Story By: Hal Jalikakik
Photos By: Sol Tucker
Minneapolis, MN–
We must admit as a lot of us are sneaker enthusiasts, but then there are those who are “Sneakerheads” and when it comes to customization of a pair of sneakers, it takes the right artist to understand your ideas and make them come to life. Many have great ideas, but just can’t put their talent on the shoes, that was until we found one artist, Salvatore Marcum of MPLS Customs, who clearly puts his own talents on the shoes and makes any pair of shoes a true work of art. We can see why Zach Levine of the Minnesota Timberwolves asked him make a pair of Jordan 11’S this past season.
Recently, we sent Sal three pairs of Jordan shoes, one pair of baseball cleats, one pair from the Jordan Westbrook 0 casual collection, that clearly needed some help to take them from just average to amazing. Lastly, the third pair of Jordan V Retro Lows to honor Allen Iverson’s time playing at Georgetown.
We asked him to r
ecreate a pair of Jackie Robinson Tribute cleats that were done for C.C Sabathia of the New York Yankees, only we wanted these to be in gold and we wanted the patterns to be a little different. Challenge answered. The pair emerged with an amazing array of stencils and a combo of Jackie’s legendary signature along with a big number 42, just as you would see on the backs of every player when Jackie is honored by MLB each season.
What stands out is the gold coloring on the shoes, it makes a stand out statement more than the average Dodgers colors we have seen on some of the cleats make for various other players this past season. Small touches of gold were added to the tongue and Jumpman on the side of the shoes to complete the entire gold shoe domination.
Pair number two is as about authentic Georgetown as they come. We asked for huge Jack the Bulldog on one side and the G Logo on the other with a little fade of grey. Done. When you add on the John Carroll founder and the date the school was Established in 1789, it makes for a great way to bring in the total meaning of the shoes. His blending abilities make more than just a logo on the side of the shoes.
The last pair was a pair of Jordan V Retros Low’s that was a released as Cut from Above. More like one cut from heading to the outlets with this color combo. We saw what he could make of these. I said lets make a pair honoring Allen Iverson and what do we get back , a fresh pair of grey and blue gems with the Number 3 on each side of the shoes and Hoyas below the Jumpman on the rear. Just a small nice touch.
One thing we noticed about Sal’s technique is he is right down to the detail on each shoe. He makes sure lines that outline colors are on point and set the shoe apart. The color blend is perfect and even looks just as Nike would release in some pairs.
So whether you are craving a shoe design of your favorite super hero, or just want to rep you schools colors like some of our staff members wanted to, MPLS Customs has you covered.
You can find all of his work on Instagram and most of his customs start at $175, which is an amazing value with the quality of work he produces. It is well worth waiting for.
You can find more info on these and other custom options by checking out his instagram at mpls_customs or contacting him via email at customs@studiiyo23.com
