Sneakers made of only legos are perfect for playtime and game time
Sneakers are perfect for a playdate — especially if they're literally constructed from children's playthings.
Photographer and general sneaker aficionado Tom Yoo has conjured and executed a series of sportswear shoes made entirely from Legos.
Mashable spoke with Yoo about how he got into designing sneakers made of plastic rectangles.
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"I’ve loved Air Jordans and Legos ever since I could remember." Yoo said over email. "Growing up, Michael Jordan ranked in my mind pretty high. So it wasn’t out of the ordinary for me to spend hours as a kid just sketching old Air Jordans or coming up with my own crazy shoe designs."
Yoo shared his process of constructing each individual sneaker.
"In most cases, I use a good photo as my foundation," he said. "From there, I go section by section analyzing the ... shoe and finding the corresponding LEGO pieces that I feel best matches that section – it’s a long process."
The designer uses computer programming to create generated renderings of his sneakers. But sometimes, the models for Yoo's Lego structures come straight from his own closet.
"When I happen to own the real shoes that’s a bonus," he said.
Yoo is a self-taught artist and finds his inspiration in childhood memories and current interests, including video games, sports, hip-hop music and contemporary art.
In terms of collecting the appropriate Lego parts, Yoo will crawl all parts of the Lego universe to find the perfect piece. At times, the perfect Lego can cost up to $10 a piece. Overall, completing a Lego shoe can take up to a few days to a week.
He's selling the shoes at prices to reflect that effort. They range anywhere from $2,000 to $3,000 per shoe.
Playful and fashionable, inspired by music and passion -- these Lego shoes are calling Kanye.
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Diana was a part of the web culture editorial team at Mashable. She is originally from Kent, Ohio, and a native of the AIM chatroom. Her interests include any movie with Jodie Foster and trying to play it cool in front of celebrities (4-legged or otherwise). Get inside her head on Twitter, at @drrtydiana.
