COOLPANTS. The Weekly Streetwear Blog

SIMPLY FIRE. An iconic logo inspired by an even more iconic logo. If anyone has some Star Trak singles in their vinyl collection, you know what I’m talking about. Star Trak was the record label of The Neptunes...aka Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo back in the 90’s. Pharrell, co-founder of streetwear brand Billionaire Boys Club decided to bring the logo back, splashing it on some very simple black and white pieces. There isn’t much to this other than a whole lot of nostalgia that may make it worth the cop. Link in HERE if your feeling it.

THE PODCAST. Ever just want your streetwear news main-lined into your ear holes? Look no further. High Snobiety’s THE DROPCAST gives you a weekly look into the world of fashion alongside some of the most prominent journalists in the game. They break down everything from the latest fashion shows, to the most niche of drops. Definitely worth checking out. Check the latest episode below.

NO WE AREN’T TALKING 50 CENT. Japanese brand ‘MAGIC STICK’ just put out a pretty interesting collection. The Fall/Winter 2018 offering is called “MEANS NOTHING” and the pieces are mostly workwear in style. Drawing inspiration from punk & hip hop music (standard) and certain aspects of military garb, this rangy collection is worth having a look at. Link HERE.

FACTORY STEEZ. San Fran’s Heron Preston debuted his self-titled SS19 collection with a performance/runway show based out of an old metal factory in Paris. Matching the venue, Preston had his models literally assembling his finale as they walked down the runway. Preston’s collection featured a work-wear aesthetic featuring a special sunglasses collab with Nike. Check out the video below to here Heron explain his vision further.

Virgil & LV put on a show. On Thursday, Louis Vuitton’s newly appointed creative director had his very first runway show. With celebs in attendance (and some modelling), this was by far Paris Fashion Week’s biggest attraction. The 15 minute show took place outdoors and featured over 50 models from all over the world. Pieces like the one above were featured amongst many all-white outfits as well as Abloh’s first LV sneaker design. The vibe was pretty crazy for this one. Check out the whole show below.

Warrriorrrrs. Japanese fashion designer Jun Takahashi put on a damn show in Paris. Showing under his brand UNDERCOVER the streetwear vet channelled the vibes of a Cult Classic film...1979’s legendary crime thriller ‘The Warriors”. This was not your typical runways show, with Takahashi presenting different styles in the form of 8 different ’gangs’ of models. It was pretty wild. Check out the whole show below.

Animated influence. Taking the notion of online influencer to the next level, Lil Miquela is a computer-generated social media mogul who has amassed a casual 1.2 million instagram followers. This attention has garnered a slew of fashion collabs with the latest being with fashion media giant High Snobiety & up-scale retailer Barneys. The tee pictured above is the latest drop for the pixelated style icon and was released in small order on June 13th. If you want some style tips and a taste of the life of an animated superstar...the fuk..follow @lilmiquela on the gram.

The main "SHOW". Paris Fashion Week is one of the premier fashion shows in the world. On Thursday’s night, we get to see what Louis Vuitton has in store for their SS19 collection. With long-time creative director Kim Jones exiting, this will be the first showing for the newly appointed Virgil Abloh. The image below was released on Louis Vuitton’s instagram this week, teasing one of the many items to be shown at the end of the week. If you are looking to catch the show live, tune in on the Louis Vuitton website at 10:30AM ADT on Thursday.

FIRE. Amidst many streetwear drops this week, Nike re-introduced us to the Zoom Streak Spectrum Plus. Not exactly a name that rolls off the tongue, but I guess that’s apropos for a sneaker that has a lot going on. Designed back in 2002, Steven Smith originally created this silhouette to be for a Japanese running market. The flames on the OG release was a reference to the American Hot Rod...fitting for a racing shoe I guess. The new kick features splashes of Supreme hype and a limited release as per usual. What do you think though, HYPE or TRAAASH?

Everyone likes an award show right? Yes? No? Well despite it not being televised like the Grammy’s, fashion has its night this week. Since this is a streetwear blog, I have to cover the big news that James Jebbia of Supreme won Menswear designer, winning over legends like Raf Simons, Virgil Abloh, Thom Browne, and Tom Ford. This is a big moment for streetwear, and shows the impact this form of fashion is having. Check out Jebbia's speech HERE.

This week I’m toeing the line of streetwear, introducing you to some different, higher-end fashion thiiings. Liam Hodges is a London-based menswear designer who just revealed his latest 2019 collection. His muse for this collection was from the book ‘The Goldfinch’ (a personal favourite of mine). In the novel, Las Vegas was painted as a particularly quirky place, and Hodges did a great job bringing Donna Tartt’s Sin City to the runway. Check out the pics of the show HERE.

What. I know I’m falling into a trap here and these sneakers are made solely to get us saying the name Maison Margiela, but still. These are hilarious. Coming in at a price tag of $1,645 USD the Fusion sneaker features scattered excess glue and a pre-ripped upper to really help you stand out from the crowd. I dunno. I don’t know why I even ask anymore...but what do you think? HYPE Or TRASH.

PLEASURES is an LA streetwear brand that continues to bring it. This SS18 collection may be one of my underdog favs this season. It’s hard to summate the drop in this small blurb, but I will try. Font-gasmic-loud-patterned-nostaligia. Yeah. I think that about sums it up. Check out my fav pieces above and check the rest of the collection HERE.

TBH I don’t think I’ve ever typed the word ‘Wyoming’ in my life up until this point. Kanye West dropped an album Friday in case you didn’t know. As it is Kanye West, merch was sure to follow. Now we have it. Turn yourself into a pylon for only $85. Nah, the stuff is cool. Very 90’s with that ‘highlighter pack’ colourway. Check it out HERE.

YOUTH OF PARIS dropped their SS18 offering this week. The ‘Unite” hoodie above, as well as a lime green ’House Burn’ pullover are two signature pieces from the collection. Purples and greens are prominent in this collection with all pieces relying heavily on scripted font and their take on the classic illegible-metal-band-font. Link HERE to see the whole collection.

I stumbled across a really interesting article this week highlighting a selection of Korean fashion brands. It was a High Snobiety feature detailed stylings from such brands as D-ANTIDOTE, HCL & pushBUTTON. All these brands are completely new to me and have some very distinct aesthetics. Definitely some good outfit muse. Check out the article at the link HERE.

Admittedly one of my favs, PALACE is back with some summer heat. Their Summer ‘18 offerings dropped on Friday, with just about every style, and every colour you could imagine. You can check their main website to see the full offering. The crew below is one of my fav pieces. Gives me those Mighty Ducks 2 ’Merica vibes. You feeling Palace? Better question... Goldberg or Charlie Conway?

Be jealous that you didn’t go to Virgil Albloh’s al ma mater. The fashion heavyweight just out-fitted his old high school football team with brand new OFF-WHITE jerseys. Here’s hoping that these may get a general release? Maybe? Nontheless, I’m feeling them. Link to the full story HERE.

I know this isn’t exactly streetwear, but I gotta cover it. Calvin Klein dropped a Pre-Fall 2018 collection spear-headed by legendary designer Raf Simons. What’s beautiful about this project is it done in collaboration with the Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts. This means those classic Warhol visuals are featured throughout the collection. So cool, and definitely worth checking out HERE.

Okay okay okay I know some of you may be not into wrestling at all, but I have a soft-spot for the Stone Cold’s and Rock’s of the world so hear me out. Streetwear website High Snobiety did a piece covering the vintage wrestling tee...scene? A scene that is mostly housed on Ebay. A scene fuelled by characters like Hot 97’s Peter Rosenberg. It’s a pretty entertaining look into a niche world of collectors even if you aren’t a fan of the in-ring soap opera. Check it below.

With all the hype around Air Max’s these days, Nike has not only been been reaching back in time to the 97’s & 95’s, they have also began to  push their latest model, the 270’s. The most recent installation of the silhouette features a new colourway dubbed the “Camo Sunset”. The shoe drops May 22nd at a price point of $170 USD. But forget all that. What do you think of the Air Max 270. HYPE or TRASH?  

BAPE just dropped some summer goodiesss. The new drop features their Tiger Shark motif. Split right down the middle, the new garments feature camo patterns on one side, with a contrasting solid colourway (blacks & grays) on the other. You know the deal with BAPE. Everything is classic. Go cop if you have the cheese (I wish).

LA based brand UNDFTD just dropped a slew of summer gear. Taking a hold of the sportswear category, the collection features hoodies, tees, caps, tanks...literally everything. The colourways vary, but the graphics on each piece are simplistic and traditional. Nontheless, some good options for your summer fits. COP HERE.

A shoe that last dropped in 2003 is getting a second life. Nike’s Air Max 1 “Curry” was released this week alongside several new colourways of the original iteration. Suede & leather combine on this upper to make it one of the most sought after drops so far in 2018. But who cares what I say. What do you think of this one? 

A collab from Kiev. Streetwear brand, Syndicate has linked up with fellow Ukrainian/artist Vora Vorotniov for a SS18 collection they call “Ukrainian Avant-garde”. Drawing from the musings of Ukrainian art and culture, this collections includes several sweaters, polos, tees & caps. Very cool stuff. Check it out HERE.

Racks Hogan may be my favourite personality in streetwear these days. He has a show on YouTube called ‘Get in Line’ where he goes to the most popular streetwear drops and interviews the crowd waiting in line. This week he was in LA at the BAPE x Dragon Ball Z offering. Check the vid below.

So lets take a step away from the mainstays and talk about perennial sneaker underdog ASICS. You see, summer is upon us and it’s about time to cop a clean pair of white sneakers for the occasion. Let me introduce you to the Triple White GEL-Mai knit. What do you think? HYPE or TRASH?