and we’d have to agree with that statement. read more

Every year for the last 31 years, the sneaker world has stopped when Jordan Brand unveils the newest model in their signature line. From the 1’s to the 14’s to the Jordan 2009’s (remember those?), it’s big news every time a new signature Jordan releases … and it’s about to be that time again as the Jordan 31 is dropping September 3rd.

Heavily inspired by the shoe that started it all, the OG Bred (or Banned) Jordan I, the Jordan 31 does a great job of fusing old and new technology together for a look that’s vintage yet sleek. The off-court wearability of the past few models has been questionable at best (even though they were terrific performance shoes), so it’s nice to see a signature model that’ll look just as good on the streets as it does on the court. It’s the first model ever to feature the Jumpman, Wings, and Swoosh logos all together, and the large “Banned” hit on the outsole is a very nice touch as well. read more

There’s nothing quite like a classic sneaker that ages like fine wine. The longer you have it, the doper it gets. Maybe you’ve had it for 5 years. Maybe 10. Maybe 20. But every time you wear it, it just seems to get better and better. That’s how you know a shoe is a classic.

However, not every shoe can do this. Some shoes are period pieces, and are better left where they came from. The aging process can be a harsh one, and the three shoes we’re about to show you, all hot when they came out, just flat-out didn’t age well. Let’s get right to it. read more

Ian Connor. A true product of the Internet (thanks a lot for this one, Tumblr). A “stylist/model” who has managed to get famous and rub shoulders with the likes of A$AP Rocky and Kanye West, even though he lacks any noticeable talent whatsoever.

Connor’s fall from grace was just as fast as his meteoric rise to fame, as he was accused of rape by multiple women who had strikingly similar stories, and then punched out by A$AP Bari (his former mentor) after attempting to punch Theophilus London, another mentor, in Paris. read more