i'ts been a month.

busy building a wordpress/betterversionthanthis one blog.
will update soon again with everything fall winter spring summer vans.
i promise.

september 15th.

so i guess i gotta go to new york real quick.

accessorize for the fall.

last vault release 2011.

the priz laced lx ‘two-tone’. the low top sneaker comes in three colorways for fall 2011. this one being the best.

double collab.

spring 2011 gone already? don't worry cause here's your 2012 syndicate spring collection waiting to be worn. syndicate put together a 3 pair set of shoes featuring metallic snakeskin, leopard print and glossy black leather. the silver authenic is jason dill’s, the leopard old skool anthony van engelen’s while the sk8-lo blends the two for a clean-on-the-outside/flashy-on-the-inside sneaker.

the vans dqm general

Vans, the original action sports brand, and leading New York-based streetwear purveyor and skateshop DQM announced today plans for The Vans DQM General to be located at 93 Grand Street in the heart of New York’s coveted SoHo district. The General, Vans’ first company retail foray in Manhattan, brings together two of the most prolific names in contemporary streetwear – one rooted in Southern California surf and skate, the other in New York skate and street – in creating a unique retail concept carrying both original, exclusive co-branded DQM for Vans footwear and crafted apparel as well as select Vans and DQM premium product for men, women and kids. Slated to open in early September, the 2,600 square foot Vans DQM General will be deeply rooted in the heritage of its SoHo neighborhood and its past life as haven for skateboarders, punks, artists and risk-takers of all kinds.

“Over the past five years, no fewer than 100 people have asked me why we don’t have a store in New York City,” says Doug Palladini, Vans’ Vice President of Marketing. “My answer always was that we had so many great wholesale partners that our own store didn’t make sense, so when Chris from DQM approached us, it was the perfect opportunity. Chris and DQM really understand Vans as well as city culture and history, and know just how to bring our brands together to make something new and relevant for an area like SoHo. ”

“Vans has been a huge part of my life in New York both in the world of professional skateboarding – I rode for Vans for a time in the early 90s – and then as a retailer, selling them to my customers every day for the past 8 years,” says Chris Keeffe, founder and owner of DQM. “Vans has this long and storied history coming out of California, but at DQM we felt like the story of what Vans means to people in New York City can still be told through the prism of our Vans experience: we don’t have pools to skate and we have snow on the ground for five months a year. We grew up finding a way to wear Vans that fit the style and climate of our city. I wanted to create a space where we can tell this story from the ground up; a place that’s rooted in our local community and makes sense to New Yorkers.”
DQM, initially focused solely as a skateboard goods and shoe store, is now considered one of the world’s leading streetwear brands with a global following. In eight years, Keeffe and crew, including lead designer Tashi Stricker, have grown the line from a few t-shirts and hats to a menswear line including premium cut and sew woven shirts, pants, jackets and accessories. The DQM team is also developing DQM for Vans product to live side by side with exclusive Vans shoes and handpicked items from Vans’ footwear collections.

The Vans DQM General space is special itself. A designated New York City Landmark, 93 Grand Street was designed in 1868 by John Snook, known for designing the first Grand Central Station as well as the St. Nicholas Hotel. The building was built during the summer of 1869 utilizing a process of veneering brick with cast iron plates cut to look like stone that was patented by James L. Jackson, a prominent builder at the time.

(text from hypebeast)

this is what you call 'customization'.

no trunks for summer? don't fucking panic cause vans will save your unoriginal summer with this little application enabling you to customize your own swim shorts. vans Powered by Shortomatic allows one to design their own version of vans’s popular era classic boardshorts, choosing from an array of 16 colors, six customizable patterns and four vintage prints, plus a rotating limited edition artist print kicked off by the legendary neil blender. start blending here. handmade locally in santa monica, the custom shorts start at $99 USD and are dispatched within two weeks of the order.

nooka x vans.

nooka is proud to sponsor the 17th annual vans warped tour 2011. as the official watch sponsor of the event, nooka has customized 200 Zub Zirc 20 watches, 96 of which are for promotional giveaways. the limited edition piece features a blue zirc face with an original tour map graphic print on a white band. available here.

a little late ludwig van from london.

feature on pristine.

the guys from pristine featured my post on their blog. nice. thanks dudes.

hopper.

vans have produced a capsule collection to celebrate the life and work of the late actor, dennis hopper. the first drop of the collection features two footwear silhouettes – a chukka boot in green wax canvas and an era 59 in cream coloured heavy weave canvas – as well as a vintage style shirt.

BONES.

next season vans syndicate and WTAPS are re-releasing their popular “bones” series of footwear, this time in burgundy suede. color is the shit. just like the black and navy blue collections, the chukka, Sk8-Hi and era all offered in suede with all over embroidery, and WTAPS labeling. sure to be a popular release. plus skulls n bones I dig.

part two.

Time + Space: Mister Cartoon - Part 2 from Off The Wall TV on Vimeo.

ready for my next one.

Time + Space : Mister Cartoon Part One from Off The Wall TV on Vimeo.

sophisticated biker.

been into biking for about a year and half now. the collaboration between vans and brooks inspired me to buy a new custom build bike. the brooks saddle really finishes the bike as a whole. thanks pristine for helping me build the bike. now I can ride like the wind.

fire it up.

for the collab between spitfire and fans the design team chose a black and orange suede colorway accented by a clean white sole for the collaboration.extra details include orange lace eyelets, a spitfire side tag in place of the usual vans one and an embroidered fireball logo on the heel. available at premier, priced at $60 USD.

dark shadow.

haven't been so into the halfcab series for a while now, but came across these and fell for them again. also available in an era model. available through select vans classic retailers.

vans store london.

went to london for the weekend with my better half and by chance we came across the vans store on 47 carnaby street. almost the same as in amsterdam on the 'negen straatjes', however this store had a collection of some collectors items. check out the carpet era's and the ones with the ladybugs. supersweet. not for sale unfortunately. will have to do with these pics. nevertheless, i managed to get my hands on a pair i've had my eyes on for a while and i'm superstocked to have them in my possession. you'll see them in my next post. until then, stay sophisticated, keep skating.

crossed off my list.

had them for a while now but didn't post them yet. managed to get the filson x vans vault 46 lx. made with filson’s trademark canvas and bridle leather, the collection fuses rich skate history with the great outdoors. now I just need the bag. posted before in my very first post this year. purchased at 290sqm. on sale. score.

hermes x robert verdi x vans = sweetness as a slip-on.

vans custom made these shoes for Robert Verdi, modeled after his personal collection of Hermés scarves. nice. with sugar and spice. and honey on the side. and cherries on top. ok enough. thanks nina and jorik.

another website selling vans.

came across this website while surfing. nice to see a shop selling vans in the EU. simple site selling lots of skate brands and clothing.

gentlevans.

i've managed to get my hands on these pair of indigo pritchard's. super comfortable sophisticated casual shoes with a classic vans sneaker feel. already posted in my previous post gentleman's vans., now purchased at jefferson hotel. 90 euro's.

Mr Cartoon equals sophistication.

OTW-Cartoon-Pritchard-commercial from steve zeitzoff on Vimeo.

vans OTW presents their pritchard shoe, as worn by Mr Cartoon.

fit for summer.

style getting ready for summer with this vans v-neck tee and the super sophisticated, rugged and durable take on the brand’s classic era silhouette. the classic vans era 46 pro. more about this shoe in my previous post: a very pro era 46 pro. both purchased at shortcut hardware on the stadhouderskade in amsterdam.

vans for my fingers.

fucking love it when i come across these little things made by vans. even the insides of the soles have the recognizable vans stamp and of course the little iconic red vans label on the heels.

waffle coasters.

dude...

inside the OTH vans store.

my good friend josh who lives and works in montreal shot these great pictures of the OTH vans store. thanks josh and kudos for the quality of the snapshots.

vans OTH shop.

VANS by OTHSHOP from Off The Hook on Vimeo.

off the hook in montreal has opened their vans store. everybody, and i mean everybody was there (except me damnit) from z-boy tony alva to owner steve van doren. this video came out to promote the opening. below you see the men behind vans.

everything 3D? yes everything.

the first vans partner store is opening to the public today in montreal, with Vans occupying the 3rd floor of the current Off The Hook shop. the store will offer the largest selection of vans in canada, with over 1500 shoes in 160 styles as well as the opportunity to create and order custom shoes in-store, an option previously only available to online customers living in the U.S. outside, a two-story high qr code currently adorns the outside of the store.

to celebrate the grand opening, guests received a CAD-created 3D copy of the classic vans authentic shoe, made by consult design.

sick.

his n hers.

a select few of the many.

it's a madder of vans.

so april is gone and i got my piggy shoes. in my previous post (here piggy piggy) i called them purple, they're actually brown. madder brown. but still, they're tight. got them @ ben-g.

sophistication reaching next levels.

deluxe and vans continue their ongoing partnership as the two brands come together for another footwear collaboration, this time revolving around the popular zapato del barco. no need to say more.

vans presents: pass the bucket

vans is keeping it reeler than real with this very cool series of documentaries, shot by eliot rausch (one of my favorite directors known for the doc. 'last minutes with oden'. winner of the 2010 vimeo awards).

in pass the bucket vans shows dedication by giving back. there are a few docs, each showing an influential person who made it, hit rock bottom some way or another, but is now succeeding again by passing the bucket.

people vans followed are: tony alva, an original Z-Boy and one of the the most influential skateboarders of all time, professional BMX rider and three-time U.S. gold medalist stephen murray, dennis martinez – 1977 world freestyle champion skateboarder and 1978 U.S. champion and Amy Purdy, snowboarder, skateboarder, makeup artist, actress and model.

revel in and, don't be afraid to shed a tear or two.

Pass The Bucket with Tony Alva from Off The Wall TV on Vimeo.

Pass The Bucket - Stephen Murray from Off The Wall TV on Vimeo.

Pass The Bucket with Dennis Martinez from Off The Wall TV on Vimeo.

Pass The Bucket - Amy Purdy from Off The Wall TV on Vimeo.

vans classic “outdoor” era

who said vans ain't for the outdoors? this two tone colorway cuts through every vans biased motherfucker who thinks these shoes are just for skating. yeah, you go on buy your big ass ugly mountain boats. i'll stick to these. available through select retailers and stockists of vans classic.

vans of the world.

seems like i'm not the only one living in a vans world. my friend and ex-classmate roland jager has started this dope website called vansoftheworld.com. very simple website with a neat integration of google maps. check it out and start submitting. kudos roland.

ain't nothin' but vans @ a party.

it's almost been a week already since my good friends and ex colleagues from we are pi , alex bennet grant and jamie kim, organized AI NIPPON, a benefit party for the tsunami crisis in japan. walking around and looking at what people were wearing i noticed the craze. here's a collection of the pictures i took. pretty dope collection of worn and fresh.

watch 2.

LUDWIG VAN x VANS VAULT Deadstock Canvas Project from LUDWIG VAN on Vimeo.

a little bit new, a little bit worn.

wow. my blog seems to be fruitful already. my partner in crime, avid nike wearer and b-boy jvdh has bought himself his very first vans. and not any vans. no. he doesn't fuck around. he bought himself these very fresh vault takahashi sk8 hi-s. props, kudos and all those other words to ya. now go make them dirty. exclusively at 290SQM.