At Last, Sneaker Design School

After a couple weeks wondering if I had been robbed, all my materials and new wooden Lasts finally arrived, just in time for the final pattern cutting lesson. A morning was spent getting to know the osilating sanding machine, reshaping the toe of the Last and taking a fine layer of skin off my knuckles- that hurt.










Waiting on materials is one of the most frustrating aspects of trying to plan a project. After pi*sing around with emails back and forth and quotes so ridiculous-I felt like robbing a bank! I swallowed my pride and handed over the hard earned cash for some of the softness leather known to man.

I've basically bought up a cows worth of black leather, and a fellow cow full of white leather. The quote for buying all the different colours I want to work with came to more than two months rent, so it wasn't realistically going to happen. Thinking sideways isn't a newly acquired skill, so re-thinking how the prints and colours are going to be used came naturally. Etching, printing, lazor cutting and flocking are all being tested, and hopefully will achieve some time-worthy results.

A few days have also been spent at a sewing machine, narrowly missing my fingers at times and going over the lines at others.
Below are a couple pics of the best mock-ups I've made so far. I'm currently adjusting some pattern piece's so still have a few more to make.

























An answer to the ever problematic sole is also being investigated- my uni doesn't really support the making of sneakers, it's famous for heels so the focus stays there. The cost of a sole unit mold can be in excess of £2000 and thats without fancy bits like an air-bubble, not really realistic for a lone student so I need to find away around that and fake it. Wish me luck....