Smorgasbord

Right, we all know I'm a crap blogger alright? It's not my fault that all my free time is spent fighting crime, sleeping and somehow getting chocolate on my neck, because with great power, comes great responsibility....

...so yeah, how are you and stuff? Really? Neat. Let's get down to the nitty-gritty; me what has been bought by the Hooligan for the last few months, neck chocolate aside that is.

TEES.

Above: 1 Seal tee, £15 - Lazy Oaf sale (January)

Below: 2 Popeye tee, Supreme, £35 - Dover Street Market (December)

Oh right, what a boob I am, turns out i don't have any photos of me in the other tees I blagged, and trust me there're some fucking beauts in there. But don't fret, I have a camera, and at least one friend with opposable thumbs so they'll be up soon. DON'T CRY BIRD.

So yeah, moving on...

1 How much of a beast is this please? Always got to show some love for Lazy Oaf, amazing designs on display on everything from tees to packing tape. This one was a no-brainer for me, let's run through the checklist;

* White tee? CHECK

* Fresh colouring? CHECK

* Ecstatic seal with tiny hands? CHECK

2 I don't need to tell you how hard Supreme is to get hold of. Seriously, it's a fucking joke at times, but then I'd rather it be that way than the average pleb bombing round town in a Supreme tee to match their G-Star Raw/Hollister combinations. Twats. But yeah, sourced this out way before release as I just full-on love everything about it, I mean come on, who doesn't love Popeye? The old drunk. It'll look even better when I lose my Christmas boobs though (yep, still here, damn neck chocolate...)

KICKS.

Above: 3 BAPE Roadsta88, £165 £99 - A Bathing Ape Pirate Store, London (January)

Below: 4 Nike + Stüssy, All-Court Black, £70 - The Hideout (December)

            5 Nike + Stüssy, All-Court White, £70 - The Hideout (December)

Above: 6 Nike AirMax Light, £90 - Foot Patrol (December

Below: 7 Nike AirMax 90 Infra-Red, £90 - Kixclusive (January)

The coming months are very strong in terms of sneaker releases, from the Nike Dunk Liberty and ?uestlove, to the upcoming new season in the Adidas/Star Wars range. However, before I get carried away I need to remember that I only have two feet and have to save up to go see Voodle in New York this summer (where I WILL finally snag the elusive Ueno Panda...)

3 BAPE opened up their first UK Pirate Store in Shoreditch from January 22-30th and offered rarities, factory seconds and limited quantities of fresh items at discounted prices. Naturally I was there on the sunday, met with a medium sized, but healthy queue outside the main doors, flanked by three huge guards decked in the finest Ape-wear. Inside was more of the same, with racks upon racks of goods surrounded by hype-bastards, clueless turds and general riff-raff. I copped a pair of red/gold Apesta88 (basically the Air Jordan 3 but for twice the price) discounted from £165 to £99. It was a no-brainer.

4 & 5 I previewed the Nike + Stüssy All-Courts back in October and impatiently awaited the drop. Learning my mistakes after the Nike Supreme 94 debacle I was all over tis release like a tramp on discarded chips. This time when I rang the Hideout, after exchanging pleasantries, I was hit with the million dollar question;

"Do you want to reserve a pair in white, in black, or do you want both?"

I shook, softly at first, but with each tremor my movement became more violent. Weighing up the pros and cons in my mind (Cons: Would barely afford to live for a month, christmas would be a struggle. Pros: I'd look hella bad-ass) I took the plunge and opted for both. Lucky I did though, as they sold out in a day, and considering that the Hideout was the only stockist of the kicks in the UK I was a very lucky boy indeed. I'll say this though, I didn't eat properly for the following weeks, but by God are my shoes beautiful.

6 Following on from my first AirMax gamble in August, I felt the time was right to get more. Well, that's a lie, I just happened to be in Foot Patrol with a fresh paycheck burning a hole in my pocket and had to buy them, mainly to fill the Infra-Red sized hole in my life...

7 ...which I plugged not long after. I wanted the Infra-Reds upon release back in August, but couldn't afford them due to moving down south, so when I finally got some pennies rolling I hunted the internet for a pair. As usual though, the only sizes available were in the region of size 5 (buy nice shoes you tiny footed pricks or I'll cut off your limbs). Luckily, New York dealer Kixclusive got some in to their web store, and the price, including postage, worked out roughly the same. Like all AirMax they're very comfy and seem to go with anything, despite the unorthodox colouring. Emma can't stand them though, but screw it, they're comfy and swish, and came in a stupidly fast amount of time.

So yeah, that's what I've been up-to for the last few months, aside from lucha-libre, Fanric, tee jaunts and music video making, but they're stories for another time....

...oh go on then. Here's a music video I made with my boys at Fungunt Productions for the Eurythmics' synth classic 'There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart)'. Enjoy, and if you genuinely DO enjoy, then please let me, or the boys know through the above links *looks up two lines*

Renaissance

I've never moved house in my life. Since November 1988 I've lived at number 4 in a little road hidden from everyone, including Jehovah's Witnesses and taxi drivers, but I've reached a point in my life where I've no commitments, and home just doesn't hold anything for me anymore. So I'm moving to London.

Now the more cynical amongst my friends reacted with "Why? What's in London? Stay in Wallasey." Yeah sure, I'll stay, drink flat pints in the same pub every weekend before going home to my bored wife and having meaningless sex in the dark before crashing asleep, only to wake up at 6am to go work in a job that I hate. I want to MAKE something of myself, apply myself to what I enjoy, struggle, potentially fail, only to learn from every single decision I make along the way. I want to make money, blow it on toys, sneakers and bits of useless shit, I want to hang around in pretentious bars listening to warped barely-listenable glitch music, I want to wake up in the morning not knowing what is going to happen, bound out of bed and grab the day by the proverbials. I want change and unfortunately I'm not going to find it in my little town by the sea.

So here's to the next stage of my life. Here's to the triumphs and tribulations. Here's to stress, hardship, but ultimately reward.

Before I move, I wanted one last purchase to bolster my wardrobe before months of uncertainty and the possibility of only being able to eat cardboard for breakfast, lunch and dinner. For the previous week I have been torturing myself with the help of Size?, BAPE EU, Pondon and Kixclusive, unable to commit to any purchases, no matter how much they'd improve my life (dramatic lie).

Nike Dunk 'Ueno Panda' - Rarer than teeth on a chicken

I went down the usual routes; Nike Dunk 'Ueno Panda', Nike Dunk SB 'MF DOOM' (almost purchased, once upon a time), Air Jordan 1 (in all shapes and sizes). However I also perused a seldom used alleyway - I decided to see what AirMax had in store for me. Now I never used to rate the AirMax at all, I found them garish, cheap, and ridiculous. However as my tastes have became less 'suburban' and more liberal, I've taken a shine to the air-cushioned bastards. 

Nike Dunk 'MF DOOM' - They will be mine...

Now by definition I'm a Dunk-Hi guy, you'll rarely find anything else on my feet, save for either AF1's or BapeSta's. At this point in time I only have five pairs, which, to sneaker-freakers is simply pathetic. But seeing as I only have a part time job and have been in uni for the last three years, I think it serves as an adequate start to what will surely blossom into a 'huge fuck-off collection'. At the moment though I've had enough of Dunks. I can't afford any limited releases, my knowledge of sourcing said limited’s is amateur, and what Dunks I CAN get are mass produced and rank.

Nike AirMax 90 'Livestrong' - Charitable

One of my boys however, is a certified sneaker-freaker, and has both the privilege of working in a sneaker emporium and being surrounded by people who truly know their shit. He also rocks a pair of AirMax 90 'Livestrong' a pair of sneakers that I could not afford unless I sold a kidney. Instead I opted for a pair of AirMax 1 from Size? Liverpool, taking full advantage of my mate's staff discount in the process. Result. I mean they are (in my eyes) a 'homage' to the Livestrongs, and face it, they're bloody sweet. I am now learned in the ways of the Airmax and wish to continue my training, but with uncertainty about money, and flinging myself into the proverbial deep-end, God knows when I'll next pick-up a pair.

If the worst comes to the worst I'll have to do one of the following; suck-off a business man for cash, get a good job and work my arse off, beg the 'rents. I'm hoping for the second option, but always know that option one is there if I need it. I'd be like a Victorian scamp.

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Recently listening;

Cave In - Jupiter (2000)

Currently wearing;

Nike Hoodie (Most unnecessary caption ever)

Levi 501 Jeans

Nike Dunk Hi - Lunar/Fluff

Let me off, I'm in work. I promise, I'm usually much more dapper.

Much love – V.H.