Vans x Disney – Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas” Pack (10.4.19)

Oct 1 19 under Collaborations, General Release, Girls, Kids | Comments Off

DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning when you click the links and make a purchase, we receive a commission.

Words via Vans:

Vans invites all ghouls, ghosts and goblins to celebrate the holidays with Halloween Town’s most beloved characters, announcing the release of a special collection inspired by Disney Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas”. With a 10-piece footwear offering complimented by a range of apparel and accessories, Vans designers highlight a variety of film moments and character bounding interpretations that honors Vans and Disney’s long collaboration. The Vans and Disney Tim Burton’s “A Nightmare Before Christmas” collection goes on-sale October 4 and invites fans to step into the imagination and artistry of the cult-classic film.

Arguably the most iconic scene, Jack’s Lament is featured on the Sk8-Hi with each of the four panels showcasing a frame from Jack’s walk through the Halloween Town cemetery. A special message that reads “Nice Work, Bone Daddy” on the inside collar completes the design. Additionally, the Jack Pull Over Hoodie features a special rendition of Jack’s Lament with a Checkerboard spiral hill.

Disney bounding fans can channel the film’s beloved couple, Jack Skellington and Sally. The Pumpkin King’s ghostly suit including cat and bat wing applique is mimicked on the Classic Slip-On, while Dr. Finkelstein’s master humanoid creation, Sally, receives her very own Era Stacked silhouette and Sally Patchwork Crew. Inspired by her very creation, each style is collaged with various prints from her dress while the Era Stacked features hand-stitched detailed as a nod to Sally’s unique beauty.

The Classic Slip-On and long sleeve tee will showcase emblematic elements from Oogie Boogie’s underground lair, including dice and skull graphics on the sidewall and sleeves of each silhouette. Honoring his place in the moonlit night, fans will find Oogie Boogie’s shadow peeking from the sidewall of the Classic Slip-On. Not to be forgotten, Oogie Boogie’s trio of henchmen – Lock, Shock and Barrel can be found on the Old Skool and panels of an Era.

Vans will combine all-day comfort and classic style with the ComfyCush Authentic which will feature all of the characters from the film layered on a Checkerboard backdrop. Halloween Town favorites can be found through a variety of different designs and product offerings available for fans of all ages with friendly features including elastic laces, zip closure and glow-in-the-dark elements made for the youngest ghouls of Halloween Town.

The Vans and Disney Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas” collection will be available to shop in Vans dealers, Vans stores and Vans.com/nightmare beginning October 4.

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Vans – City TRL (Available Now!)

Sep 26 19 under General Release | Comments Off

DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning when you click the links and make a purchase, we receive a commission.

All new this season, Vans introduces a modern generation of all-terrain shoes with the City TRL. Built to withstand the elements, the City TRL allows you to commute in comfort. The design offers fresh aesthetics, increased functionality and all-day comfort, wherever your path may lead and regardless of the elements you may encounter along the way.

Anchoring the truly original design is Vans’ latest rubber technology, SmartRubber, designed for optimum grip and cushioning on any terrain in every season. A heavily paneled upper allows for a unique mix of materials and colors that draw on both elements of nature and urban environments. And for maximum support capable of lasting the entire duration of whatever adventure you’re on, Vans designers deliver a fully integrated heel clip with style. Three colorways complete the collection, including grape leaf, black and white.

The Vans’ City TRL retails for $110 USD and is available now. To learn more and to purchase, please click on the pic above or HERE.

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Vans x CoppaFeel! – Breast Cancer Awareness Month Collection (Coming Soon!)

Sep 25 19 under Collaborations | Comments Off

In honor of breast cancer awareness month, Vans is proud to release a collection designed to not only educate youth on checking their breasts and early detection but to showcase the beauty and strength of those impacted or touched by breast cancer. Available starting October 1, 2019, at least $200,000 USD of the proceeds from the Vans Breast Cancer Awareness collection will benefit CoppaFeel! – a UK-based breast cancer awareness charity that promotes early detection and encourages young people to better know their bodies.

“For our charity, this collaboration with Vans is a dream come true,” says Kris Hallenga, founder of CoppaFeel!. “We are thrilled for the opportunity to spread our message across Vans’ audience, as this partnership will allow us to tell more people why checking their boobs is so important, and in return, save lives. CoppaFeel! exists to stamp out the late detection of breast cancer by educating everyone – girls, boys and non-binary pals about their boobs and encourage them to get anything abnormal checked out.”

Hear more about Kris and CoppaFeel!: Here

Created by a group of Vans designers, all graphics and illustrations used in the collection were designed in-house to promote inclusion, representation and empowerment. “The illustration style uses simple shapes and minimal linework to highlight the bold use of color and the unity of interlocking figures. Breast Cancer is a disease that affects everyone regardless of their race or status, and we wanted the women in the illustrations to reflect this reality,” says Diandre Fuentes, Vans Footwear designer. “By partnering with CoppaFeel!, we can not only showcase the beauty of the women who have breast cancer but provide education to break the taboos of early cancer detection and encourage consumers to check themselves and advocate for their health needs.”

The footwear, apparel and accessories feature four main designs all centered around breasts. Hand drawn ladies of all shapes and colors showcase the mass reach of breast cancer uniting them through the power of self-checking. A positive affirmation of “You’ve Got This” is grounded by a subtle breast inclusion while a literal blueprint showcases ways to perform self-examinations. Finally, designers took Vans’ iconic Checkerboard pattern updating it with nudes of all colors to celebrate the strength of everyone who has been diagnosed or is impacted by breast cancer.

The Vans Breast Cancer Awareness collection is available for men, women and children, because breast cancer impacts everyone. Join Vans and CoppaFeel! this October as we raise awareness, provide education and empower our consumers to know their bodies. Visit Vans.com/bca to learn more about CoppaFeel! and to shop the collection.

DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning when you click the links and make a purchase, we receive a commission.

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House of Vans Announces Philadelphia Pop-Up (Oct. 10-13, 2019)

Sep 24 19 under Bands, Events | 1 Comment

House of Vans announces its latest destination arriving in Philadelphia, PA October 10-13, 2019. Vans will transform the industrial warehouse at 404 N. 2nd Street, 19123, into a cultural hub to celebrate art, music, action sports and street culture bringing Vans’ “Off The Wall” ethos to life. With an array of curated programming free to the community, this unique pop-up experience will be the first in Philly, following other successful House of Vans pop-ups around the world including, Paris, Berlin, Toronto, Hong Kong, Mexico City and Detroit along with permanent House of Vans locations in Chicago and London.

“Philly has a rich cultural history in music, a gifted artistic community, and a heritage in skateboarding synonymous across the world,” said Brooke Burt, Vans’ Senior Manager of Lifestyle Brand Marketing. “It is truly an honor to bring House of Vans to life in Philadelphia alongside this incredibly creative and inspiring community.”

The House of Vans Philly pop-up will kick-off Thursday, October 10 with a concert featuring hometown heroes including rapper, singer and songwriter Tierra Whack, indie-rockers Hop Along and multi-instrumentalist Orion Sun. Music continues through the weekend with dreamy electronic rock duo Phantogram, house artist Channel Tres and eclectic, indie-folk pop band Y La Bamba owning the mainstage on Friday, October 11.

Vans Sidestripe Sessions – Anderson .Paak

Sep 24 19 under Bands, Collaborations, Videos | Comments Off

Vans, the original action sports brand and advocate for creative expression, is proud to have Grammy Award Winning Artist, Anderson .Paak perform his hit singles “6 Summers” and “King James” as part of Vans’ global music content series, Vans Sidestripe Sessions.

Sidestripe Sessions features different artists across all musical genres ranging from punk, experimental, indie to hip hop all filmed in a giant Vans shoe box with a rotating backdrop of art installations. Celebrating creative diversity in music and art, the video highlights Vans’ extended family of musicians through a two-song performance. Vans welcomed Grammy award-winning artist, Anderson .Paak to step into the shoe box to perform “6 Summers” off his third studio album, Oxnard and a live rendition of “King James” his latest single from the highly acclaimed album, Ventura alongside members from his band, The Free Nationals.

As part of the experience, Anderson .Paak has selected visual artist, Dewey Sanders to transform the Vans shoe box with a Venice fueled art installation using his personal brand of psychedelia. With a pastel color palette, and bizarre juxtapositions, Sanders arranges a collection images that pay homage to the city that Anderson .Paak calls home.

Tune in to Vans Sidestripe Session at youtube.com/Vans now to catch his latest performance.

Vans – Waffle Coaster 4-Pack (Available Now!)

Sep 20 19 under Merchandise | Comments Off

DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning when you click the links and make a purchase, we receive a commission.

Check out these dope new coasters from Vans! Finally, what has always been a rare promo item, is now available for sale for $25. Available now by clicking on the pics above! (Glass not included though!)

Vans x Opening Ceremony – Snakeskin Lampin (Available Now!)

Sep 20 19 under Collaborations | Comments Off

Words via Opening Ceremony:

“The Vans for Opening Ceremony Snake Lampin Sneaker, a 90s-inspired skate shoe, is updated with a sleek, faux snakeskin surface. The glossy, textured surface in various colors covers the entire upper and sole for a fresh, monochromatic look.” Available in 4 colorways: Fairy Wren, Chili Pepper, Princess Blue, and True White.

Blends CM x Under The Palms – Meet The Waffleheads (Event Recap!)

Sep 17 19 under Collaborations, Events, Friends, OTWS, UTP, Waffleheads | Comments Off

This past Thursday we co-hosted our first of hopefully many meet and greets, to celebrate Vans culture in a way unlike any other culture out there. Some sneaker brands organize their communities around an outdoor activity, a basketball tournament, a sneaker convention of sorts, etc. Something that represents their demographic and their style. Well, it’s kind of hard to put a finger on what exactly our Vans sneaker community is, and perhaps that’s the best part about it. Like the campaign slogan a few years back, “Not Just One Thing”, so as are we. When Julz, Nobu, and I first started talking about an idea of doing an event, we had no direction, and nothing to build off of, and it sorta’ got put on the back burner a few times. Well, as Vans started rolling out the WAFFLEHEADS campaign, and my name started popping up, that started to provide us with some inspiration. The Blends CM crew decided we should host an event for me, showcasing some of my collection, similar to how some of my pairs are currently on display in Chicago and in NYC at two of Vans’ flagship stores, but we’d try to add another layer to it, by also hosting a social gathering, to bring out our local WAFFLEHEADS family. Perfect! Now the work starts.

So now that we had a “waffleheads” theme to run with, we started thinking of all the possibilities for an event. I’ve been working on a new Antidot sneaker refresher fragrance with the SolScience guys, and it was based around a maple syrup scent, geared for fresh waffles, aka Vans, so I wanted to make sure we could somehow work them into the mix, which turned out great. We then thought how cool it would be to get the Vans waffle maker machine for our event, which we’ve only seen at a handful of them. We knew it was a shot in the dark, and we’d most likely get shot down, but we just had to ask. Our PR homie Michelle C. handed us off to the Vans marketing team, and boy did we get hooked up. We not only got Vans to come make us about 100 or so waffles, they also hooked us up with chain-stitch artist Ben Goetting, to personalize the chore coats that were being sold during the event, which then turned into people getting to customize their free Vans tote bags that were being given out. I apologize for having Ben stay til closing, due to the long line and high demand for his art services! We also had free beer from Bootleggers, who recently opened a tap room about 50 yards away from Blends CM, and what’s better than free beer?!

The most important thing about the event wasn’t the rare sneakers on display. Nope. It was our people. It was a reunion of sorts. Some guys I haven’t seen for a few years now, since the last time the #blendsboiz camped out for sneakers! Some were new friends that just started to discover our community, and some just happened to be sneaker enthusiasts who happened to stop by while on vacation from Canada, who were stoked to see something like this going on! That’s just so cool to me. Our plan of having the event on a Thursday night, to attract friends and fam from Vans HQ worked out quite nicely too, as I met a few folks who I never met before. My family came out in droves as well, and I thank each and every one of you. Seriously, most of the pics you’re going to see are of the people. That’s what makes this shit cool for me. If I can get people to come out, by way of this Vans vehicle, then I’ll ride it til’ the wheels fall off! Stay tuned for more fun and innovative ways to incorporate more and more people to join in on our fun and youthful culture.

Please enjoy all of the pics after the jump, who mostly came from my homie Eason, Nate, and my bro Ron.

Vans x Noah NY – Chukka MS (Available Now!)

Sep 13 19 under Collaborations | Comments Off

Words via Noah:

“Tartan patterns are clearly a favorite for us. We’ve never given it much thought—we just let our love of tartans drive aesthetic choices. But if we were to wager a guess on why we’re so drawn to them, it would be their versatility. Tartans have a duality that other textiles and patterns don’t have. They’re simultaneously traditional and progressive. They’ve been embraced by both punks and conservatives. Subtle and aggressive at the same time. Few patterns have such universal appeal, allowing the wearer to signify what it represents to them. With that in mind, we’re pleased to present our second iteration of the Noah x Vans Chukka, fittingly presented in Black Stewart and Shepherd tartans in a traditional and durable wool straight from the source in Scotland.”

Limited sizes are still available for $98 over on their webstore.

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Vans x Vivienne Westwood – Anglomania Collection (9.20.19)

Sep 12 19 under Collaborations, Girls | Comments Off

Vans, the original action sports brand and advocate for creative expression, have joined forces with British fashion house Vivienne Westwood to create a footwear capsule collection that champions fearless individualism and liberation. The Vans x Vivienne Westwood Anglomania collection will launch in stores and online September 20.

The exclusive collection reinterprets iconic Westwood archive prints, graphics and design notes of the house for six of Vans Classic silhouettes; As a nod to each brand’s birthplace, the Sk8-Hi features embossed markings of a handwritten letter sent from Southern California to Vivienne Westwood’s flagship boutique at 44 Conduit St., London. The Sk8-Hi is outfitted with a natural vegetable dye tan leather, printed postage stamp listing the collaboration launch date and a leather-bound outsole.

The Sk8-Hi Platform compliments the collection and is inspired by Vivienne Westwood’s Pirate boot – first presented in 1981 as part of the legendary Piratecollection. The Sk8-Hi Platform adopts key design notes from the iconic Vivienne Westwood Pirate boot – including the tan vegetable dye buckled strap across the high-top form.

Uniting the history of both brands, the Checkerboard Slip-On features Vans’ Checkerboard pattern layered with the Vivienne Westwood DESTROY graphic – brand signatures that both debuted in 1977. Westwood upholds the intent of the ever-changing Checkerboard by subverting the design to include larger scale checks applied diagonally on the vamp.

Selected from Vans ‘90s archives, the collection reintroduces Style #53. The loafer style slip-on features black suede uppers, black lugged outsole and is finished with a Vivienne Westwood multi-colored metal orb.

Rounding out the Vans x Vivienne Westwood Anglomania collection are the Old Skool and Authentic styles which showcase the Vivienne Westwood Orb and Lightning Bolt print from the collection of house prints. The Old Skool is outfitted in oxblood suede and canvas with contrasting mustard stitching and gum sole. Vans’ original deck shoe, the Authentic, is presented in a new vivid sky-blue colorway made exclusively for this collaboration. Each of these styles are finished with a “VW” monogram.

he Vans x Vivienne Westwood Anglomania capsule collection will be available to shop at select Vans and Vivienne Westwood retail locations around the world and online at: Vans.com and VivienneWestwood.com beginning September 20. Visit vans.com/viviennewestwood for more information.

#VansxVivienneWestwood

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