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SNEAKERHEAD
A SHOE DECONSTRUCTION
Why deconstruct a shoe?
One might wonder what intrigued me to deconstruct a shoe. I have a fascination with the textile industry; interest which extends from wearables to home goods back to footwear. Manipulation of textiles and construction processes feed my need to know how things are designed and to better understand why certain components were chosen to be included. Hence, a shoe deconstruction... to investigate manufacturing.
The Tools
seamripper
thread snips
embroidery snips
** a pot of boiling water was used to separate the glue holding the body to the sole of the shoe
The Results
The Breakdown
The Takeaways
During deconstruction, I noticed that there are reinforcements all around the shoe. The body of the shoe was glued to the sole, but it was also secured with a sort of heavy, waxed thread stitched around the bottom of the shoe. Many of the components were reinforced with flexible plastic or multiple layers to ensure durability, the collar of the shoe being one example. I learned a lot about not only the components, but the construction as it was intuitive which steps came before others to make certain that the final product was up to par. Lastly, the entire lining of the shoe was further lined with foam, which I identified as having to be attached to the lining via spray adhesive. The deconstruction process offered insight on shoe manufacturing that I would have not otherwise been exposed to. I hope to familiarize myself further with footwear in the near future.
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