Wales Bonner’s Simplest adidas Sneaker Might Also Be Her Best
Though it only debuted earlier this year, Wales Bonner's signature adidas Karintha shoe has already taken on a new look. Or several new looks, rather.
Now offered in black or blue satin or covered in bronze sequins, Wales Bonner's latest Karintha Lo shoe variants are an edited continuation of the British designer's first unique silhouette for the German sportswear brand, following half a decade's worth of reworked flagship models.
In the wake of slender sneakers' seismic success, Wales Bonner made kicks to out-flatten their skinny competitors, in-house and otherwise.
Clearly nodding to the Tokyo in some places and the Samba in others, the Karintha is a standalone creation as much a product of adidas-y references as it is of founder Grace Wales Bonner's personal design language.
Named in honor of a character in Jean Toomer’s 1923 book Cane, the Karintha is a subtle manifestation of Black femininity and independence, upholding the many Afro-Atlantic influences inherent to the work of the CFDA award-winning designer.
Wales Bonner's new Karintha Lo shoe lands this October alongside a luxurious adilette and lilac-colored adidas Japan sneakers, both of which are equally rich in Wales Bonner-isms as well, evident in the adilette sandals' finely braided straps and the embroidery-type stitching around the Karintha and Japan's ankles.
After pony hair, faux croc skin, and leopard print footwear, Wales Bonner's adidas project is dialing down on eccentricity, at least in part.
And in answer to what's been an endless rollout of colorfully double-laced, barely-soled, ballet-style sneakers, something as paired-back as Wales Bonner's black satin Karintha actually feels most refreshing.
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