LEADERS 1354 - OUR INTERVIEW WITH ONE OF CHICAGO'S PREMIERE BOUTIQUES

I made a trip down to Chicago this past Friday and chatted with Vic, one of the owners of LEADERS 1354, one of Chi-Town's premiere boutiques. Check out our converse below.








Also, while I was in Illinois - I headed over to Champaign to see one of my favorite bands play at the University Of Illinois. If you know, you know. Let's just say that I have zero complaints.

HUNDREDS HOLIDAY LINE & OTHER THINGS

From time to time, I'll simply post some images of new things that I like. Today, we finally got a peak at the new Hundreds holiday collection. I like. I like a lot. Here are a few of my personal favs.









Even though aNYthing introduced a hat very, very similar hat a few seasons ago.



All and all, pretty solid. There's also a nice caribbean blue, lumberjack plaid hoodie on their splash page. But it isn't listed in the store.

No complaints here.

DONEZIES.

DEDICATION

Our good friend Shannon "Don't Call Me Mel" Brooks added a new tattoo piece over the weekend. This one might be our favorite one he has...







Can you blame us?

DONDA WEST (1949-2007)

I was saddened upon hearing the news that Donda West, mother of Kanye West, passed away this past Saturday. It was more than evident that Kanye had deep admiration and love for his mother. My thoughts and condolences go out to him and his family.

I LOVE THE MIDWEST. BUT I'M BIASED IN THIS DEPARTMENT.

Dear Minnesota,

Sorry about that 34 to zero win/act of complete domination today.
Love,

Green Bay

INTERVIEW WITH PJ FROM FLOW

If you live in or around the Milwaukee area, then you probably already know about FLOW Clothing. They call N. Prospect Avenue home and with the inventory they have, along with their dedication to customer service, these guys are going to be around for a long time. From Crooks & Castles to 10 DEEP, from Married To The Mob to Famous Stars & Straps. These guys are representing all aspects of street wear and bringing something very necessary to Wisconsin.

Today I spoke with PJ, the owner and founder of FLOW, about how he got his start, some brands they're repping and the current state of street wear today. Check out the interview below!

FULLER: Could you give us a little background on yourself and how you got into street wear? Also, about how FLOW Clothing got its start?

PJ: Well, I am 39 years old, you know? We've been in business for a little over two years. I've been interested in doing it for about four. The reason how I really got into it was through Matt (Cook Clothing). You know he works for LRG too and he used to live in L.A. He'd be like you know "Come on out man, there's this clothing show going on, and this and that, and whatever" - and I would go out and hang out with him at these clothing shows and see all these clothes that nobody had in Milwaukee. And I'd come back here, and I'd go to whatever stores were hot and I'd never see anything I liked. You know, I'd go out and see three dudes wearing the same shit. So I just started thinking about it. I just kept going to these clothing shows and Matt knows everyone in the industry and he just started introducing me to people. And I'd go out to dinner with him and just say like, "Man, Milwaukee needs a nice street wear boutique!" We'd go around to Chicago and check out LEADERS and Self Concious and say, "Milwaukee needs one of these!"

I'd just pick up these catalogs, go out to dinner with my homies and just pass the catalogs around, saying "What do you think of this and that" and have people vote, find out what's hot, and that's it, you know? That's kind of how we got our start.

FULLER: What type of brands can people expect to see when they come to FLOW?

PJ: Well, we're loyal to LRG, because they're the people who kind of gave us the support and our start. Artful Dodger. Really dope, really high-end shit. I don't know if you've heard, but Jay-Z just bought it? Famous. Awesome, awesome people. The coolest people in the industry for sure. Travis Barker is a cool mother fucker. I met him through this shit, we're friends. He's very cool. He goes above and beyond to help me, and they've been steering business from their website to ours. I mean, just a very down to earth guy. Very cool. All about friendships and partnerships and doing the right thing, you know?

And we're the only authorized dealer of Greedy Genius in Wisconsin. That's a company we hope to see big things from them. I like them. Orisue, we're doing things with them. Last year they did really well in here. Dissizit, Leroy Jenkins, Undrcrwn...I'm just looking around here...Prohibit, Japanese companies. 10 Deep, Crooks & Castles. We're really going to be expanding with our Crooks and Castles next year. We're really hoping to do big things with them, I love their stuff. You know, they're still like, relatively new. They're still learning, they're cool guys too.

FULLER: You guys really have your bases covered then, right?

PJ: Yeah, I mean a lot of people are slow to catch on over here. I mean, but we can say we have a dope store in Milwaukee. A lot of people are slow to catch onto it, but the people that do are like, "Wow!" you know?

FULLER: Street wear is really starting to gain some popularity in the mainstream. What's your take on that and the direction that it kind of seems to be heading?

PJ: I'm all for it man. I mean, whatever adds longevity to my business, you know? I'm all about it. I was starting to wonder when it was going to peak, or if it did peak or whatever, but they're saying there's still 10-15 years left in it.

FULLER: Do you have anything else you want to add? Any other comments or shout-outs you want to make?

PJ: I would love to say "thank you" to everybody that supports us. Without the people, I could never do this. And a special shout-out to the Famous crew because they have taught me a lot about business and they do business the way it should be done. Like, real hands on. Never get too big for your britches.

BRRRR...LESQUE

The guys at Burlesque Of North America have been creating some of the most amazing printwork around for a while now. Located in Minneapolis, Minnesota the company is comprised of seven individual graphic designers, ranging in artistic skill and style. Here are a few of my personal favorites.






Come on...CHEbacca Guevara? How can you not love it. These guys are good.

LUMBERJACKS = HYPEBEASTS

Thank the lord that the lumberjack flannel days aren't over. 10 DEEP recently dropped these new fitted on us. I wonder if lumberjacks know how street they are? And it all started with the OG Paul Bunyan and that big ass blue ox.



SOURCE: HYPEBEAST

ONE ANTHEM :: T-SHIRT CONTEST

One last thing before I leave the office for the night. This is what I submitted to One Anthem today for their t-shirt design contest. So when it comes time to vote, you'll know what to do.

YOU'RE AS COLD AS ICE

BIG SIGH. We've reached a point here in the Midwest where I can no longer walk around the house in shorts and a t-shirt. Time for the XL shirts and sweatpants. I guess things could be worse though. Speak of the devil!

NUMERO UN

This is my first blog. I'd just like to introduce myself and what I aim to accomplish with this. My name is Fuller Moehagen and I have an apparel brand called FULLER. We call the Midwest our home.

For a long time I've been interested in the aesthetics of street wear. It's fair to say that the street wear culture and style is more mainstream right now than ever before. With that said, I still don't see a solid brand representing the Midwest. That's what I aim to do. I want to let everyone know how much talent and charisma we have here.

The artists that seem to "make it" from the Midwest are often controversial. For instance, in contemporary mainstream music, there have been few acts that have caused more drama and controversy in the last couple of years than Kanye West, who calls Chicago home. As an individual, few have remained as genuine and inspiring as Prince, who was born and raised in Minneapolis. An artist, who some would consider as the greatest entertainer of all time, the King Of Pop, Michael Jackson...is from Indiana. What is it about the Midwest that creates these unique individuals? Artists who can't always be categorized?

Not only have these artists, among many others, been influential in the music world - but they have set numerous trends in the world of fashion. Which brings me to my main goal.

I aim to focus on both Midwest fashion/design and music; through written and video interviews, photos, stories, etc.

With my own company, I'm trying to represent the Midwest, but it all starts here with people. Along with these interviews, I'll be showcasing the work of other Midwest street wear apparel brands, as well as my own.

So thank you to all the visitors to this page. Past, present and future. I hope you find what you're looking for.

Love,



FULLER