Meermin Suede Review
One word sums them up... WOW.
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I've had the dark brown Rapello suede monk for 2 months and it's performed well. Yesterday the
snuff Rapello wholecut, dark brown Rapello full brouge, and the navy Rapello chukka arrived. Due to a single review that mentioned some white residue being present, I had asked Sandro at Meermin to double check the shoes before shipping. He gladly agreed, and the results are fantastic.
I was expecting some minor issues, but for the life of me, I cant't find anything to complain about. The only flaw is that on the brouge the word Meermin is imprinted offcenter on the sole. Who cares? Clean is the best description of these shoes.
They came out of the box with the nap a bit mottled, an initial cause for concern. A quick brushing with a sued brush and they look pristine. The suede does tend to show fingerprints, so a quick touch up with the brush after putting them on resolves this issue. I spent the entire evening last night walking around the house in each of them.
All fit TTS. I am a size a size 10D in the AE 1,2,3,5,7, and 8 lasts, a 42.5 in the Vass New Peter last, a 9 UK in Carmina Forest and Rain, and a 9 UK in Bonafe 946 last. The Meermin Hiro last fits like a glove, the Ama last is a tad wider. The Meermins were all purchased in 9 UK.
They are made from their less expensive Classic collection line. I will be recieving a leather museum calf Linea Maestro shoe in the next month or two, as well as 3 leather boots to report on. The first shoe was ordered independently and incurred a 35 Euro shipping charge. To mitigate that expense, I had them bundle these three shoes, and two matching suede belts into one shipment for 50 Euros total. That caused a delay as all had to be finished toegther before shipment could occur. They were ordered at the end of October and the first week of November, so tosla shipping time was about 6 weeks.
The MTO boots and shoes have an estimated wait time of 8 weeks, but again I bundled them to save the shipping, so I don't expect them until the end of January to the beggining of Feb. The total shipping for all 4 will be 50 Euros, quite a savings over the 35 Euro apiece single shipping charge.
So what's the cost? 132.23 Euros ex-VAT for the suede shoes, 148.76 Euros ex-VAT for the Chukkas, and 37.19 Euros for the belts each. With the bundled shipping, and depreciating Euro it was 533.60 Euros for these three shoes and two belts door to door. No custom charges incured, for a grand total of $659. The shoes alone with shipping were 483.22 Euros or $572.08.
Now lets get to the individual items.
The dark brown Rapello suede monks are a plain toe single strap with a combination chocolate leather sole with a rubber overlay in the front half, on the slightly chisled Ama last. The heel is stacked leather with a thick rubber heel piece in the stacking. The buckle is silver. Like all the other shoes, the liner is split, with a handsome tan embosed liner in the heel section and a lighter liner of what appears to be a thinner leather in the front half. No misalignment, no glue spots. It is open channel stitching on the sole, with a clean welt stitch, evenly spaced and no discernable overlaps or misstitching. The suede as in the others is of a soft nap and healthy thickness. No balding or short tuffted areas, coloration is uniform, and the nap all goes in the same direction. It appears to have a strong heel support and reinforced toe box, but I'm not about to go mashing on them to test their limits. The heel lies flat and even on a flat surface.
![Image]()
The dark brown full brouges, are a likewise handsome color with great even suede. They have a full rubber sole over a deep chocolate leather midsole, on the bit rounded Hiro last. The heel has a single leather strip sandwiched between the rubber, with a thick rubber heel cap. All the brouge holes, even the small ones are completely punched thru and unifirmly spaced. The toe medallions are both symetrically centered. and the tip of the W in the wing lies flat. The pinking edges are flush with the surface of the shoe all around. This is the one with the Meermin stamp off center on the sole. Again clean even welt stitching all around, no goofy overlaps or flaws. Again the heel lies completely flat on a flat surface.
![Image]()
Now the snuff wholecuts. Full leather chestnut colored soles, stacked leather heel with combination rubber heel insert. I expected this to be the shoe to show the flaws. Yet the suede grain flows evenly in both nap and color across the shoe from stem to stern. A handsome full leather sole with a bit of a bevel as a nice touch and closed channel stitching. Again clean welt stitching, and the heel lays flat and flush on a flat surface. The slightly chisled Ama last, just a beautiful shoe that looks like it's going at 60 miles an hour standing still.
![Image]()
Now the navy Rapello Chukka. First the top is comfortable, no pressing against the ankle. They are a half inch higher than my Rider or AE Bellvue Chukkas. They are plain toed with no brouging. The suede again is smooth and even. The welting is the best of the bunch, and the others were excellent. They are on the lightly rounded Hiro last. Full channeled leather soles and stacked leather heels with the combination rubber heel insert, and aslightly beveled waist. The leather sole and heels are a dark Mahogony which goes well with the navy suede.
![Image]()
They are all outfitted with a tan full leather lining, come well packaged with two shoe bags. If they are in stock they ship quickly. If not, the wait is a pain in the a**, but worth it. The web site is primitive in the ordering process. You place an order, and have to wait until they are ready to get an invoice and pay prior to shipping. On the other hand, Sandro answers e-mails prompltly and will adise you on fit, style, construction, shipping etc.
These are all GYW shoes, and though the uppers are made in Singapore, and final assembly is in Spain, you can tell the craftsmen know their buisness. I found no QC problems in any of the 4 shoes. Even the V of the bals come together nicely. The laces seem sturdy and appropriate to the shoe styles. The lace holes are not reinforced, hopefully that will not become an issue.
One word to sum them up is CLEAN. IMO they are so far by initial appearance, fit, and finish, superior to my AEs. They are right up there with Carmina at less than half the price. Now for the acid test. Their leather boots and Linea Maestro shoes. I'll get back to those when they arrive, which won't be for quite a while.
It is dark and rainy out, so I am going to post a pics in poor indoor lighting. When the weather and time of day is permitting, I will post detailed pictures outside in good lighting. Now it's time to get out the nanoprotector and spray them down.
One word sums them up... WOW.
I've had the dark brown Rapello suede monk for 2 months and it's performed well. Yesterday the
snuff Rapello wholecut, dark brown Rapello full brouge, and the navy Rapello chukka arrived. Due to a single review that mentioned some white residue being present, I had asked Sandro at Meermin to double check the shoes before shipping. He gladly agreed, and the results are fantastic.
I was expecting some minor issues, but for the life of me, I cant't find anything to complain about. The only flaw is that on the brouge the word Meermin is imprinted offcenter on the sole. Who cares? Clean is the best description of these shoes.
They came out of the box with the nap a bit mottled, an initial cause for concern. A quick brushing with a sued brush and they look pristine. The suede does tend to show fingerprints, so a quick touch up with the brush after putting them on resolves this issue. I spent the entire evening last night walking around the house in each of them.
All fit TTS. I am a size a size 10D in the AE 1,2,3,5,7, and 8 lasts, a 42.5 in the Vass New Peter last, a 9 UK in Carmina Forest and Rain, and a 9 UK in Bonafe 946 last. The Meermin Hiro last fits like a glove, the Ama last is a tad wider. The Meermins were all purchased in 9 UK.
They are made from their less expensive Classic collection line. I will be recieving a leather museum calf Linea Maestro shoe in the next month or two, as well as 3 leather boots to report on. The first shoe was ordered independently and incurred a 35 Euro shipping charge. To mitigate that expense, I had them bundle these three shoes, and two matching suede belts into one shipment for 50 Euros total. That caused a delay as all had to be finished toegther before shipment could occur. They were ordered at the end of October and the first week of November, so tosla shipping time was about 6 weeks.
The MTO boots and shoes have an estimated wait time of 8 weeks, but again I bundled them to save the shipping, so I don't expect them until the end of January to the beggining of Feb. The total shipping for all 4 will be 50 Euros, quite a savings over the 35 Euro apiece single shipping charge.
So what's the cost? 132.23 Euros ex-VAT for the suede shoes, 148.76 Euros ex-VAT for the Chukkas, and 37.19 Euros for the belts each. With the bundled shipping, and depreciating Euro it was 533.60 Euros for these three shoes and two belts door to door. No custom charges incured, for a grand total of $659. The shoes alone with shipping were 483.22 Euros or $572.08.
Now lets get to the individual items.
The dark brown Rapello suede monks are a plain toe single strap with a combination chocolate leather sole with a rubber overlay in the front half, on the slightly chisled Ama last. The heel is stacked leather with a thick rubber heel piece in the stacking. The buckle is silver. Like all the other shoes, the liner is split, with a handsome tan embosed liner in the heel section and a lighter liner of what appears to be a thinner leather in the front half. No misalignment, no glue spots. It is open channel stitching on the sole, with a clean welt stitch, evenly spaced and no discernable overlaps or misstitching. The suede as in the others is of a soft nap and healthy thickness. No balding or short tuffted areas, coloration is uniform, and the nap all goes in the same direction. It appears to have a strong heel support and reinforced toe box, but I'm not about to go mashing on them to test their limits. The heel lies flat and even on a flat surface.
The dark brown full brouges, are a likewise handsome color with great even suede. They have a full rubber sole over a deep chocolate leather midsole, on the bit rounded Hiro last. The heel has a single leather strip sandwiched between the rubber, with a thick rubber heel cap. All the brouge holes, even the small ones are completely punched thru and unifirmly spaced. The toe medallions are both symetrically centered. and the tip of the W in the wing lies flat. The pinking edges are flush with the surface of the shoe all around. This is the one with the Meermin stamp off center on the sole. Again clean even welt stitching all around, no goofy overlaps or flaws. Again the heel lies completely flat on a flat surface.
Now the snuff wholecuts. Full leather chestnut colored soles, stacked leather heel with combination rubber heel insert. I expected this to be the shoe to show the flaws. Yet the suede grain flows evenly in both nap and color across the shoe from stem to stern. A handsome full leather sole with a bit of a bevel as a nice touch and closed channel stitching. Again clean welt stitching, and the heel lays flat and flush on a flat surface. The slightly chisled Ama last, just a beautiful shoe that looks like it's going at 60 miles an hour standing still.
Now the navy Rapello Chukka. First the top is comfortable, no pressing against the ankle. They are a half inch higher than my Rider or AE Bellvue Chukkas. They are plain toed with no brouging. The suede again is smooth and even. The welting is the best of the bunch, and the others were excellent. They are on the lightly rounded Hiro last. Full channeled leather soles and stacked leather heels with the combination rubber heel insert, and aslightly beveled waist. The leather sole and heels are a dark Mahogony which goes well with the navy suede.
They are all outfitted with a tan full leather lining, come well packaged with two shoe bags. If they are in stock they ship quickly. If not, the wait is a pain in the a**, but worth it. The web site is primitive in the ordering process. You place an order, and have to wait until they are ready to get an invoice and pay prior to shipping. On the other hand, Sandro answers e-mails prompltly and will adise you on fit, style, construction, shipping etc.
These are all GYW shoes, and though the uppers are made in Singapore, and final assembly is in Spain, you can tell the craftsmen know their buisness. I found no QC problems in any of the 4 shoes. Even the V of the bals come together nicely. The laces seem sturdy and appropriate to the shoe styles. The lace holes are not reinforced, hopefully that will not become an issue.
One word to sum them up is CLEAN. IMO they are so far by initial appearance, fit, and finish, superior to my AEs. They are right up there with Carmina at less than half the price. Now for the acid test. Their leather boots and Linea Maestro shoes. I'll get back to those when they arrive, which won't be for quite a while.
It is dark and rainy out, so I am going to post a pics in poor indoor lighting. When the weather and time of day is permitting, I will post detailed pictures outside in good lighting. Now it's time to get out the nanoprotector and spray them down.
