Travis Gumbs: Many of us New Yorkers tend to take much for granted. Growing up, the museum was often reseversed for class trips and that once in a bluemoon family outing. It was actually always a fascinating experience but somehow felt only right for a special occasion. Recently, I’ve been taking great advantage of The MET and needless to say, it definetly deserves a post of its own.

On a peaceful afternoon Myself, Josh, Joekenneth and Andre headed for a stroll through the MET. If you’ve been there before you know that it is almost impossible to attentively walk every exhibit in one day. This place is huge, with every type of art you can imagine. Its like you step into a real life, materialized Tumblr.

The Egyptian art Exhibit is one of favorites. It also happens to be the first exhibit so we decided to take some quick photos and then quietly enjoyed a number of other exhibits. What I love most about Ancient Egyptian art is the precision, mystery and colors that make up the art. It certainly hard to believe that some pieces date back to 300,000 BC.

Listening to [Melo-X- Dirty Dishes]

Heres a nice instrumental number from Melo-X. A  friend of ours and overall talented being. His new instrumental mixtape, FEWTURE went available for download last-night. I love the soothing yet captivating feeling this song gives. Its funny, I had another song in mind for this post but as I was writingI kept replaying this track over and over until this song and this post became synonymous in my head. Love it!

Photos by Andre Wagner

Joshua Kissi : During the holiday season we trekked out to Staten Island.  We were paying a visit to the home of our good friend Kevin Stewart of ROGER CHARLES, aka “Professor Badass” (a nickname that started out as a internet meme due to his supposedly ‘bold, intimidating exterior’). Travis and I, like the majority of native New Yorkers, must shamefully admit it was one of our first times traveling to Staten Island.  Getting there is a logistical nightmare much like going to the Bronx -  but more exciting, considering it involves traveling from downtown Manhattan to Staten Island on the S.I Ferry.  Because a handshake and a drink never get old, we value those in-person experiences.

Joshua Kissi : The fall and winter have been strangely kind to us in New York City with mild temperatures thanks to a  global warming and other things unbeknownst to us.  With good weather comes opportunities to layer comfortably and with versatility.  After what I thought was a budding, illustrious collection of three suits accumulated in the last year, they were gone in a second. After my luggage mishap on our trip to London I needed a new suit, ideally a wool one perfect for the slightly colder weather.

Truthfully who wouldn’t want to sport a suit everyday outside of the conventional work requirements? I found myself looking for the best alternative to a great wool suit, preferably for the colder months. I traveled a rather unorthodox route, searching for an alternative to the usual gray, navy or black. I found the perfect flannel pattern in the fairly new men’s boutique SUIT SUPPLY.  By no means do I want to sound like an annoying advert, but the store provided in-store tailoring, great fabrics, different cuts, and last but not least a reasonable price. I happily walked out  of the boutique with a great 3 piece wool-flannel suit without breaking the bank for the product/tailoring (success!).

Featuring – A familiar face around these parts Black Ivy compadre James E.Jean of Modrockers, a great friend of ours from the start of this website and is also a budding stylist. We headed over to Cheeky’s Sandwiches for a bite to eat, good ol’ New Orleans style creole eatery between L.E.S/Chinatown, and some of the best biscuit sandwiches around town. A beautiful day in the city, conversation and some great eats at the end of the all ends up to be a perfect day in the Lower East Side.

Listening to [ Miles Davis - Blue in Green ]

The song itself is a auditory journey led by the great Miles Davis, accompanied by legends John Coltrane and Bill Evans. To say that we solely find the music inspiring would be an understatement,  it’s pretty obvious that Jazz musicians were  one of the first prototypes and examples of personifying the terms cool and hip.I ask myself what song could be more perfectly crafted without a word.  Speaking of hip it’s kind of interesting that the original diction of the term hipster was someone who took a great liking to Jazz music, and  aspired to live similar lifestyles of Jazz musicians in the 1940s.

Addresses :

Suit Supply NYC

• 453 Broome St
• (between Mercer St & Greene St)
• New York, NY 10013

Cheeky’s Sandwiches

• 35 Orchard St
• (between Canal St & Hester St)
• New York, NY 10002

Travis Gumbs: Months ago when I walked into a fabric store and bought a bottle of wine colored Writ dye, I had no idea what I was going to do with it. I simply bought it based solely on the fact that I liked the color and knew that someday the opportunity to use it will  present itself. The dye quickly found itself hidden beneath all the other non-necessities that took home in my room.

While cleaning my room a couple weeks ago, I came across the bottle of unused, forgotten dye and felt an urge to use it. I took my white Tretorn Nylites that were beaten to a pulp and ran for the bathroom before I could change my mind. I Filled a plastic tub with warm water, added a generous amount of salt and poured in the dye. Then submerged the sneakers and laces in the concoction and let it sit for about 20-30mins. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much promising results. Had I known what I know now I would have documented the whole thing, the transformation was nothing short of amazing. As you can see from the photos, the canvas turned a deep wine and the soles and accents morphed into a pinkish hue. It’s actually a great color-way. There’s no wonder why Tretorn fans I encounter think they missed the boat on these.

I wasn’t planning on doing a post on this. However, I’ve been getting countless questions about where I purchased the shoes. The most fascinating part is seeing people’s reactions when I reveal that I dyed them with a simple $4 bottle of liquid dye. So there you go. I know most of you have beat up canvas sneakers laying around. Get some dye and spice those badboys up. I’ll be doing this with a couple other things. I cant get enough. I’ll be sure to keep you guys posted.

Listening to [Jackie Mittoo- Ghetto Organ]

Here’s a nice little instrumental dub track by Jackie Mittoo. He was a popular pianist and songwriter out of Jamaica who started his career during the 60s. This track has the perfect ambience of reggae in an urban city.

Joshua Kissi :  What started as a casual joke has now come to fruition.  You may remember Jesse Boykins III, an independent artist and good friend of mine, from our last musically-influenced editorial Sartorial Sounds.  A song featured on his latest EP inspired me a great deal:  potent lyrics dipped in substance and awareness, accompanied by a cinematic instrumental. I knew I wanted to add visuals to the song, and was excited at the prospect of shooting and directing the video.  As this task was not without its challenges, I decided to write about my experience making this project come to light.

‘Light to Dark’- The song resonated with me, both its abstract definition of “Light to Dark” and its lyrics:  a testament to global socio-political events and ethical dilemmas. As a fan of music and art, I appreciate that this song is saying something that needs to be heard instead of beating the same drum and coming up with the same message. I asked Jesse how he would describe this song and he said it was his interpretation of what John Lennon’s “Imagine” would sound like if he grew up in our environment, time and culture.  Reimagining such an iconic song sounds daunting, but justified nonetheless.

The process – Once the first day of shooting started and finished, I quickly realized that maybe I had bitten off more than I could chew. The preparation and thought process required to prepare a full treatment and capture the shots I had in mind visually was anything but easy. We spent 3 days scouring the city for the best shots – our illustrious budget meant relying on local thai food, pizza and all the other low budget food NYC has to offer.  Even when luck wasn’t on our side we made do with the day light we had available available to capture the essence of ‘Light to Dark’ in time.

The result - What I found interesting was that despite preparing 100% for a shot, we would sometimes get unintended results.  I learned an important lesson about planning but leaving room for growth and creativity.  I’m not saying all of this from my comfortable director‘s chair with “Spielberg” etched on the back, I’m just saying that if you are inspired to do something, embark on it and you may never know where that path will lead you

Hope you guys enjoy the video as much as I did shooting and directing it.

Enjoy.

*Special Thanks to Sam Sneed of We Are Not Pilgrims, Ali of A noble Savage, Cleon Grey and Jesse Boykins III for providing the opportunity for such a collaborative project.

Photos by Cleon Grey

Joshua Kissi : I have always been intrigued by the NYC Subway system – observing the placid behavior people take on them, predicting who gets off where, and what disturbs people to take notice outside of their little glass box. Although I have been traveling through this underground maze since the tender age of nine, I am still susceptible to getting lost at any moment due to my inability to ask for directions. [I know I'm not alone in this!]

Some people may ask what does this have to do with street style? Subway Etiquette? What? *I just want the fare to be lowered, Ha. * Well before the beautiful cobble stone streets and paved sidewalks there is a mutual commute for most.  Mine in particular is 45 minutes to an hour depending on the never ending construction of train tracks uptown. I feel the subway is a state of limbo, another world that is seperate from all the madness above ground. Essentially this is a daily piece of our lives captured in photographs.

Featuring - We teamed up with photographer Andre Wagner of abstractElements to provide the visuals for this post. We are huge fans of his photographic perspective on story telling as he captures the moment without saying much. Kadeem & Rinaldy ( who were featured in the Black Ivy editorial and Sartorial Sounds ) came along and lent their visuals for the ride.

Listening to [ Blackstar ft Common - Respiration ] produced by Hi-Tek

The perfect soundtrack for riding the subway, it just screams gritty. Although Jazz is not frequently listened to by younger generations its potent roots in Rock and Hip Hop are evident. Here Don Randi’s “The Fox” is sampled and looped through out the song. In hiphop beats especially in the 90s my favorite lame past time has to be identifying samples often times soulful jazz songs sped up with a vicious loop, dropped with a kick and snare.

Enjoy..

Travis Gumbs : Fall is finally here, and sadly enough winter is right on its heels. Last year I added a pair of Florshiem brogue boots to my arsenal for the treacherous journey through winter. They served me well, but I put them through more abuse than they were built for. I’m upping the ante this year and emptying my pockets for a pair of Tricker Boots. I will have no mercy on these boots – after all, they were built to take abuse.

Any discussion of menswear will inevitably lead to wingtips or brogues. With the menswear explosion in recent years, brogues/wingtips are not hard to find. As the colder months arrive we see many variations on these boots take shape. I love the style of these boots. I like how they allow you to be casual without looking too casual and as formal as boots allow.

Looking back at Josh’s Hiking Boot post, he made an excellent point about boots looking too chunky when paired with pants with a smaller leg opening. I can attest to that – one of the reasons I love brogue boots so much is that they are on the sleeker side without sacrificing  comfort and durability.

I was able to get my hands on a fine pair of Brooklyn Circus’s Tricker boots. You may have seen pictures of them floating around on our tumblr page or on their BKc blog. They also come in a really nice cognac color. Tricker is a 180 yr old English shoe making company that makes each shoe with handcrafted perfection. Just by touching them you can literally feel the quality and care that goes into each shoe. Not to mention they are also really comfortable, especially for boots of such heft.

Josh is wearing a pair of Grenson Tan Brogued Fret Boots. Grenson is another English shoe making company with excellent handcrafted quality and a history spanning over a century.

Listening to [ Haruka Nakamura - Harmonie Du Soir ]

Here’s a nice little piece to go along with the season. This song is by Haruka Nakamura, a composer from Tokyo, Japan. His music mostly consists of interesting ambient instrumentals using piano, saxophone, drum, percussion and violin. I hear this stuff and I feel the romance of autumn.

Until next time…

Joshua Kissi : It’s evident that practicality and men’s clothing favor each other; before guys were striving to solely look the part there was a need for your casual items to just hold you through the years. Given the fact that brands like Dickies/Carhartt were founded on uniformity and functionality, they eventually became embraced in the style/fashion realm. Both companies have embraced the change of climate by collaborating with boutiques, or creating a demographic specific line which would be labeled as more “trendy”.

Workwear has found its way into the wardrobes of many people who aren’t necessarily performing tasks 8-9 hours a day, but because of its comfort and durability. Even if labeled “fashionable” workwear you may feel slightly guilty if not possessing some sort of brute force while wearing it.

A hop and a stone’s throw away we came across this industrial construction area in the Bronx. Of course, private property with signs of “No Trespassing” plastered around the entrances. We managed to speak to the directors in charge in order to capture photos you are now viewing. Ironically enough they  found comic relief in knowing that people actually considered what was uniform, coffee and a hard day’s work remotely stylish.

Fashion and style are probably the last thing traditional workwear companies are thinking of while manufacturing their product. This is where designers come in, drawing inspiration from the likes of traditional brands while adding their own personal touch. The weeks are trickling down until we arrive into the winter season. Last year this time we wanted to cover these garments, but mother nature had other plans as the temperature dropped. This time around we caught fall at the perfect time.

Listening to  [ Soil & Pimp Sessions - Mo' Better Blues ]

A fresh breath back into a genre some people may label a dying art form. Soil & Pimp Sessions are a Japanese electric jazz band from Tokyo.  I find most of their usual records are readily energetic, but the band’s select few blues ballad  tracks are amazing. Have fun exploring their musical catalogue, truly so much to tap into. -

Joshua Kissi : There is something intriguing about hiking boots, maybe the sense of adventure and discovery. [who knows..] I highly doubt I will be trekking across challenging terrains, other than slippery NYC subway platforms and a bit of snow – it’s great to have footwear that is pretty much ready for any terrain. Since there are already slip remarks of snow so early in the season,[fun times!] see this as the preliminary step to the upcoming brutal winter season.

Speaking as a NY native I think we saw our fair share of boots throughout the years from brands like  Timberland, Vasque, Goretex to ASolo that people gravitated towards for the fall/winter seasons. I could honestly attest to purchasing boots primarily based on the look/design of them, and advanced functionality would take a prolonged backseat during this whole thought process.Ok, let me rephrase my thoughts a bit – Size 11 US boots doesn’t exactly look the most flattering especially considering small leg openings on trousers/pants.  I would come across many hiking boots from the usual suspects of companies, but once tried on had a second thought, it really depends on personal preference.

Now after some years with a bit of more grounded knowledge I’m not solely looking at the design, but the arch support, durability, traction of soles and overall warmth. I can’t tell any fables here the Danners were a good fit for me balancing functionality/design. [Ready for the season]

Listening to  [The Souljazz Orchestra - Awakening]

Here’s another musical insertion from the Canadian band Souljazz Orchestra truly a favorite of mine with mixtures of  Jazz, Latin, Afro beat and everything in between. The title of the song speaks for itself “Awakening” a progressional music journey with expanded trumpets through out. [It just sounds like the fall season to me]

Location : Central Park, NYC

Travis Gumbs: There are very few items of clothing that transcend trends. Of those, there are even fewer that find itself notable in every decade succeeding its arrival. The motorcycle jacket is undeniably on that list. From the 1920s on, the motorcycle jacket has found its niche in every era. It has become a staple in not only mens but  also women’s clothing.  Today, most brands have done their take and variation of the classic jacket.

This jacket is great for the cool fall weather, its heavy enough to withstand the breeze but light enough to hold you down until the bitter cold winter.

For this post we called upon the boys – Ali of A Noble Savage, Ouigi of The Brooklyn Circus and Kadeem of KJohn La Soul. One thing that these guys have in common is an amazing eye for vintage. It felt only right to have them dig through their goods and showcase their favorite motorcycle jackets.

The first jacket used for riding were aviator styled military jackets (similar to what Ali is wearing) in the 1920s. Before that there was no real attire made specifically for motorcycle riding. In 1928, Irving Schott founder of Schott NYC designed the perfecto jacket and the classic motorcycle jacket was born.

This jacket is far from just an item of clothing. There is a long list of what this jacket has represented in the past decades. Wether it was the rebellious nature of the people who wore it that forced schools to ban it in the 50s, or the romanticism built into the journey of riding, it comes at no surprise that this jacket has stayed relevant for some 80yrs.