The Air Jordan 1 'Washed Black' Is Beautiful and May Be My Favorite 'Washed' Jordan 1.
The Air Jordan 1 'Washed Black' or 'Washed Heritage' or 'Black and Smoke Grey' according to Nike.com releases in the United States on June 10 for $180. Following the 'Washed Pink' that dropped earlier in 2023, this Jordan 1 is yet another addition to the washed aesthetic family that already includes the Hyper Royal and Turbo Green.
Colorway (5/5):
With a white base layer with grey suede overlays and hints of black and red…it doesn’t get better than this. There’s a reason why the saying ‘keep it simple stupid’ exists and this colorway shows why. You just can’t go wrong with such a simple and clean colorway. I especially love the fire red ‘Nike Air’ branding on the tongue. The limited use of fire red on this shoe really makes this shoe pop (sorry for the corny and overused phrase but that’s the best I could come up with).
As someone that dresses simple 100% of the time, this colorway is made for me…or maybe I’m made for this colorway.
Materials (3/5):
The Jordan 1 has never been known to come with premium materials and it’s always a surprise when it does. The leather on this shoe is actually decent and you see the grain of the leather come through ever so slightly. It creases naturally so there’s no synthetic coating that often makes a shoe feel plastic.
Now the suede is where it gets interesting. The suede overlays (not the lighter shade on the ankle collar) is decent but nothing spectacular, however, there’s a little dryness to it that makes it feel rough. I prefer a very smooth suede that you see on a shoe like the Air Max 1 ‘Ugly Duckling’, and I’m not sure if it’s my mind playing with me but I swear the suede on the ankle collar is better. I literally spent ten minutes touching the suede with both hands and I’m convinced.
Size and Comfort (2/5):
Similar to the materials on most Jordan 1s, the comfort is underwhelming. The Air Jordan 1 comes with a rubber cupsole with a Nike Air unit on the heel and it is very flat feeling shoe. Remember this shoe was created in 1985 with ancient technology and Michael Jordan did prefer flatter shoes so he could feel the NBA court. I will give credit to the always nicely padded ankle collars of the Jordan 1, but if I had to pick a shoe that I had to wear on feet all day, the Air Jordan 1 would not be it.
Sizing wise, I’m a size 9.5 true to size and despite my wide feet I go true to size for all Jordan 1s. The shoe fits pretty well and there’s nowhere on the feet that feels overly snug (especially if you’re not old like me and prefer to wear your shoes loose).
Versatility (5/5):
You take a silhouette in the Jordan 1 that’s timeless and pair it with a simple, clean colorway like this and all you’re getting is a shoe that fits pretty much every occasion. Versatility wise, it really doesn’t get better than this.
Storytelling (1/5):
This shoe is a general release and there’s not necessarily a story to tell. However, I do think Jordan Brand can create some sort of story for each shoe that falls under the ‘washed aesthetic’. I don’t see them stopping with this washed colorway any time soon, so why not create some mystique behind it? They’ve fabricated many stories in the past in the name of marketing, might as well do it again.