Heads up: J. Crew recently moved these into their final sale section and are running an extra 30% off code SHOPNOW through this Thursday, 6/16. But final sale means final. No returns. Sizing advice = go with your true-to-size Brannock measurement. More details in the Sizing/Fit/Comfort section below…
About the Author: Adam Terry is a 30-year-old Technical Trainer in the heating and manufacturing industry. He’s #menswear by day and #workwear by night. He enjoys raw selvedge denim, Scotch whisky, and working on maintaining his dad bod.
As the youth of 2022 like to say, J.Crew is a vibe this time of year. The Spring/Summer 2022 collection is in full swing and there’s an absolute truckload of fantastically bright, colorful items on sale. While it’s true that many of us are trying to scale back our spending right now, thanks in part to record levels of inflation and a heap of uncertainty in the market, the world doesn’t stop spinning and the seasons are still changing. Here in the South, we’re already seeing daily temps in the low to mid ‘90s. I don’t know about you, but that’s a hot weather recipe that’s calling for a crisp polo shirt, clean chino shorts, and a cool pair of sneakers or loafers. Today we’re looking at J.Crew’s Camden crepe-sole slip-on mocs. Are they worth the splash of cash and space in your closet? You might want to start stocking up on ramen or mac and cheese,
Summertime. And the livin’ is… wrapped in soft suede and placed on a squishy crepe sole.
Part house slipper, part beefroll moc, and ready for whatever prep you can throw at them.
My pair of Camden mocs was ordered via jcrew.com on a Friday afternoon. They shipped out on the following Monday via UPS SurePost and were delivered on Wednesday afternoon. I recently complained about a shipping delay with a previous J.Crew order that took over a week to even get scanned out, so a one business-day turnaround is a huge improvement. Nice!
FYI: J.Crew’s standard 30-day return policy applies here, so you’ll have a full month to think about your purchase before deciding on a return. They no longer offer exchanges. As always, shoes need to be unworn to be returned successfully. Note – J.Crew will deduct a $7.50 fee if you decide to use their return label. This can be avoided if you return to a retail store near you.
Score: 4/5 Stars – Easy ordering, fast shipping, but docking points for non-free returns.
UNBOXING ALERT: J. Crew included a shoe horn!
This pair arrived in J.Crew’s standard brown cardboard box. Each shoe was wrapped in tissue paper and stuffed with the same to help keep the unstructured toe box from collapsing during shipping. Funnily enough, the crepe rubber soles are slightly tacky to the touch, so the tissue paper packing kept sticking to it. I had to pick and pluck pieces of it off the soles, but that’s a minor gripe. These don’t really need spare laces or anything, either, but I was surprised to find a mini plastic shoe horn screen printed with the J.Crew logo. This was a nice, simple touch.
Score: 5/5 Stars – The unboxing experience was OK and what I expected for the product.
Fresh out of the box, I’m intrigued by the overall aesthetic. It’s like you blended a house slipper with a slightly dressier beefroll moc but in suede. It has elements of both and, yet, seems to serve a higher purpose in style scenarios. In the Summertime, I envision wearing these with a fun short-sleeve button-down or camp collar shirt, flat front chino shorts, and some aviator-style sunglasses a la Top Gun. If you’re less inclined to the preppy style, go for an outdoorsy vibe with a merino wool henley tee, Patagonia Baggies shorts, and Knockaround sunglasses. Whatever your vibe is, I think these slip-on mocs have a place in your rotation.
A rich, finely napped calf suede that is treated to handle rough wear.
The overall design aesthetic sets these slip-ons apart from your more common casual sneakers or sandals (I’m looking at you, Birkenstocks!). The uppers are cut from C.F. Stead’s fantastic English suede – this looks to be their Repello suede, which is a finely napped calf suede that’s coated with 3M’s Scotchgard during the tanning process for superb stain resistance and waterproofing. Don’t be afraid to wear these hard as a lot of us menswear nerds think suede looks better with lots of wear and tear. It’s not nearly as delicate as you probably think it is.
The upper stitching is clean throughout with contrasting white stitching along the vamp. The oddly shaped and pinked layer along the sides is stitched with tonal brown stitching and is something that I’m not a huge fan of personally. I wish J.Crew’s designers would have pinked the strip where the eyelets are and forgotten about this extra detail layer. To me, this weird line of demarcation is distracting and I don’t like how it’s tied into the toe stitching at the front. The stitching here is also a bit wavy and out of line, but it’s hard to notice. Style is subjective after all, so I can’t dock points here as some of y’all may love these little details.
Clean stitching, but for Adam the pinked side edge is a little much for him.
The nickel metal eyelets are threaded with brown rawhide laces for a slightly rugged appearance. These are functional, too, so you can use them to tighten or loosen up the fit a touch. You can also switch the laces out for something more striking if that pleases you. Finally, you’ll notice the real 360° leather storm welt around the bottom. Real is a stretch; it’s real leather, but I assume this is a faux welt that’s simply glued onto the leather midsole. This is a complete guess, though, since I’m not in the business of tearing shoes apart for science.
The interior is fully lined in a wonderful layer of cowhide that stretches from heel to toe. The heel cup is reversed with the grain side out for a bit of heel control, which may help reduce or eliminate heel slip. The insole/sockliner is a multi-layer sandwich: starting from the top down, we have a thin layer of that cowhide lining with perforations at the instep. That layer is glued down to a slim to medium thick layer of red open cell foam for some initial comfort. Those layers are glued down to what looks to be a fiberboard or polymer tuck. This rigid layer is what the shoe is crafted around as it helps provide shape and support. Finally, all of that seems to be stitched to a leather midsole that’s hiding underneath. A further examination may be needed should anyone wish to cut these in half and make a YouTube video out of it.
Leather sock lining, reversed heel cup, and open cell insole get the comfort going.
This outsole is something else! I’m not sure that I’ve seen a lot of natural crepe rubber wedge soles, especially not on boat or camp moccasins like these. It feels decently thick and looks to be genuine, natural crepe rubber and not some knockoff plasticized outsole that you’d see elsewhere online. Overall comfort seems pretty good and you’ll certainly appreciate the easier than average break-in process as compared to leather or hard rubber outsoles. The outsoles seem to be bonded (glued) to the leather midsoles and show no signs of poor quality control. However, note that these suede stallions only have a few minutes of wear to date, so that glued construction could be put to the test given enough miles of wear. Speaking of glue, repairs may be a bit more difficult if your local cobbler doesn’t stock crepe soles, but it can be done!
Score: 5/5 Stars – Surprisingly nice! Lovely suede, cushy insole, and squishy outsole.
In terms of fit and sizing, I recommend trying your true-to-size Brannock measurement. I tried this pair in a 10.5 and they fit exactly how I’d want them to. There’s just a touch of extra space all around when going sockless, which feels rather nice and freeing. That’s not to say they’re too loose or there’s heel slip – there’s not, they fit really well right out of the box. If you choose to wear socks with them, you’ll be pleased as long as the socks aren’t super thick.
Thick crepe soles create some of the instant comfort of these mocs.
For size reference, I am a 10.5 D/E on a Brannock device and usually take a 10 D in most roomy dress shoes, including Alden’s Barrie last and Grant Stone’s Leo last. I take a 10.5 E in Allen Edmonds 65 last, as that last runs too narrow for me. I also take a 10.5 in Converse/Vans and an 11 in most athletic sneakers from Adidas or Nike. Have a size question? Email us!
Comfort is always subjective, but I think the soft leather lining and extra cushioned insole/sockliner feel just as good as the uber soft “gold glove” deerskin lining in my Maine Mountain Moccasins that I like to wear around the house. The crepe rubber outsole gives a healthy layer of squish and comforting rebound, too. I dig these a lot more than I imagined!
Score: 5/5 Stars – Sizing is spot on, these fit really well, and they’re super comfortable!
I’m honestly shocked how much I actually like these slip-on mocs. After seeing them online, I initially thought they looked like something right out of a Visvim catalog – something you’d see being worn by eccentric superstars like John Mayer, Kanye West, or A$AP Rocky. Once you get them in hand, though, you realize that they have a really unique aesthetic that sets them apart from most other mocs and casual loafers. If you’re the down-to-Earth type who loves the outdoors, likes visiting new places around town, or just enjoys slightly odd shoes, you may love them. Whether you love or hate the look of these Camden mocs, I promise you they’re comfy!
Avg. Score: 4.75/5 – Highly recommended! Unique, comfortable, and (IMO) stylish.
Adam (and dad) approved for a day of play.
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