An Originals lace doesn't wear one color, it wears two, three, sometimes more, and it shifts from one to the next along its length. That's the gradient, and it's where Sweetlaces started. Flat laces, four lengths, €14.90 whatever length you go for.
What a gradient changes once it's laced
On a solid lace, the color is the same from the first eyelet to the last. It dresses the pair, but it doesn't tell a story. On a gradient, the shade moves as the lace climbs, and every eyelet pass shows a different state of the color.
So the result depends on how you lace, which no solid lace does. Two people lacing the same pair with the same colorway won't get exactly the same look: the gradient sits differently depending on where the lace starts and how much length is left at the ends.
There's never a hard break between two colors. The shift is gradual, across the whole run.
Which length to choose
Four lengths: 105, 120, 145 and 170 cm. That's more than the other ranges, and it's the question that comes up most.
Count your eyelet pairs, not your eyelets one by one.
| Eyelet pairs | Recommended length |
|---|---|
| 4 to 5 | 105 cm |
| 5 to 6 | 120 cm |
| 7 to 8 | 145 cm |
| 9 and up | 170 cm |
Common models give you a ballpark. A Dunk Low or an Air Jordan 1 Low sits around five pairs, an Air Force 1 around six, a runner goes higher, and a high-top calls for the next length up. Editions vary a lot, so count your own pair rather than going by the average.
On a gradient, length changes the look, not just the comfort. A lace that's too long leaves the ends dangling, so the end of the gradient ends up on the floor rather than on the shoe. If you're torn between two lengths and you want to see all the color, go for the shorter one.
The five color families
The Originals are sorted by how the gradient is built, not by the dominant color. Four families describe that build, and a fifth comes ahead of all the others.
The color ends in black: the gradient darkens as it climbs, until it disappears. Coco and Oreo are part of it. The easiest to wear on a dark pair.
The opposite: the color ends in white and dissolves. Pink Lady shows the idea well. The softest effect in the catalog, and the safest.
Two clean colors, with the gradient bridging them. Bamboo is a good example. The one that gives you the most possible callbacks.
More than two colors on a single lace, with gradients between each. Atlantis and Sunset Lover. The busiest one, save it for understated pairs.
The moment a lace has any fluo in it, it's Neon, whatever its build. Flamingo, Joker, Fairy. The smallest family in the range, and it comes ahead of the others.
Choosing your colorway to match your pair
The rule is the same as across the rest of the catalog: echo a color already on the shoe rather than adding a new one. On a gradient it's even simpler, since you just need one of the lace's colors to answer the pair. The others follow.
On this Air Jordan 1, the orange of the lace answers the orange of the upper. The white at the other end does the rest, without adding anything.
All that's left is to decide what the lace should do: catch the light, or go along with the pair.
The Multicolor and Neon are made for that. On a white, cream or understated sneaker, they become the subject and the gradient reads in full, from one eyelet to the next.
The Black Edition and Sugar keep some movement without taking over: one color to match to the shoe, the other end being black or white. It's the choice that takes the least thinking.
Care
The Originals wash by hand or in the machine, on a delicate cycle, at 40 °C max. Take them off the shoe, put them in a laundry bag, and let them dry flat.
On a white or very light lace, the Sugar especially, a regular wash keeps the light end from greying over time.
Where the gradient comes from
It all starts in 2020. Silni, a painter and customizer, is working on a series of six Air Jordan 1 in NBA team colors. For each one, he needs a lace that answers the pair, and none exist. So he makes them: he dips and paints each lace himself, until he gets the gradient he has in mind.
Those six pairs were only meant to be a customization project. They gave rise to a brand, and an idea that fits in one sentence: transform a pair of sneakers with one colorful detail.
The handmade gradient of 2020 became the Originals range. It's still the same principle you'll find on every lace today.
Every Originals colorway is gathered in one place, at €14.90 whatever the length. Each page lists the available lengths and the sneakers the shade works on.
Originals collection
