hello.
this is my scrapbook.
of history.
of tradition.
of style.
this is my brain.
this is the lifestyle i want.
the lifestyle i live.
to keep track of all of the above and share it with the world.
tings i see was born.
12
Mar
I know this blog is mostly guy stuff but, I have been thinking a lot about how the right clothes or shoes or accessories or whatever can really make you feel like you can take over the world. I know for me, it so often comes down to fit and simple design but, I think this short video really gets to that love of that connection.
17
Jun
In the summer there is nothing quite like a well worn pair of canvas sneakers. Preferably in white or some other equally light tone, canvas shoes have been favored by summer lovers for years. They were a staple of tennis attire as well as a must have on and around New Englands docks and there was nothing better to bring to summer camp. No need for socks, just some perfectly tanned ankles and a pair that fit just right.
I have had a love for canvas since I was little. My dad played tennis and wore through at least one pair of Nylites and I ran through more Vans then I can count. With everyone online talking about which is best and who should wear what I decided its the right time for another round up SO, here are my recommendations.
…and before you say it. I don’t like converse, never have, never will. They may look good but, at least for me, they are really uncomfortable especially sans socks.
Tretorn Nylites $45… born in Sweden in 1967 the Nylites are regarded as the first luxury tennis shoe. They were sported by tennis great Björn Borg in the 70’s and even immortalized in The Official Preppy Handbook in the ’80s
Feiyue Classics $30… developed in Shanghai, China in the 1920’s Feiyue or Fly Forward in Mandarin was the most popular athletic shoe in China through the 1980’s. Feiyue expanded with a French arm in 2005
PRO-Keds Royal Lo’s $50… originally released in 1949 as the beginning of an athletic footwear line by Keds, the Royal’s were endorsed by NBA greats and Hip Hop royalty alike
Volley O.C $80…. produced by Dunlop Australia in 1959 the Volley O.C. (Orthopaedically Correct) which was developed as a tennis shoe for Australian pro Adrian Quist became a main stay of Australian innovation and was worn by children, military, laborers and sports pros alike. Volley will be suppling shoes for the Australian Olympic team for the 2012 London Summer Olympics
see the US site here—> volleyshoeco.com
Vans Authentic’s $45… created by the Van Doren brothers in 1966 in Southern California the Vans Authentics became a symbol of west coast American style and laid back beach attitude
Every country at one time had their brand. These are just a few that have the heritage and some nice simple kicks out now. Also check out Gola and Umbro from the UK, Fila, Diadora and Superga from Italy, Spring Court from France, Adidas and Puma from Germany, and Onitsuka Tiger (ASICS) from Japan.
Moral of the story is… get yourself some white sneakers and make sure they don’t stay white for long. Like everything I talk about on here, they are not meant to be baby’d they are meant to be worn hard till they fall off. You can find a pair pretty cheap so, wear the hell out of ‘em and get a new pair next season.
27
May
It is said that the men who belong to Olga Berluti’s Swann Club polish their shoes with Venetian linen dipped in Dom Pérignon and expose them to the light of the full moon, but that is false. It is the quartermoon that is important, Berluti explains: “The moon gives transparency to leather. The sun burns; the moon burnishes.” More about the Swann Club (named for the protagonist of Proust’sRemembrance of Things Past) later. For now, know that Olga Berluti is the creative director of, and designs handmade, exorbitantly expensive men’s shoes for, the company that bears her family name.
Olga Berluti loves men’s feet—a passion, not a fetish, she says. The passion began with her convent schooling in Italy. A long corridor led to the chapel and a 14th-century statue of Christ. “I would approach the altar,” she remembers. “The nailed feet of Christ were exactly on the same level as my eyes. I stared and stared. I said to myself: When I am older, I will remove the nails. I will relieve the suffering of men’s feet.”
Berluti, small and slight with short black hair and eyes so dark they seem to be all pupil, does not seem tethered to the ground. She lives simply, does not eat meat and does not wear leather (“My life is flesh and blood already”). She wears only natural fibers—always white. On her feet: white cotton sneakers in summer, white wool shoes in winter. She is an ascetic in a universe of extravagance. “I sublimate myself. I suffer. I have spent my life at men’s feet,” says Olga, Our Lady of Shoes.
Olga Berluti, Our Lady of Shoes
She speaks in Celtic rune and Delphic pronouncement. “Man is a vagabond deluxe. We are moving through to the perfection of gesture,” she says. So what if the utterances make little sense. We are talking mystique and shoes with the chiaroscuro of a Caravaggio. We are talking shoes with the sleek, menacing profile of a mako shark, shoes decorated with piercings, tattoos, sometimes scars. They are shoes, she says, for the hidden warrior inside every man. Shoes, also, for the man with four to twelve thousand dollars to spend on a made-to-order dream.
Her atelier, in an 18th-century building in Paris’s Marais, is a stage set. A shoemaker’s bench with rows of apothecary bottles sits in the corner. Do the bottles contain essence of sorrow? Tincture of pain? No, merely fragrant oils and dyes. The lasts—she calls them ex-votos—of Berluti’s famous clientele rest on low tables. There are lasts that belonged to Pablo Picasso (“We made his sandals”); Jean Cocteau (“He liked to wear shoes without socks”); Andy Warhol (“He asked for his right loafer to be patched—and be very visible”).
Once a year Olga Berluti invites clients to the Swann Club soiree, a black-tie affair, with champagne, not just to drink, but to clean shoes. Their annual nighttime soiree begins with a great meal, some port and cigars, and then moves to what they all came for. After dinner, guests remove their shoes, take out their tins of wax polish, and clear the tables. With only stockings on their feet, they wrap fine Venetian linens around their fingers, dip them in Dom Perignon, and begin to shine their shoes. ”The alcohol makes them shine, but it must be chilled; it must be a very dry, a grand champagne.”
Berluti Swann Club dinner, of course its black tie
In Olga Berluti’s world, the relationship between man and shoe is complex. “Shoes adopt and tame you, and you adopt and tame them, like domesticating a wild animal,” she says. “You buy a pair of shoes you adore, but they are too edgy, too avant-garde. Perhaps your wife made you buy them. You put them away, and little by little this style, this color you’re not used to seeps in. You buy a jacket that goes with them, or a different color shirt. One day, you realize you have become the man your wife envisioned. The shoes revealed something new, something unexpected in you.”
But is not to take off one’s shoes to reveal something not so lovely, something, in fact, rather ugly—that is to say, one’s feet? The writer offers her own as an example.
Olga Berluti does not flinch. She reaches to cradle the feet. “No, no,” she says passionately. “There are no ugly feet. Feet are spiritual. They enable man to stand up. They free his hands. Now, he can look at the stars.”
If I were being cynical, I would say the Swann Club is just a clever marketing ploy. Perhaps doubly so since LVMH conveniently owns both Berluti and Dom Perignon. If I were not, I would say it’s an event put on for enthusiasts by a woman who shares their passion. The reality, I imagine, is that it’s probably something a bit of both. The Swann Club meets intermittently in Paris and occasionally in London or New York. Businessmen, artists, captains of industry, entrepreneurs, and a few certifiable lunatics are amongst its members. For what it’s worth, you don’t have to bring a pair of Berluti shoes to the event (or even own one), but you do have to have an obsession for well-made footwear.
The grandiosity of the whole thing might sound silly to outsiders, but as a men’s style and clothing enthusiast, I must say I’m attracted to the idea. It’s a bit over the top and romantic, but so what? Those are the things that make life feel a bit less dull.
I read on Ethan Desu’s blog once that he and a friend like to get together every once a while, have some tea, chat about life, and shine their shoes for a few hours. That scale of things is equally attractive to me, if not more so. Unfortunately, except for a couple of people I’ve met in my time as a menswear writer, I don’t know anyone who shares my interest in traditional men’s clothing. Certainly not enough to shine shoes for three or four hours. So, for now, I’ll continue to shine mine alone on weekends, while listening to Bill Evans and drinking a bit of whiskey. It’s not in Paris, and I use water, not champagne, but it’s relaxing and enjoyable nonetheless. Perhaps I’ll call mine the Ephrussi Club, named after Charles Ephrussi, the man who Swann was loosely modeled after.
THE (SHOE) RULES
I - Few things make a man feel more like a man then a shoeshine before 9:00 a.m.
II - Always buy your shoes after 2:00 p.m., when your feet have swollen to their maximum measurement.
III - Cheap shoes look best in black.
02
Apr
High button boots were the dominant boot style for men and women through the end of the 19th century and fell out of favor after WWI. Efficient and cost-effective sewing machines specialized for button attachment brought button boots into mass production in the 1880s. Elias Howe first patented a hand-cranked lockstitch sewing machine for cloth in 1845, leading to a proliferation of sewing devices designed for specific tasks. After 10 years of development James Morley, a sewing machine salesman from Massachusetts, began to patent industrial button-sewing devices adapting an existing automated eyelet feeder to feed buttons into his stitcher. He started manufacturing buttons to fit his machines and soon with the manufacturing problems remedied high-button boots became the fashion icon of the era and a hallmark of the industrial revolution.
19th century shoe laster making a high-button boot by hand
Queen Victoria was crowned at age 18 in 1837 and the queens style was automatic fashion. Stylish American women were quick to adopt her preference for low-heeled ankle boots. By mid-century, the queen’s tastes made boots the preferred footwear of both men and women. Ankle boots even replaced velvet Prince Albert slippers for formal wear. The trade name for copies of Queen Victoria’s favorite boot was Balmoral or The Bal, after a vacation home her husband, Prince Albert, purchased for her in Scotland. The Balmoral was a square-toed boot, laced at the front, with toe and ankle trim of a darker color than the vamp (upper). This image of being well-dressed in boots set the stage for the high-button shoes to come. As women’s hemlines rose to the ankle, Queen Victoria’s flat boots morphed to include side buttons and overlapped edges that obscured the actual closure allowing women to wear the smallest possible size, even if their flesh bulged over the tops of the boots under their skirt. They quickly became deregur for anyone in the know.
(L) an ad for the Wilkins One Prong button fastener, promises not to mangle the boot (R) vintage sterling silver button hook
Although button boots were gorgeous they proved difficult to put on and take of with so many tiny buttons so, the button hook was invented to ease the trouble of the fashionably inclined. At first these hooks were luxury items for the rich made from silver and jewels making it easier to fasten and unfasten the custom button boots. The hooks became almost a marker of status, but as the boots became more common with mass production the hooks starting being produced in larger numbers as well and quickly became a regular dressing accessory.
a variety of edwardian era mens footwear. many with button fasteners
Apart from being attractive and fashionable, button boots were considered functional in that they were more secure than laced boots because they didn’t have the ability to come unlaced or loosen with wear through the day. Certainly there were many other styles of boots available, but just a quick browse through any antique fashion magazine will reveal that the high-button boot was considered the upmost in 19th century footwear. Just after the turn of the 20th century, advertisements for a wholesale direct distributor, the W. L. Douglas Company of Brockton, Massachusetts, advised purchasers that every gentleman required only three pairs of shoes to “dress his feet properly on all occasions.” He needed lace shoes for cold and rainy weather. He needed Oxfords for warm sunny days. For dress and street wear, all he needed was a pair of patent Corona button shoes.
Ernest Shackleton rocking button boots with his dinner suit or tuxedo for the modern audience
The high button boot lingered until World War I although with less popularity. In 1914, rationing of leather and other goods necessary to production and a move toward more functional forms pushed button boots to the side and frugality took hold. Although high-button boots held on in affluent circles, the September 25, 1933 issue of “Time” magazine published the death of the high-button shoe, as pronounced by President Roosevelt during his first year in office. The president had read through the Department of Labor’s cost-of-living index, which was used to adjust federal employees’ wages, after seeing high-button shoes among indexed items the president ordered the department’s statisticians to revise the index’s list to reflect a contemporary selection of consumer items. The high-button shoe was officially out and so ended the fashion worlds long standing love affair with this most glorious style.
These days finding a quality pair is very difficult. Your options are down to custom or vintage and both come with their own down sides. There is one other possibility through a Japanese company which is making very high quality formail high-button boots but, at the price they are asking you’d be better off getting custom. Either way, I thinka nice pair of would give an awesome unexpected bit of interest to formal wear these days when some many people are just doing it wrong. If I had the money you know I would have a pair.
If your curious about that Japanese company their website is here
11
Dec
The word brogue goes all the way back to the sixteenth century in the British Isles. It is actually a derivation of the Scotch/Irish Gaelic word brōg meaning shoe and brók from Old Norse meaning leg covering. The shoes are so closely linked with the cultures of the Scotch and the Irish that their name as been used as the slang term for the strong recognizable accent of the region. Modern brogues have their roots in pure function. Their early ancestor was a boot made from heavy, untanned leather that was perforated so that the shoes could drain easily like a sieve, and a thick sole for stomping around the country side.
Brooklyn Circus modern brogue boots via Selectism.com
Much of the highlands of Scotland and Ireland, the homeland of the brogue, are covered with sodden fields, bogs and marshes making it a very wet, not to mention uncomfortable place to trod unless you are properly prepared. Since shoes were anything but water tight before the goodyear welt was perfected in 1869 easy drainage was a crucial part of the design of shoes in the isles. Especially since many of the people who lived in Scotland and Ireland lived by hunting, shepharding, and farming, spending much of their slogging through the damp hills. Without drainage, shoes would fill with water, becoming heavy and unpleasant to wear. Over time, this rudimentary heavy work shoe came to be associated specifically with the working classes and country living because of its humble beginnings.
the birthplace of the country brogue. the Scottish highlands in fall
country brogues from one of the original English cobblers Grenson with a fat
As technologies improved the traditional rudimentary form of the brogue evolved into a more formal shoe while still retaining the perforations, or broguing, and the traditional low heel but, losing the function, making the perforations simply decorative. The actual term brogue wasn’t coined until the 20th century when the shoe had been refined to where gentlemen started to wear them during their country outings. Seeing how resilient this peasant footwear was and not wanting to ruin their finer foot wear while relaxing at their country estates the gentry adopted brogues as a sort of homage to the noble peasant. Though they did gain in popularity in the country no respectable person would be caught dead wearing them in the city or while conducting buisness.
modern brogues in the city
Today, brogues seem to be the shoe of the moment. To go along with everything working class being brought back and dressed up brogues are going with dry selvedge denim and breton stripe shirts in design firms all across the US. Whether or not peoples style choices are valid is not the point though, the renewed popularity of the brogue means that they are easily found at just about every price point and color. So, go out and find a pair that feels good and do be afraid to scuff them up and get a little muddy. After all that is what they are for.
02
Oct
Most people have probably heard by now desert boots have their origins firmly in the fringes of the Sahara along the coast of North Africa during the second world war. The allies moved into north Africa in June of 1940 to push back the Italians after they declared war but, soon the German Afrika Korps and the Vichy French forces took over control. The African theater, although often over looked, was hard fought and included some very important battles, ending with the stage being set to push into Italy and eventually central Europe.
the British 8th army marching toward Tripoli, Libya through the desert in January 1943
As you can imagine the north African environment was not a friendly one for the Americans and northern Europeans sent to defend it. Not only did it take its toll on the soldiers fighting but on their equipment and gear as well. The heavy, hard-leather boots that the British troops had been issued were soon sand-blasted to almost nothing while the sun burned and bleached anything it touched. The US army, on the other hand, issued, around the same time they entered the war, an ankle high field shoe with a suede finish. Supposedly, the suede would breath better and also be able to absorb weather finishes better then the hard tanned version. They also took less time to break in in the field. The M-43 type III or ‘roughouts’ as they came to be known among the army service men, Boondockers by the US Marines, came to be a favorite of the African campaign.
(L) reproduction US Army M-43 type III roughout boots (R) Steve McQueen in the great escape with his roughouts
But, the Americans weren’t the only ones who realized lighter and softer would be an asset in this new environment. The British 8th army, stationed in north Africa for much of the war, was infamous for its very casual adherence to army uniform regulations. As their army issue gear disintegrated in the sands of the Sahara and resupplies were few and far between in the desolate war torn desert they had replacements made in the local markets adding their own improvements. The legend of the desert boot places it in the fabled Old Bazaar in Cairo but, it could have just as easily been a souk in Morocco or market in Algiers. Either way soldiers commissioned local craftsmen to make them soft, simple boots with a suede finish, like the USGIs boots, and utilized the natural plantation rubber crepe for the soles.
British 7th armoured division or the “desert rats” under foot inspection with their heavily worn boots, North Africa, WWII
Following the Second World War, a young Nathan Clark was serving in Burma with the West African Brigade when some of these simple ‘desert boots’ caught his eye. Their conspicuous comfort stuck with Nathan and when he returned to England he moved quickly to create a Clarks version. The first Clarks desert boot to hit America was released in 1950 at the Chicago Shoe Fair after a few years of success in Europe. The simple modern style of Clarks Desert Boots appealed to the Mods in the 60s but, could just as easily be worn with a pair of Levis giving it broad appeal. Plus, the fact that it was designed for the desert where it has to be able to stand up to extreme heat and cold gave it the versatility any good shoe should have. Soon, the fashion of the revolution came full circle and in 1967 the Deputy Leader of the House of Lords, Lord Shackleton, came back from Aden wearing a pair of locally made desert boots. Desert boots quickly became mainstream fashion in the UK and among American college students and when Shackleton returned to Aden he did so with a list of orders from several government ministers for pairs of the endlessly comfortable boot.
(L) Nathan Clark with his Desert Boot (R) Jimmy Cooper from Quadrophenia rocking roughouts in all their MOD glory
Ever since, this soft, floppy, ankle high boot has become something of an icon. Clarks reintroduced the desert boot a few years ago, as part of the Clarks Originals range getting there piece of the nostalgia movement blowing up across the fashion industry. Although deserts boots were born in the heat they make equally good early fall wear as long as it stay moderately dry and they can give a bit of interest to an otherwise average outfit. Finally one of the great things about items of military history like this, they only get better with wear.
13
Aug
For all of you who know me, you already know this one is near and dear to me. I have grown up in and with VANS for most of my life. At one point people knew me by my shoes. I have owned many a pair and worn all of them until they have literally fallen off my feet only to go buy another pair. So, bringing a bit of knowledge about this great company is especially fun for me.
a pair of my old checks from college
Most people know that VANS has its origins in mid 60’s southern Californian lore but, few know that it was founded by a middle school drop out from Boston with a long history in shoe making. Mr. Paul Van Doren took a business trip out to California from Boston to straighten out an inefficient factory for his the company he had been working for for the last 20 years, Randy’s Shoe Co., in the early 60’s and after 6 months not only had he whipped the tired factory into shape but he had an idea. Randy’s had always been strictly manufacturing and he had seen how small the profit margins were and how all the money was going to the retailers. His dream was to run a shoe company that controlled both the manufacturing and retail sides of the business thus maximizing his profits. So, in 1965 he picked up his family and moved cross country to Pasadena where in 1966, with the help of his business partners Serge D’Ella and Gordy Lee, he founded the Van Doren Rubber Company.
original Van Doren Rubber Company boxes
Now, to put this into perspective. Starting a small shoe company 3000 miles from home and with little local knowledge is pretty ballsy but, if you realize that before the Van Doren Rubber Company there were only three American companies to make vulcanized rubber footwear, Randy’s, Keds, and Converse, you start to see how big of a cliff the Van Dorens were stepping off. But, the big leap paid off and in March of 1966 the Van Doren Rubber Company store opened its doors with seven shoes and a wall filled with empty boxes. That first day 16 people walked into that Pasadena shop and ordered shoes to be picked up the next day (since none of them had been made yet). Over night all 16 pairs were made in the factory behind the shop and the next day all 16 were picked up, marking the beginning of the VANS brand. By the fourth day of business the boxes were all filled and VANS was off and running.
original Van Doren Rubber Company factory at 704 East Broadway in Pasadena California, 1966
VANS custom shoe program began as soon as the shop had found its feet. It was as simple as a lady coming into the shop and wanting a brighter shade of pink. Now, of course Mr. Van Doren couldn’t be making shoes in every shade in the Pantone book but, he made an offer that would quickly solve the problem, if the lady brought him fabric she liked he would make her a pair of shoes. The customs quickly became a huge part of the companies business with teams coming to get matching shoes and kids ordering their schools colors. When a pattern or color set was ordered enough it would make its way into the VANS cannon making for an every growing pallet of color combinations offered in the store.
modern VANS customs ad
It wasn’t until the mid 70’s when the VANS company got connected in a serious way with the growing skateboard movement. Hooking up with the boys down the street in Santa Monica, Tony Alva and Stacey Peralta of Dogtown fame became the first spokesmen for VANS and took the brand around the country. The now infamous ‘Off the Wall’ logo didn’t appear until March of 1976 with the release of VANS first skate shoe, the Sk8 Hi, with its padded ankle cuff. These seem like trivial things today but, developing shoes designed with the needs of skateboarders in mind was unheard of. Skateboarding was still a very counterculture thing to be doing and VANS got in the middle of it by pure luck with their proximity to the epicenter.
Steve Cabellero in VANS Sk8 Hi’s rippin’ in the pool c. 1980
In 1979 VANS got their big break. They were already do very well throughout southern California and selling some at skate events around the country through their sponsers but, in 1979 two big things happened; first the VANS slip-on, based on an older shoe developed by Randy’s back when Paul worked there, was introduced and, second pre-production for a little movie called Fast Times at Ridgemont High began. The slip-ons were an instant success among the high school set and like most things high schoolers wear soon were defaced with various sharpied designs. Steve Van Doren, Paul’s son, happened to be one of these sharpie armed teenagers and soon brought an idea to his father, checkerboard shoes. The rest is history.
Fast Times at Ridgemont High original movie poster with Jeff Spicoli (L) and album cover with Spicoli’s shoes (R)
Fast Times at Ridgemont High was released in 1982 with Jeff Spicoli on the poster and his shoes, original VANS checkerboard slip-ons, on the the album cover. From then on there was no stopping VANS. Of course there were some money problems in the 80’s and 90’s, and the company eventual changed hands a couple of times but, it has stayed on point dishing out hot steaming west coast spirit around the world in the form of a simple volcanized rubber-canvas shoe.
well loved VANS authentics at the beach house
Like I mentioned before, I have a long standing relationship with VANS. I remember the crazy printed canvas era of the slip-on. I have always owned at least a pair of slip-ons and usually a pair of authentics. I know that not everyone can be comfortable in checks and there is definitely an age limit in my opinion but, VANS is so much more then just the patterns. The simple canvas authentics, in my opinion, are one of the best summer canvas shoe options out there. They come in every color and last forever. So, go out and get your self a piece of Pacific coast history and wear them until they fall off.
12
Jun
The romance and beauty of Baja and northern Mexico are once again showing up in summer collections. The patterns and traditional designs that originally found their way to popularity among the surfing set in the ’60s are being reformulated and turned around for the modern audience. I mean what better place to look for comfortable laid back beach wear then the Pacific coast of Mexico. One of the oldest and the most iconic footwear to ever come out of the rugged coast is of course, Huaraches (hu-RAH-cheez).
early rudimentary Huaraches
Huarache sandles date back to pre-columbian history and the early days of the P’urhépecha people in western mexico. The word Huarache is actually an English derivation of the original P’urhépecha word kwarachi meaning, simply, sandal. These early versions were made from scraps of leather woven together with a simple leather sole. Over the centuries tanning techniques improved and vegetable dyes began to be introduced but, it wasn’t until the 20th century that these distinctive sandals got their most memorable touch.
R tire tread on early-style Huaraches L beat up, worn in, Huaraches.
With the explosion in the automobile industry after World War I due to Henry Fords advances in the development of the production line and mass production another new product became readily available. Used tires became a cheap and simple way to acquire durable vulcanized synthetic rubber. The enterprising Mexican sandal makers saw an opportunity and started cutting rubber soles out of the tread of old discarded tires and sewing them to their leather woven Huaraches. This new breed of sandal was an amazing improvement from the soft leather soled version. Not only did they have solid soles that could last 40,000 miles but they also had tread which at the time was a pretty novel concept in general for shoes. It has been said that Huaraches with tire soles started showing up in Mexican markets around 1936 which historically makes sense although is impossible to confirm.
It wasn’t until the the late ’50s, when surfing really blew up in California, that the most hardcore of the southern California surfers started treking further south into Baja to find new, less crowded breaks to master. Soon they started bringing back some of the native style from down the coast. Comfortable, utilitarian clothes in bold colors and sun-bleached stripes quickly took hold across California. Along with the blankets, sweatshirts, shorts and hats they brought back these new, stronger, longer lasting sandals that the Mexicans swore by. And so, over night Huaraches made landfall in California. Huaraches were such an improvement from the cheap rubber flip-flops that many surfers had been wearing that the transition didn’t take long. In 1964, Surfing magazine ran an article called “Surf-ari to Baja,” a travel piece about how surfers, in search of prime breaks without the SoCal crowds, found a new paradise in the remote beaches of Baja California. After that, it wasn’t long before the rush to Baja began and the Baja surfer style became mainstream, spreading all the way up the chain.
Baja boom. Surfer with his Baja Beetle c. 1960s
Along with counter-culture, Huaraches faded into the background in the mid-70s but, were not forgotten by the baby boomers who loved them. Since they last forever many people continued to wear theirs for decades to come. Today, seaside-loving labels like Riviera Club, NSF and the Burkman Bros. are bringing back that throwback Baja style. I have been wearing my Huaraches for almost ten years now and they only get better with age. The greatest thing about them is that although Baja style is back very few people are making the Huaraches.
my beautifully worn Huaraches straight off my feet
This summer get out of those nasty flip flops and get a sandal that is both comfortable and stylish. The originals are sold online here or, if you live near the boarder, road trip south and get the real thing the way those original surfing pioneers did and get the full experience. There are few things better then Baja tacos and horchata on the beach. Vaya con dios my friends. Go out and enjoy the sun.
13
Dec
One of the many heritage new england shoe making names, L.B. Evans goes back to the early years of the 19th century. Although it wasnt until 1841 when the second generation of Evans took on the trade that the L.B. Evans name was established. The tradition continued for well over a hundred years and is know owned and operated by the Daniel Green shoe company which has its own storied history.
My dad has owned a pair of the Imperial Deer slippers from L.B. Evans for as long as I can remember. On long weekends and winter evenings they always make an appearance. The warm, dark brown leather, stained with years of wear. Perfectly broken-in so that every contour of his feet show in them.
Although L.B. Evans slippers and now made in China and, according the the forums of the interwebs, the quality is not what it once was, I will still be ordering a pair for myself very soon. You can buy a pair of the new ones at the Daniel Green website. www.danielgreen.com and break them in for yourself. Every man needs a good pair of slippers, why shouldnt they be sleek and attractive.
01
Dec
The duck boot is a perennial classic. Originally introducted by Mr. L.L. Bean himself back in 1912. It was one of the first products that L.L. Bean produced and became a quick favorite among ivy leaguers and people living in the cool wet north.
Personally I have been looking for the right pair for a long time but, I have never lived some where so cold that I need the heavy leather version. So, when I saw the reinterpreted version that L.L. Bean released this year design by that guy from Rogues Gallery, Alex Carleton, it was a shew in for the want list.
The original duck boots, so called for there love of puddles and rainy days, looked more like this, with the heavy leather upper.
Not fully water proof at the top but very close. I think I prefer the lighter weight waxed canvas version but the originals definitely still have a certain panache.
via dieworkwear