I Dig Your Sole Man: March 2010

Tuesday 30 March 2010

Barista in Black; Sydney

Kristina is a Digital Media student in Sydney but works as a Barista at the weekends.

She commonly wears a lot of black and these All Stars are a recent addition to her wardrobe which she loves due to their style and comfort.

I took these shots on an overcast day but the diffused light helped produce a really nice portrait shot.

Monday 29 March 2010

Sonya and Margaret are both All Stars lovers who represent opposite ends of the sneaker spectrum.
Margaret (on the right) has been an All Stars wearer for over 30 years, and is particularly proud (and rightfully so) of her colourful fabric originals that she picked up in Downtown LA in 1978. The shoes are still in great condition and their bright colouring and great fabric detailing (which you can see on the top shoe in the 2nd image) makes them very unique, and have seen her stopped in the street with admirers offering her substantial sums for her beloved kicks.
As for Sonya on the left, she is wearing her first pair of All Stars, some black leather hi tops that she bought just a few months ago. Sonya is now an All Stars convert and regrets not embracing the shoe sooner.
And for those of you who pay close attention to the details, there is 1 more key difference between these cross generational All Star lovers; while Margaret has crossed laces, Sonya's are straight.

Saturday 27 March 2010

Shoes of the summer; #2 - Onitsuka Tiger Ultimate 81

I have had a few pairs of Onitsuka Tiger shoes over the years, and purchased my first pair of Ultimate 81's in Pittsburgh in 2004 in a classic white leather style with red and blue detailing. I loved the style of shoe as they're so easy to wear, and after wearing them out have always been looking for a new pair.

I started to give up on the brand after failing to find my beloved white/blue/red leather style anywhere, but Onitsuka Tiger are constantly releasing new colourways, and after their 60th anniversary shoes were released in mid-2009 I started to look at the brand again as I liked what they were doing with the Ultimate 81.

I picked up these shoes in November, and have found the canvas style in this black/blue/silver colourway makes a great everyday shoe that I can wear for work, or for going out with equal ease.

So that's shoes #4-#2, next week I will reveal my #1. Have a good weekend.

Friday 26 March 2010

On The Volley; Sydney

Dunlop Volley's are something on an Australian Institution. Cheap, accessible and comfortable, these bargain basement shoes are available everywhere and it seems that it's an unwritten folklore that everyone must own at least 1 pair at some time in their life.

This sneaker owner is a big Volley's fan and has many pairs in different colourways. As a basic alternative to All Stars, Spring Court's and Onitsuka Tigers, these shoes offer a clean retro look in a lightweight shoe that is perfect for the Australian climate.

Wednesday 24 March 2010

Sterling Silver, Sydney

I have found a few sneaker loving couples lately, and it was hard to ignore the silver kicks on this casual sneaker loving pair while they were doing some weekend shopping.

While both are wearing their favourite kicks as part of this simple and innoffensive look, they each went to different lengths to get their hands on their respective shoes.

The couple like to visit Europe as often as they can, and always try to fit in some sneaker shopping while overseas, and the clean and simple silver Nike's were picked up from a Nike store in Athens last year.

I have not seen silver Onitsuka Tiger's before, but these shoes were picked up closer to home from a Hype DC store in Western Sydney.

Monday 22 March 2010

Cort at the Bakery; Sydney

The Bourke Street Bakery in Surry Hills is an iconic weekend destination for many Sydneysiders. Renowned for it's fantastic food and coffee the bakery always has crowds lining up to get inside, but it's well worth the wait, and while you pass the time you can do what I do and look for interesting sneakers.
Among the crowd last weekend I spotted these old school Nike Cortez kicks.
The owner wears these classic kicks regularly after purchasing them 6 months ago when she returned to her homeland of South Korea on vacation and was drawn to their classic style and colouring which she claims goes with any outfit.

Saturday 20 March 2010

Shoes of the summer; #3 - Nike Free 5.0

To explain my decision to include these next kicks as part of my shoes of the summer, I will need to give you a bit of a backstory.

I suffered a very serious injury when playing football in the UK in 1998, and have had over 15 years of ongoing ankle ligament problems. As a result of this I have had to undergo a number of quite serious reconstruction operations, but nothing has seemed to help, with ongoing pain and discomfort preventing me from walking far, running, or playing any sports.

That is until I started wearing these latest incarnations of the innovative Free shoe from Nike a few months ago.

Amazingly comfortable and lightweight, the shoes combine contemporary style with functionality as they strengthen your ankle ligaments/muscles while you wear them. Within weeks of wearing them I was able to run again, and my ankle now feels stronger and better than it has done for years, and I put that down to the help of these sneakers.

In terms of style, the shoes can be used as runners, or as a lightweight everyday shoe that works well with skinny jeans.

Although this isn't technically a fashion sneaker, due to my personal circumstances I'm a big fan of this shoe, and I look forward to seeing what the future holds for Nike's Free series.

Thursday 18 March 2010

Grams; Sydney

Some days it can be tough in Sydney to find unique footwear so I'm always pleased to discover new styles, and this week I was introduced to an interesting Swedish brand called Gram by Michael from the hidden gem that is the Surry Hills clothing store Somedays.

Gram's eye-catching styles of sneakers and hybrid shoes all have a clean and contemporary design with great detailing (each shoe has it's weight in grams printed on the heel) that work well for a casual, or formal look.

Tuesday 16 March 2010

Alexander McQueen - Puma

The loss of Alexander McQueen to the fashion world last month has, and will continue to send shockwaves through the fashion industry. Innovative, unconventional and inspirational, his role in the modern fashion world was one of a pioneer, never afraid to experiment, and always delivering spectacular results.

And in recent years his collaborations with Puma had provided some very eye-catching and interesting shoes that combined conceptual design with a great understanding of how kicks should look and function.

The above shots are of a very rare Alexander McQueen Ribcage sample shoe that I was lucky enough to be recently given by a Sydney PR company. The skeleton inspired design is intended to replicate the human body with the ribcage style design giving support to the shoe's side panels and a silver pendant tooth accessory giving another link to the shoe's animal inspired inspiration.

McQueen's collections were always unexpected and unique and these shoes are no exception which is why they will take pride of place in my collection.

Monday 15 March 2010

Going Underground; Sydney

The streets have seen me find some interesting people/sneakers over the past few months, but for this post I thought I would head underground.

Jay is a skater, and although he loves everything about sneakers is a massive Nike fan. It was something of a coincidence then that when we met he was wearing these classic Adidas Campus shoes, which are his only non-Nike kicks. He has had these shoes for 4 years so it's amazing that they're in such good condition as they still look brand new and look great as part of his urban skater look.

These shots were something of an experiment for me, as most of my other shots have been taken outside. There was no natural light for these shots so I have tried something a little bit different here by working with the conditions to try and create an atmospheric look.