We’re seeing a huge influx of red, white and blue sneakers for the Olympic summer, designs referencing both the United States and its past glories, as well as those designs inspired by this year’s host nation. The first from Off the Wall is this 430 BMX x Vans Japan capsule leaning more on the latter side, a couple of Far East action sports concerns coming together to craft a trio of London-flavored red-and-white-accented navy blue silos. The Vans Sk8-Mid, Chukka Low and what’s likely a San Lucas slide have been blocked identically and each feature 430 branding on the footbed; do any of these stand out enough to warrant importing them upon next month’s release? via Unbar
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It appears that our ‘Classics Revisited’ segments have had a direct effect on our Sneaker News Blogs: WDYWT regulars, because three of the five Air Max 1s featured last week have popped up in this week’s Top 20! Furthermore, a sneakerhead out in the Netherlands shows us that he’s got the Air Force 1 game on complete lockdown, because three of his inclusions were worthy of this week’s twenty best (and we even left a couple out). The Reebok Question has been a trending sneaker, so we decided to cluster three sick Mid colorways as one. This week’s Sneaker News Blogs: Best of WDYWT is definitely one you shouldn’t miss out on, because we’ve got plenty more from Puma, Converse, Fila, and a plethora of Nike fire, so check ‘em all out below and vote for your fave at the very end!
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Didn’t we already see a Nike SB Dunk Mid covered in Bill Jordan’s Realtree Camo prints? Longtime Sneaker News readers will be able to point you back to October 2010 when Dunks and Bruins dropped featuring unique camouflage prints, and now here comes a couple of new drops with more than a passing resemblance. The Realtree x Thrasher Buchanan Dog looks so familiar because this mita sneakers x Kicks Lab collaboration applies a similar print to lines that are clearly inspired by the Dunk lineage (and its imitators). Like all the Thrasher kicks so far, these will be hard to find in the US; will you make the effort to import them after seeing more images below? Photos: mita sneakers
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About two months ago, Sneaker News gave you a first look at an upcoming four-pack of classic Pumas bearing the name ‘Takumi’. This isn’t a designer or a Tokyo boutique, but rather, the Japanese word for “artisan”, a reference to the quality on these Japan-built Ralph Sampson hightops. The Puma RS ‘Takumi’ comes in a couple of colorways reminiscent of the Nike Basketball Elite Series, but their simple leather construction makes clear the fact these aren’t a modern performance model. They’re better suited to those times when you want to sneak your kicks into a ‘classy’ environment, and they’re available now at select Japanese retailers like mita sneakers.
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Anyone who’s ever dusted their shoulders off knows that ESPN’s on the screen at the 40/40 Club, but on the other side of the world, you can expect to see classic runners on display. No, Jay-Z didn’t switch themes for a new nightclub in Asia. Rather, it’s Nike Sportswear who comes through with the ‘Cortez 40/40′ campaign, a massive Nike Cortez 40th anniversary celebration including eight artists each from five different SE Asian nations. The Thai editions included designs from indie record label Smallroom, streetwear magazine Cheeze Looker, fashion label Painkiller, jewelry-makers Missile, clothing designers Him & Her, party promoter CMYK, illustrator Pomme Chan and photographer Chardchakaj Waikawee of ‘Around Me’ YouTube fame. You can see the entire collection after the jump below; let us know which is your favorite and stay tuned for the designs from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. via ST
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Hot on the heels of Tom Sachs’ space-themed collaboration and the accompanying 1948 London installation comes another inventive display from Nike, this time in Tokyo’s O-Yane Plaza. That’s where you’ll find ‘The Super Natural Ride’, an exhibition celebrating the ‘barefoot plus’ capabilities bestowed upon those who rock Nike Free from point A to point B. The visuals range from grass sculpted lettering to eye-popping multimedia displays, and you can get a sense for what it’d be like to visit in more details after the jump. Let us know what you think and if there’s a sneaker event you’ve witnessed that was even crazier. via FRESHNESS
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Even if you aren’t a student of the Chinese zodiac, your sneakerhead curiosity all but ensures you recognize this as the Year of the Dragon. And although we know that Nike Sportswear has another ‘YOTD’ Air Force 1 Low (at least in a sample form), another brand has just issued a collaboration that claims to be ‘The Last Dragon’ The HKIT x Vans Half Cab Pro comes in a fierce Chicago-style mix of nubuck and glossy lizard scales, a look whose red laces and sockliner come off as the design’s fire-breathing tongue. These dropped today (actually, last night in HK local time) and though these are unlikely to hit US retailers, we have more images after the jump below. Additional photo: HB
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Given Vans’ own status as the standard of California cool, it only makes sense that they’d team up with a local brand with a similar outlook on life. The thing is, though, Standard California is actually a Japanese clothing label, but that in no way impedes them from getting right at the core of the Off the Wall style. This Standard California x Vans Authentic comes off as an left field homage to a dearly admired style, its old school/Vault-style tag and conspicuously placed checkerboard pattern the equivalent of a perfect distillation of the Vans style that’s been garbled in translation. There’s no mistaking these for any other brand, and you’ll only be able to find them at Japanese retailers like Intention Line.
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