We are cooking up a storm in our kitchen. The Bar has been raised once again. Here is a sneak peak of our Varsity Bones Collection. On guard!
Well local shoe customizer and international shoe custom icon SBTG has always brought the game to the table. In a world laden with would-be customizers and pretenders to the throne, there are few that have truly captured the respect of the GLOBAL sneaker community.
With a design principle centered around rock n roll, rebellion and disregard for the rules, we have all come to expect a whole new level of modifications to every shoe he produces.
More recently, we wrote about a custom he collaborated with Supra on, and well, how few have ventured to do such a custom shoe. Now, we bring you news of another model in which really lives up the standards set by the man himself. Introducing SBTG’s twist on the iconic Chuck Taylor Hi Top.
As an avid follower of the craftsmanship of SBTG, seeing these kicks compelled me to write about them. I loved the Varsity Bones collection and salivated over OPIVY dunks of recent vintage, but nothing touches my heart like the Chucks.
Totally embracing the punk/rebel culture of past, the Sex & Violence Chucks come in two colurways: The Leopard and Army. Complete with studded panels, rips along the main body, grunge style midsoles/toecaps, it was love at first sight for me when I saw these. Finishing the whole shoe off were custom lace zippers and frankenstein like stitching. How can you not think back to the days of the Ramones and The Who after seeing these sick kicks?
After the emergence of the Sex & Violence Chucks, what now will SBTG wow us with next? We can only wait and see as he and his crew do their magic on new kicks to be unleashed on the sneaker world. Meanwhile all those who are interested in purchasing these sick shoes or other SBTG customs, please feel free to do so at their online store here, or visit Warped as we too have a pair of his past released skeleton comrade Dunks in store too.
While we are working hard to have our Sabotage(id) set up as soon as possible, we have came out with a trial run for one of our Interns who have been helping us out with pure passion. Here is what she has came out with. We are still working on the software aspects to have this workout for everyone so keep the creative juice flowing!
If you haven’t been following on what’s going on at Royalefam, we have just recently released our first in line for the Varsity Bones series titled Prison Blues. Here is some pictures to show what it means when we mention “Individually hand-screened and detailed using premium grade selvedge denim, each pair of Prison Blues is a legend in the making.” on our website.
Jul
13
Concept of Varsity Bones
Concept of Varsity Bones
It was 2008: the year of the dunk. Nike sent us a custom-made locker with 7 vintage dunks in it. But there were 8 compartments. There was a space to be filled.
SBTG Custom Kicks came about from a love of these vintage Dunks, which has inspired many of our best works and this is our way of honoring the original legends. To fill in the void with a series of dunks based on the underdog. Teams made up of the overlooked, the dismissed and the forgotten
To those that play the game differently, dress different and refuse to conform to rules or tradition.
That spirit’s still alive and kicking.
SBTG presents a rebellious interpretation of the traditional college basketball style: The best team that never made it to the league.
We are the Varsity Bones.
1985, the year of the college dunk. Nike releases the original 7 college Dunk, some of the most storied programmes in college basketball now had the shoes that bled their colors. Michigan, UNLV, Villanova, Kentucky, St Johns, Arizona, Iowa. Born from the Nike Terminator, the original 7 dunks represented the first time Nike had introduced an integrated collection of basketball warm-ups, uniforms and shoes.
Introduced as a technical basketball at the time, what the dunk really represented was an explosion of colors. From a pure color and design aesthetic, the dunk was one of the biggest breakthroughs in the history of Nike dunks.
Then true to the Nike formula, the dunk went away. It has lived one season and done its job. It broke new ground, showing sneaker enthusiasts what it could be done with new colors.
But the original 7 weren’t dead and buried.
They simply lay dormant, waiting for their chance to return in vintage style. Because of their color schemes and rugged build, they developed a cult following in both the skate and sneaker communities; a cult that paved the way for a rebirth of the dunk 2 decades later.
It was 2008: the year of the dunk. Nike produced 5 custom-made lockers with the 7 original college dunks. We were really lucky that Nike presented Royalefam with one of them.
SBTG and hence, Royalefam, got started because of our founder’s love for kicks, of which the original vintage dunks featured prominently. Now having built both a career and a company based on that love and those sneakers, we have taken it upon ourselves to give vintage a new groove. Having never before had all 7 dunks in our possession, SBTG Custom Kicks now pays tribute to the original college dunks with our spin on things, putting a twist on the college colours.
Firstly we researched the 7 colleges and what had made each of them stand-out. From the players who became superstars, the coaches that were legends or the fight songs and mottos that said it all.
We used the most relevant from each and stencilled them on the dunks. These were combined with Royalefam’s trademark hand-painted camo designs done in both the school colours and complimentary shades. Giving a new aesthetic to an old classic. Always remaining true to the school.
I think this was the first ever pair of Air Max’s that I painted on. I must say that I enjoyed it and it made me appreciate the sneaker more.
It is a sneaker that looks tech but it still retains the old skool values. A silhouette that is as classic as the Air force 1.
The Air Max 90 allows me slightly more room for expression than the dunk (which I thought was already perfect) with many more panelling systems to play around with and discover.
Mint shemagh base panel and mono tiger camouflage pattern on toe and side wall.
SBTG Custom Kicks - Martzigzag
This is still one of my favorite pairs of Air max 90s.
A lawyer, a brother and a SBTG collector since 2004. I would say Roman has bought more SBTG custom kicks than anyone else in the world.
We receive emails from him very frequently asking: Any new stuff up your sleeves? Anything intense, labor-intensive?
Im sure if you are in the right area of NYC, you might spot Roman rocking his special 1 of 1 custom kicks. This guys is always fresh and breaking necks is his game.
Red acid camo on mid sole and collar, black tonal shemagh pattern on base with contrast stitch, 1 tone asphalt tiger stripe pattern on toe and side wall Metallic olive swoosh and air bubble guard.
A mean machine, no mercy.
SBTG Custom Kicks - Roman234Life
This 1 of 1 pair was made in Brooklyn, NYC. circa 2006. They were a gift to Yu Ming from Freshness mag for letting me crash at his place. He loves his safari print and perforation. Again the base sneaker was perfect, red ankle amd red outsole and perforated inner panels.
This pair is a straight up classic panelling much like the old supreme dunk lows, with a classic air jordan colorway.
Asphalt safari print on frame, matte black perforated inner panels with gloss black swoosh, Gold logo!
SBTG Custom Kicks for Yuming from Freshness Magazine