Z-Prism Zip Mule — Unisex

Name: Z-Prism Zip Mule — Unisex
Brand: Z-VIBE
SKU: zv-parade-z-zipper-series-z-prism-zip-mule
Availability: PreOrder

Z-Prism Zip Mule — a backless mule with a prism mudcloth flank and side zip. Bogolan mudcloth is placed as a considered construction detail, the laces are Bogolan cord, and the aged-gold Z-Closure™ hardware signs the shoe. Shown on the approved series design board — individual studio plates are in production.

The seven views

01 Front of Z-Prism Zip Mule — Unisex. Straight-on front: toe shape, lace path and the placement of the Bogolan mudcloth panel.

01 Front — Straight-on front: toe shape, lace path and the placement of the Bogolan mudcloth panel.

IP visibility

3 public · 2 partial · 3 protected

The House publishes imagery and design narrative. Construction files, refinement records and production data remain confidential House IP.

Studio imagery · seven viewsPartly viewable
1 of 7 views released as published photography; remaining angles read the design board.
House name & collection linePublicly viewable
“Z-Prism Zip Mule — Unisex” is published under House · Z-Vibe Footwear as a protected House mark.
Design story & Bogolan placementPublicly viewable
The narrative and where the Bogolan signature sits are told openly; the artwork files are not.
Material & colourway registerPublicly viewable
Fabric family and heritage colourways are stated; mill sourcing and finishing recipes are withheld.
Sole architecture & Z-Closure™ hardwarePartly viewable
Tread identity, stack height and hardware naming are public; tooling geometry and moulds are protected.
Tech pack · DXF / CAD / pattern gradingProtected · vault only
Held in the Innovation Vault behind authenticated, short-lived signed links. Never published.
Z-Studio refinement record & promptsProtected · vault only
Refinement pipeline settings and prompt history are internal studio IP.
Factory, sampling & cost recordProtected · vault only
Supplier identities, sampling stage and costing stay confidential to the House.

Heritage colourways

Onyx Black
Aged Gold

In development

Reference study · not yet for sale

This piece is documented from an atelier design board. It is shown for reference only while the house completes its photography, sizing and release. Purchase, pricing and availability appear here once the owner approves the finished piece.

Readiness · 1 of 8 complete

Seven approved image views (01 Front, 02 Left, 03 Right, 04 Back, 05 Interior, 06 Inner tags, 07 Fabric detail)1 of 7 angles shot. The rest are read from the design board.
Approved primary assetDesign board in use — reference only, awaiting owner approval.
Product name and descriptionName and description written.
SKU and variant / colour mappingNo registered SKU for this piece yet.
Approved retail priceNo approved price — nothing is displayed.
Real inventoryNo connected stock feed — quantities are not shown.
Fulfilment and return policyFulfilment and returns not attached yet.
Owner approval to publishAwaiting explicit owner release.

👁️ 7-View master production board

1. Apparel (Chest) — High-density metallic gold embroidery over premium cotton
Premium hoodies, shirts and tracksuits: 3D puff embroidery in metallic gold thread, raised off the fabric so the emblem catches the light.
2. Apparel (Sleeve) — Seamless matte black silicone heat-seal print on the right cuff
Minimalist accent at the upper centre-back neck or right wrist, executed in high-frequency TPU printing for a durable rubberised texture.
3. Footwear (Lateral) — Large aerodynamic gold swoosh-Z stitched on the outer leather
A separate piece of metallic gold leather or reflective vinyl cut and stitched onto the outer side panel with ultra-tight matching thread lines.
4. Footwear (Heel) — Solid-cast 3D zinc-alloy metal badge bolted to the counter
Mould-forged zinc-alloy emblem in polished mirror-gold plating, clipped securely through the leather heel tab.
5. Footwear (Insole) — Premium gold-foil hot stamp pressed into the leather liner
Centred under the heel inside the shoe, heavy-pressure foil hot-stamped into ultra-soft leather or suede so it will not rub off with wear.
6. Fragrance (Bottle) — Raised metallic curved sticker flush on the stiletto glass
Electroplated nickel transfer label formed around the glass shoe curve, matched to the gold stiletto heel.
7. Event tent (Canopy) — Flat vector gold gradient printed on 600D canopy fabric
Single-path high-contrast vector for trade-show tents and tables, scaled across 3×6m dye-sublimation panels with zero pixelation.

Fabric

Blackened house leather upper with an exposed Z-Closure™ zip run, woven Bogolan mudcloth trim tile, Bogolan mudcloth lacing, aged-gold zip pull, blackened rubber outsole. Z-Grip™ Mule Cut (ZG-2046) on the Z-Grip™ lugged rubber chassis, chevron storm channels cut edge to edge for water clearance, low-slung court last with a flattened tread plane, stack 22 mm heel / 18 mm forefoot, 4 mm drop

Story behind the design

The Bogolan story

Fila-ni mudcloth in white & brown, worked into the crop neck band, left cuff, right cuff.

white & brown

ZB-FILA-WHI-911

crop neck band
left cuff
right cuff
front placket

The cloth

Bogolanfini begins as hand-woven cotton strip cloth, joined selvedge to selvedge before it ever meets the dye. It is dyed with a double n'gallama bath with a lime-brightened reserve for the pale ground — the pattern is not printed on, it is drawn in mud and then the ground around it is lifted away. On this piece the mudcloth meets blackened house leather upper with an exposed z-closure™ zip run, woven bogolan mudcloth trim tile, bogolan mudcloth lacing, aged-gold zip pull, blackened rubber outsole. z-grip™ mule cut (zg-2046) on the z-grip™ lugged rubber chassis, chevron storm channels cut edge to edge for water clearance, low-slung court last with a flattened tread plane, stack 22 mm heel / 18 mm forefoot, 4 mm drop.

The motif — Fila-ni

The tape carries paired diagonals folding into one another. In the Bamana reading, Fila-ni is two paths that meet — the House reading of Different Roots, One Human Story. Z-Vibe keeps the motif at heritage scale rather than shrinking it into a logo pattern, so the hand of the maker stays legible on the finished piece.

Why it sits where it sits

Mudcloth is placed on construction points, never scattered as decoration: crop neck band, left cuff, right cuff, front placket. These are the lines the eye already follows on this silhouette, so the cloth reads as structure — an edge, a facing, a seam — and holds its meaning at three metres and at arm's length alike.

The hand-work

Each length is block-matched panel to panel — the atelier discards any length where the repeat cannot be aligned. Tape width and motif repeat are cut to the size band, so a petite run and an extended run carry the same proportion rather than the same measurement.

Global Heritage Fusion™

African heritage, global luxury, future design: the mudcloth is set against European finishing and the aged-gold Z-Closure™ mark. Nothing is erased on either side — the meeting is the design. Different Roots. One Human Story.

Care · Cold hand-wash or specialist clean only. Mud dye deepens with age; never bleach, and dry flat away from direct sun.

Refinement provenance

Z-Studio refined · 1/7 views shot

Each step below reflects work that actually exists for this piece. Refinement is a design process — it does not imply the piece is production-released.

Owner-approved design board intakeComplete
The signed design board was registered as the source of truth; silhouette, Bogolan placement and hardware were locked from it.
Z-Sole Architecture™ assignmentComplete
Sole identity resolved for this style — Z-Grip™ Unisex Cut (ZG-8565) on the Z-Grip™ lugged rubber chassis, longitudinal rail flutes with a scalloped braking heel, squared architectural last with a chiselled toe box, stack 34 mm heel / 22 mm forefoot, 12 mm drop. Tread, last and stack height were made unique to the shoe rather than shared across the register.
Bogolan signature verificationComplete
Mudcloth was confirmed as a construction detail (laces, panel, tongue or heel band) and not surface print, and the aged-gold Z-Closure™ mark was placed.
Z-Studio 4K refinement passComplete
Studio refinement rebuilt the shoe at 4K: cleaner last geometry, corrected proportions and true material rendering on the released angles.
Seven-view studio captureIn progress
1 of 7 angles are distinct photographs; 02 Left, 03 Right, 04 Back, 05 Interior, 06 Inner tags, 07 Fabric detail still read the design board.

Shop the house The atelier