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*

Stüssy

Stüssy are going collaboration crazy this season as they continue to celebrate 30 years of hype glory, with the second Bape x Stüssy dropping in Bape London today and the upcoming Nike x Stüssy range hitting the Hideout next month. Want to see what's coming? Of course you do!

Bape x Stüssy: 'Survival of the Fittest'

The first part of this collab hit in late June and featured but a few limited edition tees. Part two promises to be much more imaginative, with tees, caps, hoods, shoes, coats and accessories scheduled to be released, as well as exclusive Bape x Stüssy shopping bags, also in limited supply.

Sorry for the piss-poor image quality...

Bape x Stüssy Limited Bag: Don't ask how I got hold of one. I won't tell.

So what are you doing reading this? This shit is a guaranteed sell-out, so if you're in London I urge you to go today and land some sweet threads! If not, get down to Bape in roughly two weeks time for drop number two!

For more on the collab, check out this interview with Bape's Nigo and Stüssy's Paul Mittleman form Honeyee.com.

Nike x Stüssy: 'All Court Mid'

Also released as part of Stüssy's 30th celebrations are the upcoming Nike All Courts. Scheduled to be available in both mysto blue and black, these are probably going to sell-out before they're even released. Hideout in London are the sole stockists of these in the UK, although exact prices and release dates are yet to be finalised. Go to Hideout's website and Paul Mittleman's blog for more details.

Get Real Paid

Finally FINALLY got some money in the bank since moving down to the capital, and by golly what a sweet feeling it is. Now I know that Christmas is fast approaching like a greased up sex-pest, but I needed some highly selfish 'ME' purchases...

...so I ended up in Bape.

Top 4 Images: Bape x Champion Crew Sweater. £190

Bottom 2 Images: Bape Large Head Belt. £195

I think I may have gone slightly overboard. However, in my defence against a flabbergasted Emma, I asked how much she had spent on clothes in the last 3 months and compared it to how much I had spent. It pretty much evened out. Buoyed by my successful wrangling, I have applied to do law at Yale (I haven't).

What are your thoughts on these purchases? Leave 'em in the comments box.

Life Jim, but Not as We Know It

So it may not involve being paid to wear outstanding Reeboks, be transcribing the finest details of Snoop Dogg's latest wild party or write about African land snails, but I have myself a job. I'm currently working in Graham (plumber's merchant) in Shepherd's Bush and its surprisingly really really fun. I'm only two weeks into it but already I have witnessed prank calls, a klaxon attack, a sausage being slapped across a room and more homosexual innuendo then you'd care to shake a stick at. Boss. At the end of the day though it's money in the bank and I've had my eye on a fair few items as of late...

University of Michigan Letterman jacket

Currently available in Urban Outfitters for a cool £120, this will be mine and finally fill the varsity shaped hole in my wardrobe.

I must be totally honest with you though, there is one predominant reason why I want this jacket, it's not to make the missus jealous, or because I'd look like the High-School football captain (I will tackle everyone whilst wearing this jacket though). No, the reason I want this jacket, is so I can finally be one of the Steiner Brothers. Incredible.

Nike SB P.Rod

I've really been hankering for some stripped back SBs as of late, I originally had my eye on the Koston's, but unfortunately, as is the way with all sought-after sneakers, they're all but sold, except for sizes 5-7. Who are these tiny footed bastards and why aren't they buying these shoes? Duck sauce. Anyway, my next alternative is the Paul Rodriguez pro model, currently available from Slam City for a smashing £54.95.

A Bathing APE ASNKA Crewneck

I have never had a harder time finding an item of clothing as I have when looking for a simple grey sweater  with a nice front-print. It has been stupidly hard, like trying to cut an apple in half in mid air with a katana and no formal bushido training. BLHB favourites BAPE have this available on their EU website currently for £160, with a Champion collab available online soon. Again, I am going to hunt this down like a man possessed and wear it like it were a second skin.

This weekend in Shoreditch (12th-14th of November) you can find a Gimme Five endorsed sample sale. Entry is one English pound and features items from Stüssy, GoodEnoughUK and Billionaire Boys Club amongst others. Friday was Stüssy exclusive, and I managed to pick up one of last year's Xaime Hernandez tees (but in white) for £15. Sunday is throwing up a sale from London hotspot the Hideout which should unearth some absolutely choice cuts.

MOTIFS OF THE WEEK

• Scarves with everything
• Getting angry at Radio One
• Watching the original extended cut of Clerks on repeat with the commentary track
• Drinking hot chocolate and being called a Teddy Boy
• Singing LFC chants at any possible moment
• Listening to copious amounts of Fugazi
• Listening to Between the Buried and Me's cover of 'Territory' by Sepultura and thinking it would be ideal entrance music if I ever became a professional wrestler

See? I'd totally win championships to that music.

Supreme Satisfaction

Supreme have constantly produced high quality gear guaranteed to send a collective orgasm to streetwear geeks across the globe. The only problem is, unless you live in Japan, there ain't much chance of getting any. The NY skate company has seven flagship stores; NY, LA, Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka, Harajuku and Daikanyama, along with only ten licensed retailers across the globe and very strict importing rules. Luckily three of the afore-mentioned retailers are stationed within the UK; HIP in Leeds, The Hideout and Dover Street Market in London, meaning that not only is this stuff in my grasp, but its also attainable (once I have some cashflow).

I recently headed down to Dover Street Market to scope out the Supreme Autumn/Winter collection, and to see how little of it I could afford...

'Invincible Armor' Tee

Almost blagged this, but they were sold out of my size. Motif of old-skool Shaolin masters in a cool blue screenprint on a white tee.

Also available in black, gold, heather grey, teal, and navy.

£30 - Good shout, was expecting more towards the BBC/BAPE price range of £70+.

'Bored to Death' Tee

Image of Queen Victoria in an almost Chronic/Zig-Zag montage. Not as nice as the 'Invincible Armor' tee, but still a top-drawer item.

Available in various colours.

Varsity Jacket

Again, bang on trend and the finest example of a varsity jacket I've seen so far. Melton wool with snap front closures and leather trimmed pockets and under-collar.

I really REALLY want this. I tried it on in blue and grey and felt that I rocked the shit out of them both. Another shop patron joined me in fawning over these jackets - they are that good. When a jacket can unite two strangers in conversation then its worth it's weight in gold.

The only problem, however, is the price tag. If you're lucky enough to live in America you can pick one of these up for $338 (or £216) which is a fair price. Dover Street Market were listing these at £440, that's a mark-up of over 100% - 100%!!!

Don't get me wrong, if I had the money I would definitely own this, but at the same value as a month's rent I feel like crying.

Available in navy, cardinal, black and heather grey.

Small Box Logo Pullover Hoodie

Standard run of the mill hoodie featuring a tiny Supreme logo above the left breast. Nice product, but I wouldn't particularly pay £140 it (or $128 online).

Available in heather grey, red, blue, white, teal and black.

Box Logo New Era cap

Simple but effective, the must-have accessory from this collection. Supreme also have various other caps and beanies released for the Autumn/Winter season, but the box logo New Era cap is the pick of the bunch.

My only gripe is the US flag on the side, but hey its an American company and proud of it.

Available instore for £50 and in the following colours; dark grey, dark green, navy, black and red.

Available online (aka 'in your fucking dreams')

Vans/Supreme Old Skool 

As anyone knows, any Supreme collaboration turns heads and this is no exception. Whilst nowhere near as iconic as the Nike Dunk collab, and will probably be nowhere near as sought-after, these are still damn fine shoes.

Vans are seemingly on a high again after the resurgence of the classic 'Era' and 'Zapato Del Barco' models on practically everyone's feet, and these new versions of the 'Old Skool' model are continuing the trend.

Available in navy, maroon, grey and black.

There you go - the pick of the bunch of the Supreme Autumn/Winter 2010 collection. Check out the Supreme website, and run to your nearest stockist before it all sells out.

The clock is ticking, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR??? 

Dispatches from the Capital #1

29/08/2010 

It’s been four days since I moved down to foggy old London town, where the streets are paved with gold/phlegm. As of yet I’ve not explored much of my new city, save for a jaunt to Ikea and a few trips to ASDA. Now I know this sounds terribly tragic and thoroughly middle aged and anyone reading this must be thoroughly disappointed at my lack of heroin abuse, supermodel shagging and generic NME coverage, however it’s a period of adjustment so accept it or I’ll smash you in with some wood... 

...not that I’m going to abuse heroin, I’m fine with tea thankyouverymuch. 

The hat in question, only mine is charcoal
(least interesting caption ever)

My first foray into greater London (not ever, I’m not a fucking tourist) came courtesy of a half-arsed stroll into Shoreditch in the search of somewhere to watch the mighty Liverpool take on West Brom (I’m still trying to convince the world that I am a man dammit). We soon found out that Shoreditch is too trendy to show footie, well aside from one pub that was showing Everton vs. Aston Villa – fuck that. I’m actually still surprised that they showed any football at all, the best I was expecting would be something ‘quirky’ like a Wimbledon 1985 season review or Icelandic, blind beach football, but hey everyone just wanted to hang out, drink coffees and revel in their own beauty. Little did we know (being new to the area) that Sunday was market day on Brick Lane with a variety of little stalls selling everything from vintage smoking jackets and KISS tees, to Lego jewellery and meatballs, as well as booming business in the local Rough Trade record shop. I came this close *pinches fingers to symbolise distance* to buying some old hardcore punk fanzines and a couple of Converge records, but the ever present icy stare of my bank balance burned into my back like a hot skillet. 

I managed to also uncover a sample sale of OBEY clothing on the edge of the market, a three-day smash-and-grab kinda job offering new season clothing at massively reduced prices. I gave in to my new found pretentiousness and splurged on a pork-pie hat for only £20. Apparently I wear it well, but I can't help but feel a little like Gadget from This is England...

06/09/2010

I have been here for nearly two weeks now, and I remain jobless. Granted, my search has been, well, kinda half-arsed so far as I’ve achieved little more than sprinkling a few CVs around (of course they were to good places though; BAPE, The Hideout, Eastpak etc. – outlook on myself landing ANY of these is very slim indeed) and I am in the midst of filling out an application form for Foot Locker. You may be thinking “Stop blogging to no-one and finish that form you overweight idiot” and you’d have a point, but it is such a banal piece of literature that I’m having trouble convincing my own being to not stab myself in the throat.

EXAMPLE; “Tell us about a time when you provided extraordinary customer service by delivering the unexpected.”

If this form wasn’t so important, and, to a lesser extent, if I didn’t actually want to work for Foot Locker (it’s just a ‘for now’ thing, not a lifetime career) then I would crumple it into a tiny ball, insert it directly into my anus, light the protruding tip on fire then spend the following 45 minutes smashing my head into my desk.

Away from the job search, London continues to treat me fairly well. I’ve yet to be harassed, stabbed, mugged, threatened, raped or even looked at with shifty intent. My female-friend popped up for a few days (check her blog - wintagenetvoodle.blogspot.com) and made me feel loved and relaxed. Again, we checked out the Brick Lane market as it was one of the bargaining tools I used in coaxing her down for four days. Needless to say she loved it, and I managed to pick up a vintage Stüssy cap for a tenner off of a bloke in the street. It’s my kind of area – busy, yet somehow cut-off. Friendly, yet not ‘in-your-face’. Quirky, yet not annoying. Once I get the ball rolling career-wise, I could definitely see myself living there.

However the pangs of no fixed income snapped at my heels for the entirety of her stay. A trip to Size? unearthed a varsity jacket for £50 that would usually be eaten up like yesterday’s curry, but was instead left to hang like a high-five from a knobhead, and my search for a denim shirt (never thought I’d find myself searching for a denim shirt) only produced depressing examples of how urgently I need employment. I may have to swallow my pride and go with anything. I may go all Midnight Cowboy on yo’ asses and attempt to pimp myself out to wealthy 40+ women, befriending a diseased Dustin Hoffman in the process and eventually immigrating to Florida...

...now I come to think of it, that’s not such a bad idea after all.

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.

---

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.

Planet of the BAPE

I never realised how serious I had become about fashion until the minute I was standing outside of the BAPE store in London. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t going to be some hokey ‘felt like I was in Mecca’ bullshit tale, but I realised the lengths I would go to in order to bolster my ever increasing wardrobe, I realised that I was in a world of limited edition sneakers, Japanese labels and over-priced garments, I realised that I was a 'hypebeast in training'.

Now for those who are uninitiated BAPE stands for 'A Bathing Ape' and is slowly becoming an urban fashion dynasty. Started in 1993 by Nigo (or Tomoaki Nagao to his mother), BAPE started life specialising in hand made tees depicting characters from the Planet of the Apes films. Eventually the brand moved into sneakers and have since become one of the industry leaders for highly sought after footwear. In order to keep the brand exclusive, and to further instill its ideas of exclusivity and somewhat urgency, getting hold of genuine BAPE merchandise is sometimes harder than performing a full frontal lobotomy with a desert fork and one eye closed. Hence why I was in London, and at one of only two official BAPE stores in the whole of Europe.

By choice I am what Nas once referred to as a 'Nike Head' and 9 times out of 10 you'll find me sporting a pair of hi-top Dunks on my feet, but the part of me that likes to hoarde and collect needed some other brands to fill out my collection. Put simply; I needed some BAPE in my life.

My first encounter with BAPE came with the purchase of these bad-boys from the online Pondonstore;

BAPESta 'Flash' - DC Comics Exclusives

However due to their rarity they mainly spend life adorning my shoe rack, only coming out on special occasions or when it's kids visit I know no harm will befall them.

What I wanted though was to venture into an actual BAPE shop and leisurely peruse what they had on offer instead of having to rashly panic buy a pair online and question their authenticity. So it had to be done; I had to venture to the capital to 'merely' buy shoes. Such was the apparent strageness of the trip's prupose that my own mother questioned my sexuality...


...I wish I was kidding.


Eventually the time came and I (accompanied by my boys Josh and Smeg and a soon to be crippled bank balance) sauntered down to London in the vague hope of finding some nice shoes...


...and find nice shoes I did;

BAPESta white x 1st Camo (Yellow) 

As well as a tee for good measure.

Ursus BAPE - 'Club Ursus' tee

So now my thirst for some BAPE has been well and truly quenched as I now have some quality garments to add to my collection, but the question is am I buying these because of what they are as opposed to whether I like them or not? I'll admit that I was determined to come home with some new BAPE sneakers, but I took my time and made a conscientious decision - and thats what really matters, surely? I'm never usually one to follow hype but with BAPE I seem to make an exception (even if some of their stuff is fucking rank).

Next stop; Supreme......