The newest product-maker to hit the Twilight fan radar is Punk Your Chucks, a company that puts custom, hand-painted designs upon your favorite sneakers - especially Converse Chuck Taylors and Vans.
The artist, Mag, is a former New York City graffiti artist whose "playground was the subways, parks, rooftops, alleys, museums and zoos."
Mag and Punk Your Chucks have had their shoes put on a great many celebrities, including everyone from Tommy Lee to Will Smith. But that's not all. Mag is currently designing shoes for The Twilight Saga: New Moon and The Twilight Saga: Eclipse stars Jackson Rathbone and Peter Facinelli, and he has also done pairs for Twilight series producers Wyck Godfrey and Marty Bowen that they plan to wear to the premiere of New Moon.
The artwork that is done on the shoes is ornate and detail-oriented, and when those qualities are coupled with the selected favorite themes (in this case, Twilight), makes for a very unique and self-reflective piece of memorabilia. Picture above (and below in the slideshow) are a pair that Mag made based upon three factors in the custom order: a favorite quote, a favorite scene, and a favorite book in the Twilight series. Needless to say, the artist delivered a clean, exhaustingly complete, and unique pair of shoes from that set of preferences. The following question and answer session with Mag will explain some of the beginnings for Punk Your Chucks both in the Twilight world and in general.
What brought you into designing these sneakers in the first place?
I've always been an artist at heart. Not to glorify it, but I would create random graffiti in the mid to late 1970's on the streets of New York. The next day I would donate a nickel to view the Masters in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Welding, sculpture, pencils, watercolor, oils, acrylics, etc....I've always tried to express myself through art. I spent a couple years designing and fabricating fake trees and rocks for zoo exhibits all over the USA.
My wife, Gina, had seen a few custom sneakers (internet) and asked me if I would try to do a pair. They came out awesome and we sold them on Ebay within an hour or so...we haven't stopped since then.
What made you think to do Twilight designs particularly?
Twilight first came to my attention through my daughters, Nicole and Gabrielle. Nicole would wait for hours at Barnes and Noble for the next book in the series to come out...I thought that she had gone over the edge! I had asked her to explain to me what the fascination was. She went into detail and I found myself asking a ton of questions.
Gabrielle and I watched the movie on a Friday...by Sunday and 6 to 8 watchings later...we were hooked on the flick!
Through the girls, we became fans of the books and movie! It was just a matter of time before I transferred my interest in Twilight to the canvas of a Chuck Taylor.
How has the reception for your product been since you started with the Twilight shoes?
Pretty amazing! With other Chucks we create, I can usually tell who will order them. Hendrix, Pink Floyd...your basic rocking middle ager.....My Chemical Romance...18 year old student, etc.
Twilight? It's all over the spectrum...young, old, male, female, blue collar, white collar, etc.!
I think this is a reflection on the amazing story and the writing skill of Stephenie Meyer...she has created a series that anyone can sink their teeth into....haha.
Are most of the requests for the shoes listed, or customized items?
Most just want a version the Twilight designs that we have on the site...although, we are trying to get the word out that we can make any design requested!
All of the custom kicks on our website are from an original request by our customers.
What is your favorite Twilight design to make?
There is something about that darn apple....must be the still-life attraction...
More information about Punk Your Chucks is available at their website and facebook page, and you can also visit their gallery of Twilight-inspired designs here. Punk Your Chucks also makes handbags, and their designs can be and are based upon any brand of interest that their customers have - which means they've done designs on everything from Nintendo to Nascar. Be sure to check out their stellar work because the holidays are right around the corner, and orders can take a couple of weeks to complete!
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Comments
thats pretty cool... but just to freaky honestly///
If you'd rather support small artists rather than a company there are plenty of artists on Etsy dot com that do the same thing.
To Monique: MAG is a small artist. He just happens to work very hard. His artwork is so amazing that celebrities commission him for his work. And you can find his work on etsy as well.
So before you write something you need to make sure it's true.
Those look so tedious. I wonder how much they cost.
PS: the bag rocks.
love them and I want some!!
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