PREMIATA sneakers: upper, removable insole and sole height
A sneaker is the low shoe with a soft upper and a rubber bottom, born for sport and carried over into everyday dress without changing its structure. On this page the upper is leather, on its own or set against fabric panels, and the two surfaces behave differently: leather holds the shape and marks little, fabric takes weight off the shoe and lets air through. On a model that combines both, care splits in two: the leather is wiped with a barely damp cloth and fed now and then, the fabric is brushed dry and never soaked through, because water that works its way between the two surfaces dries far more slowly than it looks.
The insole is removable, and that is the detail that changes daily use the most. It lifts out to dry separately after a long day, which extends the life of the lining more than any spray will; it can be replaced once it wears, without touching the rest of the shoe; and above all it leaves room for a made-to-measure orthotic, which in a sneaker with a glued-in footbed would not fit without costing half a size. Where the insole is declared raised, the internal lift is two centimetres: height added under the heel inside the shoe, and height that is lost if a flat orthotic goes in its place.
The declared heel height runs from two and a half centimetres to four, and across every model on this page it stays classified as low. That is the difference between a sneaker of this kind and the two categories either side of it: a completely flat bottom passes everything underfoot straight to the foot and you feel it on hard paving, while a chunky sole adds centimetres and weight and stiffens the stride. Here the bottom stays thin enough to flex with the foot and thick enough to cushion, which is why a sneaker like this carries through a full day.
The sole is rubber on every model. Rubber grips well wet or dry but wears through first on the outer edge of the heel, where the step lands first: glancing at that spot now and then tells you when to act, long before the tread has gone smooth. Clean it with water and a mild soap, keeping solvents away, since on rubber they leave permanent marks. The rest of the category is gathered in the women's sneakers.
