Fans of Star Wars can take their love of droids and kitten heels to the streets with this DIY Instructables project. Created by Mike Warren, an editor at the site, these are the droid shoes you’re looking for. → Read More
Less than a month after JP Morgan put investments into two Rocket Internet-baked fashion sites modelled on Zappos — an undisclosed investment into Zalando and $45 million in Brazil’s Dafiti, the bank is taking an equity stake in a third Rocket Internet fashion business. Lamoda.ru in Russia, a site with 5 million unique users and 500,000 “loyal customers,” is apparently raising between $40… → Read More
ShoeDazzzle, the fashion e-commerce outfit that counts reality star/deep thinker Kim Kardashian among its founders, says that it has broken a new barrier: the site picked up 1 million new users in the month of July, bringing the total number of members up to 13 million. ShoeDazzle claims that’s more than double its nearest competitor in the online accessories market, which include Beachmint and… → Read More
As a fan of barefoot shoes I jumped (not very high, because you don’t get a lot of air with bare feet) at the chance to try out Fila’s new Skele-Toes EZ Slide barefoot shoes AKA the crazy monkey shoes not made by Vibram.
These shoes are marketed as “casual” monkey shoes and are not designed for running. They are, luckily, fairly attractive in a “weird dude who wears barefoot shoes” kind of way… → Read More
Marty McFly’s crazy kicks in Back To The Future II have long been a geek’s dream. Ostensibly made by Nike in the film, they would tighten themselves around your feet automatically and, more important, they’ve been the paragon of ultimate geekiness for a certain subset of shoe fanatics.
Well, now it looks like you, too, can go back… to the future. Nike just sent out invitations to an event in… → Read More
I hope you’re not eating anything because you’re about to see some real Jame Gumb stuff in a second. Vibram, famous makers of Sergey’s crazy monkey shoes (that I actually wear while running, much to my wife’s chagrin), have released two new models, the acceptably styled Trek LS, a lace up trail shoe/sneaker, and the absolutely abhorrent (yet strangely alluring) Bormio boots.
BirthdayShoes has… → Read More
Shoefitr allows you to find a shoe that is similar in size and shape to a pair of shoes you already own. For example, say you’re into Nike Free Runs but they discontinued the model you like. You tell Shoefittr and using the site’s 3D scanning system it finds a pair that matches the size and shape of the shoe you like. The 3D scanning system is based on the same systems used to scan feet for… → Read More
There’s a new religion brewing in the athletic milieu that requisites fitting foot condoms around the phalanges. You know what I’m talking about: the Five Fingers phenomenon. Not dissimilar to the once popular Crocs, Vibram banks on being different as a means of selling shoes. What’s different about Five Fingers is nothing entirely new, in fact, it dates back to thousands of years ago… → Read More
These aren’t gadgets exactly, but with all those zippers and leather, you have to admit that they’re gear. I haven’t worn All-Stars in a good 15 years, but these Schott crossovers might be the pair that brings me back to the flock. → Read More
We don’t often cover shoes here on CrunchGear, though we make exceptions for Sci-Fi sneakers, winged shoes, and the controversial Vibram Five Fingers. Well, if you’re into that brand of strange and exotic footwear, get excited: their 2011 line is going live, and now you have a whole new mess of toe-shoes to choose from — including some for your kids. → Read More
Just recently, I decided to hop on the minimal shoe bandwagon and picked up a pair of FiveFingers by Vibram. It’s easy to see why these things are getting popular. Racing to keep up with consumer demands, many running shoe companies have decided to follow with the minimalist shoe design. → Read More
Oh man. I want these so bad. I want them more than the Wings and the X-Wings combined. I don’t often gush about fashion, but I just think these are unbelievably cool. Also, they are associated with Han Solo, who is one of my personal heroes (the others being Carl Sagan and Captain America). Available this fall, likely for way too much money. [via High Snobiety, Fashionably Geek, and The… → Read More
Just when you thought it was safe to buy some nice VFFs for your wedding, Chinese pirates are creating knock-off five fingers with names like Mupuk Five Fingers. While I’d normally say live and let live when it comes to Chinese piracy – after all, what can we do about it? Cry? – I’d recommend avoiding these guys at all costs. It’s odd enough wearing VFFs running and… → Read More
Craft has instructions for making your own retro shoes from an old tire and a pair of jeans. While I don’t think these will hold up to the heavy duty running I do (at least two miles a year), they might be a fun weekend project for those so inclined. → Read More
Exciting news, friends. I’ve just come back from the future, and I have some news to share. In the year 2050, the United Nations will hold a “Remember Blogging?” panel, and it will be chaired by the encapsulated head, à la Futurama, of Cory Doctorow. There will come a time in the panel when Doctorow’s head turns and says, “Now, blogging wasn’t all shits and giggles. Some of it was truly dreadful. → Read More
Oh-kaaay. So Reebok has developed something called ZigTech – basically a zig-zag type foam for running shoes that’s supposed to ease the load on your leg muscles. And one of the first snippets from the press release is, “ZigTech allows your key leg muscles to do less, so you can do more. Simply put, it’s like an energy drink for your feet.” → Read More
Star Wars sneakers from Adidas are coming. Fair enough. This new commercial features what looks like a scene from Indiana Jones at the very beginning, then we’ve got a random shot of Snoop Dogg, Darth Vader, and then Daft Punk looking at Darth Vader as if to say, “That guy stole our shiny helmet look.” You guys look more like bounty hunters, Daft Punk. Just saying. You like stickball? Cool… → Read More
Finally, a pair of shoes with built-in Bluetooth and GPS connections. Pair them Bluetooth-ily with your cell phone and the shoes can update your location directly to your Faceboook account or send your location out as a text message to five other phones. → Read More
I don’t have children, but from what I hear they’re quite expensive. Instead of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on new shoes over the course of a couple years (that’s how much a family spends on shoes, right?) perhaps you could consider these INCHworm shoes, which adjust in size to match your child’s freakishly fast-growing feet. → Read More
If you’re a real sk8er you are going to buy these sneakers from Etnies and EA. This might make sense. Buy the game, play the game, go out and do it for real. Eventually you’ll realize you suck and go back to the game. → Read More
Who knew, but apparently the world’s been clamoring for the sneakers that Marty McFly wore in Back to the Future: Part Two. Shoe collector Mark Kurath finally broke down and hired a professional shoemaker to build his dream kicks. Total cost? $4000. → Read More
First the awesome emergency shoes, now another shoe-related technology from Japan: NTT, the country’s biggest telecommunications company, presents sandals that are able to generate electricity when walking. Each step users take puts pressure on the liquid-filled sole. Two tanks are positioned below the toe and heel and connected via a small pipe. Every step creates water flows within the… → Read More
Your task was to come up with a caption for the above photo, which shows our intrepid editor John Biggs wearing one of his new shoes from Aussie Soles. Here are your winners, ladies and gentlemen. They’ll each take home an IPEVO POV webcam for their troubles. Winners, we’ll contact you via e-mail to arrange shipment. → Read More
In our long tradition of receiving strangely inapplicable pitches that somehow just work we present the Aussie Soles. These are not Crocs, although, ummm, I’d be concerned about patent infringement – after all they’re calling their snuggly boot line SnUggs. That said, I’m wearing the Aussie Soles Marines right now and, as Peter points out, as if there weren’t enough… → Read More
I come here today to present to you the fruition of years of labor. Between research, design, eating snacks, and playing video games, countless man hours were spent on what I am about to unveil. It is with much pride that I present to you: The P. Has. Okay. So it wasn’t really countless man hours. It was more like 15 man minutes. I just grabbed a picture of Peter Ha and stuck it into… → Read More
During the summer some people find it difficult figuring out what kind of shoes to wear, sandals or sneakers. A German designer named K&T hopes to end that dilemma. They’ve designed a shoe called the Nat-2 that transforms from shoes into sandals with a pull of a zipper. → Read More
If there’s one lesson we can all learn from Goonies, it’s that looks aren’t everything. Take Sloth, for example. He was no Tony Danza but he had a big heart. So don’t look at the Puma Disc Blaze “The Goonies Edition” sneakers and think about how you’ll probably only be able to wear them inside the privacy of your own home. Strap them on, wear them outside, and LIVE! – dammit –… → Read More
I presume that the time scale on these Brooks Trance 8 runners biodegrading is along the lines of years (as opposed to decades) and not months. Wouldn’t want them sloughing off while you run. It’s a nice move towards waste reduction, but as usual they carry a “Conscience Tax,” in this case bringing up the price to $140. I know you ballers pay more than that for your kicks… → Read More
My car has a thing called automatic stability control. You’ve heard of it, it uses a small computer to make cornering and handling easier and smoother at high speeds in less-than-perfect conditions. VectraSense is bringing a similar idea to your shoes with the Verb for Shoe platform. It’s a smartshoe with a pair of air bladders controlled by a microprocessor that’s fed… → Read More
A Wi-Fi sensor? OK. Shoes with a Wi-Fi sensor built-in? Just amazing. These fugly kicks have a Wi-Fi sensor built-in that is activated when you step on the insole. A blinking light signifies no signal and one or more lights shows you the local Wi-Fi status, ensuring you won’t ever look like you’re not a mouth-breathing freak ever again. These are basically a design project by Stefan… → Read More
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