Woven shoes have become a thing in the last few years. You know the ones I’m talking about — knitted fabric takes on the ballet flat. This story in Vox pinpoints the trend to Rothy’s, a startup in San Francisco founded by two men. It launched in 2016 with flats made from recycled plastic bottles.
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Earlier this year, Allbirds and Everlane entered the woven shoe fray with their own versions: Allbirds’ Tree Breezers and Everlane’s Day Glove ReKnit. I tried on both for a quick comparison.
Allbirds Tree Breezers
Tree Breezers – $95
The outsole of the Allbirds Breezers.
Removable insole on the Allbirds Breezers.
Materials: The fabric upper is made from responsibly grown and sustainably harvested eucalyptus pulp. The foam sole (aka SweetFoam™) comes from sugarcane. Allbirds says it’s “the world’s first carbon negative green EVA.” The removable insole is made out of castor bean oil instead of petroleum and lined with merino wool. Like other Allbirds shoes, these are machine washable.
Aesthetic & Details: The Mister was with me when I tried them on, and he said, “I thought you were trying on socks.” Honestly, all of these types of shoes kind of look like socks. The toe on the Tree Breezers is rounded, but tapers a bit. There’s a band of color around the edge or collar that hugs your foot. While monochrome, there’s a bit of contrast (more so on some colorways than others.) They’re not bad, but not exactly stylish. You could get away with these in a more casual work environment.
Fit: This is the first Allbirds shoe to come in half sizes. All their other shoes only come in whole sizes. I’m a 6.5, so in the past I sized up to 7 in the Wool Loungers (my review) and the Tree Skippers (my review). With the Tree Breezers, I also sized up to a 7. The 6.5 felt very tight in the toe box. Keep in mind that my feet are a bit wide. I’ve read that the Breezers stretch a bit after a few days of wear. But the toe box was so tight that even with some stretching, I think they’d still be too tight. I recommend going up half a size, even for those of you with medium width feet.
Comfort: I have to say: Allbirds has really figured something out with their insole. It’s the same insole that’s in their other shoes, which means it delivers on that same cushy feeling. Even though it doesn’t appear to have arch support, my experience with wearing other Allbirds shoes has been that my arches feel fine. Overall, the shoe is super lightweight. The mesh knit felt smooth. I found them quite comfortable.
Everlane Day Glove ReKnit
The Day Glove ReKnit – $98
Materials: 88% recycled polyester, 10% nylon, and 2% elastane. The sole is made out of 8 recycled plastic bottles. There’s also some Italian leather in this shoe: the pull tab is leather as is the cushioned insole.
Aesthetic & Details: The leather accents on these shoes make them feel more luxe. Like the leather version of these shoes (which I reviewed here), these provide more coverage than the Allbirds shoes. The higher vamp made my wide feet look slimmer. The pattern of the knit reminds me of a sweater — feet sweaters. (Everlane also makes boot feet sweaters now.)
Fit: These are wide feet friendly! I fit my regular size, a 6.5.
Comfort: These are also quite lightweight, though not as lightweight as the Tree Breezers. They felt comfortable and cushioned in my short walk in the store. There’s not really much in the way of arch support here either. I do wonder how the arches would feel after a whole day in them. While the leather Day Gloves seemed like they’d need break-in time, the woven material doesn’t.
And the Winner Is…
For me, personally, I’d go with the Tree Breezers, mainly because of the insole and my experience with other Allbirds shoes. I find my Wool Loungers super comfortable. Allbirds shoes don’t feel like any other shoes to me.
Another consideration for me was materials and sweatiness. In other words, my feet sweat. While Everlane says that their knit fabric is breathable, I don’t think polyester could ever be more breathable than a natural fiber like the eucalyptus in the Allbirds. (Leather insoles in the Everlane shoe probably help with breathability, though.)
I also like the overall shape of the Allbirds better. Even though I appreciate that the Everlane Day Glove ReKnit made my feet look slimmer, I don’t like how much of the top of my feet it covers. This is a matter of taste, of course. The Everlane flats do seem more fashion-forward. I just don’t like how they look on me. Neither of them are as elegant as Rothy’s The Point, though, which are the most good-looking of the bunch IMO. I’d love to see Allbirds and Everlane make pointy toed versions of their shoes.
Overall, I think they’re both good, comfy options if you’re in the market for this kind of sock-like shoe. Both shoes retail around $100, which cost less than the $125 to $145 for Rothy’s. Both have a flexible sole and are cushioned (Rothy’s are not), though the Allbirds have better cushioning. If you want a sole with more grip, Everlane is better in that respect. If a washable shoe is important, then Allbirds has the advantage.
UPDATE 12/15/19 – I bought a pair of the Allbirds Tree Breezers on Poshmark, as I note in my November shopping diary. As it’s cold, I haven’t worn them much, but one thing that I didn’t expect is that they rub a bit on the very back. It’s quite odd, as I don’t see what could cause this sensation. There’s a small tab at the back of the shoe. (You can see it in the photos where I’m holding the gray Tree Breezers and where I’m showing the removable insole.) This area is a little thicker, so maybe that’s the reason?
UPDATE 7/22/20 – I’ve worn the Allbirds more often now through the spring and summer. The rubbing has subsided for the most part. Perhaps they needed to stretch out a bit. Overall, I’m happy with the shoe. Also, this summer Everlane released a ReKnit version of their pointy-toed leather 40-Hour Flat, putting them toe-to-toe with Rothy’s pointy shoe.
