Images: Vans
Vans partners with fashion designer Sandy Liang for a special limited-edition collection. Sandy Liang embraces her ability to mix materials, colors and prints and brings her signature style to five Vans classics. The collection doesn’t just stop at the classic silhouettes, there’s also apparel and accessories. Liang draws inspiration from her hometown of Bayside, Queens, her grandma and the hand-me-downs from her youth.
“To see my ideas come to life on such an iconic collection of footwear and apparel is a dream come true” said Sandy Liang. “This collection embodies the playful dreaminess of the nineties, as well as the grittiness of downtown New York City.”
Materials play a defining role in Liang’s Vans collection. Within the collection you will see fleece-like cheetah prints to metal jewelry attached directly to the uppers, giving them a bold and unique appeal. The Sandy Liang Era is the hero of the five-piece collection with a built in ankle bracelet and metal charms sewn directly to the pink velour upper. The Old Skool also features a pink velour upper that is inspired from a couch in Liang’s Lower Eastside Studio with a criss-cross chain detailing. A second Old Skool is dedicated to the L.E.S. with a black canvas upper with exposed white lock stitching along with custom Sandy Liang cotton laces. The sneaker also features a butterfly outsole with custom stitching on each heel.
There’s the Vans Platform Slip-On that’s bound to turn heads with a snow leopard fur that covers the entire shoe, talk about eye-catching and finally there is the Vans Sport that pays homage to Bayside, NYC with a canvas leopard upper on one side and a traditional tartan plaid on the medial side. A checkerboard printed heel tab and custom laces complete this shoe.
Last but not least let’s discuss the Vans and Sandy Liang nine-piece apparel and accessories assortment. The collection takes inspiration from 90’s nostalgia with marbled colorways, butterfly iconography and bejeweled detailing. The collection includes the Sandy BF Hoodie with a relaxed boyfriend fit, the Sandy LS BF Tee made with a heavy cotton jersey material, Sandy Bike Short made of a cotton spandex, the Sandy Tank, the Sandy Polo and the Sandy Jumpsuit. My personal favorite the Sandy Liang jacket and bucket hat adorned in an all-over polka dot print. Rounding out the accessories are the Sandy Fanny with a metal chain and hardware, the Sandy Crossbody with faux shearling and the Sandy Sock in both the lotus and white colorways.
This is collection for the bold and beautiful.
Also to help celebrate the debut of the Vans x Sandy Liang collection, feel free to join Vans and Sandy Liang for an exclusive pop-up shopping experience at The General by Vans retail location at 102 N. 6th St. Brooklyn, NY 11249. New York locals will be able to shop the Vans x Sandy Liang assortment alongside pieces curated from Liang’s personal in-line ready-to-wear collection beginning February 21 through March 15.