Saint Laurent Off White Court Classic Sneakers Review

Saint Laurent Off White Court Classic Sneakers Review

Regular readers with a keen eye will have observed in many of my recent outfit photos (both here on my mens fashion blog and my Instagram account) that I have worn a pair of Saint Laurent Off White Court Classic Sneakers. I have decided to finally review them, which I did mention in an earlier post. Took me a little longer than I had planned!

I had been on the look out for a pair of decent white sneakers for some time, something to replace my well worn Topman White Fashion Trainers. I decided to upgrade to a designer pair, I missed the quality that they bring to the table. I used to own many pairs of Common Projects in a variety of colours, and I did consider those again. I was held back slightly from memories of them giving me the illusion of duck feet syndrome (particularly when viewed from the top). I also recall them being quite uncomfortable for the first few wears, till they had broken in.

Browsing around for a suitable alternative, I spied the Saint Laurent Off White Court Classic Sneaker. From online photos they seemed to tick all the boxes! As luck would have it, Matches Fashion offered me one of their tempting discount codes (they entice customers back, if they hadn’t purchased anything for some time!). So, it was the perfect opportunity, and I took advantage of the price cut and ordered the sneakers.

The Saint Laurent shoe box is suitably minimalist, all over solid black with an embossed section across the lid, within lies the brands logo in white text. Delving inside, I was greeted with each shoe housed inside its own dust bag (I approve of this idea, one dust bag is great, but there is the fear that both shoes will rub against each other during storage, transferring ink or even dirt from the soles to one another).

I found my regular size (42/8) was just right, a small amount of effort was needed to slip the shoes on, but once inside my foot was firmly secure. In fact, they are so sturdy you don’t even need to tie the laces to guarantee they stay on! This makes it ideal to keep the laces hidden from sight, just pop them inside the shoe. (additionally, the laces provided are quite short compared to other shoes, which makes this an even easier prospect!).

Because of their low profile design, they give a nice sleek look when worn. No worry of the aforementioned duck feet syndrome! The shape looks particularly beautiful from a side profile view (catching a glimpse in a mirror or shop window and you can’t help but admire them!). The colour is an eye catching off white colour, which pairs suitably with pretty much everything in the wardrobe. To touch they feel luxurious and well made with a solid quality. I thoroughly inspected each sneaker and I couldn’t see even one flaw. They definitely looked expensive!

However, there are a couple of negatives stopping them from getting top marks (for me at least, and mostly due to how I usually wear footwear). First of all, you have to wear socks. On my very first wear I decided to forgo them, within a couple of hours I regretted this decision immensely as they started to rub the sides of my feet pretty severely! (in fact, I had to purchase some socks from a store to relieve the pain). This isn’t really any fault of the shoes themselves, they were most likely designed to wear with socks.

The 2nd negative is along the same lines, this time the problem is with the tongue. As stated earlier in the review, the shoes have a nice firm structure, which carries over into the construction of the tongue, and this is where the problem lies… they are possibly too sturdy and firm. When you walk, they barely bend, causing friction and rubbing over the front of the ankles. When I returned from my first wear, I had a deep red line running across my skin. My feet were already suffering from rubbing due to the lack of socks, the tongue was then in turn antagonising my feet even further! If you wear normal full length socks, this isn’t even an issue, but if you choose low profile trainer socks it will still cause problems.

Despite these criticisms I still highly recommend these Saint Laurent Off White Court Classic Sneakers if you can look past the heavy duty tongue (which for many who wear normal socks, this won’t even be an issue) then I would give these full marks. Beautifully designed shoes which are heavy duty and quite comfortable (with socks!). Please let me know what you think in the comments below!

The shoes appear to be now low in stock in most of the usual places, SSENSE have other colours on sale and Mr.Porter have the white pair, just with an alternate colour along the heel.

Buy Saint Laurent sneakers online : Mr. Porter | Matches Fashion | My Theresa

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32 Comments

  1. May 22, 2017 / 1:12 pm

    Thank for posting this helpful review. White trainers are latest buzzword in men’s footwear trends. They have an elegant and sleek look and gives the person wearing it an overall chill vibe. I would love to buy this pair. Looking forward to reading more useful reviews.

    • Adam
      Author
      May 24, 2017 / 10:40 pm

      Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the review!

  2. June 3, 2017 / 11:03 am

    Adam, as a fshion lover i must appreciate your ideas and blog. This the one of the favourite blog to me an i often read your ideas.
    Thanks

    • Adam
      Author
      June 4, 2017 / 6:37 pm

      Hi Jill, thank you very much for your kind comment. I’m glad you like my blog 🙂

  3. Virak
    August 13, 2017 / 7:00 am

    Hey my saint laurent leather is very sturdy and I can’t see the grain of the leather and the tongue Is so anoying does it become better overtime?

  4. Jodie
    August 18, 2017 / 3:53 am

    I’d love to know what socks you’ve found to wear with these. I’ve bought several pairs now and they are all too high. Thanks

    • Adam
      Author
      August 20, 2017 / 8:34 pm

      Hi Jodie, I know what you’re saying, not all pairs of socks are made equal. I actually used a pair of Happy Socks to get the desired fit, they sit just below the back of the heel of the shoe. However, they do sometimes slip too far down.

  5. Dean
    September 16, 2017 / 11:12 pm

    Hi Adam great post. I bought some SL/35 and totally agree with reference to the tongue, first few wears totally digging into my skin.. really hoping it softness up. SL really needs to address this..
    cheers

    • Adam
      Author
      September 22, 2017 / 8:52 am

      Hi Dean, hopefully next season they change it. The tongues on mine are still fairly tough!

  6. Steven
    December 29, 2017 / 3:19 pm

    Hello there Adam! Love the article, beautiful shoes! I just have a auestion regarding sizing. On the Saint Laurent website all of the court classic low sneakers indicates to get a size smaller than your usual size. I tead that your usual size worked fine when you purchased these. What size do you recommend buying?

    • Adam
      Author
      January 1, 2018 / 9:07 pm

      Hi Steven, glad you loved the review! Personally in both my pairs of Saint Laurent Court Sneakers (the white and the pink) I choose my normal size of a UK 8 / EU 42. I Could not have sized down.

  7. Alex
    January 11, 2018 / 7:57 am

    Hey I have a pair of these and was wondering how you had them laced, I can’t figure out where the end that doesn’t go to the top is.

    • Adam
      Author
      January 12, 2018 / 2:43 am

      Hey there, I don’t actually tie the laces in a bow, I just tuck them into the shoe along the side by my feet. As the shoes are so stiff, they never have any issues with falling off. Hope that helps!

  8. Jorge
    January 23, 2018 / 3:06 am

    Awesome review Adam I totally understand your pain with the tongue I own two pairs and months later they’re still stiff but I deal with the pain because they are so beautiful! So glad I found your blog while I’m reading reviews on the white pair since I’m about to finally purchase them!

    • Adam
      Author
      January 26, 2018 / 3:11 am

      Hi Jorge, yeah mine are still stiff after wearing them countless times, but I put with it like you because they’re beautiful. I’m sure you’re going to love the white pair! Glad you like my blog!

  9. Lenny
    April 5, 2018 / 3:42 pm

    Hi Adam
    its a very helpful review for a portential buyer but
    would you recommend them in black?

    • Adam
      Author
      April 9, 2018 / 12:08 am

      Hey Lenny, glad you like the review. Actually, I’ve seen a pair of black with blue “Saint Laurent” stitching on the side, which I feel I need to get! So yes, I would recommend a black pair 🙂

  10. May 5, 2018 / 2:26 pm

    Adam,

    Nice site, and great article

    These look great, I need to source a nice versatile pair of sneakers for summer and these look perfect…

    One thing – are they a little wide or is it just my imagination?

    How does the width compare to something like a pair of converse?

    Craig

    • Adam
      Author
      May 8, 2018 / 7:15 pm

      Hi Craig, glad you like it!

      In comparison to Converse, I would say they are quite a lot wider. But taken by themselves, they have a lovely shape when worn 🙂

  11. Hao
    June 12, 2018 / 9:17 pm

    Hi Adam
    I just bought a pair of black and a pair of white of these after reading your review(very good one!). 😛

    They look great on feet!
    One thing I want to mention is that it seems they have reduced the length of the tongue, now it’s quite short and no longer rubbing feet.
    I suppose they might be reading your blog as well. 😉

    • Adam
      Author
      June 13, 2018 / 12:23 am

      Hey! 🙂

      Yeah, I actually recently purchased the new version of the black pair (with the blue stitching) and they definitely have a shorter tongue! (Maybe they did read my post 😉 )
      I will be doing a review of the new pair soon!

  12. Ryan
    August 6, 2018 / 6:01 am

    Great review! How do these compare to sizing in Common Projects Achilles in terms of length and width? I wear a 45/12 in those and the length is fine but as you know, they are a little narrow before breaking in. Should I stick with a 45 in the sl06 or if a 44.5/11.5 will fit? I ask bc I see a pair of 44.5/11.5 on sale, hah. Thanks!

    • Adam
      Author
      August 6, 2018 / 8:15 am

      Hi Ryan! Glad you like the review. I actually wear the same size in both brands (42), however I do believe Common Projects do fit better, albeit a little narrow at the beginning (as you said!). But recently, I actually tried a different pair of sl06 in store, in a 42.5 … and I think it is a slightly better and more comfortable fit. But, they are the new style with the logo along the side. You could always try the 44.5 and see how it goes, especially if it’s a good discount!

  13. Kevin
    November 29, 2018 / 9:13 am

    Awesome review and beautiful pictures! I just got a pair myself during Black Friday. I was wondering how you cared for these shoes. Do you have a certain leather cleaner? Do you use shoe trees for storage? Thanks so much!

    • Adam
      Author
      December 10, 2018 / 8:59 pm

      Hi Kevin! I keep them in the box with the shoe stuffing inside them, and I clean the soles after every wear. Hope that helps!

  14. Angelo
    December 10, 2018 / 11:59 pm

    Hi Adam great post so far.
    I currently have the SL01 in Nero and fit is dead on 43/10. How do these compare to the suede SL06 in terms of fit?

    • Adam
      Author
      December 14, 2018 / 12:26 am

      Hi Angelo, I haven’t actually tried the suede pair unfortunately. But I have tried and do own the newer model with the ‘Saint Laurent’ name stitched onto the side. They are actually a similar fit but slightly more comfortable, as the tongue is thankfully much softer!

  15. exxellence
    December 17, 2018 / 3:43 pm

    Good review and pix….Just bought a pair. Hopefully they’ll fit like my suede SL06 and not bigger.

    • Adam
      Author
      December 24, 2018 / 12:57 am

      Thanks for the comment, please be sure to let me know if they fit similar to your suede!

  16. February 16, 2019 / 10:31 pm

    Hi I would like to get size 35 snickers but my regular size is 6 U S size is that saint laurent true to size?

    • Adam
      Author
      February 16, 2019 / 10:41 pm

      Hi Kelly, I wear a size UK 8 (EU 42) in the Saint Laurent Sneakers, which is the size I choose for all my designer shoes. However, brands like Nike and Adidas I usually pick UK 8.5 / 9 (EU 42.5 / 43). Hope this helps with your questions!

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