THESCRAPBOOK

It’s been a long time since anyone put any sneakers up in TheScrapBook… which is not only telling, given all the fashion trends we’ve brought to you etc, but it’s a bit strange since it was one of the things that got us all together as mates (along with many other fine things, but kicks is certainly strong!)

These new dunks from Nike absolutely steal the show though. Taken from stills from the Beautiful Losers film releasing very soon, this collection of Dunks is, in my humble opinion, stunning.

We mentioned Beautiful Losers before, but it’s a collection of artists that have been put together, curated along the lines of their “anti-art” backgrounds, their skate or music influence, or the way they influence the world. You’ll be familiar with them, perhaps - Kaws, Obey (Sheperd Fairey), ESPO (Steve Powers), Twist (Barry McGee) to name a few.

Supertouch has the low-down on the Beautiful Loser Dunks:

“Presented by NIKE SPORTSWEAR, the film chronicles the lives and creative process of artists including Shepard Fairey, Margaret Kilgallen, Mike Mills, Barry McGee, Jo Jackson, Chris Johanson, Harmony Korine, Stephen Powers, Geoff McFetridge, Thomas Campbell and Ed Templeton, among others, whose DIY attitudes informed the aesthetics and ethos of their generation…

To further commemorate the film’s release, Nike’s Sportswear’s JESSE LEYVA has also created a series of 22 Beautiful Losers Dunks emblazoned with iconic stills from the movie using the company’s new high-resolution digital printing process. Says Aaron Rose of the project, “We went back to the documentary and pulled frame stills of what we felt were key moments in the narrative. We used these moments to tell the Beautiful Losers story using the shoes as a medium, with the end result being a collection of works of art.” Viewed together, the shoes reflect the overall narrative of the film, and after being exhibited at the NYC and LA “Make Something!” workshops, two sets of the shoes will be auctioned off with proceeds donated to the Children’s Aid Society.”

The MAKE SOMETHING! workshop schedule, if you’re in NYC looks interesting too:
255 Elizabeth Street
August 8: Zine Making with Aaron Rose
August 9: Cinematography with Tobin Yelland
August 10: Character Design with Kaws
August 14: Animation with Todd James
August 16: Photography with Cheryl Dunn
August 17: Design with Eric Elms
August 18 Tattoos with Scott Campbell
August 21: Painting with Eric White
August 22: Sneaker Design with Jesse Leyva

I’m sure that there’ll be less articles on TheScrapBook about new clothes and things, and perhaps more about the effects of the credit crunch on marketing and design, as time goes on. Here’s my first!

Contagious has an interesting article about recession marketing that mentions Nike’s new Zoom Victory shoe. Not only is this a great technological innovation in the construction of the shoe, but it’s a way for their business to retain some money otherwise spent in production.

Fast Company magazine examines the emerging innovations related to the Olympics, and mentions particularly the Nike Zoom Victory. By dispensing with the elements previously needed to hold a sneaker together (stitching, material) in favour of a ‘flywire’ suspension bridge design with merely a coating of fabric, the shoes weigh in at less than a chocolate bar. What’s more, because the design is so pared down, the Nike team can use rapid prototyping to design and manufacture unique versions in a fraction of the time that it would take to knock up a regular sneaker.

What this means is that the Zoom Victory’s cheaper production process could enable Nike to shift some of its manufacturing out of China and back to its home in the United States, thus creating jobs in an otherwise exhausted marketplace.

Any business opportunity for a client that not only cuts costs, but potentially earns them an income and revenue stream is surely onto a winner.

For more on Credit Crunch marketing, check out Contagious’ other article on how consumers might act in a recession and what the opportunity is for us - most notably, apparently, for packaging designers!

Denim special on NHK’s Tokyo Eye, looking at all the denim hot spots in Tokyo town. Click here to watch the Google video.

Oh, and it’s got a spot about Curry in Japan too, right at the end.

Oki Ni are pushing the 80s iconic digital classic, a Timex watch! The indigo backlight rocks. Yellow for me, please.

Woohoo, got a Rapha package in the post today - next day delivery (always great service). Got myself a cap and some socks to keep me snug on the bike - possibly all the way to Dunwich; but we’ll see if the weather is on our side first! Anyway, always a joy to receive some a quality product. Bravo!

Sublime or ridiculous? Whatever, there certainly isn’t anything that beats a hand finished touch to your denim. It’s all very well Levi’s producing decent replica Big E jeans, but the quality of those has dropped significantly over the last few years as machines have tried to replicate the ageing details. APC have rectified this “problem” with their Butler Worn Out jeans, properly worn through by real people, I’d imagine each pair to be rather individual and probably very well detailed. Hopefully they’ll have been dry cleaned though.

From Hypebeast

Vans are in the process of releasing a range of shoes and saddlebags designed with fixie riders in mind. The usual cotton canvas has been replaced with a ballistic nylon (love that description), which means they should be ultra hard-wearing. If they had any sense they would also use a harder compound for the sole, or insert a harder section behind the ball of the foot, so it’s stiffer in the toe clip; but we’ll see. I personally really like the white version. They all have 3M reflective patches, which may or may not help a car see you hurtling down a hill, brakeless, at 40kmh. the white version gets thescrapbook seal of approval.

all pics courtesy of crooked tongues.

The Spring 2009 Menswear has disappointed so far (In my opinion) but one label that rarely lets you down is Comme des Garçons.

View the Whole collection here

Kim Jones is currently contributing over at NYT to their ‘The Moment’ blog, a sub section of their T magazine. Worth checking out…

Kim Jones on his involvement and inspirations for his recent work with Dunhill.

Milan’s Slam Jam have created a line of shoes called Be Positive. They look interesting, mixing classic sneaker soles with Italian leather uppers for a modern twist. BKRW have all the images here