It always piques my interest when a company does something a little more unique with their barefoot shoes. When you hear that a shoe is canvas, leather, and wool, all in one, you gotta learn more. Check out this First Look Review at the Chillum model from Lems to see how it plays out, and whether this minimalist shoes option might be right for you.
Disclaimer: Lems sent me these shoes for review, but all thoughts are my own. If you use a link here to make a purchase a small portion will be returned to me as an affiliate, but it will cost you nothing extra and it will support the blog. Thanks!
The Chillum model from Lems is built on the same sole as the Boulder Boot, which is one of the widest shoes they have (only the Primal 2 is wider) and has a foot-friendly shape. You can check out my previous full review of the Mid model of the Boulder Boot here.
This means that you’re getting the same shape, the same tread, and the same interior fit that you expect from Lems, but with a lighter sole in this Varsity Blue colorway. If you like the darker styling, there is a Spruce colorway with a brown outsole and deep green upper. Both colors are available in both the men’s and women’s sections.
The color on this Varsity Blue is a medium blue-grey. When I took all these pictures, it was a pretty grey day here, in fact, so to compensate for a dull environment the pictures are a little lightened, which means you can expect something a touch darker than what you see in most of the pictures here. The ones with the insoles out are about right on the darkness level of the upper, but also a little bluer than you should expect (photography is weird, y’all! I could ignore this and let you figure it out, but I’ll always at least try to explain it). The full outfit pic is also a fair representation.
The sizing on these runs like the Boulder Boot Mid that’s been fully reviewed, so check that out for full details, but basically, you’re really going to want to check the sizing chart for these and expect to go up in size. I’m normally a 10 or 10.5 Men’s (US) in closed-toed shoes, but in this case, I’m an 11.5 Men’s. I can see your bugged-out eyes from here, y’all. I have big feet, even without the size up, but I’m just accepting the higher numbers here.
Appearance wise, these are a really neat cross-over from Lems. They’re a bit above a normal tennis shoe with hints of the casual boat shoes so many love.
The 3-way coloring means they pair nicely with something neutral and less busy that will allow their detail to stand out. I think you’ll find these at home at the lake, the hardware store, shopping, or whatever else you’ll do this summer.
The toe box is foot-friendly and wide, but does taper slightly. Since I’m up about 1/2 an extra size beyond the required upsizing for this series of models from Lems, I don’t feel that, even with my wide feet. My toes wiggle easily. If you like a tight fit though, and you’ve got a wide foot or splay, you might feel this and have a problem.
The insole in here is an Ortholite foam with a cork overlay. It feels very comfortable with no socks at all, but I’ve mostly been testing them with Injinji hidden socks.
The main part of the shoes is *not* this blue. These two pictures were taken this morning instead of yesterday, and the undertone of blue is shining through because… phone camera? Weather, time of day, etc all affect coloring. The heel is dark grey/blue, the edging is a touch lighter, and the main fabric is medium grey with a blue undertone.
This a molded sole, like most barefoot shoes, but does run a bit more narrow at the arch and heel than some other options. While the toe box is wide open and feels flat to me inside, I do feel the structure of the shoe at the arch and heel because my foot is wider than average there. This isn’t painful, but it is noticeable if you have a similar width and are used to hyper-barefoot shoes.
The sole is thick and sturdy, so it doesn’t give high ground feel even though it is very flexible in roll and twist. The grip on this sole is also hotly debated, with people saying it’s slippery and others saying they have no problem on things like wet grass. It’s got some knobbiness to it, but the material itself feels quite smooth, so results may vary.
These are brand new from Lems, just released this week, so I wanted to get my impressions out to you as fast as possible. A full review will come in the future, so if you have any questions feel free to drop them here or on Instagram or Facebook and let me know what you think, and what you want to know. You can pick up your own pair from Lems for $105 with free shipping.
Want more reviews?
Check out All the Barefoot Shoe Reviews for more in-depth looks.
Love color or need a specific type of shoe?
Check out the other BIG lists here.
