Usually for most customs that get posted here on PaintOrThread.com the goal is to share a bit of insight to the subject of what the shoes are themed from. In this case Swaves gave us an outstanding explanation of what influenced his latest custom Toms, so it deserved to be shared just as much as the shoes:
In 1954 the “Starburst” line of dinnerware was introduced by Franciscan Ware, a part of the organization Gladding, McBean & Co. With the prosperity that came after the war, consumers were ready for something new. And the futuristic starry design on Franciscan Starburst fit in well with a new chrome kitchen and advanced appliances, making Franciscan Starburst the definitive dinnerware of the 1950’s.
My kitchen happens to be accented with Franciscan Starburst tiles. Because of this, my girlfriend and I have joined the masses of “hunters” who scour flea markets and estate sales to find the rare missing pieces to their dinnerware collections. For our anniversary I got her a couple dinner plates to add to the collection, and painted my first pair of TOMS! Freehand painting such fine lines on canvas shoes proved to be a challenge, but I could not be happier with the outcome.
Not many shoe customizers found on PaintOrThread’ work on Toms as their base shoes but Swaves is trying to break that mold which is often see from work of artists on deviantArt.com or Etsy.com. Contact him at CustomSwaves.com and follow on Twitter: @CustomSwaves for your own custom Toms.
