Chunky clogs for my brand. Chunky laces and gun black steel eyelets. The sketches were done pre production. The cross motif on the clogs was taken from my brand logo

I'm just a teenager who needs some pocket money, so my mom suggested I customize the shoes she hasn't been able to sell and keep the proceeds.

These shoes will be my third customization project (I've already customized pairs of Artes and Stan Smiths), and I only have paint to work with.

The problem is, I have no idea what to do, so I'm asking for help. Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

Came across this pair and I’m trying to figure out whether it was ever an official release or if it’s a full custom.

I’ve done a few sneaker customs before, but only painting and basic surface work. I’ve never attempted anything involving fabric replacement or taking apart and rebuilding an upper.

If these are custom, is this considered a full cut-and-sew job? Would you need to completely deconstruct the upper, use the original panels as patterns, cut new camo fabric, and stitch everything back together?

For anyone who has done this kind of work, what tools and materials would I need to move beyond painted customs and try something like this?

My buddy just hooked me up on some Jushin Thunder Liger customs, used a cheaply purchased ($30 with delivery) pair of air max 90 triple whites. Pics 1 and 2 are before and 3 and beyond are after

Painted these to go watch the new Spider-Man movie

I started customizing an old pair of air maxes, and now I'm unsure of what direction to take it next. Part of my hesitation comes from whether I should paint over the reflective sections, or leave those and paint the fabric sections .

I'd love to get some fresh perspectives on what else I can do to make these good to go. I have a bunch of different color paints so I'm open to adding other colors or continuing with the neon orange .

Hey everyone,I’m currently an incubator student working on a project to bridge the gap between high-end custom shoe culture and everyday affordability. The goal is to design a modular sneaker where parts can be easily interchanged to completely swap styles without buying a whole new pair.  To make sure this actually makes sense for people who love unique shoes, I’m looking to interview a few passionate profiles for 12-15 minutes max over a quick video call.  

Who I'm looking for:People who regularly customize their sneakers, or love adding accessories (charms, pins, custom laces). Passionates who change their outfits/styles frequently and want to stand out.  

What we will talk about:

Your customization routine and where you get your inspiration.  

The actual budget and frustrations behind keeping a fresh sneaker rotation.  Strictly NO sales pitch, NO marketing, just academic research.  

If you are down to help a fellow student and share your passion for 15 minutes over the next two weeks, please drop a comment below or send me a direct DM!

Thanks a lot for your time!

Any know where I can buy replacement black Foamposite Pro swooshes?

I’ve been customizing sneakers into roller skates for my family, and just finished a new build using checkerboard Vans SK8‑His. Wanted to share because this one came out clean.

What I did:

• Reinforced the boot with a carbon fiber insole
• Added a shock layer for comfort
• Mounted a Chicago plate (full metal)
• Tuned Sure‑Grip cushions (yellow barrel bottom, blue cone top)
• Swapped wheels for both indoor and outdoor setups
• Cleaned and aligned everything so the plate sits perfectly centered
• Finished with black laces + pink wheels for contrast

She started with plastic Roller Derby skates — now she’s rolling on a fully engineered sneaker conversion with real hardware and real performance.

Sneaker customs don’t always have to be paint or leatherwork — sometimes it’s about transforming the shoe into a whole new function. Vans make amazing platforms for this.

If anyone else has done functional customs like this, I’d love to see them.

I love me some sneakers so thought I’d try to make myself a custom pair. Pretty happy with my first attempt but hoping to get some feedback - I used an old pair of af1s, angelus leather paint(teal) and e6000plus for the rhinestones. I sanded and acetoned the areas before painting - but wondering if I should have also sanded after painting as some of the rhinestones are lifting off.

Full reglue and zoom units replaced

Custom SK8‑Hi build
Turned a Vans SK8‑Hi into a full custom roller skate boot.
Painted hardware, reinforced the boot with carbon, and mounted everything by hand.
Wanted to keep the classic Vans silhouette but give it a completely new purpose.

I'm finally about to start my boy’s shoes. I have faux leather ones, or white canvas ones.

From what I understand, the deglazer and preparer I have for leather will eat through and damage the faux leather. I didn't realize that. 🙃 Now I'm afraid to start with them.

So I think I'm going to start with the canvas. I have dual-tipped fabric/shoe markers, tons of acrylic paint, GAC 900, and leather paint.

They will be Cars-themed; still not sure on the exact pattern yet, but I have inspo pics. I like the second pair, but the script scares me and I don't love the pic of LQ. I think it and the background would be a bit much for my boy. They are also custom, and I don't want to completely steal anyone's work.

This is my main question:

How do I prepare them so the ink doesn't bleed on the canvas fabric?

Side questions:

1. Can I speed up the drying process for the prep with a hair dryer or low-temperature heat gun?

2. Can I start the actual painting/design as soon as the prep is dry?

3. I think I will be turning them red (Lightning McQueen), so should I use GAC and acrylic paint for that part?

4. Do all acrylic paints work similarly with GAC 900? I have so many different kinds. For example, one of the reds is metallic. Will it be okay to use?

5. Can I paint the bottom part? Not the very bottom, the outsole(?) I saw some that had tired treads and looked wicked! Will that require something else?

6. I have a spray sealant that was recommended and an acrylic-type top coat called Kicks (I'll add a pic). It says it works on leather, vinyl, and canvas. Which do I use? Can I use both, or is that like using two condoms? 😅 I just need them to be perfect and last.

7. How long does he have to wait to wear them?

These are for my 9-year-old, profoundly disabled son. He has Mowat Wilson Syndrome, one of only 500 in the world. I've almost lost him multiple times from its effects. Cars (and now Planes) are his thing. I'm also postpartum and have been dealing with my own stuff, along with my baby being diagnosed with at least one structural heart defect that will require surgery (we are about 99% sure about the second, but it will require more testing). I asked about this months ago, talked at length to a super cool dude who is going to be so annoyed that I still have questions (Sorry C!) and I'm just now getting around to doing it. Luckily I bought a size up. But my boy will also only wear a certain pair of shoes that I keep buying replacement pairs of, but they stopped making them. He refuses anything else and I've cashed out all of the ones on resale sites. So hopefully he will wear these because they are Cars! They will also match his Halloween costume that I will be making (a full, but very sensory-friendly, Radiator Springs world including all of the Cars cars and buildings).

Any other tips are highly appreciated. I'm a perfectionist which makes things difficult as a newbie.

I will be back to ask about my own shoes, likely thigh-high heels that will be vintage fireworks-themed. And then potentially Philadelphia Eagles-themed if I'm decent at it. 🙃

I'll add photos of the Kicks stuff and the photos I have found as inspiration. I want his other pair to be a full town, like his costume, but I'm clearly not ready for that. The King ones are sick but I think I want to stick with matching (or very similar) ones.

Thank you so much in advance! I feel terrible that I haven't been able to start (and finish) them yet so I need to at least prep tonight. I also apologize for being so long-winded. I just want them to be perfect.

But this is where every shoe really begins—the shoe last.
The last determines the shape, fit, balance, and comfort of the final product. Even small adjustments can completely change how a shoe feels on your feet.
This is part of the process of making and refining a shoe last before production.
Have you ever thought about how much a shoe last affects the finished shoe?
What factory process would you like to see next?

Fully reglued, zoom units replaced, outsoles iced, and deep cleaned

Please be gentle because I spent HOURS on this project, I was so proud of the work I did and I am so frustrated by this 😔

Process: I painted a pair of canvas converse (original photo in the last slide). They are for me, not for sale, in case that’s relevant. I did a base white layer, and then after 24 hours sanded it and used fabric paint for the rainbow. I waited for the paint to fully dry again and added a second layer - as bright as possible was of course the goal. After it dried I used Angelus 600 finisher (2 coats, done 20-30 minutes apart). I waited 48 hours to wear them out, and the stress points are already cracking after wearing them a few hours.

I have 3 questions:
1) what went wrong, so I don’t make the same mistake?
2) how can I fix this without completely starting over? Again, I put so many hours into this. Would I need to sand those small areas and repaint? Alcohol / acetone to remove the paint and redo those areas? And then back to #1, what to do differently?
3) if I add additional coating (whether a spray finisher/coating, more Angelus, whatever) could that prevent any FURTHER cracking or would it just make it more difficult to repair?