Nike Air Force 1 Low '07 Lv8 "White Black" Trainers

Two ways to wear it. Black straight leg jeans, a white tee and a black overshirt, a two colour outfit where the shoe is not an accent but part of the scheme. Or soften it: grey sweatpants and a navy crewneck, so the black Swoosh becomes the only hard line in a soft palette. It works from daytime to evening and sits comfortably under smart casual trousers, which most Air Force 1 colourways do not. Size half down on a narrow foot. Clean white and black separately, using a soft cloth on the black so you do not drag dirt across the white, and keep them off wet dark denim.

Nike became the shoe of basketball after signing Michael Jordan in 1984, and through basketball became the shoe of hip hop, with the Air Force 1 among the models that carried that status into everyday wardrobes. White and black pairs are the most photographed version because they hold their shape visually in any light, which is why the combination survives every trend cycle. Nike's whole method has been to make a small number of shapes unmistakable, from the Swoosh first used in June 1971 to the Just Do It line of 1988, and this colourway is that method applied to leather.

Leather upper on the Air Force 1 Low last with perforated toe box, padded collar and the stitched Swoosh overlay, sitting on a foam midsole with Nike Air sealed inside and the pivot circle rubber outsole below. LV8 builds usually add a material or finish change somewhere on the upper, so look for texture shifts on the Swoosh, heel and eyestay rather than expecting a different shape. Black overlays on a white base age unevenly: black holds its finish longer while white leather picks up transfer from denim, so a light initial protector spray is worth the effort. The shoe is firm and flat underfoot and needs about a week for the leather to crease into place.