After the Mood Board
On white bowling shoes, sheer underwear, and a little help from my friends.
Most collab excitement comes prematurely.
The ones below sealed the deal.
Some became regular clothes, others got worn nearly into the ground or treated with kid gloves. The only thing they really have in common is that I don’t regret buying them.
These are the ones that stuck around long enough to earn a trip to the cleaners.
adidas x Wales Bonner Sneakers
I’m not going to go on and on about these. Look at my fit checks and you’ll see they’ve been used and abused. I also already rambled about them in “Getting Off Half a Fit.”
I had flirted with the Wales Bonner x adidas collaborations for years, but this was the pair that finally made me commit. I needed a whitish sneaker that wasn’t on every “20 Best White Sneakers to Win the Summer” list.
They feel more luxe than your average white bowling shoe, and the brown tab up front adds just enough Krusty the Clown for me to call it fashion.
I didn’t need them to reinvent the wheel. I just needed them to make me feel a little special.
The reason they get the feature here instead of the 3sixteen x Sauconys is simple: I reach for these more.
Emily Dawn Long x Maximum Henry Belt
I don’t buy belts often. In fact, if there’s anything I should probably own more of, it’s belts.
I just don’t like buying belts online. I usually need to get my mitts on them first. This was the exception.
Both Emily Dawn Long and Maximum Henry came onto my radar around the same time, and since a Wanda hat is not something I feel would suit my face, the belt felt practical while still being different.
Maximum Henry supplied the elevated basic; Emily Dawn Long made it feel just strange and intimate enough to justify spending more than I ever had on a belt.
The hand-stitching deluded me into thinking this was all perfectly reasonable.
This is not my everyday black belt. But when I do wear it, I feel like I’m adding a sexy little spark to the outfit—even if it’s just for me.
I’m declaring it here: the hand-stitched belt is the man’s sheer underwear.
Unless, of course, the man’s underwear is already sheer.
New Balance x Aimé Leon Dore Popover Fleece
New Balance x Aimé Leon Dore is a very successful marriage. They’ve been getting back together for years—even if they still don’t make the shoes in a 14.
This turned out to be more savior than foe. Otherwise, I’d have a closet full of New Balance 550s right now.
The most tenured piece on the list. It’s from Fall/Winter 2019, back when the Aimé Leon Dore lookbook was the center of the menswear universe and all of it still felt new to me.
I bought it for the look. It got lived in for the comfort.
The buttons have been replaced, and at this point, it shouldn’t be worn anywhere more ambitious than an errand. That has not stopped it from being one of the most complimented things I own.
I went looking for it online while writing this and found almost none for sale—especially compared with the endless stream of other ALD x New Balance pieces being relisted. The linked one is green; mine is navy and considerably worse for wear.
Our Legacy x Emporio Armani Pantelleria Shirt
I want to be a vintage Armani guy. Badly.
I haven’t had much luck. Mostly because of half-assed eBay searches and never carving out the time to hunt in person.
So when Our Legacy—a brand that may be becoming overly represented in my closet—had another rendezvous with Emporio Armani, I set an alarm to make sure I got my medicine.
I could almost pretend I followed all my rules here. I didn’t own another popover shirt, and the boxy silhouette excited me, along with a pattern that felt fun without being overly indulgent.
Vintage-Armani cosplay without the negotiations.
Something I wear when I’m supposed to behave, but the boxy silhouette and pattern let me feel a little bad without getting in trouble.
It’s nice to wear something not everyone else knows exists without it screaming IYKYK.
I did break my one-item-per-collab rule and bought the logo tee too. It fits great, but I wear it as an undershirt, which means the logo—the whole reason to buy it—is almost always covered.
They’ll always get you with the entry-level slop.
Added bonus: My wife likes this shirt.
She did not like the alarm going off at an ungodly hour so I could buy it.
Palace x Polo Ralph Lauren Polo Bear Sweater
This one is a vibes guy.
It’s the only item on this list I bought resale, years before prices got bloated. I haven’t worn it more than a handful of times, and it’s currently in storage.
But it makes me happy.
Polo is Polo. I don’t need to explain why the Polo Bear is iconic. Palace is a brand I’ve admired from afar, and this collaboration let me own something from their world without making me look like it was Halloween.
A cool skate company making an Ivyed-to-the-gills Polo Bear do a heel flip is enough to earn endless devotion.
Is the hype part of the appeal? Duh.
But I don’t hold onto it because I’m building an archive. I hold onto it because sometimes you just want your clothes to be fun.
Phone a Friend
In the spirit of collaboration, I figured I should actually collaborate. So I brought in a few friends with real taste. You’re welcome.
In terms of close to my heart, it will always be the Uniqlo x Engineered Garments collaboration. These brands were heavily influential in my taste in fashion and it had it all. PB&J, a slice and a Coke, Uniqlo and EG, it was a match made in heaven.
Later I then discovered Paraboot x Arpenteur; elevated in taste and my passion for footwear. Elegance and durability, my first loafer that made me a fan forever. Ça me plaît beaucoup!
As far as collabs that didn’t stick—I am sorry to displease my friends and family, but Supreme anything has never landed for me. Too much hype and not compelling enough for me. The collabs are diverse, that I will say, but I am certainly not the audience they were targeting (cue the Black Friday stampede videos). With that, I will go to say any hype collaboration will likely get a NO from me dawg, Randy Jackson voice.
This is a complicated ask for the first appearance of SLO! I love my friends, but I don’t love collaborations. I like when chefs cook in THEIR kitchen, I don’t want a pop up.
A collab that I have to tip my hat to is from a few years back. It was 2020 and there was not much else to do but online shop. From way downtown, it was the Gramicci x Deus Ex Machina collab. Gramicci laid the foundation, Deus lent their feel. The pants fit me to a tee, breaking perfectly on my checked Vans. But most importantly, it was my intro to Gramicci, who I have not stopped buying pants from since.
I’m not a big watch guy. I like finding vintage junk and checking my phone if someone asks the time. But a shoutout to the Noah x Timex collabs over the years, those watches are beautiful. The thought put into the design from strap to shape to face is evident. Timex often collabs and they are often fun.
Boo YZY x Gap (lol)! Boo Sperry collabs! Boo Japan Edition L.L.Bean, it was lazy! Boo Tiffany Dunks, and lots of other sneaker collaborations. Down with the cronut! Television crossovers are rarely good, you let me down New Girl x Brooklyn 99.
And love to V’s mention of EG x Uniqlo, we collaborated on that collab. Thanks FF, this was ffun.
To land the plane: the good shit leaves you wanting more.
A pair of pants sends you back to Gramicci. A loafer turns into a lifelong obsession with what’s on your feet.
A good collaboration, like your favorite childhood athlete, earns your devotion before logic intervenes.
Even if it’s an Ivyed-to-the-gills bear doing a heel flip.
–SP