For my latest design I wanted to balance the simplicity of my previous post with something a little more dynamic. After throwing down some sketches in my Moleskine, I hit upon a thumbnail that had potential. The end result was solid mid-cut skate sneaker that I’m pretty happy with. 

The primary visual element is a color popped eyestay overlay attached to the front quarter panel with a closed seam for grip tape abrasion. The top of the eyestay continues into the main ankle overlay for stability. The heel overlay is offset from the collar lining to keep the achilles notch nice and soft. Because I wanted to add some flavor to this design, I made the tongue pretty long and added a closed seam so it would kick forward nicely.  Lastly, I the sole is a combination of a molded rubber cupsole with a compression molded EVA foam midsole partially exposed at the shank. The heel of the cup has a slightly concave profile that smooths out as it wraps around to the sidewall.

The name is a tip of the hat to the gritty and abysmal skate park in Hyde Park, MA. It’s a park that perfectly reflects the realities of skateboarding in Massachusetts. Concrete that’s chipped and cracked. Warped and destroyed sidewalks from snow maintenance. Black ice on the mini ramp. Skaters and BMX kids who are there year round in any weather.

Not sure if anyone has written about this, but a couple years ago some local skaters took the time to build and pour a bunch of concrete ramps that were hilariously omitted from the original plans. There were literally no good approach ramps in the park aside from one shallow double sided funbox that was more suited for BMX. The ramps that these kids poured weren’t exactly an homage to German engineering, but they added some key features that were totally missing. Sure enough, someone from the city eventually started creepin’, and shortly thereafter they were all demolished.

So, thank you lawyers and insurance agents and all the other people who ruin everything for everyone. 

Lately I’ve been thinking about different ways to apply the ‘last’ logo on some of my conceptual designs. I wanted to play around with some large scale branding executions and expand my design aesthetic. Ironically, it was while sketching some directional fashion sneakers that I came across a thumbnail for a mid-cut skate style that would be optimal for a big logo treatment. 

Right off the bat, big branding on a shoe is going to alienate a large number of consumers. Combined with a mid-cut collar, this concept is going to appeal to a very select number of sneakerheads. What this shoe boasts is a lightweight foam midsole that is exposed in the heel and concealed in the front by the rubber outsole wrap. This will reduce the weight of the sole greatly while maintaining high abrasion protection from grip tape. The nylon plastic heel clip provides color balance with the forefoot outsole wrap and helps visually maintain a consistent midsole top line. 

The blucher construction of the upper and the closed seam between the eyestay and the forefoot quarterpanel will also ensure longer durability against flip tricks. While the double eyelet rows at the collar theoretically provide more lacing options, the second row of eyelets provides aesthetic integration with the large logo embroidery. The laser-cut microperforations of the big logo are balanced with an identical perf pattern on the front quarter.

I’m pretty pleased with the large branding execution. I was worried it would feel contrived or slapped on, but I think the tonal color blocking of the embroidery as well as its integration with the eyelets make it feel like an intentional design element.  This design would make a great performance skate shoe and the slim forefoot would serve you well with bike clips. 

After designing two versions of an upper on the same midsole sidewall, the next logical step was to design an outsole to match. My design objectives were simple, as emphasis on skateboard functionality was paramount. I created a dedicated flex/traction area that blends simple deep flex grooves with perpendicular .5 mm siping grooves that are usually found on nautical footwear. This will allow greater flexibility in all directions with superior traction on wet surfaces. The rest of the sole traction is derived from tried and true herring-bone tread.

Most of the visual elements are drafted from the upper designs intended to sit on this outsole. The logo was designed to be a separate micro-injected logo plug inlaid into a cavity. It may sound like a minor detail, but this will allow for the logo to maintain the two colors without a 1.0 mm color dam groove separating the last shapes from the square background.