from the old box.

this picture has been hanging on my mothers whiteboard for years. since this little blog is about sophisticated skating it's only normal to post this classic pic. I think the picture was taken by my father in hoofddorp. I'm the little fat one, the other's my brother. we should take another one now, approx. 22 years later to see the difference. get your camera dad!

cutting it short.

I was cleanin' out my closet and came across my old pair of anthony van engelen corduroys. not really digging the style anymore of the long pants, I decided to cut them short. turned out well, if I may say so myself. now the only thing I have to wait for is the amsterdam weather god to get his act together and start beaming some sun.

money well spent.

an addiction to vans is bad for the wallet, unless you find these stylish style 46 lx at 290SQM on sale for 50 bucks. spring season better get ready cause these whites are ready to get worn and dirty.

winter night longboard.

Winter Night Longboard from Juan Rayos on Vimeo.

here's a video first for amstervans. the third in the 'surfing the city' trilogy in madrid. a very nicely shot video featuring skaters ra, nacho, quique, kati, paula, borja, luis, jorge and guido, with music from the crystal fighters track “at home”.

uppers.

one word: want.
two words: vans vault.
three words: priz laced lx.
four words: minimalistic through color choice.
five words: buy at your local vault dealer. (yeah, call me a liar for one word).

decon.

known for taking footwear staples from within the collection, the vans vault line reappropriate the authentic with the release of this season’s authentic decon lx. made from luxurious calfskin in a monotone fashion. available at vault dealers.

smoke shoes everyday.

being a real amsterdammer i can't not post about shoes, from vans, made from hemp. yes, hemp. dutch vegetables, ganga, skunk. all 3 colored with a rastafarian touch and all 3 based on a different model. the authentic, the 106 vulcanized and the slip-on. my favorite? black on black. why? because.

alalalalomar.

underway.

here piggy piggy.

vault releases another pair of authentic lx made from pigskin leather. two colors. one purple. my favorite. dropping april 2011.

heavy metal.

the vault stays open. spring 2011 is bringing this collection dubbed heavy metal pack. old skool model, thick sole, dressed in suede and canvas. nice accent on the sole accentuating the colour of the sneaker. 3 colour way. bam.

worth checking.

came accross this site. logical collab. nuff said.

fresh pro classics.

spring 2011 brings a new installment of feff grosso’s popular legend pack series, with a fresh set of pro classics. grosso has been wear-testing classics for over 20 years so it’s safe to say he’s become somewhat of an expert when it comes to fit and function. before there were any mid-tops available from Vans he would cut down the sk8-hi, wrap duct tape over the edges then glue plastic pieces over the vamp to keep from wearing through his toenails during knee slides. this season’s grouping consists of the era pro along with the sk8-mid vert pro and the sk8-hi vert pro, all tweaked for maximum performance, and functionality. features include a removable impact pu sockliner, duracap toe bumper and upper reinforcement and a folded edge detail on the back ankle area of the mid and hi-tops for added comfort. (this text is stolen from hypebeast)

b & a.

in my 2nd latest post I mentioned the shop bows & arrows. take some time to look at their site. apart from selling the more exclusive and sophisticated vans, they sell etnies, nikes and gourmet among others. a simple site for your sophistication.

ando and friends.

a sweet collab project between vans and andy davis. a well known san diego based surf artist who grew up in vans, crafting many pairs over the years. these e street surf sider are part of davis' new venture ando and friends. drawing inspiration from life, travels, family, music and the ocean to name a few, andy & co. injected their unique aesthetic into a small collection of apparel and footwear for vans this season including the above shown.

more sophistication.

taka hayashi (known for the pendleton collab) brings it to the table once again this time with vans vault. with its crepe outsole, sude upper and embellished with a perforated triangle motif the derby th xl is mos def going away from traditional skatewear. available now at bows & arrows for a measly 100 bucks.

aloha era.

lellow soles. yes, you read it right, lellow. fitted hawaii sat around the table with vans and came out with this slik concoction. a relatively simple design with the famous hawaiian flower motive on the nose and the heels of the shoes. look how they've made the inside of the shoes lellow too. available from februari 14th at fitted.