Persona:
This pair of sneakers are designed to attract the young new generation of men who cares about fashion, expressions, and activity. A person that I have in mind is Jaden Smith (Instagram). He is fun-loving, active, but at the same time very artsy and seems to be proud in his own style. He would value a piece of clothing that makes a different statement.
Inspiration:
My Inspirations comes from different places, but coincidentally, one of its source is from a Louis Vuitton Collection where Jaden Smith is a model. I like how femininity seems to bring out a message that Jayden accepts well. On the other hand, I found Alex Wang’s wrapping style of clothing to be very feminine but masculine at the same time. It looks elegant, futuristic and strong. For other material, I look at a puma sneakers which seem to be able to incorporate many different texture.
Sneakers
Cut: It was made based largely on the boot shape, but I chose to made it slimmer and more form-fitting to increase its functionality toward the ‘running’ side.
Features: It has a long tongue in the front and a curious gridded wraps in the front. I want the wrapping part to not be just a print, but an actually that goes across other surfaces of the shoes. It will look unexpected but goes well with the rest of the material (same feeling as Alex Wang’s).
Texture: Since the main theme of color is black, I played a lot with texture. On the bottom of the shoes and the long tongue in front, I go for usual breathable, hole-y fabrics that you find on most Nike running shoes. However, on the wrap, I plan to go for something that has more depth (similar to the side of puma a lot) so that the grids looks more abrasive to the touch. The main highlight however, seems to be on the side with a kind of big hexagonal grid. While I still want to inside to be cushioned and comfortable, I want the outside surface to look more rigid. I wan the texture of this part to go along with the wrapping grid in front.
Wears: I really designed with activity in mind. Jaden cares a lot about fashion but he rarely wears something that looks straightforward uncomfortable. I keep that in mind by using a lot of breathable fabric (that Nike excels at) and cushions around the ankle.
