Alright, so I got this idea stuck in my head about mashing Pokemon up with other brands, you know, like those collabs you see sometimes. Just wanted to mess around with it myself, see what came out.
Getting Started – The Brain Dump
First thing I did was just sit down. Grabbed my old notebook and a pen that wasn’t dried out. Started scribbling down any brand or series that popped into my head. Didn’t care if it was dumb at this point. Think I listed stuff like:
- Fast food joints
- Tech gadgets
- Some clothing labels I like
- Even other game worlds
The page got pretty messy, just a big list of names next to “Pokemon”.
Cutting Down the Noise
Okay, so the list was long, but half of it was junk. I went back through it. Crossed out the really stupid ones. Like, Pokemon x my local library? Nah. Kept the ones that made me actually picture something cool. The key was finding pairs that clicked somehow. Maybe their style matched, or it was just funny in a good way.
Picking a Few to Actually Work On
Didn’t want to spread myself too thin. I circled maybe two or three combos that felt the strongest. I think I landed on Pokemon x a specific sneaker company first, seemed like a fun visual.
Putting Pencil to Paper (Literally)
This was the fun part. Started sketching. Nothing professional, mind you, just rough ideas. How would a Charmander design look on a high-top? What about using Ditto’s colour palette on different shoe parts? Tried a few Pokemon, a few different shoe models from that brand. Just played around, seeing what looked halfway decent. Didn’t overthink it, just drew.
Cleaning Up a Bit
One or two sketches actually looked okay. I picked my favorite one – think it was a Gengar-themed running shoe – and tried to make it a little clearer. Redrew it slightly larger, added some rough color notes with cheap markers I had lying around. Even jotted down a dumb slogan for it on the side.
Keeping Track of It All
Didn’t want to just lose these scribbles. Snapped some photos of the notebook pages with my phone. Wrote a few quick notes for each idea I sketched out – like why Gengar for a running shoe (maybe ’cause he’s fast and sneaky?). Just basic thoughts. Dumped the pics and notes into a specific folder on my computer. Easy.
What I Figured Out
Doing this, I kinda realized that some collabs just make more sense visually. Clothing and accessories were way easier to imagine than something like Pokemon x power tools. It really depends on the brand you’re mixing Pokemon with. The vibe has to sorta match, or the contrast needs to be really clever, otherwise it just feels forced. Was a fun way to kill an afternoon, though. Might try some others later when I get another itch.
