“Old Skool” Style

By Katie Konfino

Streetwear, or the trend of wearing casual, urban clothing, has been a popular style that has carried over decades.

A main item of streetwear are sneakers, and a common style that has been wore for years are Old Skool Vans.

The sneakers were created by co-founder of Vans, Paul Van Doren. The Old Skool Vans which came out in 1977 were originally named “Style 36” and had the Vans sidestripe on it. The Vans company was founded by Van Doren Rubber Company in Anaheim in 1966. According to the Vans website, Paul Van Doren sketched the now iconic “jazz stripe” or sidestripe which has been linked to Vans over the years.

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HISTORY OF THE OLD SKOOL VAN

1980s: Customization

During the 1980s the trend was customizing the Old Skool Van in different colors and even using a simple pen to do some personalization on your own pair. This trend of different colors and patterns on the sneakers continued through the years and is a popular trend in today’s society. There is a clothing brand, Chrome Hearts, which has an artist called Matt DiGiacomo (@mattyboy90 on Instagram) that draws on different characters to clothing and sneakers to give it the Chrome Hearts touch. Matt DiGiacomo has several Instagram posts that show his personalization of Old Skool Vans (see slideshow below).

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1990s: Collaborations

There have been several collaborations with Vans and other brands like Marc Jacobs, A Tribe Called Quest, The North Face, Supreme, Off-White, and others. The collaborations create a way for designers to play with materials and colors.

The collaborations in the sideshow below in order: A Tribe Called Quest, Off-White, The North Face

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2000s: Musician takeover

The Old Skool Vans look became a sneaker that boy band members wanted to rock on stage. Some of these musicians included Henry Rollins. The Old Skool Vans were popular during the punk rock movement in the United States.

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2010s: Sports Mania

The Old Skool Vans look became classic for athletes during this period in time. Skater and BMX legends also wore the famous sneaker. Some of these athletes included Julian Stranger and Dakota Roche–see image below of Dakota Roche skateboarding in the pair he endorses.

2018: Celebrity Fashion Trends

The Old Skool Vans look is a common trend with celebrities in present day. Even though the sneakers retail for about sixty dollars celebrities like Hailey Baldwin and Kendall Jenner have been digging the style. These celebrities mix the sixty dollar sneaker with high-end brands like Saint Laurent and Gucci handbags and shirts.

Screen Shot 2018-05-08 at 12.08.19 AM — Old Skool Vans on the Vans website

Old Skool Vans can be related to Fiske’s “Popular Culture”, or the idea of making do with what is available. All different races, genders, and classes can be seen on the streets wearing Old Skool Vans. They are also customized and changed to create a design that is more unique to the sneaker wearer. Old Skool Vans have been worn by skaters and models alike.