Nike Air Force 1 Shadow

Air Force 1 Shadow

The Nike Air Force 1 Shadow is a women’s low-top sneaker covered in layered effects that give the appearance of shadowing across the design as almost everything that can be doubled up is. To begin with, two swooshes sit on top of each other along the lateral midfoot. The upper one is usually made of leather, and the extra swoosh below it is normally printed onto the lateral midfoot at a slightly odd angle to it and in a different tone. In designs such as the SE Solar Flare, the two swooshes are clearly distinct as its bold pink top layer contrasts against the green suede swoosh behind it. However, in those models that have a more uniform colour scheme, for example the Coconut Milk, with its mix of white tones, the effect is very subtle. While the lower swoosh often appears flat against the surface of the midfoot and lateral heel, the one on the Light Soft Pink is another fully leather logo that brings added depth. This model’s secondary swoosh is sewn down around its whole edge, but the one laid over it only has a line of stitching around its front edge and in a box shape where it connects to the top of the heel patch – a feature of most Shadows except for the Ghost Swoosh, which has three minimal lines of green zigzag stitching. The medial swoosh, on the other hand, is more traditional, with a single line of thread extending around its entire perimeter and its tail end going under the heel patch – an element that also has two layers. The usual heel panel can be seen beneath the one overlaying it, with loose stitching joining it to the collar, which is behind the rear overlay. Most of the time, both layers are made of smooth leather, the top panel has Nike text embroidered into it in lowercase letters and the bottom panel has capitalised branding partially visible where it protrudes above the other layer. One notable exception to this is the Dark Sulfur model, whose glossy black overlay has the word “Nike” embossed onto it in an eccentric golden font. Another is the Go The Extra Smile Shadow, with its yellow, cracked leather overlay and branding-free white underlay.

The Shadow’s dual eyestays create further depth, but only the upper level has stitching along its edge, whereas the lower one protrudes out slightly from the lateral side and then slopes in under the top layer on the medial side. AF1 text is debossed into the primary eyestay, just above which the laces hold a dubrae etched with similar branding. These lie behind a toe box that carries a series of small perforations arranged in a boxlike pattern, where the left foot mirrors the right and vice versa. Sometimes this feature comes in the same colour as the midfoot panels, as in the case of the Cashmere version, while there are other models that exhibit colour differentiation, such as the Spruce Aura, whose pale blue midfoot contrasts with its white toe. Whatever colour the toe box is decorated in, there is always a pair of mudguards surrounding it. The lower one encircles the toe box and meets the eyestay at both ends, while the upper one emerges from the lateral eyestay then falls away towards the midsole on the medial side. Invariably, each mudguard exhibits a different colour, for example on the Pastel, whose turquoise primary layer is underlaid by a pinkish shade of orange.

At the back of the Air Force 1 Shadow, an additional rubber panel wraps around the lateral side of the heel, bridging the midsole and upper. The Air lettering on its surface has been replicated, which is just one example of the doubled-up text on this model. There are also dual tongue tabs with Nike Air sewn into them, and mirrored branding printed onto the insole. On colourways like the Mint Foam, the text on one tongue label is a different colour to the one on the other, but just a few have the same tone on both. This is also true of the insole, where most variants follow the Pink Glaze in its use of distinct hues on each piece of text, here the colours being pink and red.

Another notable part of the AF1 Shadow is the rear overlay that sticks up above the eyestay on the lateral midfoot. This contrasts with the medial side, where the panel continues underneath the eyestay. It has two unused eyelets at the top, behind which the low-cut collar has been padded out so that the foot is encapsulated in a soft embrace. This is bolstered by the raised midsole, which was made to be more appealing to women. A bolder, chunkier feel results from this feature, while the Air and foam inside it provide lightweight comfort. With so many panels and segments, the Shadow is also a great canvas for hosting a wide range of colours. Some, like the Amethyst Ash, with its soft, pastel tones, and the Fossil colourway, with its Sail and Light Bone overlays, have relatively reserved colour palettes. Then there are those like the Pale Ivory, which has an extremely varied tonal selection that includes colours ranging from purple to red.

The AF1’s basketball heritage remains through the outsole’s distinctive concentric circle tread. These grip patterns move out from the centre in grooves which alternate from wide and deep to narrow and shallow, producing a sequence of circles that have been doubled up. All of these pieces come together to complete the Nike Air Force 1 Shadow – a model that has taken classic aspects of the Air Force 1’s design and exaggerated them to create an eccentric sneaker.