Some August Pickups (2022)
When will the heat end? Am I talking about the summer heat or the pickups 🤔💭
Even though it’s still hot as shit outside, the summer is over. Students are back in school, vacations are calming down and my want for the fall weather is at its peak, but the pickups aren’t! This month features more books, tees, some jewelry and more! Hope you enjoy 💕
🐈🎮 Stray
Being a lone cat traveling in a post-apocalyptic robot society is one scenario I wouldn’t have guessed I’d love as much as Stray! This cat attention grabber of a game took social media by storm due to some cats interacting with the movements of the main character and even my significant other’s cat took interest in us playing on the TV. This game is also about a 5 hour play through, so you don’t have to worry about a lengthy story and even so, it’s a joy to play through and piece together why this robot society came to be. If you have a PlayStation Plus Extra subscription, this one is completely free and I’d even recommend the 30$ price tag on other platforms as well because I enjoyed it that much! If you love cats, you’ll definitely enjoy this adventure!
👗🆙💁🏼♀️Ethereal Studios My Dress-Up Darling Tee
I’ve talked about My Dress Up Darling plenty of times this year - being my favorite anime/manga currently and haven’t came across a good tee for the series until now! Ethereal Studios decided to do a cross-over with Neon Genesis Evangelion with Marin, Wakana and Sajuna cosplaying as the main three and the concept was executed very well- cosplayers dressing up as their favorite characters. I decided to get the vintage wash version of the tee since I’ve never chosen this option from past drop and I’m glad I did because the process made it look on par with a vintage-washed tee. Unfortunately, they sold out the day of release and are no longer available, but you can always keep an eye out on their Instagram for a potential restock. Ethereal Studios does it again and if you still haven’t followed them, hurry up and do so!
😤🛸 Happy99 Super Hustler T-shirt and Angel99 Ringer
I’ve been gushing about this brand for the past couple months and it isn’t going to stop because Happy99 deserves the recognition! So many graphics that pull me back to the 2000’s where I was just playing video games and watching lots of cartoons and these two tees reflect that time.
The first tee is in a ringer style that features a unique color blocking on the sleeves and neckline that are in a bold orange and tan - pairing well with the center graphic that showcases a futuristic symbol that is a combination of their character, a pair of the famous Oakley overhead glasses and Lilith from Neon Genesis Evangelion. The tee is also form fitting to show off those guns and although I’m trying to get used to the slimmer fit, it’s still a fun shirt to wear!
The second tee takes heavy inspiration from bootleg rap tees from the era that were printed on pro club blanks - full of rhinestones and cartoons dripped out in baggy jeans and tees. Even the construction and tag takes a nod at the famous tee and it’s honestly my favorite detail overall! Nothing makes me more comfortable than an oversized fit.
Happy99 deserves to be on your radar and a big congratulations to their first physical store in New York - one day I’ll make it out there to see the beautiful work they’ve done 💜
⛓ Diesel Necklace
A couple weeks ago, me and my significant other were at a goodwill and they had these mystery jewelry jars - full of small oddities from who knows how long ago. When we got home and did a thorough search, this small black dog tag emerged out and was attached to a silver necklace that looked really cool! Upon further research, we discovered it came from Diesel, who I only knew for their jeans and didn’t know about the jewelry they offered. She called dibs on it and said I can borrow it, but I wanted one to match. I searched through eBay to find another and I found a variant, but this one was an all silver grid version and the more I looked at it, It reminded me of a key item I’d find in a game like Final Fantasy 7 due to the future solider vibe It was giving. Luckily I won it on a bid where I was the only bidder, so I got it for super cheap and I’ve been wearing it as an everyday piece with my Vivienne Westwood pendent to complement!
📚 Virgil Abloh: Figures of Speech
My start into fashion consciousness was around when Virgil was making noise with Been Trill and Pyrex Vision - fondly remembering a simpler time of street goth that fills my head with Pyrex basketball shorts and the #NY# Been Trill Snapback I still want to acquire for the nostalgia of it all. Even years later when the Ten sneakers by Nike and Off-White were at it’s peak hype - struggling to keep up with SNKRS being infamously awful with releases and couldn’t get my hands on the models I wanted. Throughout my decade of participating in men’s fashion and seeing it evolve so rapidly, Virgil was always there, occupying the space - putting his stamp on everything from streetwear, high fashion, furniture, vehicles, you name it - he’s done it. Unfortunately, he passed away late last year due to cancer - leaving the fashion community in a deep shock as the news spread. He introduced a lot of people into fashion and even mentored and shared advice to many aspiring designers wanting to enter the industry - opening a lot of doors to people who were looked down upon by most of the fashion elites. One of his biggest accolades was being creative director at Louis Vuitton - being a dream of his since the very beginning and this event was one of many key turning points that would blur the line between street and high fashion. Some of my favorite work from him comes from his time at LV that opened my interest to suiting silhouettes and as I was writing some of this, I was in line for the Kendrick Lamar concert and that day he was wearing an Off-White diamond studded broach - showing his friendship to Virgil Abloh.
The book itself features a tounge-in-cheek cover where it’s just him holding the book and taking a picture of that and putting it as the cover. Upon opening the book, the book opens up being de-attached from the spine, but bound to the bottom so it doesn’t fall out and I think it represents his ideology of deconstructing everything he does. Everything in this book is his work being documented- down to the laptops and hard drives he uses in his daily life and even shares statistical charts of overall Terabytes of data stored throughout his career. Some of my favorites include his work on designing the Yeezus cover art, the infamous Pyrex Vision campaign, and of course his first season at LV to name a few.
This book goes heavily into detail on the journey and thought process on one designer’s dream that came into reality - a beautiful story about what can happen when you execute your dream with no barriers and push through what the fashion “normal” was and is. If you’re interested in the world of fashion and haven’t made that step, this book could be something to give a look at!
📚 My Dress Up Darling Vol. 6
Getting a new volume of My Dress-Up Daring in the mail is like Christmas and it came early this month because Volume 6 is with me in physical form! This volume marks the continuation of where the anime left off, so this is all new content for me. This volume introduces a new character who cosplays in drag - showing the reader another side of cosplaying that very much all inclusive and it’s great to see that being represented in a manga! Now I have to wait until January for the next one :(.
📚🖤Rick Owens Book
Shout out to my significant other for gifting me this book for our three year anniversary (lots of love 💕). This book features photography from the past ten years of Rick Owens shot by Danielle Levitt that feature many distinct and breathtaking looks by my favorite fashion designer. A very well constructed hardcover book that I’ll be enjoying for reference and admiration!
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