In Focus: Stepney Workers Club Dellow Boucle

We all know and love the basic canvas sneaker. We wear them everyday, they go with almost everything, and we don’t have to think twice about putting them on. That’s all well and good, but sometimes it’s nice to throw a little spice into your sneaker rotation—you can’t live off meat and potatoes alone. This season, we found that spice in the Dellow Boucle Nebula Light (it’s a mouthful, I know) from Stepney Workers Club. The appeal of this dashing sneaker is all in the fabric, an unevenly dyed bouclé that kinda looks like the Milky Way on a clear winter night. It has a hypnotizing depth, and believe me, I’ve spent many an hour staring at it. The rich texture of bouclé comes from the plying of the yarn, in which multiple strands are combined but one is subject to less tension than the others. This causes the loose strand to curl and loop. When woven, the loopy thread creates the fuzzy curly texture of bouclé fabric. In fact, bouclé literally translates to “loop” in French.

Stepney Workers Club, never afraid to try something new, have taken full advantage of this unique style of fabric. By applying it to the Dellow, SWC has created an unexpected yet super wearable sneaker. On foot, the Dellow Boucle has a colour, warmth, and texture that is more typical of a chunky wool sweater, which helps it pair beautifully with tweeds, flannels, and other wintertime fabrics. The hiking eyelets and paracord laces are a great finishing touch, lending the shoe a slightly rustic, outdoorsy look. On those dry winter days when we’re sick of wearing boots, the SWC Dellow Boucle is a breath of fresh air.