WYWT

Some catalogue posing from Friday and Saturday afternoon, Ralph Madras shirt, vintage Benetton sweatshirt, flat front chinos, pre-ted 8703 hat, Superga. Folk Rain mac, Red Ear denims, Oberons.

Mad Cyril.

Although our music and our drugs stayed the same,

Although our music and our interests are the same...

Thorogood Oxfords.

Thorogood Ultimate Contractor Oxfords, a seriously tough sturdy and well crafted work shoe. Made in the USA. Got these today, they're actually my brother's but I like 'em enough I'll either nick them off him or get myself a pair.

MA.Strum.

MA.Strum is a fairly new label, created from the archives of the legendary Massimo Osti and from the design studio ran by his son and daughter. I'm going to be honest here and admit I wasn't all that fussed on what I'd seen when this brand first surfaced, seemed like a high price to pay for what was essentially an old look in my personal opinion, the name does also sound a bit like a Geordie Grandmother. But I'd no doubt have gone mad for this stuff when I was younger, had a more disposable income and was far more active in the ways I supported my football club.
Those days it was largely about SPW stuff, jackets with gimmicks and jackets that turned heads. As I've shifted to newer styles, and older bits and bobs, it's sometimes nice to get hold of, and appreciate the so called high end stuff that I may not normally look at these days, I got this via my pal Jay at 80s Casuals. The field quad jacket in 'Castle Green' is a good example of that kind of tackle, as I said above, every now and then I'm a sucker for a jacket with a gimmick or two, and this has that in abundance...

Fully functional and weather proof, this is made from cross dyed polyester so gives off a two tone shimmery effect depending on which way you glance at it. This also features a couple of the Stone Island inspired button off patches, which I realised actually glow in the dark. The jacket's main gimmick is the attached solar powered torch which charges itself through a clear panel on a chest pocket, I'm not sure when and where I may need this, but it's a cool little extra none the less.

I get the picture this brand would have been far better received had it been released just a few years back, in the wake of Osti's passing, but as is the norm with these things, I'm sure it'll become a lot more sought after once it's become unobtainable in the future.

The Face - Dec 1991.

Article from The Face magazine, December 1991 by Gavin Hills.

'Whatever Happened to the Likely lads?'
Discussing the casual - acid house crossover of the late 80's to early 90's and the effect it had on match going lads. Also includes some old school Boys Own 'Top Fives'.

Click for full size images, you can actually read this one.

Nitto you sigh.

Bags of Flavor.

Situated on Tib Street in Manchester's trendy Northern Quarter, Bags of Flavor opened late in 2009, having previously operated out of Wood on Oldham St for a couple of years and in Affleck's Palace since the turn of the millennium. Rich from Bags of Flavor has been making his trademark custom record bags for well over a decade, starting out doing them for local DJ's. 'Almost all my bags are made from recycled materials, and vintage sports goods but I also use the finest tweed and leather fabrics. All the bags are hand crafted in Manchester and are genuinely one of a kind as the materials I source are often rare and unique.
I pride myself on finding unique materials which I transform into Bags Of Flavor. I am happy to make bespoke bags from fabrics found or owned by my customers which often have a sentimental value to them and I am also prepared to try and find specific fabric on request within reason. In most cases I can make and supply a custom bag within 10 days'.
This is my kind of shop, a mine of vintage outdoor and casual wear, brands you will be familiar with and brands you won't have heard of before, rails of real timeless stuff, from old school mountain jackets from the UK and US to more street and sportswear. This shop reminds me of my old bedroom, which is no bad thing, loads of ace coats and gear hanging up, choice deadstock footwear, and cool pictures and old advertisements on the wall, with glass cabinets full of toys it's okay to like, and little nik naks dotted about.

The knowledgeable Rich has been buying and selling clothing for years and used to trade out of Wood on Oldham St, that was merely a hint of the stuff he could sell, and he now has a large open plan store to showcase that. Bags of Flavor sits on Tib St and the corner of Dorsey St, facing the now old Oi Polloi store which has just moved around the corner. There is a healthy vintage clothing scene around this area, with Bags of Flavor and Bionic Seven on John St, facing the new Oi Polloi, the one's really leading the way. Get yourself in there and have a look; anywhere that you can buy a one off tweed bag, a Richard Allen novel and vintage bubble jackets is worth a look in my book, it's like a real life eBay you can actually walk into.
Click on the thumbs for bigger pics (opens in the same browser)

You can read an in depth interview with Bags of Flavor owner Rich in the forthcoming Proper Magazine Issue 9.

Bags of Flavor

33 Tib St, Manchester M41LX

Oi Polloi's new store.

Here's a little peak a the new Oi Polloi store on Thomas Street. Only a stone's throw away from the Tib Street store, the new premises are quite a jump from the little shop you'd be used to visiting.
I guess as Oi Polloi have grown, it's quite a change, having visited the original place since it opened I've seen quite a jump. Once upon a time new and old brands sat along side vintage garments and original trainers. Now the store stocks a vast choice of brands from around the globe, a selection so big it must have literally been getting too big for the old place.
I guess it's changed for the better, as cool and compact as the Tib Street store was, it would get crowded as it was busy and carrying such a choice in a small space occasionally made it a tad difficult to spot something specific. The new place features a full shoe wall, from Yuketens to Clarks, moccasins to brogues. Rails of the latest ranges from Cabourn, Engineered Garments, Oliver Spencer and Folk et al, glass cabinets featuring swish cycling and outdoors accessories, and large display cabinets showcasing handpicked outfits, plus a huge selection of denim.
All in a more spacious setting, so spacious in fact there was about three bicycles on show, and it was good to see Action Man and his pal had found their way around the corner too.
I'm sure there's finishing touches to be added, with I'd suspect window decals and subtle signage as per Tib St, I don't think 'Rox 1' thinks much of the place, like.
Two or three people actually asked me where this was as I was walking about the Northern Quarter, it's literally a minutes stroll from the old store, facing the multi storey car park and next to The Millstone pub.

Pics via OP's facebook page.

Connoisseur 'Club Colours'.

Here's a design I did for The Casual Connoisseur, sometimes the most simple things work the best, and this one - utilising the tee as a blank canvas is very simple but works a treat for me.
We tried several versions and colours of this, with a navy blue, yellow and tangy blue combo being my fave, but unfortunately it was too complex for the screenprinters to bash out in staggered sizes.
My brainwave was based on football club colours, a way to show your allegiance whilst being subtle about it, pitting the age old Subbuteo blue against red.
These are pretty limited in numbers and who knows maybe we'll try a few other colours in the future.

Icons of our time - Action Man.

Born the same year England won the world cup, Action Man is the one toy it's largely acceptable for grown men to enjoy, I'm not sure about actually play with, but just enjoy.
There's no denying it, this twelve inch hero is one cool cat. I'm talking about the original one here - if there was ever any doubt, not the gay new fictitious moulded plastic 'hi-tech' ones.

The original concept was the first of it's kind - a fully poseable 'artist's dummy' style action figure. The first figures available to the UK market were all based on genuine members of the combined armed forces - soldiers, sailors and pilots coming complete with replica issued uniforms and accessories and each containing a dog tag. Until 1970 he was moulded with painted hair, and then we saw the introduction of his realistic flocked hair based on a typical crew cut, in dark brown and blonde. Some even came with facial hair, this was mainly used to add an edge of realism to the adventurer and explorer versions, there was even a footballer introduced with larger sideburns, probably based on George Best.

With a blue, doe eyed demeanour, grabbing hands - introduced in 1973, 'eagle eyes' - introduced in 1976, each Action Man had seemingly been in the same unfortunate incident and bared the same large scar across his right cheek. These were a very realistic toy, and pretty revolutionary at the time of release. Extremely well crafted and built to last, these figures were in no way scrimping on cheap manufacturing costs, over thirty years later many have stood the test of time and are now highly collectable with the real older rarities fetching pretty serious money.

Produced by Palitoy in Coalville, Leicestershire for nearly twenty years, this poseable figurine was manufactured as a direct licensed copy of America's highly successful Hasbro produced "All Action GI -Joe" figure.
As an eighties kid my toy box was full of the usual stuff, anything from ET, He Man and of course Star Wars figures, I loved all that stuff, especially every one's least favourite installment of the original trilogy The Return of The Jedi, try telling a five year old that Jabba and all his crazy cronies and the Ewoks were not the best thing in the world, I had loads of them. However, I dare say the less familiar GI Joe or Action Force as it was known in Blighty were my true favourites, these were kind of like the small scale version of the Action Man, which by their first release around 1982 had all but replaced the original larger Action Man but each one, good guy or bad bared his original face - complete with sensible hair and of course the trademark scar. Around four inches in height and restricted with stiff arms and legs which didn't become bendy until a few years later, these were introduced as direct competition to the hugely successful Star Wars toys. Not fussy, I tended to lumber them all in together and made Jedi's go head to head with Cobra. I'd spend hour upon hour making them batter each other senseless as they went to war in makeshift bases, hideouts and headquarters anywhere from my bedroom to the living room floor and the back garden in summer time with all it's vast open space, secret nooks and crannies which became streams and trenches and the pre mowed lush green lawn, a perfect substitute for a deep blue ocean.

I'd not be surprised if whoever lives where I grew up is still finding a 'Yak Face' or a 'Duke', or maybe a 'Zartan' and a 'Weequay', whilst tending to their borders.
Having an older brother who was a seventies kid, he was more used to the original Action Man, and had actually saved a couple of his figures in boxed condition for my brother and I when we were old enough and responsible enough to play with them. I can recollect a Sunday drive into the hills to some park, up Derbyshire way, Buxton perhaps, or maybe it was Glossop, somewhere which had more swings, a stream and a bigger slide than the local park we'd normally be happy with. We pretty much destroyed them that day, within days of being given them, an adventure within an adventure, one which ended in tragic curcumstances for old Action Man. I can remember dropping mine off that large slide I mentioned, and breaking both of his legs to the point of unrepair. These had sat happily boxed on top of our kid's wardrobe for several years, and we had written them (and any future collectible gain) off, within a week of getting our grubby little mits on them.
I think my enjoyment of the smaller scale version of Action Man led me to not fully enjoy the big, proper version of him in all his glory, I can still hardly put his little roll neck pullover on now, and that brings back instant memories of a frustrated childhood where I'd rather just take Han Solo or Super Trooper out in my arse pocket than piss about trying to clothe that big daft action man who's arms were now the wrong way around because his jumper and smock wouldn't hang properly, and his special 'grabbing hands' kept falling off, not to mention his plus fours snagging on his by now, backward little kneecaps.
So, as an older chap I can fully appreciate the true aesthetic of our old trusty pal, I'd say they are there simply for admiring, sat static on a shelf, abseiling from the picture rail or climbing up a Yucca, rather than throwing around the concrete of the local park and muddy streams of the local wastelands re-enacting The Heroes of Telemark.
Of course playing army goes hand in hand with any normal childhood, but there's one model who's greater than them all, forget the Royal Guards, Snipers, SAS frogmen and Red Arrow pilots, for me and I'd expect many others, it's the iconic Mountaineer, Adventurer/Explorer who is the coolest thing on the planet, his facial hair gives him the edge, an edge that says, he's been there, seen it and done it, his orange smock, rucksack and boots are not a million miles away from anything yours typing would happily wear himself, if so without further ado, I'll stop going on about it, and you can just look at him...

Excellent photos from a fellow flickr

Action Man's early 80's small scale replacement.

Hat, Adidas trainers and The Casual Connoisseur's nod to the great man.

Original boxes, annual and instructions.

Action Man HQ