Middlecott Blog

Ilikemystyle Quarterly

2010-05-05T18:21:00Z

Middlecott Design is proud to announce Ilikemystyle Quarterly, the first user-generated print magazine. Judith Banham from Middlecott Design art directed this first of it's kind in cooperation with Alex Wiederin from Buero New York. The content of the magazine is generated by the users of the ilikemystyle.net fashion social network.
To see more pages, order the magazine or join ilikemystyle.net go to ilikemystyle.net/magazine

Some new Polo 444 pics

2010-05-05T16:20:00Z

An interesting pic of the shoes we designed for the Polo 444 shoe and VW interior project. Shoes only 23,000 Euros, but you get a free car with the purchase.

2010 VW Polo 444 project

2010-03-24T02:06:00Z

We here at Middlecott Design recently undertook a design commission to design a pair of sneakers and an interior for the 2010 VW Polo. The design project was completed on our side around Christmas time and was launched by VW last week.

The Polo 444 will be a limited edition of 50 cars sold in Europe that come with a matching pair of sneakers. The original idea was to design the car interior in the same way that shoes are designed utilizing shoe construction techniques.

Below are some of the official publicity shots.

And now for some design sketches.......

Above you can see the rendering above the actual shoe. Obviously some changes needed to be made from the rendering to the final product which we did in the development stage.

More sketches.......

Above was a low top proposal but they went with the high top. See lateral, bottom and top view of the high top below.

Now for some interior sketches......

Above you can see the sketch and the actual front seats. The final product came out pretty much exactly like the sketches.

Some rear seat details above.......

We were in constant communication with Hing throughout the project. As we developed mood boards, sketches and drawings we sent them over to him for discussion explaining where we were coming from and getting his feedback. Now here are some mood boards we put together to get some flavs of our inspiration and influences....

Now for a few initial sketches.....

Below was the key sketch that we settled on for the direction of the rest of the interior..

Now some interior details.....

Above were some laser etched and woven labels and other label designs that are apparent throughout the interior. All these labels are seen on shoe construction and not common to normal car interiors.

And now for some of the shoe design..... below are some mood boards.

and some initial quick and dirty shoe sketches...

This last sketch was the key sketch for the final shoe.

German Maxim Fashion

2008-10-02T21:42:00Z

The new German Maxim Fashion has just arrived! This is Judith's 5th issue as art director for the magazine.
The cover design changed slightly at the last minute. You can see the two different covers and some pages below.

The Curious World of Drugs and Their Friends

2008-10-01T21:23:00Z

Yet another product or in this case a book designed by Middlecott has been launched. The recent launch is for the American version of "Breite Wissen", called "The Curious World of Drugs and their Friends" by Ingo Niermann and Adriano Sack. Just out last month, you better get a copy before they all sell out! To get a preview of what you are in store for check out the following links:
middlecott.com/design/print/book/breiteswissen/
middlecott.com/design/print/book/worldofdrugs/

The Story of the Middlecott Logo

2008-09-30T21:30:00Z

We have been asked a number of times how we came up with our logo. Well, the story is really simple. We asked one of our long term associates, Peter Umgeher, to combine Brook's 2 family crests into the logo. Firstly, we need to tell you that Brook's middle name is Middlecott. The ancient family names of Middlecott and Banham have had crests for centuries and so it seamed logical to use those as a start for our logo. Peter crafted the two crests together in a few iterations from which we chose the final design.

above are the original crests and below you see Peter's proposals

and the chosen one:

Gunrest design for Battenfeld (Caldwell)

2008-09-30T20:26:00Z

Yep, that's right, we designed a gun rest for rifles. In fact, we have done quite a number of projects with Battenfeld, but this is the latest product that we helped to design that they sent us. Unfortunately I do not have a rifle to put this little sucker to use. Anyway, we did not do the engineering, only did the asthetic, which is totally cool with us. This design was patented and we were one of the 'inventors'. See a video review of the gunrest here.

Below are the very initial sketches.

A patent drawing.....

'an American Classic' car design excercise

2008-09-30T19:35:00Z

A couple months ago we designed a car for the 2008 Michelin Design Challenge. The theme was to design the next classic American car. We undertook this project for fun as we havent done a car recently. We took a purposely conservative approach to this design as were were more about clean a tasteful with a strong American charicter. Taking influence from past classics like Mustanges and Cameros, we bastardised some of these cars into the car your see below, 'Duster'. We took some of the best elements of past Americana and put them together into this design. American design cues like neon rear lights, past muscle car classics with a Smokey and The Bandit look and feel.

Above: moodboard

Above: details and integrated technology board. Technologies include a hybrid drive system and airless tires. Airless tires because this beast will be driving on unpaved American roads, true to redneck tradition, so those pesky cacti wont spoil your trip. Hybid drive not so much for the environment but more for those times you are stuck in the middle of desertsville and run out of gas.

Finally got a pair of the bball kicks we designed for Decathlon!

2008-09-30T19:06:00Z

So, last week we were sent a pair of basket ball shoes that we designed for Kipsta, a subsidiary brand of Decathlon, France. These little puppies were designed a little over a year ago and were launched in July/ August 2008. The design is meant to suggest big support with the color block fully encasing the heel, mid foot and shank. We were trying to make the shoe look and feel 'fitted'. I think we accomplished that look, especially with the sculpted herringbone coming up through the shank and the color block continuing all the way around the upper.Check out this video featuring the Kipsta Konnect baslketball shoe.

You can see sketches and development work for this project on our main website, here is the direct link: http://www.middlecott.com/design/product/footwear/decathlon/kipstakonect/

First time using a Wacom Cintiq for Rickshaw Bagworks.

2008-09-30T18:38:00Z

Rickshaw bagworks is a relatively newcomer in the bag industry. The above book is where the idea of the name and identity came form. We work with Mark (the CEO of Rickshaw Bagworks) on various projects including experimental rickshaw designs. Below are a couple of sketches which were done entirely using my then brand new Wacom Cintiq 21UX. This was the first time using the beast, which was an eye opener as to how cool this thing could be. To be honest, I love the Cintiq, but I do not use it for intial sketch lineart besides this one time. I normally sketch something out in pencil or Bic biro first, then scan in the sketch and color it in with the Cintiq, which is where it comes into its own. THe Cintiq speeds up my sketch rendering at least by double.

These rickshaws were actually called beershaws as they were meant to carry beer. Kinda like a portable bar...

Sound and Vision @ ilikemystyle.net

2008-09-30T02:25:00Z

ilikemystyle.net has just added a new feature which should make browsing even more enjoyable: you can now add a song to each of your pictures!

Cover design for Packing Inferno

2008-09-29T22:17:00Z

Middlecott just designed the cover for the book "Packing Inferno, The Unmaking of a Marine" by Tyler E. Boudreau published by Feral House.

Tyler E. Boudreau is a twelve-year veteran of the Marine Corps infantry. He trained and committed himself physically and intellectually to the military life. Then his intense devotion began to disintegrate, bit by bit, during his final mission in Iraq.

After returning home, he discovered a turmoil developing in his mind, estranging him from his loved ones and the bill of goods he eagerly purchased as a Marine officer.

Packing Inferno is the spectacularly written story of the ordeal of a Marine officer in battle and then coming home. It is the struggle with a society resistant to understand the true nature of war. It is the fight with combat stress and an exploration into the process of recovery. It is the search for conscience, family, and ultimately for one’s essential self. Here are the reflections of a man built by the Marine Corps, disassembled by war, and left with no guidance to rebuild himself.

Tyler Boudreau was recently in Jordan with a veterans’ organization investigating solutions to the Iraqi refugee crisis. Tyler’s blog can be found at deeperthanwars.blogspot.com

Webdesign for One Trunk Only

2008-09-29T22:06:00Z

This is the brand new website we designed for Clark Parkin's "One Trunk only", onetrunkonly.com

One Trunk Only is a restricted choice of men’s wardrobe classics manufactured by the renowned German tailor „Regent Handtailored“. Balancing avant garde and tradition, the suits, jackets and coats are essential for a modern gentleman’s wardrobe. Their updated masculine elegance defy time or fashion.

One Trunk Only is coming to various cities, as New York, London and Berlin. During these events customers have the opportunity to view a sample collection of handtailored suits and jackets. After having their measures taken, they can order their made to measure garment, that will be made to their specific requirements. For the first suit, a fitting is adviseable. All final fitting changes are also worked into the pattern, that remains in the factory for future orders.

Antje Majewski, My Very Gestures

2008-09-29T21:53:00Z

September 25 – November 30, 2008

In autumn the Salzburg Kunstverein presents a solo exhibition of the German artist Antje Majewski entitled „My Very Gestures”. For the first time the artist is bringing together different collections of her work from the last ten years, which deal with gesticulation, dance, expression, and costumes. Antje Majewski became known especially through series of realistic paintings, which grapple with existential questions like friendship, love, masquerade, and death. The subject also revolves around the development and change of individuals in relation to society, history, and social norms.

In her youth Majewski had already begun photographing her sisters in photo stories. Many of her images are based on staged photos with models, for which she designed settings, costumes, and face painting. In the past few years a dance theater piece and multiple films have emerged in which she conveyed the stagings with actors in movement. Paintings and films work together in the exhibition.

An extensive publication designed by Middlecott, is being released from Sternberg Press in New York and Berlin for the exhibition.

ilikemystyle.net at Museum Exhibition in Karlsruhe, Germany

2008-08-02T18:44:00Z

This is the wall we did for the show Vertrautes Terrain at ZKM Karlsruhe, a renowned institute for art and media.We enlarged photos of the website to make this piece, and we are really happy with how it looks. Of course this can only represent a very small part of the diversity and fabulousness of the people on ilikemystyle.net; we only wish we could display everyone's photos! You can see the wall till August 17th.

Kappa footwear collection

2008-06-24T19:18:00Z

Over a year ago I designed a couple of footwear collections for Kappa, Italy with Hing Yeung from Hong Kong Stunt Team. He recently sent me photos of some of these shoes, which I can share with you here. These pics are a little taster of what will be displayed on our official website. When we update with this project on the website we will include sketches and development work for these collections. Should prove to be quite a large display as we did well over ten shoes per collection.

Okay we will start with a range of color ways for a casual sport shoe inspired from classic wingtips. Notice the custom hardware eyelets, a design feature running throughout the collection.

Now we will move on to a casual running shoe. A simple shoe utilizing a cut EVA mid sole with a few interesting details to set this collection apart from the rest of casual running.

Notice the perforated heal counter!

Okay, now we will move on to a football (soccer) inspired casual sport shoe. The design of these shoes featured classic yet a slightly futuristic look combining gloss with matte finishes.

Now some tennis inspired footwear designs!
Low top and high top variants as well as Velcro and lace closures:

These are just a few examples from that collection but we also did boots, sandals, womens and many other categories for it. Stay tuned to the blog for more pics of the remaining shoes, or check in to our website middlecott.com under the footwear section when we update it in a few weeks to see a complete story of this collection including inspiration, sketches, development, pics, soles and much more.

First blog entry for Middlecott!

2008-06-23T19:52:00Z

We are excited to start our new blog, blog.Middlecott! We wish to share with the readers of our blog what we find interesting and what we're currently up to in a very informal way. We hope the blog may act in some way like a sketchbook, as a compilation of ideas and inspiration. Enjoy!