Absolutely worth seeing and the review was great! You are a real Birkenstock connoisseur and wearer! I'm also a 4-season Birkenstock wearer and I think the term is great :) You've actually made me curious about the Kyoto model, which reminds me a bit of the Zurich model. This appeals to me as a transitional shoe, just as you described the shoe. Maybe I can give you 1-2 more tips: I had to get used to Gizeh every year. In the meantime I only use them for driving and have switched to the Mayari model with a toe loop, very very comfortable to wear, more comfortable on the toe. And as a transitional shoe, since the Buckley is only available up to size 42, I have the Boston clogs as my favourite. These are my transitional shoes for spring and fall. Very comfortable to wear barefoot, especially with suede leather or soft oiled leather. At the moment I wear it every day, even when I go shopping. My second favorite when it comes to shoes have been wooden clogs for decades, maybe that would be something for a review? Best regards 👣😎🤗
Ahhh....thanks! And YES YES YES to clogs! Also a total fav of mine! I'm a long-time Dansko fan for comfort, but I'm not always a fan of their styles. I LOVE the traditional wooden clogs, but some of them take too long for me to break in. MIA's have limited styles, but I've been happy with the fit, and I've been a long-time fan of the price and style of Lottas. Curious. Which brands do you like? A clog review is definitely on my to-do list. :)
@@linzitme432 Wow, interesting how cork fans are often also wood fans :) Great to have met you on this platform. I'm wearing my wooden clogs at the moment :) Well, my favorite brands are Swedish Sanita, Dr. Scholl wooden mules, UGG Abbie with the lambskin in the toe box, Swedish Hasbeens (high and stylish wooden sandals) and Berkemann so called Toeffler (Berkemann is a german brand like Birkenstock - by far the lightest clogs because they are made of poplar wood). Yes, you are absolutely right, Birkenstock and wooden clogs need a break in phase, after that they are the most individual and comfortable shoes out there. Woody greetings 👣😎🌸🤗
You get drywall sanding screen sandpaper from any hardware store and you cut it up into little pieces and then sand off the black stuff that happens from the oil in your feet onto the suede leather. This is only for the suede footbeds not smooth leather. And it WORKS. Info was given to me by a Birkenstock repair place in Illinois. A lot of my sandals now look new again!
I made just an copy of these Kyoto Model Birkenstocks myself. Not as pretty as the originals but they are by far the simplest design to make as DIY at home. You know what these Kyoto style design is only? It is only the same or very similar shape of the upper as the Arizonas only without the cut out in the middle (as for 2 different stripes). If you draw the upper on a paper of the Arizona model as a whole, that gives you allmost exactly the same upper shape as the Kyoto upper is. The uttermost simplicity. Just draw the Arizona upper and leave it as is without cutting it out in the middle. Presto! thats the Kyoto upper with an additional leather strip for the velcro reinforcement. My replicas are super good fitting and way more comfortable than any other model of Birkenstock. The Kyoto model protects your upper foot way better than any other model. The Kyoto is my preferred model. I made the Kyoto copy as well with leather but only genuine leather and I put a bit more velcro in the 2 underhalfs in order to allow for more adjustment. Mine do not cave in and stay as is ready to use. Since I used genuine cow leather. I bet these Birkenstock makes in 10 Minutes tops and the Kyoto model uses not more leather than the Arizona since you do not throw away any leather pieces you cut out afterwards (as in the Arizona model) which the customer pays as well. So at the end these use a bit more labour since they sew on the velcro which is an dedicated step (I sewed on the velcro as well with my saddlery leather machine with Tex 135 bonded Nylon thread) and takes a bit more time. Birkenstock stamps the uppers out in one pass. The upper velcro strip they rivet on which is an economization. But they did not put any buckles so they saved themselves lots of money with that using only velcro. Velcro is a cheaping out solution and will be not nearly as durable as any high quality Birkenstock buckle. They saved on material butt used a bit more labour for the sewing. The rest is equal in materials and labour from the Kyoto model to other models. So these could cost as well as much as other models. I like the Kyoto model the best since it is so darn simple to reproduce, protects better than other models and is more supporting the upper foot.
I used to think Birkenstocks were ugly, many years ago when a friend was into them. Since getting my first pair, I now have 5. They are all I want to wear. I like the Buckley, i have the gray suede without the shearling. I don’t care for the Giza. I just don’t like my feet being that naked…the Arizona offers more stability and coverage. Not a fan of the Kyoto look either. I guess my favorites are the oiled leather Boston and the Arizona. In the spring I want the oiled leather bright fuschia big buckle Arizona. Most of the Birks I have are very neutral, I need something fun and colorful!
Maybe you needed to go smaller with 37N on the blue Buckley. I saw that with your brown Buckley, you went with 38N due to the shearling. Gizeh you went with 37R and Madrid with 37N.
The Madrids don't flop on me...key words, though, are "on me". As I mentioned in the review, Madrids don't work for every foot. I know some folks that can't keep them on at all when they walk , and so I imagine they flop a ton for them. For my feet, though, they fit perfectly (once I sized down) and stay on like my other Birks.
Linz tried them in this review, they're definitely a crowd favorite. She listed pros + cons: themomedit.com/style-women-birkenstock-sandals-try-on-madrid-big-buckle-papillon-wedges-comfort-shoes-flip-flops-dressingroomselfies-linzi/ At Nordstrom (on sale): shopstyle.it/l/bUwsD?pdata=yt More colors at Saks: shopstyle.it/l/bUmyX?pdata=yt At Zappos: shopstyle.it/l/bUmzg?pdata=yt
I just bought the Kyoto. This will be my first pair of Birkenstock. I want to love them but I can’t seem to. I’m really on the fence about keeping them. Does the foot get softer the more they are worn. Like a break in period.? TIA
There absolutely is a break in period. It can take a couple weeks. Go light on the wearings at first. Around the house short periods like doing chores or short errands. If they start to hurt or irritate, stop for the day. Do not take them out for a long walk at first. Use thumbs to press on any areas causing discomfort, or go at it with a light hammer. After a bit you will forget you have them on, then you are done.
My first pairs of Birkenstocks were softbed insoles, and it took a week or so before I found them to be really comfy. Then I got a pair with the harder,original footbed, and I guess because my feet were accustomed to the other pairs, it didn’t take more than a few days before I could wear them for hours. Every pair I’ve bought since, they were comfy out of the box. So yes, it might take some time if it’s your first pair of Birkenstocks, and I guess everyone is different - but I don’t want to wear any other shoe now!
I also agree that the Buckley is not a great choice. It is the most uncomfortable Birkenstock I have ever owned and I couldn’t wait to get rid of them. I’m super excited about getting the Kyoto!
Gosh, I wish I could wear Birks... I've tried several styles and I think my feet are just too narrow/low-volume :( I'm between two sizes even in the narrow width, maybe because my feet are a true half-size length but Birks seem to be designed for wider feet and mine are the opposite.
I was just going to suggest sizing down, but if you've sized down AND tried the narrower fit, they may just not be for you. I've had this experience with other comfort brands too...like Danskos or Vionics....for some feet they are AMAZING and fit perfectly...and for others they don't work at all. Curious...are there other comfort brands that you like for narrow feet? Naturalizers? Cole Haan?
@@linzitme432 It's quite hit or miss, but some of the brands that have worked for me in specific styles, usually going with the smaller of my two sizes: Cole Haan, Ecco *only* if they have buckles rather than velcro straps, Munro, Bueno (a small European brand sold at Nordstrom). Naturalizer works well for a lot of other people with narrow feet, particularly I think those who fit a true narrow size. I find them a bit hit or miss, mainly on comfort -- my feet are spoiled by the soft leathers of European brands. I look for soft leather because they're more likely to be cut tighter -- I actually measure as a standard B width on those sizing gizmos, but my foot volume is super shallow so I end up not "filling out" a lot of shoes. And adjustable buckle straps are a lifesaver. I have tried a few pairs of Naot sandals that fit well in the footbed, for example, but I can't pull the adjustable velcro straps tight enough across my foot because there's a set "bend" point where the velcro changes from one side to the other. I haven't tried Danskos, but I'm afraid that I will probably have the same volume problem with their clogs, since it looks rather roomy in the instep (exactly where my foot is proportionally the smallest, lol).
I have the same problem. I have very small, narrow feet. The only Birks that I can find that I can comfortably wear and will stay on my feet are the Arizona EVA ones. I love the leather ones, but they hurt so much no matter how I adjusted them and I got the narrow in a size down as I’m also between sizes. For the EVA ones I sized down and they feel great. Maybe give them a try. They have lots of great colors and are cheaper.
Linz ordered a regular width and she always sizes down in Birkenstock. At Nordstrom: shopstyle.it/l/bE5XI At Zappos: shopstyle.it/l/bE5XB You can see more on the Kyoto here: themomedit.com/style-women-comfort-shoes-kyoto-birkenstock-slide-sandals-review-unexpectedly-good-outfit-ideas-linzi/
