Let's talk about designy shoes, shall we?

November 3, 2004 6:08 PM

Philippe Starck's been making lots of stuff lately, but I didn't know he was producing shoes for Puma until today (flash site features an odd naked guy you can make jump and walk). Clean and sleek, but they're fetching $200+ a pair which is kind of outrageous. Another bunch of freaky expensive wacky shoe designs I found are from Fessura. Click through their gallery to get an idea of what they offer. Medium continue to be my personal favorite shoes, but I'm always on the lookout for more interesting things to wear. If you've seen any interesting shoes lately, do share.
posted by mathowie (25 comments total)

Wow, those medium shoes are pretty cool at least to somebody who doesn't normally think of shoes too much.
posted by substrate at 6:43 PM on November 3, 2004

Provide yourself with a new, cool image!
posted by arse_hat at 6:45 PM on November 3, 2004

I am gonna totally buy some of those Medium shoes when the Canadian dollar trades at par.
posted by Quartermass at 6:51 PM on November 3, 2004

those starck pumas are pretty sweet. i also think royal elastics has some nice designs.
posted by gnutron at 6:52 PM on November 3, 2004

The Mediums are interesting; Tourist made me chuckle. Adidas' Superstar Ultra and Pro Team with the fancy break-away heel seems to be getting a lot of press lately.
posted by Feisty at 6:57 PM on November 3, 2004

My friend is all about Puma's Kugelblitz [1] [2] [3]. The shoe and related paraphernalia doesn't appear on the puma site, and my friend has only seen them in Causeway Bay D-Mop (in Hong Kong).
posted by chunking express at 7:21 PM on November 3, 2004

I have been wearing a stylish pair of SweatShop Nikes that I picked up at Kohl's for $29.95.

I kinda like those surrealist medium shoes, but then I see they are $125.00...

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

*VIBRATES ANGRILY*

arrrrrrruuuuugggggggggaaaaaaa!

sorry i momentarily turned into an old car horn.
posted by bargle at 7:40 PM on November 3, 2004

When a westerner is faced with uncomfortable realities, he goes shopping.

This is so not guy-filter, tho' - I reckon only mathowie would get away with a post on designy shoes...no-one else has the cojones.
posted by dash_slot- at 7:51 PM on November 3, 2004

I like these.
posted by guictx at 8:21 PM on November 3, 2004

trippen shoes.
posted by four panels at 8:49 PM on November 3, 2004

cydwog. Architectural Shoes.
posted by tomplus2 at 8:51 PM on November 3, 2004

Mark Newson is WAY cooler than Starck and so are his newly unveiled shoes, the Nike Zvezdochka. No word on actual sales yet tho'.

--

Are medium shoes nice in ways beyond aesthetics (e.g. comfort)? I wonder about it, just as "designy" chairs are often uncomfortable to sit on.
posted by Utilitaritron at 9:06 PM on November 3, 2004

I coveted a pair of Mediums for like a year before actually trying them on. To my complete and utter dismay I found them rather uncomfortable. I do agree that they are probably the best looking (modern) shoes available these days. (AND they've gone and updated their website and added new shoes. I love the Existentialists.)

Lately, I've been lusting for some Tsubo.
posted by shoepal at 9:11 PM on November 3, 2004

I've got cojones. I'd like to see an actual picture of those Space Invader shoes instead of a graphic. The Medium shoes are really cool, especially the Alchemist. I like old-school shoes, like these Stan Smiths originally made in 1965. I recently picked up these Reeboks (r to the bk) and love them.
posted by modofo at 9:15 PM on November 3, 2004

He also designed an optical mouse for Microsoft.

I bought one, used it for a day, determined it to be a lame imitation of Apple's "no buttons" concept (although I like the blue LED), and threw it in my laptop bag as an emergency backup.

Replaced it with the latest $14.95 edition of the Logitech Optical Mouse (the black one, cheapest one they make).
posted by mrbill at 9:33 PM on November 3, 2004

Camper, a Mallorcan company, makes awesome foot apparel. They go whole hog.
posted by blasdelf at 9:40 PM on November 3, 2004

modofo: here's the picture.
posted by guictx at 10:23 PM on November 3, 2004

thanks quictx. those are really cool. too bad they're $140 US.
posted by modofo at 10:50 PM on November 3, 2004

I love camper's stuff, but the bastards don't sell shoes bigger than a US 12/45 or 46. I'm a 47 or 48 (around a 13 US) and I've never been able to find a camper shoe that fits. Bastards.
posted by mathowie at 11:28 PM on November 3, 2004

Weird, Camper's website's ecommerce store claims they do up to size 14. I've tried out several shoe dealers in San Francisco before and never found anything bigger than a 12.
posted by mathowie at 11:34 PM on November 3, 2004

I've owned Campers in size 13, so I know they're not an online only fiction. (fantastic shoes, by the way)
posted by mosch at 11:50 PM on November 3, 2004

I own a pair of these. eat your heart out
posted by matteo at 3:17 AM on November 4, 2004

Starck has successfully pioneered the cross-over from design to apparel, but prospective consumers need to understand they are paying for the nominal, inflated “legacy value” couched in mediocre products.

As a hater of Fossil watches, I was lured last year to their Phillippe Starck line, particularly this gold shazaam. I bought it, but quickly returned it, because I realized that under the Starcky golden goodness, I was hijacked my $145.00 (plus hefty nyc sales tax) for cheap fossil parts. Starck also makes a more rubbery line of watches, but for a paltry LED display, no moving parts, and crap rubber strap, you're paying $95.00 for crappy parts, which is just too much for fossil quality. However, this shouldn't be used as an analogy for Puma quality, because i've been wearing their kicks for years, and never had a complaint with the quality relative to price.

I can't help notice that M3dium's design is highly reminiscent of Campers. Although I was never crazy about the design, Tretorn has apparently made a comeback.
posted by naxosaxur at 11:11 AM on November 4, 2004

Thanks, naxo. I used to be a complete sucker for a girl in tretorns.
posted by shoepal at 11:34 AM on November 4, 2004

...we used to put frienship pins all up in the laces.
posted by naxosaxur at 10:09 PM on November 4, 2004