brief
We were tasked with creating a footwear reference item, requiring the creation of a section through the item, showing visible details like fabric split lines, vent holes, lacing, buttons, mesh, and material thickness. The item should be imprinted in a tooling block, approximately 50mm larger than the overall size, and left raw, allowing for cutting, crease, glue, and laminate.
Process
task 1 - full shoe
We were tasked with creating a 1:1 scale of our representational shoe in 3D. The 3D model had to be made out of triplex cardboard and left in its raw state. We had to create 3 models each focusing on a different aspect of the shoe. Model 1 was a full scale 1:1 shoe. Model 2 was a half scale 1:1 scale shoe. Model 3 was a full 1:1 scale of a tooling block.
task 2 - section
In this section we were instructed to make half of our 1:1 scale shoe while representing hidden elements in the shoe such as how the sole would be reinforced, hidden stitching and other variables that would not be visible to the naked eye. my experience with this shoe was accurately representing half of my original shoe without losing the structural integrity of the material and the shape of the replica.
task 3 - Mould
In the last section, we were instructed to make a tooling box/mold that could be used to replicate a mass produced the original shoe in a factory. We had to pay attention to the negative spaces created by the shoe as well as interpreting shapes in reverse that would be found on the original shoe. My experience with making the tooling box was facing challenges such as making inverted straps for the shoe and adding details in reverse.
Reflection
Making three shoes for an introductory task in Design Practice felt like jumping into the deep end. Throughout the process, I learned new techniques for shaping and creating forms out of Triplex cardboard. Personally, I would not work with triplex cardboard for prototyping, but it was a good learning experience for beginning to work with tools such as craft knifes and etc.
