Some people collect comic books, some people collect wine. Mark Wahlberg collects sneakers. We’re not talking about a few dozen pairs of Air Jordans. Wahlberg, who’s made millions as an actor and producer in Hollywood, has a collection of kicks that’s to die for. We know because Wahlberg invited the nerds at the sneaker data site Campless to check out his stockpile of sneaks, and what they found is remarkable. dubbed him the 2014 Celebrity Sneaker Stalker MVP. But Campless put a price tag on the 137 pairs of sneakers Wahlberg keeps at his house — he has more elsewhere, apparently — and the website estimates their value at more than $100,000. (Only 90 pairs were trackable, while the rest were unreleased or samples.) His most valuable kicks? Those would be the Air Jordan 4 Eminem x Carhartt ($22,755), the OVO Air Jordan 12 White ($10,000), and the Duckman Air Jordan 14 ($7,375). The collection puts Wahlberg in the upper echelon of celebrity sneakerheads, a group that includes Spike Lee, hip-hop star Wale, and comedian Jerry Seinfeld.
“Mark is a fan of what we’re doing,” said Josh Luber, CEO of Campless, the Kelley Blue Book of sneakers. “Mark’s collection really isn’t all that big. There are people who have thousands of pairs. But there are very few people who have some of the sneakers that Mark has.” Luber said 19 pairs of shoes accounts for two-thirds of the value of Wahlberg’s whole collection. • Olivia Culpo and Tim Tebow reportedly break up • Palace releases photos of 6-month-old Princess Charlotte • Fans hear B.J. Novak read from his children’s book Thank you for signing up! Sign up for more newsletters here • Matt LeBlanc among old friends for 30th reunion • Jennifer Lawrence screens ‘Joy’ in New York • Addison Art Gallery celebrates 20 years • Burlington’s Amy Poehler to get Hollywood starFor some of you, that means spring break. It means flowers are gonna bloom soon. It means new love and Easter and green grass and birds chirping.
You know what it means for me? I live in Canada, where I can wear sneakers 6 months out of the year if I’m lucky. So around this time every year I start planning my fair-weather footwear 'cuz I can’t f*cking wait to wear something other than boots. It’s a double-edged sword, though, because I always buy shit in February that I can’t wear til May, so it sits in my closet (a.k.a. sneaker mausoleum) taunting me for months. It’s good to get a jump on things and get your looks sorted early, but don’t fall to the temptation to wear your brand new white sneakers on a slushy March day. RELATED: Can This Stain Repellent Really Protect Your Favorite Sneakers? We Tried It Out Of course, if you live somewhere that actually has nice weather, you can apply what you read here immediately. But for my Northern boys, keep this one under your hat until you can actually see the sidewalks under all that precipitation. As easy as sneakers are to wear, as versatile as they may be, there’s still a lot of ways to fuck ‘em up.
There are a whole lot of ugly kicks out there, and just as many ugly ways to wear nice kicks. So as you prepare for your spring/summer vibes this year, take a few precautions. Ride with me, and I’ll show you what to do and, more importantly, what NOT to do when wearing sneakers. The quickest and easiest way to completely destroy a nice pair of sneakers is by wearing them every day. I know, I know, you just got new J’s and you wanna wear ‘em everywhere you go. But if you do yourself a favor and get a couple extra pairs, and all of your shoes will last 3 times as long or more. Cycle ‘em out and keep ‘em fresh. So many outfits have been ruined over the years by a horrific trend known to insiders as “NTDenim,” or Nike Talk Denim. The moniker gets its name from the old Nike Talk forums, where hardcore sneaker collectors would post pics of their shoe collections. Too often, you’d see an absolutely incredible pair of sneakers completely outshadowed by a horrific denim apocalypse.
RELATED: Here's The Trick To Buying The Perfect Pair Of Jeans Every Single Time Wear your sneakers with something more fitted and flattering to complete the look. Some people like high tops. Some people like lows. Some silhouettes work great on certain folks and horrible on others. It’s just the way of the universe. What can you do about it? Try a whole bunch of different shit and see what works. This is a good general rule for fashion, or even for life TBH. I encourage you to try a whole bunch of shit in all areas of your life and see what sticks.If you’re new to the game, try a high and lowtop of the same shoe and see which you like better. Here’s a good starting point: Generally speaking, skateboarding shoes are horrible. There are a few exceptions, of course - Janoskis, pretty much every Vans model, certain SB Dunks, etc. But overall, the puffy-tongued-swollen-marshmallow-Jabba-the-Hutt-looking-ass silhouettes of most skate shoes just is NOT flattering.
They make you look like an 8 year old from 1996 who just got his first issue of Thrasher Mag. If you must wear ‘em, opt for a slimmer, more modern silhouette like a Vans Old Skool or a Stefan Janoski. We talked about ruining your sneaker look with floppy jeans. But how can that be avoided without wearing spray-on skinny jeans or, god forbid, jogger pants? This is how all those sneaker dudes on Instagram get their jeans to stack so perfectly above their kicks, showing just a tiny sliver of ankle without looking like pedal pushers. This was a gamechanger for me when I figured it out, and it saved more than a few pairs of my jeans from the trash heap. Turn any jeans into perfect ones with this technique. BTW, if your pinroll comes undone at the club, I think the law states that you have to kill yourself immediately. DON’T: Stick to just one brand. A lot of guys are Nike stans or Jordan stans or adidas stans, and won’t wear anything else. Brand loyalty in this day and age is honestly pretty dumb - those brands don’t give a flying F about you, so why should you care about them?
So what I mean is, if you’ve always been a Jordan guy but see an adidas pair you like, why not wear ‘em? There’s no good reason. Nobody’s gonna be like, “I thought you only wore J’s? So change it up. Try a few different things and see what you like. Or even try some weird sh*t that nobody wears, like Diadora or Babolat. My current rotation has adidas, Nike, Jordan, Asics, New Balance and a few others all thrown in the mix. You probably already know the difference in comfort and durability between a $20 pair of Walmart shoes and a decent $80-100 pair. But do you know the difference between an $80 pair and a $200 pair? There’s a reason certain shoes cost a lot of money. It’s ‘cause they’re really, really nice. A good $200 pair of shoes is gonna be a new level of comfort if you’re used to Vans or Converse. And they’ll last a whole lot longer, too. That said, there is definitely a point of diminishing return - IMO, shoes don’t really get any better past the $250-300 mark.
But your feet are important. So treat ‘em with the respect they deserve and put something nice on your paws. Get you some Air Max to learn what real comfort is all about. Hyped or collectible shoes are often just regular old shoes. Yeezys, probably the most coveted shoe on the planet right now, are just made-in-China adidas sneakers. They’re not handmade, they’re not produced in a fine Italian factory, there’s not even any premium leather. They’re just regular old sneakers. Of course, if you love the look and have $1000 to spare, by all means pick up a pair of Yeezys on the resell market. But if you’re just looking for a nice, comfy shoe, there are a million other options out there. Pure Boosts, for example, have the same Boost technology that makes Yeezys so damn comfortable, except they cost $130 instead of $350, and they’re actually in stock. And they look great, too. You'll Be Ditching Your Sneakers As Soon As You See These Cool Slip-Ons