Vans' Dapper Skate Shoe Has Big Clarks Wallabee Energy
Looks can be deceiving. And with the Vans Carver sneaker, that is certainly the case.
A little-known Vans deep cut, first released in the ‘80s, the sneaker looks like a classic leather shoe at first glance. It has moccasin-inspired stitching, a smooth leather upper, and, in the case of the collaborative Vans x Fudge Magazine collaboration, tassels hanging from under its laces.
The shoes look, in all honesty, more like a Clarks Wallabee than anything typical for Vans. However, this is in fact a Vans sneaker with the skateboard-appropriate vulcanized sole unit to match.
After making a small-scale comeback last year in Japan, the hybrid Carver model is launching as a special release with the Japanese magazine Fudge, arriving in brown and black colorways with a multi-color houndstooth lining.
For those looking to acquire skate shoes that wouldn’t look out of place with a suit, the collaborative shoes are available on Fudge’s online store for 13,200 yen (around $91).
Not the only recent example of skate shoes dressing up and becoming dapper, only last week the Vans Tokyo Design Studio turned its sneakers into hybrid Brogues and Nike played a similar trick with its classic Dunks.
Skate shoes are evolving and on the one side they’re getting more engineered than ever while on the other hand, some are getting suited and booted.
