Learn How to Sketch Sneakers Like a Pro

Check out this tool that's already being used by footwear designers at top brands.

Images via Mattelab

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by Brendan Dunne

Any accomplished sneaker designer out there has spent countless hours sketching shoe shapes.

Hoping to help anyone trying to get started on that path is the new DRAU footwear design sketch book. The product is meant to encourage frequent sketching and the refining of skills, and comes with pages full of suggested shapes and tactics.

The DRAU footwear design sketch book is a creation of Matt Rhoades, a longtime Nike employee who currently serves as the brand's global design lead for baseball equipment. Rhoades has already distributed the sketch books to top designers on Nike's campus, and says that the results have been purely positive. Rhoades plans to use the DRAU footwear design sketch books as part of the curriculum for an upcoming course he will be teaching at the Pensole Footwear Design Academy in Portland, Ore. A portion of the proceeds from sales of the sketch books will go to benefit Pensole.

More info on the DRAU sketch books for all aspiring sneaker designers out is available here.

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