My inspiration for this shoe came from Nike's Flyknit technology, which allows Nike to fabricate uppers for their shoes with no waste material. I chose to use embroidery as a primary fabrication technique rather than weaving or knitting for several reasons. First, by using the Tajima Pulse Digital Embroidery software, I had total control over both the direction and density of stitches in my final textiles, meaning I was able to create a unified textile upper with unique zones of flexibility and structure. Also, because this upper is comprised of multiple stitch layers, I was able to create variation in surface texture, as well as blend and block colors. Initially, my intention was to create a digitally embroidered textile without a support fabric or interfacing, but due to the high stitch density in this pattern, I integrated a light woven cotton fabric as a support structure in my final upper.