Nike Cortez - this one is made for a man, but this woman loves it

Can you put a price on nostalgia?  Turns out Nike can, and it's $58.  Well, my nostalgia was on sale for $42 at Finish Line.

When I was a little girl, I used to go to the high school football games to watch my brother play.  Oh, how I wanted to be one of those girls who got to cheer in front of the crowd, wear those girly outfits with the cool skirts, and those really cool red and white Nike tennis shoes.  Fast forward a few years, and I became one of those girls!  I couldn't wait to wear the "official shoe" of our squad.

Fast forward, um, a few years later...okay, more years than I care to count...and what do I see in the window of a shoe store at the mall?  The Nike Cortez.  There are several colors available, as well as nylon styles, but my eyes lock on the white leather with red leather swoosh style.

The shoe:

The Nike Cortez is a very simple, streamlined tennis shoe.  This version is all leather, with an extra strip of leather stitched vertically over the toe area, and another extra strip sewn horizontally around the heel area.  The well-recognized Nike swoosh, also leather, is stitched on the two sides of the shoe. The foam outer sole, with the side stripe corresponding to the color of the swoosh, features a zigzag pattern for traction.  The insole is cushioned fabric, and the shoe offers nice arch support.

Why the men's style when it also comes in women's?

One reason...color.  White leather with the red leather swoosh was not available in women's, so I headed on over to the men's side to get what I wanted. 

The lowdown:

With the advances made in athletic shoe technology, it seems funny now that back in the day, this shoe was a running shoe.  Under today's standards, this shoe does not offer proper cushioning, appropriate heel support, or the correctly-shaped toe box needed for running.  In terms of use, this shoe is good for walking around and its aesthetic quality.

This shoe is not true-to-size.  When a woman purchases a men's shoe, she usually purchases one and a half sizes down.  I normally wear a size 9, but instead of the 7 1/2 I thought I'd need, I ended up with a size 8.  This shoe is narrow, and to make sure it fits properly, I think most people will have to go up one-half size.

I wear this shoe often when running errands and such, but when I'm going to be on my feet all day, I'll grab a different pair of tennis shoes.  The tennis shoes of today are simply more comfortable for all-day wear.

Final thoughts:

These very well made shoes, being primarily white, are difficult to keep clean (I often use shoe whitener on them), and are not as comfortable as my other tennis shoes.  However, when I put them on, I'm that girl again, if only for a while;  as such, these well-made shoes will occupy a place in my closet, my heart, and sometimes my feet as a reminder of simpler times.

Compared to the tennis shoes of today, these shoes are 2 1/2 stars, but the nostalgia factor gives it an extra boost from me.  Three rah, rah, sis boom bah, stars.

I'll recommend them to those with narrow(ish) feet, and for those who remember them in any of their incarnations.

This shoe review is a contribution to the Soles4Souls promotion, and is also a Lean-n-Mean review.

Thanks for your time!