Fresh Look: Nike Air Max 1 iD 2009 “Mid-Night Rose”- Detailed Look

It’s been a long time coming, but they are finally here. My first Nike iD’s in the model of the Nike Air Max 1. This is my first pair of six ordered. Unfortunately, the other pair I ordered was returned. The reason was that the Mid-Night Fog was not what I expected. In any case, I’m very excited to share my first make-up and look forward to sharing my future arrivals. Let’s GO!…

Nike iD, really?

I’m very new to the whole Nike iD thing. I’ve been playing with the computer design studio for about 7 months for fun. I tried to design many different make-ups with a variety of models. From the Nike Dunk, Air Max 90, Air Stab, and Air Max 90 Current. I had a ton of designs but never pulled the trigger because I saw it as a novelty at the time. Plus, my money was being spent on other shoe releases. As time went by, I forgot about Nike iD for a few months. Than, I heard about the Air Max 1 making it back to Nike iD. This actually got me amped as the Air Max 1 is my favorite shoe.

The idea:

I wanted a black shoe with pink accents and a contrast color.

The concept:

Take a shoe from Nike iD and try to make something that stands out, grabs attention and still look nice.

Preliminaries:

I worked on a Air Max 90, and Air Stab before the Air Max 1 came out. I tried a lot of options but couldn’t really make the one I wanted. I almost came close with an Air Stab in black and Pink, but could never pull the trigger. I was never a big fan of the Air Stab.

Air Max 1 releases and I try a few ideas that were changed a few times. I wanted to make sure I color blocked differently than the original color blocking of the OG ’87. I also wanted a color-up that I could use again with different colors (which I did). After I decide on the design. I went to the Nike iD studio to check out the materials and make sure they were what I wanted. When that was done, I ordered them. Than the iD rep presented me with the iD card of my design. After a few looks, I was a bit concerned. I was having second thoughts on the design, but I stuck with it. This only made me crazy with anticipation!

Once I received them, I was very delighted with them. The colors worked and so did the splatter (that was a concern of mine). The 3M worked well on the overlays and the swoosh also. I’m glad for that because I originally didn’t want a 3M swoosh. It was suppose to be suede. The 3M does make the Pink stand out a lot, but it’s not bad. I definitely get a lot of attention (lol) and props from a lot of people. At the end, I’m very happy with my first Nike iD. Almost to the point of doubling up on it.

Shape:

The shape of the this iD is much better than people had thought. Once it was said that the original factory of the AM1 iD would be closing, people grew a bit concerned. Especially since they would be coming from China and not Thailand. Nevertheless, It definitely does have a better shape than the Air Max 1 ’87 QS  of 2009. You’ll also see that the toe box is much nicer than any recent AM1 of 2009 (excluding the Patta’s: I haven’t heard anyone complain of different toe box shapes). Another nice addition is that it comes with the non painted mid-sole (thank you Nike). Very much like the recent Patta Air Max 1 series. Just a little softer in consistency.

*note 1: The toe box may differ slightly with some orders; I have yet to get a pair or hear of anyone getting bad shaped toe-boxes.

*note 2: The mid-sole will be painted if you pick something other than white for the color; As of this writing I have yet to hear of any paint cracking.

As of this writing, I have yet to hear of any paint cracking. Not the best shape, but worth the money when compared to other recent releases…and it’s your own design.

Materials:

The materials are the same as the Air Max 1 ’87 QS from 2009. The suede is synthetic (felt suede) which is great and easy to clean stains off. Though I noticed the sample swatches at Nike iD had a different finish (nicer feel but looked liked it would be dirt magnets), I’m happy they stuck with the felt. The mesh is also the same as the AM1 QS of 2009.

The one thing that is a bit noticeable is that the 3M is not as nice as what I’m accustom to seeing; at least for some colors. For example, the 3M on the Dj Clark Kent Air Max 1 112 pack reflects a lot better. It’s still good though and acceptable. The last thing I noticed was that the splatter varies from color to color. Some splatter, if you will, has larger splats on the mid-sole.

Advice:

If you notice my FLICKR, you will see a lot of make-ups I was working on. It became hard to decide on what two to order. With some tuff choices, I start with my order of two. I almost ordered another two, but decided to wait a little. This actually worked to my benefit because when I received them, I was able to get a better idea of the materials.

Unfortunately, when you work with the online iD studio, you will get a limited vision of what your design will look like. This can actually be a bad thing if you have never done an iD, like myself. I say that because I had no idea how the materials would work with each other. To add to that case, I found out the hard way. This Nike iD “Mid-Night Rose” actually came out much better than what I had expected. On the other case, the other Nike iD I ordered, not so much. Hey, you live and learn (I have included a picture of it at the very bottom).

The reason I explained the above is that, once I received my first 2 iD’s, my design ideas changed drastically. I was also able to get a better idea of what the real life materials looked liked. This got me thinking of other concepts to design over my current ones. I went back to the drawing board and designed four more which were very different from my others. I’m now patiently awaiting these four…

If you have a Nike iD studio, I urge you to visit it. This will give you a better idea of what you are working with. It will allow you to see sample swatches and sample shoes in different make-ups. By doing this, it will help you understand your design better or change your idea in total. Yes you can return it if you are not happy with the results, but do you really want to wait another 4 to 5 weeks?

Composition:

Black suede upper and mesh

3M used on the overlay and swoosh

Pink overlays and Hyper Blue sock liner and out-sole

Black Splatter on the White Mid-sole with Black Laces

Image of shoe is pretty true to color. I color corrected it against the the real shoe.

I call this make-up, “Mid-Night Rose“

Original Nike iD concept.

The Box

Side profile looks much better than the QS ’87 of 2009.

Camera flash shot.

Black Splatter: Air Bag looks to be in a Silver.

Here is the 3M on the Black swoosh and Pink Heel Counter.

Here is the 3M Black swoosh reflecting from the sun.

3M Pink overlay with Black suede and Hyper Blue out-sole.

Dynamic angle shot 1.

3M Pink overlay with Black mesh and suede.

Top view of Hyper Blue sock liner.

Tongue is a little thinner than normal; Hyper Blue sock liner.

Toe Box is much better than the QS ’87 of 2009. Thank you Nike.

Hyper Blue on the out-sole.

Inside, slightly raised, side view.

Heel counter with my blog name and first name, Vagrant.

Nike iD In-sole.

Dynamic angle shot 2.

Dynamic angle shot 3.

This is the other iD that came with the above. I returned it due to the weird looking Mid-Night Fog mesh. I will re-do it with a Club Purple suede overlay instead of the 3M. I will replace the Mid-Night Fog mesh to White. Than, I will keep the mid-sole White without the splatter. Really looking forward to getting this one again.

“Spring Pink Plum“

Photography by Angel Gonzalez/Vagrant Sneaker©. All rights reserved. You want to use my images? Make sure you give me credit and link back to my blog. That’s all I ask.

Composition:

White suede upper

Mid-Night fog Mesh

Club Purple sock liner

Club Purple 3M used on the overlay and Pink 3M on the swoosh

Club Purple Splatter on the White Mid-sole

White laces

Pink out-sole

Date Ordered:

November 20, 2009 for both designs.

Date Received:

December 11, 2009 for both designs.

Coming up…

I have another 4 Air Max 1 iD’s on their way and I ‘ll present them in the same format as this. Check out my next design, “Saint Nick“