Dead Lotus is working with Pro-Keds to turn the shoe brand’s simple styles on their ear. One look at the lo-top casuals pictured above may not inspire much confidence from sneaker fans who love color and wild designs. A closer look shows a casual shoe with black premium leather that is a 180 degree turn from traditional Pro-Keds canvas shoes. 

Dead Lotus worked hard to brand these Pro-Keds in a subtle way. The Dead Lotus skull is emblazoned on a small metal button near the upper eyelet. The tongue features the words Dead Lotus signed in silver for all to see. It is important to look at the Pro-Keds website to find samples of the brand’s less-than-inspiring collection before you can fully appreciate what Dead Lotus has accomplished.

Nike Japan has create another set of sneakers based on traditional Japanese festivals.

This pack includes a Court Force High and Low inspired by the festival of “Setsubun,” which takes place the date before each season changes.

The shoes feature bold colors, textures and patterns, the Court Force High Setsubun is a white shoe that is trimmed in black patent, red embossed leather, and a yellow and black tiger fur print. The low version is similar in style but shades of blue dominate instead of the red and yellow.

Atmos is now taking preorders on the two sneakers, which are scheduled to drop January 12th.The High is 15,750 yen (~$144 USD) while the low is only 13,650 yen (~$125 USD).

This sneaker is available via Hangtime.

Every year, Nike creates shoes dedicated to the Chinese New Year. According to the Chinese Calendar, February 7, 2008 is Chinese New Year and this year is the Year of the Rat.

Here’s the latest shoe from Nike depicting the Rat theme – the Wildwood 90 Free Trail. This sneaker is a hybrid of the Wildwood, Air Max 90 and Free Trail and comes in two colorways.

Both colorways feature a laser printed leather upper. The white colorway has white “rat fur, while the grey version is made with suede. I prefer the white by far. The grey shoe is too drab and just plain ugly.

The Chinese symbol for the word “rat” is printed in red on each shoe. These shoes are available right now at select Nike retailers, such as Juice and Limited Edition. Via HB and Fatboy.

Part of their January 2008 releases, Nike SB will be releasing this Paul Rodriguez 2 Zoom Air. It comes in ablack/white colorway, mixed suede and premium leathers, PRod logo embossed on the sides and sprinkled midsole. via highsnobiety

Along with the Air Jordan 9’s are the 14’s, part of the Countdown pack. They feature a jet black suede upper with white contrast stitching and red accents. These will release March 15th as well for $310. More pics after the break. via nicekicks