Mukishoes Plum – A Full Review

Mukishoes is a brand I’ve known and loved for a full year, but this year has been full of surprises from them, including their first red model, delving into kids, and now the bonanza of excitement over their fall and winter line, especially Chelsea and the model pictured here: Plum.

This review will touch on a few points previously covered in my Mukishoes Cloud Canvas review, but feel free to check it out as well to get a complete picture of Mukishoes.

If you’re looking for your own pair of Mukishoes, I have a 10% discount code (it’s affiliate): OWBMUKI for kids and adult shoes. All my discount codes are always listed on this page.

You may think that this is just another pair of Mukis, but follow along and see how, from color, to sole, to fit, many things are brand new with the Plum model. You can also check out videos on Instagram here.

Technical specifications:

• 100% vegan
• Upper: organic cotton
• Lining: organic cotton
• Sole: natural rubber, 3.5 mm thick
• 95 Euros, standard pricing

Appearance:

First off, I’ll just say up front that the color on Mukishoes website is wildly different from the reality. If you’re not familiar with photography terms, there’s a thing called white balance and many product photos show items with the white balance cranked way up. This makes merchandise look bright and attractive, but it can also greatly change the color. This definitely happened here.

You can see here that the color of these shoes varies wildly based on shadows, sun, time of day, etc. None of those pictures were processed in any way, yet there are marked variations (and even more in other photos in this review). The most true-to-life description is right in the name: Plum. They are a deep purple. So deep that in some lights they look brown, but the stitching has a pink tone that makes sure the color stays inside the realm of a rich, purple hue.

One thing I really love about this is the bright white sole. It really sets off the color and make the shoe easy to wear with a variety of outfits. It especially pairs well with the colors blue and brown, but I’ve worn them with virtually everything, nearly every day since I got them.

In a first for me, I’m not super happy with how the outfit pics turned out. Dark shoes can be very hard to photograph. They disappear. Just know that the shoes are much more vibrant and interesting than my outfit looks give them credit for. This one’s on me.

Fit:

Here is one place that this shoe is different from my previous experiences with Mukishoes. The sole is sized exactly the same as the previous shoe models, but the upper has noticeably less volume. If you’re one of those people that has struggled to wear Muki or been leery because of people talking about ‘swimming’ in them, then you are in luck. They still may not fit you perfectly, but you’ll be a lot closer to the fit you need. If you’re medium volume, they should fit you perfectly. If you’re high volume and wide like me… say goodbye to socks.

Yeah, that makes me a bit sad. I’ve understood people’s frustrations with Muki being too high volume, but I’ve always been thrilled with it. They fit me perfectly with light to medium hidden toe socks. And these just don’t. I’ll have to shelve them soon for the winter because of this, but I will bring them out again in the spring and summer when toes won’t freeze in the thin upper.

This works great for me, but know that even I’ve seen that the ankle area on these is pretty generous. Know that if you have really skinny ankles you may need to cinch them in a bit for that reason. There’s a tip for that here.

Sizing:

Aside from the volume of the upper being different, the sole is sized the same and they are TTS. Mukishoes soles all line up this way, but the uppers have always been made out of different materials in their lines, and with a handmade process and these variations, there are some sizing differences.

My experience with different materials in different lines has been:

• Cloud/Onyx/Obsidian – run shorter than others with a very firm upper. My upsized 44 comes up with virtually the same internal length as 43s in other lines.
• Sol/Storm/Ramus/Aqua – TTS
• Sand – TTS
• Thyme/Basil – TTS
• Raw Leather Winter – As is common in winter lines, they run short due to the lining, in this case at least 1/2 a size.
• Plum – TTS in length, but medium volume vs the higher-end of the spectrum on all the other lines.

If you don’t know: I know Mukishoes 😎 For detailed sizing advice on any barefoot shoes, check out this post.

Breaking in:

While some models need a bit of time to soften, Plum has zero break-in period. The material is soft and immediately comfortable. There are no Rough spots, rubbing, or odd stitches. I just had to learn after a couple of wears that my toe socks wouldn’t cut it and had to go so my pinky toes wouldn’t feel cramped.

The new sole:

The coolest thing about this is the new sole. I mean, I love the color. Color is always my thing. But the sole being changed from a mix of natural and recycled rubber to entirely natural rubber is game-changing for Mukishoes.

In previous iterations, the sole was 3.5 mm and very flexible. They all are great minimalist shoes. But I knew the moment I pulled this one out of the box that it had changed to something much more flexible. I wrote Muki quickly to inquire what had changed and found out about the update. The sole is the same thickness, size, and appearance, but the feel is completely different.

How do they feel?

I never thought the old sole was stiff, far from it, but now I can put on one of each and, by comparison, it is. It holds it’s shape and feels like something sliding along the ground. The new sole, however, grips the ground and your foot simultaneously. It’s supremely flexible and feels on-par with the most minimalist shoes you can think of, and holds it’s own.

Cleaning:

This is the one place where you may frown a tad compared to previous versions of Mukishoes: this nice, grippy sole is GREAT at gripping onto dirt.

I seriously wouldn’t let that stop me for the barefoot feeling, style, and flexibility you get. But in the interests of being complete, I want to point this out.

Otherwise, cleaning the upper is just as before: brush off dry stains, spot treat deeper stains, and handwash as a last resort. Never use a washer or dryer.

Shipping and Returns:

You can read Muki’s full policies here, but basically they do accept returns, but you need to follow the right process (online form, waiting to hear back first if you’re outside the EU, and pay the return costs yourself).

Shipping is fast: just a few days once they leave Portugal for US arrivals. DHL Express has always been completely reliable for my European shoe shipments and they offer an option to pre-release the package from requiring your signature. Cost is 16 Euros for international shipping and less within Portugal and the EU.

Company Philosophy:

Muki is dedicated to a business philosophy of slow, sustainable growth with ethical, sustainable, and local manufacturing. You can read their full vision here. They develop close relationships with their suppliers and visit them personally to check on materials and methods. If veganism is important to you, many of their models will be perfect for you, including this one.

Final thoughts:

This model is lower volume, which gives it a narrower feeling for a high-volume person like me. I could have ditched the shoes, but instead I ditched the socks and have been rewarded with a super-minimalist experience of just a few mms between me and the ground. That gives off-the-charts ground feel and a deep connection to how I walk, align myself, and experience the world around me. I highly recommend it.

For your own pair of Plum, check out this link. Sizes come and go with pre-orders, returns, restocks, and more. If you don’t see your size right now, be sure to put your email in the notification box and sign up to receive restocking emails. And, as always, don’t forget your 10% discount from OWBMUKI.

As always, feel free to come join the conversation on Instagram (where I’m currently running a giveaway for these or any other model from their Fall/Winter line) and on Facebook (where you can also enter).

Check out all the available reviews here, and if you’re currently looking for Winter shoes, I got you covered here too.