It’s a rare chance to get to see the world’s best professional skateboarders in formalwear since most are traveling, competing, or working on video clips for an upcoming movie and rarely have a reason to look super fly. However at the 9th Annual TWS Skateboarding Awards held at the Avalon Theatre in Hollywood June 7th, we got a chance to check out the red-carpet flavor going down as the new genre of skate-formal.
On one side of the entrance were the pros entering the theatre and on the other, fans of skaters waiting in line. The pros offered an array of various suit versions, a high amount of bling, chapeaus, and pinstripes, whereas the other side with fans provided a variety of favorite skate-brand T-shirt logos and graphics.
In addition, each presenter was given a special New Era cap—the 59Fifty fitted version-- made of grip tape on the outside with the TWS logo on the front and inside, the colorful front covers of 25 issues of TWS Skateboarding. Under the bill of the cap was skatedeck-like wood. Each cap was presented in a special silver box cushioned with silk.
Here are key fashion trends in skate-formalwear including fans of skateboarding and T-shirt graphics:
- Team logo-ed T-shirts such as Sk8Mafia, Zenetti, Vestal, Volcom, Element, WESC, Fly Society, but often paired with a striped cardigan, suit jacket, vest, or multiple long chain necklaces
- Pictures on T-shirts to pay respect to fallen heroes or friends, or show hometown skate crews
- Bling in the form of Terry Kennedy’s new mouth grill, long chains with skateboard decks in silver metal such as Board Bangers, or Sk8Mafia logos on chains
- Mix of urban and punk, such as all-over print zip jackets (not necessarily hoodies) and stovepipe denim pants and slip-ons—even in colored denim such as red as seen on Kevin Staab
- Pinstripes in jackets, fedoras, vests,
- Plaid button-downs over graphic T-shirts or graphics on the plaids such as WESC
- Everyone making the symbol of the diamond as in Diamond Supply
- Metallic sheen suit jackets over graphic T-shirts
- Sneakers including fresh releases such as Chad Muska’s Supra shoe in black with straps
- Shout-out to the Fly Society logo with the retro airplane in orange
- Characters, cartoons graphics, i.e., MightMouse flying with sacks of $
- Bandanas usually around the neck, in black and white, and also worn on girls
- Louis Vuitton cell phone holders and belts
- Striped cardigan sweaters
- Chest and neck tattoos
- Girls in dresses, boots, heels in general
- Feather earrings or long earring in general
- Face adornments such as sequins and crystals around eyes
- Becky skateboard hand purses
