Improving Creativity

Everyone possess immense creativity.

Unfortunately, our minds have ways to distract us from using our imagination for innovation.

A notebook is the best way you can improve your creative skills.

Sketches, to-do lists, ideas. 

A notebook organizes your thoughts, helps improve your writing, and increases your capacity for deeper thinking. 

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Writing/sketching ideas in a notebook helps bring the imaginary closer to reality. 

The longer an idea sits in the mind, the longer you get to criticize and dissect "why it won't work".  You see an idea you had years ago make someone else rich. 

Putting ideas on paper, removes internal criticism and makes your ideas real. 

Don't like that line?  Draw over it. Draw around it. Erase it. 

You can iterate an idea in your mind, but putting all your work on paper documents the progression.

Even with 3D modeling prevalent in the footwear industry, many designers ideas start out as a sketch. 

Sketching connects your mind with the object you are drawing.  Writing down ideas moves them from the inside to outside, so you can have more inside space for more ideas.

You are creating change you can see.

Improving the concept with each iteration.

Growing your thoughts and ideas into something real. 

When I visited Nike's campus back in July 2016, everyone had a Moleskine.

Next time anything crosses your mind, write it down.

Sources

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/featured/writing-and-remembering-why-we-remember-what-we-write.html

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ellevate/2014/04/08/why-you-should-be-writing-down-your-goals/#4ba430652f14

http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/Putting-Feelings-Into-Words-Produces-8047

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/shortcuts/2012/jun/19/joy-moleskine-notebooks

Nike Ease Challenge

On Oct 28th, Nike announced the Nike Ease Challenge, which invites designers, engineers, makers and innovators to advance and reinvent footwear design for athletes of all abilities. The $50,000 challenge continues Nike’s leadership in driving footwear innovations that help all athletes to live more active and independent lives.

I've worn some of the alternative entry system shoes Nike has put out in the past. 

Love the Air Rift.

I dug into the patent vault to learn more.  For the Nike FlyEase, a lacing system is connected to a strap of velcro along with the use of a zipper.  I didn't realize there was a lacing system connected through the strap to make the shoe tighter.  Here are some of the shoe sketches below.

For my design I'm thinking about:

Magnets to open and close foot entry

how can an athlete tighten a shoe with limited mobility?

how can an athlete take off a tightened shoe with limited mobility?

two separate uppers that weave through each other

how can you open an upper for a larger foot, then create an adaptive level of ankle support?

how can you mechanize the closure of a shoe differently than the AIRMAG (motor in sole)?

How can you use rubber and stretch materials to provide support?

an adaptive lacing system in between the liner and the upper

stretch weave materials

A removable heel counter

early concepts from the Nike FlyEase Video

early concepts from the Nike FlyEase Video

Here's some of the videos I watched while coming up with ideas/inspirations.

Building Blocks pt. 1

Here's a list of some great books that have changed the way I think and operate:

The Alchemist - The first book I recommend to everyone.  It's the story of life.

The Four Agreements - Don't take anything personally.  This book helped me stop that.

The Shortness of Life - The truest words about how we waste time.

Who Moved My Cheese - Change is inevitable.

How to Win Friends and Influence People - I thought I knew how to win friends, after the 6th person recommended this one, I figured out I was wrong.

Zen Mind Beginner's Mind - How to remove the assumptions and see everything new for the first time.

It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want to Be - It's all about how you handle what situations life gives you.

2 Second Lean - The easiest approach to learning about continuous improvement and fixing what bugs you.  Lean is invention and innovation.

The Goal - After working in factories for a while, the lessons in this book made so much sense.

 

Learning About : 3D Drawing

The outsole of this Reebok was printed using a technology developed for the automotive industry.

As a first step, this technology can create an outsole pattern without a mold.  However, the problems found in traditional footwear manufacturing of adhering the upper to the midsole is still present. 

I could see this printing out a full upper if a last is used to help retain the shoe's shape.  If the machine could incorporate threads, the upper gets even more strength.  The next challenge would be creating a one piece upper/midsole to mechanically attach to the mesh outsole.

Sources

http://www.gameplan-a.com/2016/10/tips-truly-innovate-former-nasa-engineer/

Learning About: Hyperbolic Geometry

Hyperbolic geometry is tough to explain, so I dug into youtube to help explain using crocheting as an example.

Traditional flat knitting machines can produce a 1 piece upper, but the end result still requires seam sewing and steam lasting to form to the foot.  A hyperbolic knitted/crocheted upper could potentially be made in one complete piece, without the need for lasting.  The key is where and how to increase the number of stitches when knitting.

Starting with the strobel as the base standard knit pattern, the hyperbolic knit would sweep outwards around the last spiraling upwards until it met at the top of the shoe.  By increasing or decreasing stitches, the upper would loosen or tighten as it wraps around the upper.  Creating support zones on the shoe is also an option,  The bottom 1/2 could be a stretchy weave to allow for give and the top 1/2 of the upper could be tighter weave to create the support.

Example

Example

End stitch at the top of the sock.

End stitch at the top of the sock.

Hyperbolic geometry is important because it came about back in the 1800's, and wasn't represented in a simple physical model until 1978.  Hyperbolic geometry is challenging convention, so it must be important.

“A hundred years ago, the mathematician David Hilbert proved a theorem that it is impossible to represent the hyperbolic plane in three-dimensional space analytically,” he says. “ ‘Analytically’ means ‘with equations.’ Everybody left off the word analytically later on. They were worried that mistakes or errors would creep into mathematics through geometric intuition, and so they discouraged the study of geometry and everything associated with this weird kind of thinking.”

Sneaker School - Recap

Over 60 hrs of work created a pair of bespoke Air Jordan 1's.  The process of making a pair of sneakers is straightforward: cut leather, sew leather, stretch leather, glue on sole. 

Even with a straightforward process, the shoe maker has the ability to put creativity and innovation into each pair he creates.

Its All A Process

Its All A Process

There were early mornings and late nights, but it was all worth it.  Stitching the leather was the toughest part for me.  A crooked stitch meant the thread had to be removed and that piece of leather might need to be replaced.  There was no room for error.

Dom "The Shoe Surgeon"

Dom "The Shoe Surgeon"

The Box

The Box

I'm extremely proud of what I created.  From the flyknit and leathers down to the lasting and stitching, I made it.  I have a Nike sole and a swoosh, but it was made by Aaron. 

One of One.

The 11 students came from different backgrounds, but all shared a love for sneakers and making.  Throughout the whole class, we learned and worked together.  Everyone helped each other realize thier creations.  I was grateful and inspired by the way we worked together as a team.

Dinner with the class

Dinner with the class

The air out there

M Frank Rudy, an aerospace engineer, patented the Nike Air cushioning system in 1979. 

This was 8 years before David Forland and Tinker Hatfield made Nike Air infamous by making the air visible in the Air Max 1 in 1987.

After seeing the blow mold process used for NASA space helmets, Frank used these insights to create the air bag for footwear applications.

“Frank Rudy found that the work he was doing for NASA could also be of practical use on the ground. He was able to encapsulate dense gases into rubber membranes creating a gas or “AIR” bag. The rubber molding processes he and his NASA colleagues were working with allowed for the creation of a hollowed out midsole to fit the air bag. The technology would exponentially decrease the impact a single step has on the body.”
— http://sneakerhistory.com
““He wasn’t one to shy away from the ultimate challenge. The bigger the problem the more complex the problem, the deeper he dug in.” ”

Frank took his ideas to footwear companies back in the 70's, no one was interested.   There was a culture of risk aversion to changing existing manufacturing processes.

Until Nike took a risk on an aerospace engineer with a crazy idea on changing the existing manufacturing process.

““Frank Rudy holds a singular place in the pantheon of Nike innovation. His relentless creativity and focus on solving problems was, in many ways, the template for how Nike pursues performance to this very day.””
— Mark Parker

An aerospace engineer with relentless creativity and a focus on solving problems.

Frank passed away in 2009, but the effects of his innovations are still changing the footwear manufacturing process today with shoes like the Nike Vapormax

Thank You Frank

Space and sneakers

“Some of Nike’s coolest collaborations seem to defy marketability. Marc Newson, an Australian industrial designer, befriended Mr. Parker around 2001 and soon offered up “an interesting idea” for “the guys in space” — collapsible footwear featuring a sock-like inner shoe; a detachable rubber sole; and a perforated outer shoe which looks a bit like Swiss cheese. Messrs. Parker and Newson named the shoe “Zvezdochka,” after the fifth Soviet dog to be sent into space.

The resulting “modular” shoe had all the hallmarks of a vanity project. The limited edition sneakers appeared in 2004 and sold for $120 in New York’s Moss. They were an instant, if brief, hit. “This is a cult item in the art world,” says Mr. Parker.

When Mr. Parker walked into the Laguna art show, the psychedelic painter Robert Williams approached him to proudly show off his Zvezdochkas. Mr. Parker thinks the sneaker concept — still being adapted for a broader market — will eventually have commercial wings. “There’s no question” that it will reach the mainstream, he says.”
— http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB119317864699068959

The ZVEZDOCHKA is named after a Russian space dog launched into orbit aboard Sputnik 10 on March 25 1961 along with famous Russian mannequin Ivan Ivanovich.

ZVEZDOCHKA

ZVEZDOCHKA

Thinking about a space ship, you can see the influence of a cage structure.

Aboard the ISS

Aboard the ISS

Marc Newson sketch

Marc Newson sketch

Alveoli style with holes of different shapes and sizes also influenced this design.

The shoe:

Some may comapre this to a croc, besides the color, these two shoes are worlds apart.

“Truly innovative design often challenges current development methods, which these certainly did. Developed entirely via 3D modelling, the Zvezdochka is a mixture of four separate pieces. ”
— Mr Bailey /conceptkicks.com

This shoe is one example of aerospace influence leading to footwear innovation.

KICKS IN MY KITCHEN

The kitchen is where a chef (like David Chang) turns the everyday into something completely new.

Romaine and walnut bagna cauda

Romaine and walnut bagna cauda

The kitchen is also where Bill Bowerman using his wife's waffle iron created an outsole with a gridded pattern and grip traction, completely new at that time.

Bill Bowerman at a Eugene lab circa 1980.

Bill Bowerman at a Eugene lab circa 1980.

FOOD and FOOTWEAR

Creativity in the kitchen can lead you to creating a new dish, or a new breakthrough in footwear.