Tag Archives: sneakers

Adidas Made a Marathon Shoe That Weighs Less Than an Apple

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Pick up an apple from your kitchen counter. Now imagine a pair of running shoes weighing less than that single piece of fruit. That’s the Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3, and it’s not a concept shoe or a lab curiosity. It just debuted at the 2026 London Marathon, worn by Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha, who became the first athletes in history to break the sub-two-hour marathon barrier.

The Evo 3 weighs in at just 97 grams in a UK size 8.5, making it the first sub-100-gram racing shoe Adidas has ever produced. For context, the shoe’s box weighs more than the shoe inside it. That’s the kind of engineering achievement that sounds like a flex until you understand how much it actually matters at race pace.

Designer: adidas

The secret is a new construction called ENERGYRIM, a carbon-integrated design that completely rethinks how a supershoe is built. Rather than simply layering carbon plates into foam, Adidas redesigned the relationship between the two, allowing them to work in concert rather than independently. The result is a shoe that’s 30% lighter than its predecessor, with 11% greater forefoot energy return and a 1.6% improvement in running economy. To put those numbers in context: at the marathon level, a 1.6% improvement in running economy isn’t marginal. It’s the kind of number that separates a podium from a personal best.

The foam itself is the other major story here. Adidas developed a new generation of Lightstrike Pro Evo compound that is 50% lighter than the version used in the Evo 2. That’s not a small iteration. It’s a material science leap that took three years and over a dozen tested prototypes, refined in labs in Herzogenaurach and tested at altitude training camps in Kenya and Ethiopia. Elsewhere on the shoe, the outsole ditches the liquid rubber coating from the previous model in favor of strategically placed Continental rubber, a welcome upgrade for anyone who isn’t a professional sprinter running on perfectly dry asphalt. It’s a small change that makes the shoe meaningfully more accessible without compromising the weight equation in any significant way.

From a design standpoint, the Evo 3 is striking in the way extreme performance gear tends to be: lean, almost aggressive, with a silhouette that looks sculpted rather than constructed. The toebox is narrow, almost spike-like, which is clearly a functional decision rather than an aesthetic one. The fit prioritizes containment over comfort, and that feels like the right philosophy for a race day shoe that is not designed for casual wear. You wear shoes like this to run the fastest race of your life. The trade-offs are understood, and most serious runners will make them without hesitation.

The price is USD 500, with an initial limited release on April 27, 2026, and a wider launch expected in fall 2026. That price tag will raise eyebrows. But it helps to remember that the Adizero Evo franchise has already seen athletes break three world records and win over 30 major road races since 2023, including six World Marathon Major wins and an Olympic record time. The shoe’s pedigree isn’t marketing copy. It’s a documented track record.

What makes the Evo 3 genuinely interesting beyond the running community is what it represents as a design object. It sits at the intersection of sports science, materials engineering, and product design in a way that very few consumer products ever manage. The obsession with weight reduction, the carbon geometry experiments, the altitude testing: these are the ingredients of something closer to aerospace thinking than traditional footwear development. When the research process looks more like aircraft engineering than sneaker design, the result tends to look and perform like nothing that came before it.

Whether you run marathons or not, there’s a certain pleasure in watching a brand push against what seemed like a physical limit and actually break through. Adidas didn’t just shave a few grams off an existing shoe. They asked what a marathon shoe could look like if weight were treated as a fundamental design constraint rather than just another spec to optimize. The answer is 97 grams. And somehow, impossibly, it still performs better than everything that came before it.

The post Adidas Made a Marathon Shoe That Weighs Less Than an Apple first appeared on Yanko Design.

Adidas Made a Marathon Shoe That Weighs Less Than an Apple

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Pick up an apple from your kitchen counter. Now imagine a pair of running shoes weighing less than that single piece of fruit. That’s the Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3, and it’s not a concept shoe or a lab curiosity. It just debuted at the 2026 London Marathon, worn by Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha, who became the first athletes in history to break the sub-two-hour marathon barrier.

The Evo 3 weighs in at just 97 grams in a UK size 8.5, making it the first sub-100-gram racing shoe Adidas has ever produced. For context, the shoe’s box weighs more than the shoe inside it. That’s the kind of engineering achievement that sounds like a flex until you understand how much it actually matters at race pace.

Designer: adidas

The secret is a new construction called ENERGYRIM, a carbon-integrated design that completely rethinks how a supershoe is built. Rather than simply layering carbon plates into foam, Adidas redesigned the relationship between the two, allowing them to work in concert rather than independently. The result is a shoe that’s 30% lighter than its predecessor, with 11% greater forefoot energy return and a 1.6% improvement in running economy. To put those numbers in context: at the marathon level, a 1.6% improvement in running economy isn’t marginal. It’s the kind of number that separates a podium from a personal best.

The foam itself is the other major story here. Adidas developed a new generation of Lightstrike Pro Evo compound that is 50% lighter than the version used in the Evo 2. That’s not a small iteration. It’s a material science leap that took three years and over a dozen tested prototypes, refined in labs in Herzogenaurach and tested at altitude training camps in Kenya and Ethiopia. Elsewhere on the shoe, the outsole ditches the liquid rubber coating from the previous model in favor of strategically placed Continental rubber, a welcome upgrade for anyone who isn’t a professional sprinter running on perfectly dry asphalt. It’s a small change that makes the shoe meaningfully more accessible without compromising the weight equation in any significant way.

From a design standpoint, the Evo 3 is striking in the way extreme performance gear tends to be: lean, almost aggressive, with a silhouette that looks sculpted rather than constructed. The toebox is narrow, almost spike-like, which is clearly a functional decision rather than an aesthetic one. The fit prioritizes containment over comfort, and that feels like the right philosophy for a race day shoe that is not designed for casual wear. You wear shoes like this to run the fastest race of your life. The trade-offs are understood, and most serious runners will make them without hesitation.

The price is USD 500, with an initial limited release on April 27, 2026, and a wider launch expected in fall 2026. That price tag will raise eyebrows. But it helps to remember that the Adizero Evo franchise has already seen athletes break three world records and win over 30 major road races since 2023, including six World Marathon Major wins and an Olympic record time. The shoe’s pedigree isn’t marketing copy. It’s a documented track record.

What makes the Evo 3 genuinely interesting beyond the running community is what it represents as a design object. It sits at the intersection of sports science, materials engineering, and product design in a way that very few consumer products ever manage. The obsession with weight reduction, the carbon geometry experiments, the altitude testing: these are the ingredients of something closer to aerospace thinking than traditional footwear development. When the research process looks more like aircraft engineering than sneaker design, the result tends to look and perform like nothing that came before it.

Whether you run marathons or not, there’s a certain pleasure in watching a brand push against what seemed like a physical limit and actually break through. Adidas didn’t just shave a few grams off an existing shoe. They asked what a marathon shoe could look like if weight were treated as a fundamental design constraint rather than just another spec to optimize. The answer is 97 grams. And somehow, impossibly, it still performs better than everything that came before it.

The post Adidas Made a Marathon Shoe That Weighs Less Than an Apple first appeared on Yanko Design.

Nike Just Turned 4 Iconic Football Boots into Air Max 90s

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If you’ve never cared about football in your life, the Nike Mad 90 Pack might just change that. Not because it’ll make you want to kick a ball around, but because it proves that the most powerful design language in sports has always lived off the pitch as much as on it.

Here’s the setup: Nike took four of its most iconic football boots from the past 25 years and used them as the blueprint for four new Air Max 90 colorways. The Hypervenom, the Mercurial Vapor 2002, the Total 90 Laser, and the Tiempo. Each one gets its own distinct expression on the Air Max 90 silhouette, pulling directly from the materials, colors, and energy of the original boot. The result is a pack that manages to feel both nostalgic and completely new at the same time.

Designer: Nike

The Air Max 90 as a canvas makes a lot of sense here. It’s one of the most versatile sneakers Nike has ever produced, a shoe that’s lived in so many different worlds that borrowing DNA from football feels natural rather than forced. And each pair in this pack earns its reference.

The Hypervenom comes in Bright Citrus and Total Orange, using mesh and Gripskin tech lifted directly from the boot’s original construction. It’s loud, aggressive, and unapologetic, exactly the energy the Hypervenom always carried on the pitch. The Mercurial Vapor 2002 translation goes dark and sleek in an all-black colorway, and it even borrows the boot’s signature flip-over tongue. That’s a small detail, but it’s the kind of thing that separates a thoughtful design from a lazy one.

The Total 90 Laser shows up in its iconic black and yellow with the “90” logo planted at the toe box, and if you grew up in the early 2000s, that color combination alone will do something to you. Finally, the Tiempo takes on a crackled leather finish in black and voltage green that feels more like a heritage piece than a modern release, understated compared to the others but arguably the most wearable of the four.

What Nike is doing here is interesting beyond just the product. They’re translating a very specific kind of sports memory into something wearable for an entirely different context. People who grew up watching Ronaldo score in Mercurial Vapors, or who remember the Total 90 Laser as the boot every kid wanted at Christmas, now get to carry a piece of that era on their feet without needing to step on a football pitch to justify it. That’s a clever move for a brand that knows its audience runs much wider than athletes.

The timing is also doing a lot of heavy lifting. With the FIFA World Cup coming this summer, football is having a cultural moment that goes well beyond its usual fanbase. Fashion people are paying attention. Streetwear people are paying attention. The sport has been creeping into pop culture conversations for a few years now, and Nike is making sure to plant a flag at exactly the right moment. The Mad 90 Pack isn’t a World Cup product in the obvious sense, it doesn’t feature national team colors or tournament branding, but it benefits from that energy all the same.

I do think there’s a genuinely good design story in each pair. The decision not to just slap a boot colorway on a standard Air Max 90 and call it a day, but to actually incorporate material references and structural details from the original footwear, is what keeps this from feeling like a cheap cash-in. It’s well-researched, specific, and considered. You can tell someone actually cared about getting the references right.

Each sneaker retails for $150. The pack drops globally on May 11 and across North America on May 21, along with a complementary apparel collection that draws from football community culture in ways that extend the story past just the shoes. Whether you’re a football obsessive who still thinks the Total 90 Laser is the greatest boot ever made, or someone who just appreciates a well-executed design concept, the Mad 90 Pack gives you something worth paying attention to. Nike has been doing this kind of cross-cultural translation for decades, and every now and then they get it exactly right. This is one of those times.

The post Nike Just Turned 4 Iconic Football Boots into Air Max 90s first appeared on Yanko Design.

Camper x Issey Miyake Sneakers Started With a Book of Birds

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Not every sneaker collaboration deserves attention. Most of them follow a predictable script: take a classic silhouette, swap a few colors, slap two logos on the tongue, and call it a limited drop. Which is why when Camper and Issey Miyake unveiled the Karst Finch for SS 2026, I sat up a little straighter.

The story behind it matters. According to Satoshi Kondo, creative director of Issey Miyake’s womenswear line, the design team spent part of their development phase poring over photo books of finches and other small birds. They weren’t studying aerodynamics or engineering anything structural. They were just looking, really looking, at the richness and subtlety of bird plumage and beaks, and letting that translate into a color palette for a shoe. That’s either delightfully eccentric or genuinely brilliant. I think it’s both.

Designers: Camper x Issey Miyake

The name itself tells you a lot. “Karst” references one of Camper’s most distinctive existing silhouettes, a shoe named after a rocky geological formation known for its rugged, organically shaped terrain. The outsole of the original Karst reflects that: it has a lumpy, almost topographic quality that looks like it came up from the earth rather than out of a factory mold. “Finch” layers something entirely different on top of it, lightness, color, a kind of cheerful energy. The combination of those two words is basically a thesis statement for what this shoe is trying to do.

Camper is Spanish, practical, and deeply rooted in a no-nonsense approach to footwear. Issey Miyake is Japanese, sculptural, and preoccupied with the relationship between material, body, and movement. These two brands don’t obviously belong together, and that friction is exactly what makes this collaboration interesting. Kondo noted that both companies share a way of thinking about design that goes beyond fashion, that both engage with other creative disciplines and communities rather than operating purely within the style bubble. I believe that. You can feel it in the shoe.

The Karst Finch is built from recycled PET engineered materials, sits on a Vibram rubber outsole, and uses a ReXarge midsole with an OrthoLite recycled footbed. It’s a sustainability story told quietly, without the usual chest-thumping. The recycled polyester lining and the thoughtful material choices feel like a given here rather than a selling point, which is how it should be. And yes, it’s also genuinely comfortable, which matters more to me than it probably should when discussing something this aesthetically considered. A beautiful shoe you can’t walk in is just an expensive sculpture.

What really lands is the color approach. The pastel yellows, the muted tones, the colorways that feel like they were borrowed from a naturalist’s watercolor study: this is not the saturated, aggressive palette that usually comes with high-profile sneaker drops. It’s quieter than that. More considered. Each pair also comes with two pairs of socks for customization, which is a small detail but a telling one. It signals that whoever designed this understood the shoe doesn’t need to shout.

The Karst Finch made its public debut closing out Issey Miyake’s Spring 2026 runway at Paris Fashion Week, which is an unusual place for a sneaker to land. Runways don’t usually end with footwear as a statement piece, and it’s telling that this one did. It read as a kind of exhale after everything else on the runway, lighter, brighter, and a little more open to joy.

There’s a version of this collaboration that could have been very safe. Instead, the Karst Finch is a shoe built on genuine curiosity: about birds, about material, about what happens when a Majorcan shoe company and a Tokyo fashion house actually sit down and listen to each other. At $320, it’s not an impulse buy. But it’s the kind of thing you pick up because you want it to last, and because the story behind it is worth wearing. The Karst Finch drops globally on April 15, 2026.

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Nike’s iconic Air Max 95 is now a 1,213-piece LEGO set complete with hidden storage

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There’s some magic about the LEGO-Nike that makes it so special. Just in time for the holiday season and to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Air Max 95, Nike struck a partnership with LEGO for the dope LEGO-themed Air Max 95 “Neon” sneaker. Sometime mid-year in 2025, the duo turned eyeballs with the ⁠Nike Dunk x LEGO Set and then later dropped another couple of LEGO x Nike sets for collectors.

Now, the two giants have struck another partnership to create a detailed Nike Air Max 95 x LEGO set. The original Air Max 95, designed by Sergio Lozano in 1995, famously drew inspiration from the human anatomy. The layered upper mirrors muscle fibers, the lace loops resemble ribs, and the midsole represents the spine. The silhouette remains highly sought after among sneaker collectors, and recreating a LEGO version of the shoe makes complete sense.

Designer: LEGO x Nike

Comprising 1,213 pieces, the LEGO set complements the LEGO-themed Air Max 95 sneaker we talked about earlier. The signature grey gradient, Air bubbles, and the contrasting neon yellow and green inserts on the sides come to life as the LEGO set is pieced together. The brick-built model faithfully recreates the sculpted midsole and the signature wavy upper that made the original sneaker instantly recognizable. LEGO also includes a Nike-branded minifigure to reinforce the playful crossover between sneaker culture and brick-building. Once you put it together, the sneaker measures roughly 9 x 12 x 7 inches and can be displayed on the rotating stand or simply put on the prime desk spot to celebrate the brand’s success with high-top and low-top Dunk sneakers. The build also features a brick-built ‘AIR’ logo bubble, and the rotating display stand mimics the kind of pedestal sneaker collectors use to showcase prized pairs.

The co-branding on the set is apparent on the insole, and the airmax logo on the lip. LEGO has gone one step further with the minifigure being customizable, and the extra set of laces. The wide purple base mentioned earlier has hidden compartments to store the set of laces or an extra minifigure. Turn the shoe and the compartment is visible, which is a unique addition to this already intricate LEGO set. The Nike Air Max 95 LEGO set is available right away for $100 from their official website.

This collaborative effort ultimately celebrates the Air Max 95 not just as footwear but as a cultural artifact that continues to inspire new forms of creative expression. By translating the sneaker’s layered design language into LEGO bricks, the set offers collectors and sneaker enthusiasts a fresh way to engage with one of Nike’s most influential silhouettes.

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Swiss Brand ‘On’ Just Built a $280 Running Shoe Using Robots in 3 Minutes

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Most running shoes are Frankenstein jobs. Twenty, thirty pieces of fabric cut, stitched, layered, and glued together by human hands on a factory line. It’s been done that way for decades, and for the most part, nobody questioned it. On just did.

The Swiss brand’s new LightSpray Cloudmonster 3 Hyper doesn’t have a traditional upper. Instead, a robotic arm sprays a single continuous filament onto a foot-shaped mold, and in about three minutes, the entire upper is formed. No seams. No laces. No glue. The result bonds directly to the midsole through thermal fusing, and the whole shoe is made from just eight components. For context, a typical performance runner uses somewhere between 30 and 50. That’s not an incremental improvement. That’s a fundamentally different way to build a shoe.

Designer: On

On first debuted LightSpray in 2024, when marathon runner Hellen Obiri wore a prototype to win the Boston Marathon. Back then it was a single robotic unit in Zurich, a proof of concept more than a production method. Now the brand has opened a second factory near Busan, South Korea, housing 32 robots and boosting production capacity 30 times over. The technology has gone from lab curiosity to something you can actually buy, and that shift matters more than the shoe itself.

What makes the Cloudmonster 3 Hyper interesting as a design object is the tension between its upper and its sole. On top, you get this gossamer, almost skeletal spray-on structure that looks like it was grown rather than assembled. Below, there’s a massive stack of Helion HF hyper foam sitting on CloudTec cushioning geometry. Minimal above, maximal below. It’s a deliberate contrast, and it works visually in a way that most performance shoes don’t even attempt.

On co-founder Caspar Coppetti has said it’s what a shoe from Apple would look like, and while that comparison gets thrown around too loosely in consumer products, here it actually tracks. The Limelight/Bloom colorway, with its white upper, black branding, and yellow tooling, has that same kind of restrained confidence.

There are real performance implications, too. At 205 grams for a men’s US 8.5, it’s roughly 90 grams lighter than the standard Cloudmonster 3. That’s a significant gap for a max-cushion trainer. On deliberately skipped a carbon plate in the midsole, which is a choice that goes against the current arms race in performance footwear. The reasoning is sound: plates are great for race-day propulsion, but for training shoes built around long runs and high mileage, they can actually fatigue legs faster. The plateless design, combined with enhanced rocker geometry, is meant to keep your legs fresher over sustained efforts. It’s a shoe that asks you to trust the foam instead of the hardware.

The sustainability angle is worth noting without overstating. Eight components instead of dozens means less material waste and a simpler path to recyclability. On claims up to 75% lower CO₂ emissions for the upper compared to its other racing shoes. No running shoe is carbon-neutral, but the LightSpray approach at least moves in the right direction by simplifying what needs to be disassembled and reclaimed at end of life.

I do think there are legitimate questions about the laceless design. A form-fitting sprayed upper is a beautiful engineering solution, but it puts enormous pressure on the sock system and the structure itself to keep the foot locked down during dynamic movement. On includes an Elite Run Sock High Hyper with each pair, which is a smart acknowledgment that the shoe and sock need to function as a system. But runners with wider feet or higher arches should probably try these on before committing $280.

That price point is notable. It’s $90 more than the standard Cloudmonster 3 and $60 above the Cloudmonster 3 Hyper. You’re paying a premium for the LightSpray construction, and whether that premium is justified depends on how much you value the weight savings and the novelty of the technology. For some runners, that will be an easy yes. For others, the standard Hyper at $220 might be the smarter buy.

What excites me about this release isn’t really the shoe, though. It’s what it represents. The footwear industry has spent years competing on foam compounds and plate configurations, essentially tweaking the same fundamental construction methods. On is asking a different question entirely: what if the way we build the shoe is the innovation? A robot, a mold, three minutes, eight pieces. That’s a compelling answer, and I suspect the rest of the industry is paying very close attention.

The LightSpray Cloudmonster 3 Hyper drops March 5 in North America through On’s website and retail stores, with a global release following on April 16. It’s priced at $280.

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Adidas Just Turned Minecraft Creepers Into $40 Holiday Sneakers

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Remember when video game merchandise meant cheesy graphic tees at the mall? Those days are officially over. Adidas just quietly dropped a massive holiday collection with Minecraft that turns pixelated game creatures into surprisingly wearable sneakers, and honestly, it’s kind of brilliant.

The collaboration reimagines some of Adidas’ most iconic silhouettes through the blocky, digital lens of Minecraft’s universe. We’re talking the Samba XLG, Handball Spezial, Campus 00s, Superstar II, and even those beloved Adilette slides, each one carefully themed around specific Minecraft mobs and in-game elements. What makes this partnership work so well is how thoughtfully each shoe connects to its source material without losing the essence of what makes these Adidas classics so enduringly popular.

Designer: Adidas

Take the Samba XLG inspired by the Creeper, arguably Minecraft’s most recognizable character. The shoe arrives in that signature explosive green colorway with blocky graphics spread across the upper, while a gum sole keeps things grounded in classic Samba DNA. It’s playful without being costume-y, which is exactly the balance you want in a collaboration like this.

The Handball Spezial takes a different approach with its Ghast theme. For those not fluent in Minecraft speak, the Ghast is that floating, fireball-spewing creature you encounter in the game’s Nether dimension. Flame graphics dance across the shoe while an illustrated Ghast appears on the laces, giving the piece a narrative quality that goes beyond simple branding.

Then there’s the Campus 00s channeling the Eye of Ender aesthetic with its black and green palette, and the Superstar II drawing inspiration from the Ender Dragon itself. The Superstar features black, block-like scales that translate the dragon’s texture into something you can actually wear on city streets. The Adilette slides circle back to Creeper territory, with the mob’s iconic face prominently displayed on the strap.

But here’s where things get really interesting from a design perspective. The packaging deserves its own spotlight. Adidas designed the boxes to resemble Minecraft’s in-game storage chests, extending the conceptual thread beyond just the product itself. This kind of attention to detail elevates the entire unboxing experience and shows a genuine understanding of what makes Minecraft’s visual language so compelling.

There’s a caveat worth mentioning, though. The entire footwear collection comes exclusively in youth and children’s sizing. While this might disappoint adult collectors hoping to snag a pair for themselves, it actually makes strategic sense. Minecraft’s core audience skews younger, and positioning these as wearable extensions of the game rather than adult collectibles keeps the collaboration authentic to its roots. Plus, prices ranging from forty to ninety-five dollars make these accessible holiday gifts rather than hype-beast grails.

The sneaker world has seen its fair share of video game collaborations over the years, but most lean heavily into nostalgia for retro gaming. This partnership feels refreshingly current. Minecraft remains one of the most played games globally, with a massive cultural footprint that extends far beyond gaming circles. By tapping into this active, engaged community rather than mining the past, Adidas positions itself at the intersection of contemporary gaming culture and street style.

What’s particularly clever is how the collection works on multiple levels. Die-hard Minecraft fans get references they’ll immediately recognize and appreciate. Meanwhile, someone who’s never played the game might just see a cool green Samba or a sleek black Superstar with interesting texture details. The designs don’t require insider knowledge to work aesthetically, which broadens their appeal considerably. The collection also includes complementary apparel pieces, creating a full lifestyle offering that lets young fans dress head to toe in Minecraft-inspired gear. This comprehensive approach transforms the collaboration from a simple licensing deal into something that feels more like a genuine creative partnership.

Brand collaborations drop constantly and often feel forced but the Adidas x Minecraft holiday collection stands out by actually making sense. Both brands benefit from the association, the design execution shows real thought and craft, and the end result offers something genuinely fun in a sneaker landscape that sometimes takes itself way too seriously. Available now through the Adidas webstore, these pieces prove that when gaming and footwear cultures collide thoughtfully, everyone wins, especially the kids who get to wear their favorite game on their feet.

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Saucony and Lay’s collaborate for food-inspired sneakers with regional flavors in China

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Around 2020 – give or take a year or two – when I was just getting into writing about sneakers, I read about Dunkin’ collaborating with Saucony (an athletic footwear brand I had only just discovered), for a marathon in Boston. At the time, I wasn’t convinced that food and shoes, an odd pairing, could really find common ground for a collaboration. Nearly a decade later, Saucony finds itself in the middle of another food-themed partnership. This one is specific to China, but it’s likely to interest foodies and sneakerheads far beyond the region.

Saucony this time has teamed up with Lay’s to develop a trio of sneakers inspired by the potato chip brand’s three regional flavors. Since, the silhouettes are made exclusively for the Chinese market, it is not yet confirmed if the sneakers will be sold outside of the country. The interested collectors would have to look at the resale websites and markets for these pairs.

Designer: Saucony x Lay’s

Food-inspired sneakers are not only limited to a company per se. Over the years, we have seen many brands combine the two, at various occasions, to create surprisingly great results. These pairs either derive names for their colorway from tasty treats or are licensed to sell in collaboration with a food item or a restaurant. The iconic potato chip brand here finds room in the sneaker culture with the partnership.

The three sneakers launched in this collection include a Cohesion 2K, Grid Fusion, and the more globally recognized Trainer 80X. The first in the trio is the Saucony Cohesion 2K, which is inspired by the popular seaweed flavor. It features a grey mesh and suede upper with a few green accents all around, which includes the Saucony logos.

The next in the collection is the Grid Fusion, designed after the spicy crayfish. The essence of the spicy crayfish is exquisitely carried in this pair, which feature warm brown swede and dark mesh in the upper and hints of its in the midsole. The soft beige on the midsole and the other accents complete the look.

The third pair in the series is the Trainer 80X which is instinctively identifiable with its classic yellow of a Lay’s potato chip bag. It has a gum sole and a yellow leather and suede upper. What really ties the three pairs together at the playful chip bag-like hashtags and exclusive co-branding. There is no word on when these silhouettes will be available or how each one of them will be priced. But one thing we are sure of is that we can only admire these food-inspired sneakers, there is no way these are crossing the shores of China.

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Hand-Stitched $2,300 Sneakers With Only 2 Pairs in the World

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Let’s talk about what happens when ancient Japanese craftsmanship collides with one of the most elusive sneakers in the game. The result? A pair of shoes that costs more than most people’s monthly rent, and somehow, that price tag makes total sense.

New Balance Japan just announced a collaboration with Sashiko Gals that’s turning heads for all the right reasons. They’ve taken the legendary 1300JP and transformed it into something that exists somewhere between footwear and functional art. And before you dismiss this as another overpriced sneaker collab, hear me out, because this one’s different.

Designers: Sashiko Gals and New Balance

For those not deep in sneaker lore, the New Balance 1300JP is basically the Bigfoot of running shoes. Originally released in the 1980s, it only drops once every five years in Japan, making it the kind of shoe that serious collectors set calendar reminders for. It’s got that classic grey suede aesthetic and Made in USA quality that sneakerheads obsess over.

Enter Sashiko Gals, a community of Japanese artisans who are keeping the centuries-old tradition of sashiko embroidery alive by dragging it, stitch by careful stitch, into contemporary culture. Sashiko is that traditional Japanese hand-stitching technique where artisans use running stitches to create intricate patterns on fabric, typically indigo-dyed. It’s slow work. Meticulous work. The kind of craft that makes you appreciate the human hands behind every detail.

What these artisans did to the 1300JP is nothing short of remarkable. They covered the entire upper with hand-made sashiko patches, stitching them with white, orange, and indigo-blue thread. The decorative patterns create this visually rich tapestry that screams Japanese heritage while somehow still respecting the sneaker’s classic silhouette. And because these artisans apparently don’t believe in half-measures, they even stitched the running patterns onto the ends of the laces. Every. Single. Detail. Matters. The collaboration also includes a Made in USA varsity jacket that gets the same treatment, blending American sports heritage with Japanese craftsmanship in a way that shouldn’t work but absolutely does.

Now, about that price tag. The sneakers clock in at 363,000 yen, which translates to roughly $2,330 USD. The jackets? Try 990,000 yen, or about $6,300 USD. Yeah, you read that right. These numbers are stratospheric. But here’s where things get interesting. New Balance and Sashiko Gals are only making two pairs of the 1300JP and four jackets (one in each size from small to extra-large). They’ll drop via a charity-based lottery at the New Balance Harajuku flagship on December 12th, and here’s the kicker: every single yen from the sales goes to MOONSHOT Co., LTD., an organization dedicated to developing future sashiko artisans and funding the launch of something called the SASHIKO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP.

This is what makes this collaboration actually matter. It’s not just two brands cashing in on hype. It’s a genuine effort to preserve and promote a traditional art form that’s at risk of fading away in our mass-production world. The Sashiko Gals are literally expanding the possibilities of their craft, proving that ancient techniques can still resonate in our modern, sneaker-obsessed culture. The “Crafted for the Future” partnership name suddenly makes sense. This isn’t about churning out product. It’s about creating a sustainable model where traditional craftsmanship can thrive, where artisans have platforms to showcase their work, where slow fashion and meticulous detail aren’t just marketing buzzwords but actual values worth paying for.

Will most of us ever own these sneakers? Probably not. Only two pairs exist, and the lottery system means even having the money isn’t enough. But that’s kind of the point. This collaboration is proving that sneakers can be more than just footwear or even fashion. They can be vessels for cultural preservation, fundraising tools, and tiny rebellions against our disposable culture. We’re living in an age where fast fashion dominates and sneaker collaborations drop every other week so the Sashiko Gals x New Balance 1300JP stands out by doing the exact opposite. It’s slow. It’s expensive. It’s impossibly rare. And somehow, that makes it one of the most exciting sneaker releases of the year.

The post Hand-Stitched $2,300 Sneakers With Only 2 Pairs in the World first appeared on Yanko Design.

Nike Air Max 90 turned into fully playable SNES console is the ultimate retro-modern mashup

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Sneaker culture and gaming go a long way back, good enough reason we’ve seen many interesting collaborations that signify the retro-modern charm of reliving the golden era. The excitement of playing arcade titles that defined the ’80s and ’90s keeps the creative juices of inventive DIYers flowing. While having the superficial elements of gaming on a pair of sneakers is common, having an actual gaming console running right off your sneaker is worth the attention.

Designer Gustavo Bonzanini has come up with a unique way to celebrate the Super Nintendo’s 35th anniversary since its release in Japan. The one-off sneaker running the 16-bit SNES games is a homage to the 90s fashion and gaming technology. He calls them the AIR SNES since they are based on the Nike Air Max 90, which are as nostalgic as the arcade games we are all obsessed with. He positions them as comfort-laden classic runners that bring the thrill of 16-bit adventure.

Designer: Gustavo Bonzanini

The Singapore-based designer has a knack for creating unique wearable art from everyday shoes. This time, he’s hit the note right with the retro arcade vibe of gaming consoles of yesteryear. The idea for the build came from his Street Fighter II gaming streak, as he noticed Ryu launching fireballs from the device linked to the foot. Gustavo asked himself a question: why can’t a pair like the Nike Air Max 90 that looks like a video game double as a gaming console? Hence came the idea of designing sneaker shoes with built-in gaming capabilities. The best thing is that they are completely wearable, and you can play games right off them. The majority of the shoe remains the same, like the air cushioning system, but the magic happens right up at the tongue. The section is loaded with a Raspberry Pi Zero W tiny computer that’s no bigger than a business card.

It is paired with a small battery placed in the footbed, which provides 30 minutes of playtime. You can just plug it into an old school TV and play, since it has RCA output ports (instead of an HDMI output) to retain the classic feel. According to him, this was done, “to make the design feel like it could exist in 1990.” Of course, you need a controller to enjoy the games, so he had to tinker around with the regular SNES controller to get going. He modified the peripheral with a new internal for improved reliability and Bluetooth connectivity via the 8BitDo Mod Kit. That had to be done as the shoe’s contraption could not fit the input for the controller and would have added to the overall weight.

The AIR SNES can be used to play titles like Super Mario World or The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past via the microSD card slot, which is slotted inside the tongue. Gustavo has even gone the length to test the sneakers on the road and thereafter play games on them to make the build as authentic as possible. The final element comes in the form of a gray and purple palette of the sneakers, complemented by the light purple stitching along the seam to replicate the controller’s button layout. Unfortunately, these sneakers are not available to buy, and you’ll have to follow Gustavo’s build to create one for yourself.

The post Nike Air Max 90 turned into fully playable SNES console is the ultimate retro-modern mashup first appeared on Yanko Design.