The Vans X Star Wars line was announced in April 2014, with a collection of twelve styles to choose from. Since then, they have released several other designs, including some exclusives. While I’m much more of a ‘high heel girl’, I couldn’t resist the idea of Star Wars footwear.
Early this year, during my usual Star Wars fashion searches, I came across the Vans style ‘Saber Fight Black’ which I quite liked (it has a pink/purple tone to it, my favourite colours), which wasn’t included in the first collection advertising. I learned this was a Journeys retailer exclusive design and went to check their on-line store – to find it gone! They had long sold out, I was so frustrated with myself for not researching my options earlier. Checking ebay, I found one seller with a pair available in my size, so I quickly bought them. I paid US$99.99 – which is higher than the original retail price of US$59.99, but as a collector, I’m pretty familiar with Star Wars items raising in price after they’ve sold out from retailers.
They arrived in a fantastic Vans x Star Wars box, with the classic poster art and a close-up of the Death Star. I was so excited to finally see the shoes in person, the colours are fantastic, definitely pink and purple. The tops are sewn from printed fabric, with elastic gussets on each side. The inner sole has a printed Vans logo, surrounded by the Star Wars logo. The design is perhaps more abstract than the popular poster art version, but the silhouettes are instantly recognizable to any fan. The artwork is of course by Drew Struzan, as part of the teaser poster he created for ‘Revenge of the Jedi’ in 1983.
According to Vans, the US mens size 4.5 is equivalent to my usual size of US women’s size 6, so that’s the size I chose. Buying on-line I am unable to try footwear on before purchasing, so I was hoping they fit true to size. Externally the sole measures approximately 24.8cm long, and 18.8cm at the widest. The internal measurements are obviously smaller and much harder to measure, but the box indicates the foot size as 22.5cm – my size, and these fit perfectly. I am so happy to add these great Star Wars shoes to my wardrobe – totally worth paying a bit more to obtain my favourite design from the collection.
