Vintage Feats by retroiscooler Episode 3
feat – an extraordinary act or achievement, usually displaying boldness and skill.
It’s Sunday once again, so it’s time for another episode of Vintage Feats by retroiscooler – the place where we take clothes that available to purchase on our website and tell you their cool stories.
Without further ado, let's dig deep into our list for today.
In the first episode of our blog saga, we discussed how the first iteration of the iconic partnership between North American Canada Goose and Italian brand Museum was born. Today, it’s time to bring forward another child of this collaboration, which, if we strive for chronological accuracy, dates way before the 1986 Heli Parka.
For decades, Metro Sportswear – the company that created Canada Goose – made and sold winter gear exclusive to Canadian firefighters, the state’s police departments, arctic researchers, and mountain rangers. To keep these people safe during the harsh temperatures of the Canadian winters, the company invented a machine that enabled it to its jackets more down feathers than its competitors.
This vintage 1986 Beige Canada Goose x Museum Arctic Heli Parka is made to match the exact specifications of the then-called Snow Goose Resolute Parka. In the 70s and 80s, the Resolute Parka was known as the ‘industrial parka’ of the North, helping people get through some of the world’s coldest environments.
Our second item of the day keeps the American-European collaboration pattern. US sportswear giants started producing goods in Europe in the early 1980s and Portugal was one of the chosen countries to open a factory.
Nowadays, Nike makes items in Europe only for very small batches of limited editions, so items like this have become highly collectible and more and more difficult to find. The blue collar tag is an unmistakable giveaway of the age, just like is the quality of the cotton and the stitching of the small, old-style logo.
For our third piece, we go one decade up from Nike to Asics, or the other way around from how things happened in real life. For those of you who don’t know, Nike exists thanks to the Japanese brand Asics whose letters form the acronym of the Latin phrase’s words Anima Sana In Corpore Sano.
In the 60s, however, the brand was called Tiger and caught the attention of Phil Knight – founder of the Blue Ribbon Shoes brand now known as Nike – who started importing its footwear to America. And who, witnessing the success of the Japanese brand’s sneakers decided to create his own shoes based on Tiger’s design and quality.
Now back to the Asics trousers. In the 90s, Gore-Tex was all the rage (and still is to some extent), so this pair embodies a very special period in streetwear culture. And the fact that it’s virtually new makes this pair of electric blue technical trousers a must cop.
Part of the Antwerp Six group of designers who have all become world-renowned after graduating the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in the Belgian town, Martin Margiela is a central figure on the global fashion stage. And the same can be said about his sneakers, true trend setters for decades.
The simple, retro lines, the overlapping of high-quality materials, the leather lining interiors, the unmissable white thread at the back, the gum sole – these are all trademarks of Margiela’s craftmanship. And this pair of Italian-made high-top sneakers is ready to take you to places you’ve never been before and help you look the part low-key style. Because who knows will know. And who doesn’t… well, that’s when the beauty of a vintage item’s story comes to life.
Header image courtesy of www.canada-goose.com
Image used for information purposes ony.
