From Their Ideas to Ozzie Albies’ Cleats

Three young designers. One pair of cleats. A whole lot of possibility.

In 2023, Sole Circle Foundation and Sole Play ATL brought a 100 Girls of Code workshop together with the Atlanta Braves. The girls were asked to imagine their own Braves-inspired Air Force 1. They put their ideas on paper, and the top three designs were selected for something bigger.

Those three concepts were combined into one pair of custom baseball cleats for Ozzie Albies. My part was to bring their vision to life on a completely different canvas. The shapes, colors, and baseball-inspired details had to feel like the students' ideas while working together as a pair.

There is something special about making a custom for a player. There is something even more special about knowing the starting point came from young people who were given room to create. I wanted them to see their ideas leave the page and become something real.

Standing at the ballpark while Ozzie held the finished cleats was one of those moments that reminded me why I make things. The work can open a door for somebody else to imagine what they can do next.

I am grateful to Sole Play ATL, Sole Circle Foundation, 100 Girls of Code, and the Atlanta Braves for creating a space where the students' creativity led the way. It was a privilege to translate their ideas into a pair made for Ozzie Albies.

The recipe: give young designers a real canvas, listen to what they imagine, and build with care. You never know whose idea will change the room.

View the portfolio project →