Softstar Shoes Primal Sawyer – A Full Review

Fall is all about cozy shoes. While most people think of boots, take a look at these Primal Sawyer barefoot shoes from Softstar Shoes and see if they might meet your needs in a fun, foot-happy design.

Disclaimer: The Primal Sawyer featured here were sent to me by Softstar Shoes for review, but all thoughts are my own. If you use an affiliate link on this page to make your purchase, you will be supporting this blog and reviews like this, which is very much appreciated.

Company Information

Softstar Shoes was founded to produce minimal shoes out of leather that are simple and elegant in design, handcrafted, and customizable. It’s a different experience than buying ‘off the shelf’ barefoot shoes and it pays to research and ask questions before you buy. They know not only their shoes, but their leathers, their fits, and their construction methods inside and out and are happy to make sure you get a good fit and are happy with your shoes. Check out the Learn More section on their site to delve into their values, team, and more.

Technical Specifications

• Upper: Nubuck leather
• Insole: Suede
• Light padding on tongue: BreathOprene
• Sole: 6 mm Vibram
• Weight: 6.7 oz in size 8U
• 5 color options
• Sizes from 5U-15U

You can find the Primal Sawyer under Adult Shoes > Casual models.

Appearance

These are mid-cut and land right on the ankle bone with a gentle hug. As usual, I chose the most colorful option available – Scotch – for my review, but the rest of the color options are more neutral black, browns, and grey. No fear that you have to be just like me to love these shoes.

Because of the vibrancy of the Scotch, I kept gravitating toward equally vibrant reds, yellows, and greens to go toe-to-toe with the color.

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And my favorite extra outfit:

I love the pop of the tights. I wanted to add an accent pair of red socks instead, but down below you’ll see why that didn’t work.

To further customize your pair of Primal Sawyer, you can add extra laces with 8 possible options, including rainbow. If you think you’d like that, I recommend getting them from Softstar with your order because they’re only $6 and they’re the perfect length for the shoes. If you click on one it automatically adds it for you, but if you decide you don’t want it before hitting Add to Cart then just click the box again to remove it.

It’s a bit of a fight in the world of barefoot shoes to get the wide toe boxes our feet need, but then dislike how they look. Primal models go all-in on happy toes, and the shape shows it. But don’t judge your shoes from above, y’all. Unless you’re face to face with someone, people aren’t intentionally staring down at your shoes. They’re seeing you walk and move around, looking at them from the side, or, if they’re someone you care about and cares about you, they’re looking at your face. You can wear or not wear what you want, but just make sure you’re checking different angles before you nope out on a super-healthy toebox because of other people’s opinions. We’ve kinda already bucked mainstream opinions to get here, right? So don’t let them pull back away from the happy toes you want. Own it with confidence.

Fit

Laces are your friend for getting a good fit, and it plays out well here. I have high volume feet and here is how they fit me:

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Hold your judgment on any wrinkles on my left foot. That foot is a full size smaller and that leaves extra room in shoes. All my pairs are sized by my larger right foot because it’s better to deal with extra space than to leave your toes with too little room. There is a takeaway here that the material is very soft and will drape if you have too much space inside there, so size well.

So, anyway, in the pics you can see that the eyelets are decently far apart for me, which allows for a lot more space to close them down for lower volume feet as well and, since the heel is medium at most (deets below) you can get a secure fit.

The toe box on these is very wide and most people should have all the room they need there. I can wear Correct Toes if I want (this post explains those and other toe spacers) or go without and if I’m without, I cannot force my 11 cm splay to touch both edges at the same time. They’re dreamy wide.

Sizing

The Primal Sawyer model from Softstar Shoes comes in Narrow (which is wide) and Regular (which is extra wide). I am sporting the Regular/Extra Wide version here. This is going to be best for super-splayers and those with higher volume feet, so even though I think a low-volume super-splayer would be fine with Regular, you do have the option to close in the fit some with a Narrow version instead, which, again, is not narrow. On the product page you can see a picture in the main set that show how the 2 versions vary, with the heel being the same and the Regular version adding width to both sides of the toe box.

Softstar Shoes uses their own sizing system that more closely aligns with men’s sizes, and my size is 10U Regular in both this and the Primal Merry Jane (11U in the Ballerine, but check out that review to see why). The Sizing Guide is linked on every product page and that affords you 2 methods to get your size: either the green boxes at the top to check with measurements or the white boxes a little further down to use a printable template. My favorite method is measuring and they have great tips on that page, but do be sure to add extra space for good big toe movement.

How do they feel?

The leather is divinely soft, inside and out. You get light texturing at the ankles, but the heel is lined with the smooth side of the leather, and every part of it feels great to the touch.

It’s also completely flexible. I can bend it the other way too, but I didn’t want to stretch the upper with that.

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There is no breaking-in period or rough spots. They’re immediately comfortable and ready to go.

They also do not feel sweaty on my feet, even as I wear them sock-free. They just feel good, and with the highly flexible, low-tread Vibram they use, they wear as comfortably as slippers.

Comparison with Primal Merry Jane

It’s important to see that not all primal models are made the same way, and that can change the fit. I reviewed Primal Merry Jane before, and while its sole matched the area of the space between the stitches in the Primal Sawyer model, the fact Primal Sawyer is stitch-down and Primal Merry Jane is not, which gives a very different fit to the models.

Check out the back here to see the difference in construction:

This, first off, makes the heel fit much more closely. I would say that the Primal Merry Jane has a wide heel, and the Primal Sawyer has a medium heel. I can wear it with tights only. With socks it is too narrow.

Check out the front too for an additional look at how the construction varies:

The Primal Sawyer has a higher toe box, meaning that those of you who felt squished in the Primal Merry Jane should not have the same experience here. But, also, check out the Primal Merry Jane review for how you can not feel squished in that model either.

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So, a highlight of the comparison:

• The insole is the same
• The footprint inside the shoe is the same
• But the difference in construction means you have a wider feel inside the Primal Merry Jane vs the Primal Sawyer due to the higher available volume and this is most evident at the heel for me
• Both of these are the same size – 10U Regular

Cleaning and Care

This Nubuck leather used by Softstar Shoes is super soft and highly absorbent, and it’s advisable to protect it to keep it supple, prevent water intrusion, and minimize staining risk. While a straight wax would work on the Primal Merry Jane, look for something specifically formulated for Nubuck for the Primal Sawyer. I have compiled a list of leather care products in the Shoe Care section on this page.

Softstar Shoes has an extensive care guide on their website, divided by leather type. Check out the Nubuck section under Shoe Care on the product page for more details.

Purchasing, Shipping, and Returns

Softstar Shoes are purchased directly from Softstar and, with the exception of some in-stock collection colors, they are typically made on a first-come-first-serve basis and do not immediately ship. There is no cost difference between the Narrow and Regular versions, with both being $135.

You can save 15% if you’re a new customer with the code WELCOME (not affiliate).

Softstar has quite a generous return policy and will even accept returns on custom color combinations. As usual, they cannot have signs of wear and they cannot have been treated with any products.

Final Thoughts

Wearing Primal models from Softstar Shoes feels like leveling up. Sure, you can get wide shoes, and you can let your toes wiggle in most barefoot shoes, but the Primal models bring complete toe happiness in a soft leather package and they feel great on the feet. The only thing I would personally change is to have a wider heel option, but understand that I’m in the minority there I think they’ve gone with a balanced approach that will allow medium width people to wear socks, wide width to go sockless, and narrow heels to hopefully not feel drowned in leather.

I think that those new to barefoot shoes (I’m 2 years in) should honestly look at the shapes and make sure they’re ready. It does take some willingness to let people deal with their own opinions and refuse to accept them as your own. That’s their baggage – let them keep it. I choose happy feet, good craftsmanship, and total foot comfort.

Want more reviews?

Check out All the Barefoot Shoe Reviews for more in-depth looks.

Want to check out other lists, such as color and type break-downs?

Check out all the BIG lists here.