Snake America: Issue 10
Errata: Black Woman came out in 1969, not 1992--I was thinking of the Bulldoze demo (USA, 1992).
Sourcing: A well-placed source inside Levi's cites the grey 511 cut I dissed as a top-10 model clearing $2m annual sales at Macy's. Go figure!
Snake is a regular email covering joints on eBay, Craigslist, YouTube, ephemera, errata, metal-bodied Vitamixes, reverse pineapple upside-down cake... Reader Alia asks about winter wear:
"Any interest in women's fashion*? Maybe you could recommend a really solid winter coat and tell me what winter shoes I should buy so I don't buy another stupid pair of Chelsea boots or bean boots?"
Nice coat:
In the documentary about Bill Cunningham (USA, 2010), Cunningham said the lines in Rei Kawakubo's early collections for Comme Des Garcons had silhouettes that resembled outfits worn by the homeless women, or "bad ladies," of New York in the 1980s and clothing from Medieval Europe. I think the best and worst winter coats available for sell carry on this tradition of exaggerated shape and shadow. There are many kinds of bad coats, but only the waterlogged, sagging parka can be mistaken for a quality garment. It probably got shredded from heavy use, e.g. climbing Everest**. Many of Stone Island's parkas can be very involved, or come in three quarter length, or are made with severe and quality materials, take those shapes. (Stone Island's Shadow Project line takes a slim silhouette and doesn't count. Neither do most CP Company jackets, which are too simple, or the bomber-length Stone Islands, though those resemble Balkan war-wear and CBS News specials from 1993.) So you can try buying those. There are also the Barbour duster jackets and the Marmot 8000m suit:
These jackets look wrong at first look but work on a razor's edge. They fit right, just weird. (If a jacket is too big, it will look sloppy, but if the shoulders and sleeves start and end where they should it will look inflamed.) Usually these jackets have a curve or drape. (Look at a Barbour Gamefair's pockets and try not to imagine a nestled fowl and a Mounds bar in there.) The look is less roofer in the bus queue than Greta Garbo going to Gristedes in the heat of the night***. Inclement weather's best-case scenario is grabbing the, say, shockingly well-made 1960s mountaineering parka from the depths of reality your closet and it working out. I say the anti-design of these parkas should be your guiding winter principle. Only when you see disrespected and abused luxury clothing worn successfully, can you go lower and aim higher. I guess if that doesn't work, you can buy a Fjallraven Expedition or a B-7 Parka, sheepskin or shearling.
Boots:
I can't add to a discussion of the Bean Boot. It's not very warm and is unfadeable. Waterproof or extra socks help with the first problem. That's why they fit a size big. I'm not much at giving functional advice, but if you don't hate brown footwear go to hikingshoes.com and see what you like, and then when you arrive at Target, get as many socks as you can carry, especially monkey socks. I'll also say a few words about the following:
Beatle boots -- I can't tell the difference between these and Chelsea Boots. Is there one? There is not. Flanders wore these on "The Simpsons" (USA, 1990).
Mukluks -- I love the green on these, it looks like OG-107, but they're stupid.
Millet mountaineering boots -- Are both differently and identically stupid than the shoes above.
North Face down slippers -- Are known as Thermoballs, and are for indoors.
High-heeled Timberlands -- Not even Mickey Spillane could write a sentence befitting these works of art.
Bootleg Timberland lows -- Timberland low-cut wheat boots do not exist. Why not? Red Wing oxfords are basically low-cut boots, and Timberlands are better. Are they saving it for the tricentennial?
Vans sneakers -- Stay away from wearing these in the snow. You only see these in the winter if you support live music. If you don't, you're fine.
Alden Indys -- pretty good mental image thinking of someone out there who wants to keep their feet dry for the winter and goes out and buys Indys.
The Rest: Capezios, White Smoke Jumpers, Canvas Doc Martens -- Smoke Jumpers could work, I think.
Hate mail, requests, corrections, tips, etc can be sent via reply. Thank you for reading.
Snake
*Yes, but no expertise or interesting knowledge. It begins and ends with watching Fashion Television as a kid (6:30 PM, Sunday evenings, City TV, hosted by Jeannie Beker with help from Tim Blanks) and reading my sister's spotty Vogue collection. Balmain is cool, though.
** There's an old XXL issue from like 2003 or so, that talks to an investigative journalist (forget the name), about his findings regarding Tupac's last few days on earth. In the photo--him at a busy intersection in New York, staring back into the camera--he's wearing one of those Stone Island jackets that's a puffy-jacket vest underneath with a ratty trenchcoat over it and attached. It's a great photo. He looks like shit. The jacket looks both like it's falling apart and from another planet. I studied the photo for the full eight weeks it had my attention, since it was a summer issue.
*** Also captured by Cunningham, addressed in the movie