Word pairings and associations can be everything; Peanut Butter and Jelly. Peas and Carrots. Meat and Potatoes. Nike and…Air. To provide further insight for shoe nerds and design geeks into the making of one of the company’s most iconic shoe technologies, the Nike team released ‘A Brief History of Nike Air’ – a consolidated history…

Nobody likes walking on the pavement during a hot summer day to discover they’ve just come across—and stepped upon—somebody’s soft discarded bubble gum. Aside from the embarrassment, scrapping the discarded sugar-chew is no easy task. But what if said bubble or chewing gum could be scraped from the streets and converted into an actual shoe?…

As one of the most coveted of all design jobs, sneaker designers often have it made. From hanging out with pro athletes to working with the most innovative color trends, materials, and finishes day in and day out, it’s no wonder why colleges and trade schools are beginning to offer sneaker design courses to keep…

Corn. It’s not just for soaking in butter or rotating on a drill at 2500 RPM. While Nike has made huge strides to minimize their environmental footprint, and Adidas has been introducing shoes made from plastic sourced from ocean waste, Reebok is the latest footwear company to get in on the sustainability action with the…

It’s one of the most recognizable and versatile shoe designs ever created—yet how it’s manufactured has remained a mystery to many over the past 40 years. The Nike Air (bag), which is used in everything from the company’s basketball shoes to even golf and skateboarding shoes, was a pioneering idea that helped establish Nike as…

While Nike and Adidas consistently pull out all the stops when it comes to promoting their latest footwear innovations, other footwear manufacturers have taken a much quieter route in promoting their technologies—but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they don’t have them! While it may have been 30 years in the making, this epic mini-documentary from…

From 3d printing to recycled ocean plastic, Adidas has thrown everything we know about traditional sneaker manufacturing on its head as a part of their sustainability-focused Futurecraft initiative. Described by the company as a “[creative hub] where imagination meets innovation,” their mission is to “expose the illusion of impossible and venture beyond the limits defined…

When it comes to design sketching, one of the most difficult –– but oftentimes absolutely necessary –– components to lay down are various components of the human figure. Among other reasons, understanding the scale and ergonomics of early design ideas can make or break a project early in the process. Which is why the How to Draw:…

With a nearly endless array of profiles and material block possibilities, sneaker design sketches aren’t too hard to come by. However, the process of converting those sketches into a physical shoe takes nearly the same level of engineering skill and patience as it does to create many “hard good” products –– particularly if you set out…

Since introducing their Futurecraft initiative late last year, Adidas has shown no signs of slowing down their exploration – and intention – of incorporating additive manufacturing and other next generation digital fabrication techniques into their supply chain in the not-too-distant future. Tomorrow, in honor of World Oceans Day, Adidas and ocean conservation group Parley for…

As predicted, hot off the (literal) heels of HP’s unveiling of their HP Jet Fusion 3D Printing Solution this morning, the first of many companies have stepped forward in support of incorporating Multi Jet Fusion technology into product development processes and low production runs. First up to the plate is none other than Nike – consistently…

Love ’em or just plain prefer something else, there’s a reason why Nike stays at the top of the innovation food chain. Going all the way back to the original concept of making a shoe from a waffle iron, thinking outside the box has been embedded into the brand’s DNA since day one. Like Apple’s…

Despite what seem like a seemingly endless array of sneaker models and colors in existence today, the competition for having the tightest kicks on the block is a heated one; it’s getting harder to find that “one of a kind” pair. In what started out as a necessity to stand out from his high school…

Although we’ve seen a fair share of 3D printing applications for midsoles in modern footwear design, we’ve been yet to see any additive manufacturing technique that’s been practical enough for creating uppers on a mass scale, too – a critical missing component of being able to manufacture shoes on demand. Designers and engineers at Nike, Adidas,…

Although it may have quieted down substantially compared to the early days of MakerBot, the exploration of 3D printing in consumer applications has never been stronger. While small companies such as print+ are testing 3D printing in distributed manufacturing sales models, larger companies with more substantial budgets are exploring how they can create new consumer…

Having just shared their concept for a 3D printed shoe – or, midsole – only last month, Adidas has shared the next chapter of their next ‘Futurecraft’ series; but this time they’ve turned to subtractive manufacturing rather than additive. Billed as a “reimagining of how to work with leather”, the company’s Futurecraft Leather is made…

Between the launch of their new world headquarters in Boston’s Lovejoy Wharf back in May to the launch of their newly-redesigned Chuck Taylor All Star just last month (the first redesign since 1917), it’s been a busy Summer season for the Converse brand – and they’re not showing any sign of letting up soon. More…

When it comes to athletic footwear design, it can be difficult to wade through various marketing campaigns that tout various foot support or material innovations and the actual innovations themselves. With that being said, the actual innovations truly are groundbreaking when they end up in a finished and deliverable product – oftentimes shaving seconds off…

With over 10 years of experience in leather design, Hungarian designer Sara Gulyas wanted to create a versatile product that minimized the amount of material needed to create a shoe…whilst allowing buyers to participate in the shoe-making process. The Pikkpack takes cues from both centuries-old traditional design and IKEA’s DIY mentality to bring the simple…

In a world where mass-manufactured Nike Air Jordans, Teva Sandals, and Croc Clogs dominate the sidewalks, it’s easy to overlook the time and patience that goes into designing and making shoes by hand. Sure there’s value in appreciating how the latest sneaker design came to fruition, but the amount of disconnect is surely larger than…

To begin with, I don’t know whether to file this under ‘Fabrication’ or just plain crazy—but either way, it’s definitely a spectacle to behold. In preparation for the launch of the new Nike Free Flyknit (a mashup between the popular Flyknit shoe and Nike Free Midsole), Nike China decided to pull a ‘guerilla-yet-not-really-guerilla’ marketing campaign…

Since the days of Bo Jackson, cross-training has been seeing more exposure in the limelight. More recently, popular workout programs such as CrossFit have been demanding more from a shoe than just a comfortable running capability. Movements such as lateral cuts and jumping require completely separate needs from your run-of-the-mill existing high-end running shoe. The…

Having recently been voted as Fast Company’s Most Innovative Company of 2013, Nike is keeping the bar raised high with the announcement of their (SLS) 3D printed football cleat today. 3D printers have been used for years in the development of various components of performance athletic shoes, but in terms of 3D printing as a…

Need to prove how high you made your friend jump with that last rubber snake prank? Look no further, Nike’s new Nike+ system offers an internal computer that measures – you guessed it – vertical leap, among other performance measurement details. I was at the Portland, Oregon Niketown over the weekend (just about 20 miles…