Last year, A Ma Maniere gave both the Air Force 1 Low and High a luxurious upgrade dubbed "Hand Wash Cold." The monochrome sneakers featured a mix of suede, nubuck, and pebbled leather in grey and black with iridescent accents. Each pair was individually numbered out of 5,914 for the High and 5,269 for the Low — and if you missed out you missed out.
Now, the French-inspired boutique has created a murdered-out version of the "Hand Wash Cold" Low for friends and family only. 989 pairs have been made — which seems like a high number for an "F&F" sneaker — and one of them can be yours if you're registered to vote and encourage your friends to do the same.
A Ma Maniere is holding an Instagram contest for those who register to vote, tag five who are also registered, and attend the boutique's virtual voting rights session. And while you shouldn't need any extra motivation to vote in this pivotal election, why not get a rare pair of AF1s out of it?
The F&F difference —
All-black Air Force 1s have become a meme and are synonymous with less-savory characters, but A Ma Maniere's should be spared from ridicule. The "F&F" version goes largely with suede for the upper, with full grain leather on the sock liner and trim. On the tongue is an even shaggier suede in grey, adding to the texture provided by the thicker seams. And once again, each pair is individually numbered.
Strangely, the laundry symbols that replace the Nike Air logo on the heel don't correspond with "Hand Wash Cold." Instead, they mean "machine wash normal" and "bleach if necessary" — which could perhaps be an invitation to rough the sneakers up.
More on the voter rights session —
A Ma Maniere's "Free Game" voting rights session will be hosted on Zoom at 7 p.m. E.T. Thursday night, featuring speakers from Liberty Fairs, The Foundation, and The Whitaker Grp. According to an Instagram post, the discussion will center on "how to use our voices to create the works we want."
