Monthly Archives: December 2006

Just the other day, I was lurking around on messageboards and I came across a topic on how kids had stumbled into streetwear and sneakers. Out of all the responses, I think there was only a couple of dudes who mentioned skateboarding. One kid even questioned what skateboarding’s relevance on all of this was, and was doubtful as to how there could possibly be a connection.. *GASP*.

I started really paying attention to the culture and ‘fashion’ around skateboarding sometime around middle school, during the early ’90s. In a lot of ways, that early-2nd/3rd wave of the skate industry during that era was similarly structured to our current streetwear market. There were maybe 1 or 2 skate boutiques in each city (and I’m not referring to skate mega-chains), with a steady niche clientele (just a few kids at each school who knew what was up). The companies were all independent upstarts that had cult followings. The product offerings, as far as attire went, were relatively consistent: loud oversized-print graphic t-shirts, straight-brimmed caps, plaid wovens, and baggy denim. And yes, sneakers were a big deal, albeit far from the Swoosh: Etnies and Airwalk leading the charge..

[Of course, we all know what happened next. Skateboarding did that whole "exploding" thing, turned into a gazillion-dollar corporate industry, and our little secret world had become the backdrop for the MTV2 generation. Goodbye independent. Hello in-da-money.]

Aside from the local skate shop, and because this was before the Internet, skaters found out about the newest product either through magazines or through the CCS catalog. California Cheap Skates was a skate shop out of San Luis Obispo, California, that would circulate a full skate mail-order catalog..at the time, the only one of its kind. Over the years, Cheap Skates eventually changed its name to CCS (Central Coast Surf, or something like that), but their catalogs will forever be remembered as the go-to-guide for what was hot in skate fashion. Call it the Hypebeast of early 90s skate culture.

Don’t ask me how, but I still have a stash of CCS catalogs from throughout the early 90s. Just by looking at these pages, you can see where a lot of our own influence and aesthetic are derived from..

Check these hats. In my opinion, this is the perfect cut for a head-protector. Flat-brimmed deep button-back baseball caps. Classic, clean, sharp. Not dopey and swampy.

Back then, skaters would detest any fashion-conscious reasoning for these bottoms, and defend their 40-waist pants by saying they were more comfortable to skate in. But from what I remember, it felt like I was pedaling in the dead of summer with a cumbersome overdyed tablecloth all caught up around my legs. Impractical, but the girls loved ‘em.

39s? 45s? And once you got flatspots with these wheels, your skateboard felt like it was running on Flintstones rock wheels.

Again, this was before the Internet. Hell, this was even years before XGames was broadcast on ABC. The only way you could see skateboarding home entertainment was by $20 videos from the local skateshop. 411 vol. 1 ! Plan B “Virtual Reality,” World Industries “New World Order,” and the Color video. What what.

Here’s another parallel. Since these indie skate companies didn’t have the big dollars to cut/sew their own backpacks, they would all use the same Jansport-styled bags and iron on different company patches. The kids figured it out easy, but they did’t care because they were so dedicated to their brands. Trust, it still happens today with your favorite streetwear backpacks. Except this time, your backpack cost 5 times as much.

Nike SB may be the skate sneaker crack in the streets right now, but skate shoe companies always had their own niche audience. In the early 90s, Etnies reigned supreme, especially with the help of one of the most important skate shoes of all time, the Sal 23′s (bottom left corner). [From the same psychopath guy who works next door to us at SLB]. And look at those Jordan-inspired MC Raps.

My personal favorites were the Duffs’ Kareem Campbell KCKs in white. The retros just weren’t the same!

Even everyone’s favorite MUST SEE TV star had his own signature skate shoe:

Oh, and that other primetime TV personality had a shoe as well… (peep that o.g. logo)

Skate shoe companies really gotta start retro-ing the low-profile simpleton sneaker, as a response to the rainbow-colored basketball-shoe look. My all-time favorites were Duffs and the short-lived Dukes:

And of course, there were the t-shirts. Cartoons, Parodies, Metal references, Bright colors,… you get the idea.

…now… don’t even get me started on those old Droog catalogs..

by bobbyhundreds