- 858
- 56
- Joined
- Feb 15, 2000
Future Sole M6's are out today (2,000 pairs limited). Here's the backstory to the shoe written by the designer......
via CounterKicks.com
EXCLUSIVE: Jordan Future Sole Melo M6 Experience (By Austin Jermacans)
CounterKicks exclusively invited Nike Future Sole winner Austin Jermacans to share with us his complete story of the Future Sole experience spanning the last year. What follows is a detailed first-person account behind the inspiration and design of Austin’s Melo M6 Future Sole shoe, and what it was like meeting Carmelo Anthony and finding out his design would go into retail production. Included are previously unreleased sketches and renderings direct from the 17-year-old designer himself. Continue reading for the inside scoop behind Austin Jermacans’ Jordan Future Sole Melo M6 Experience…
PART 1 – Future Sole Design Presentation
Being in the league for six years, Carmelo Anthony has not only grown physically, but mentally as well. His overall transformation can be seen on and off the court, which certainly makes him one of the NBA’s most unique players.
On the court, he is a versatile athlete. His combination of strength and quickness allows for him to control the paint as well as run the floor. Physically, he has put in the hard work over the years in becoming an elite NBA player. Off the court, Melo has evolved as well. He introduced a more mature yet stylish wardrobe to signify his transformation.
Carmelo’s on and off court personalities can be best represented by the 2010 Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder. Similar to Carmelo, the Gallardo underwent a transformation heading into 09-10. Shaving of 40 pounds off its total weight, the Gallardo remains a powerful vehicle holding a V10 engine allowing it to reach 62 mph in 4 seconds. Although not as fast, Melo’s combination of strength and ability to run the court is comparable. You can also make connections of his playing style to the Lambo’s E Gear Single clutch transmission. When driving the Lambo, shifts are made quickly and with ease. Different modes are able to be selected depending on the style of driving, such as Corsa mode for straight paths at high speeds. This is almost identical to Carmelo’s playing style in the 2008-2009 season with the complimentary players added to the Denver Nuggets roster. The Nuggets no longer need to rely on Carmelo dropping 30+ a night in order to receive a win. With the help of role players such as Chauncey Billups or Chris Anderson, Melo is able to have games where he will be in a scoring mode dropping 30+, but then he is also able to slow it down and contribute through boards, assists, and defense. His athleticism and new playing style now allows him to makes plays he wasn’t able to make before due to the fact he is able to last longer and endure games since all the pressure isn’t always on him.
Besides having an elite performance on the track, the Lambo has a luxurious interior. With over $50,000 in upgrades available, it leaves the Gallardo as one of the most unique vehicles in existence, perfectly representing Carmelo’s on and off court personalities.
When designing the Melo VI, I definitely wanted to keep his off court style in mind. I began taking cues from old school classics such as the Converse Chuck Taylor or wingtip dress sneakers and mixed them with elements from newer casual sneakers such as those owned by Ato Matsumoto, Clae, and Creative Recreation. What they all have in common are clean simple designs with great attention put towards materials and stitching. Therefore, I wanted the MVI to be versatile in the fact it would welcome a variety of materials/patterns/colors to be used, given the elements supplied. Featuring a lateral mesh vamp and a medial leather upper, each can easily be replaced with suede, leather, croc skin, etc to bring a variety of different looks. Carmelo’s stylist borrows many pieces from the designer Tom Ford, who uses a collection of patterns such as plaid and pinstripes. If wished, those could easily be worked into those elements of the sneaker. Keeping performance in mind, I chose a ballistic mesh vamp with the combination of a leather upper for a light and ventilated sneaker. The overall idea to include a large mesh vamp on the upper was inspired by the Gallardo’s vents located throughout the exterior of the vehicle.
On my finished design, you can notice the large rectangular overlasted piece on the the lateral view. When designing this element, I used Carmelo’s common use of pocket squares usually included to compliment his suits. I feel the overlasted piece compliments the rest of the design as it streamlines every other aspect of the sneaker creating that clean simple casual look. This again would welcome a material change.
Knowing Melo wanted a narrow sneaker with a lock down fit around the ankle, I included an ankle strap with 3 eyelets on each wing to allow the wearer to be precise on exactly how tight of a fit they wish to play with. The diamond stitched pattern was inspired by the luxury styled seats found in the interior of the Gallardo with upgraded features.
The tongue design is unique as it features the embossed ovals in the suede, each having a small carolina blue emblem reading “M
via CounterKicks.com
EXCLUSIVE: Jordan Future Sole Melo M6 Experience (By Austin Jermacans)
CounterKicks exclusively invited Nike Future Sole winner Austin Jermacans to share with us his complete story of the Future Sole experience spanning the last year. What follows is a detailed first-person account behind the inspiration and design of Austin’s Melo M6 Future Sole shoe, and what it was like meeting Carmelo Anthony and finding out his design would go into retail production. Included are previously unreleased sketches and renderings direct from the 17-year-old designer himself. Continue reading for the inside scoop behind Austin Jermacans’ Jordan Future Sole Melo M6 Experience…
PART 1 – Future Sole Design Presentation
Being in the league for six years, Carmelo Anthony has not only grown physically, but mentally as well. His overall transformation can be seen on and off the court, which certainly makes him one of the NBA’s most unique players.
On the court, he is a versatile athlete. His combination of strength and quickness allows for him to control the paint as well as run the floor. Physically, he has put in the hard work over the years in becoming an elite NBA player. Off the court, Melo has evolved as well. He introduced a more mature yet stylish wardrobe to signify his transformation.
Carmelo’s on and off court personalities can be best represented by the 2010 Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder. Similar to Carmelo, the Gallardo underwent a transformation heading into 09-10. Shaving of 40 pounds off its total weight, the Gallardo remains a powerful vehicle holding a V10 engine allowing it to reach 62 mph in 4 seconds. Although not as fast, Melo’s combination of strength and ability to run the court is comparable. You can also make connections of his playing style to the Lambo’s E Gear Single clutch transmission. When driving the Lambo, shifts are made quickly and with ease. Different modes are able to be selected depending on the style of driving, such as Corsa mode for straight paths at high speeds. This is almost identical to Carmelo’s playing style in the 2008-2009 season with the complimentary players added to the Denver Nuggets roster. The Nuggets no longer need to rely on Carmelo dropping 30+ a night in order to receive a win. With the help of role players such as Chauncey Billups or Chris Anderson, Melo is able to have games where he will be in a scoring mode dropping 30+, but then he is also able to slow it down and contribute through boards, assists, and defense. His athleticism and new playing style now allows him to makes plays he wasn’t able to make before due to the fact he is able to last longer and endure games since all the pressure isn’t always on him.
Besides having an elite performance on the track, the Lambo has a luxurious interior. With over $50,000 in upgrades available, it leaves the Gallardo as one of the most unique vehicles in existence, perfectly representing Carmelo’s on and off court personalities.
When designing the Melo VI, I definitely wanted to keep his off court style in mind. I began taking cues from old school classics such as the Converse Chuck Taylor or wingtip dress sneakers and mixed them with elements from newer casual sneakers such as those owned by Ato Matsumoto, Clae, and Creative Recreation. What they all have in common are clean simple designs with great attention put towards materials and stitching. Therefore, I wanted the MVI to be versatile in the fact it would welcome a variety of materials/patterns/colors to be used, given the elements supplied. Featuring a lateral mesh vamp and a medial leather upper, each can easily be replaced with suede, leather, croc skin, etc to bring a variety of different looks. Carmelo’s stylist borrows many pieces from the designer Tom Ford, who uses a collection of patterns such as plaid and pinstripes. If wished, those could easily be worked into those elements of the sneaker. Keeping performance in mind, I chose a ballistic mesh vamp with the combination of a leather upper for a light and ventilated sneaker. The overall idea to include a large mesh vamp on the upper was inspired by the Gallardo’s vents located throughout the exterior of the vehicle.
On my finished design, you can notice the large rectangular overlasted piece on the the lateral view. When designing this element, I used Carmelo’s common use of pocket squares usually included to compliment his suits. I feel the overlasted piece compliments the rest of the design as it streamlines every other aspect of the sneaker creating that clean simple casual look. This again would welcome a material change.
Knowing Melo wanted a narrow sneaker with a lock down fit around the ankle, I included an ankle strap with 3 eyelets on each wing to allow the wearer to be precise on exactly how tight of a fit they wish to play with. The diamond stitched pattern was inspired by the luxury styled seats found in the interior of the Gallardo with upgraded features.
The tongue design is unique as it features the embossed ovals in the suede, each having a small carolina blue emblem reading “M
