Vans’ premium old school shoes are spray painted with multi-color tweed details and van-themed pins for “bag-like decorations.”
How to clean your white shoes without ruining them
With these cleaning tips, make your dirty white shoes look new again.
The problem has been resolved
Squeaky, beautiful sneakers may be a thing of the past.
Sold out within 24 hours, Vans’ new sneakers feature pre-made styles with painted tints, tweed fringe details and a look dirty lace and sole. The warm brown premium old school shoes as souvenirs went live on the VANS website in the second half of July 30th, and by the next day the sneakers had already sold out. The VANS website says as of July 31, 118 people had purchased sneakers.
Originally for $125, limited edition sneakers are now available on eBay for between $500 and $1,600.
Here’s what we know about premium old squall shoes and what fans think about them:
What does the Old Skool 36 “Souvenir” van look like?
The canvas of the low-top skate sneakers are spray-painted with brown leather overlays. The sneakers feature multi-color tweed strip details and van-themed pins on the sides for “bag-like decorations.” The lace is dark, off-white, and the white soles look dirty, but brand new.
The sneakers appear to be inspired by Chanel pavement messenger bags, part of the designer’s graffiti collection, which was first featured in 2014. This messenger bag features muddy brown colouring, multi-faceted tweed details, vintage steel pins and dispinded pins and disping details. The messenger bag version is available on the Sotheby website for $15,150.
He brushed the comparison in a statement to USA Today saying that the shoes are rooted in creative branding.
What are people saying?
On Instagram, some of the comments on the ambiguous Vansagram post promoting the sneaker launch on July 30th criticised the shoe design.
“I want them and want to get references. They have a very good creative direction, but once you step back they do low keys that look like barf,” one Instagram user commented on the Vans post.
Other creators and social media users will be able to get it at several retailers ahead of the 9am van on July 31st, with shoes on sale in such a limited run, sneakers being sold live on the van website and promoted on social media.
The van in the statement told USA Today that the sneaker’s official release was on July 31st.
The trends that are worn out
The van certainly wasn’t the first brand to make use of worn-out styles. In fact, Golden Goose is known for its trends, releasing a popular line of popular sneakers in 2007, continuing to dominate the “pre-made” market. Golden Goose’s top-selling Superstar sneakers feature a “dirty, frayed” sole and cost around $600.
In 2021, New Balance released the “Protection Pack,” a line of sneakers that appears to have torn fabric. Last year, Puma released sneakers with $AP Rocky, known as “Inhale Distredded.” The $130 sneakers that were now sold out were in a dirty box and appeared to be covered in grease.
And earlier this year, Nike released the Air Force 1 Lower Air Force with “Dirty Triple White.” The $130 sneakers look dirty, folded and worn, despite being brand new.
Gretacross is a national trend reporter for USA Today. Story ideas? Please email her gcross@usatoday.com.
