If you've ever been on Instagram (or the internet) the past year, you've probably noticed that Vans sneakers have made a hard comeback in fashion. While hyped brands like Supreme and Fear Of God have released fire but wallet-emptying Vans collaborations, nearly every celebrity from A$AP Rocky to Kylie Jenner has helped transform the original classic skate shoe into a trendy wardrobe necessity. Sure, everyone and their mom now dons the white jazz stripe and checkerboards, but if you're willing to compromise on a little bit of eccentricity, $60 can get you a lot of style.

Whenever Vans lack the "wow factor", they compensate with wearability, affordability, and variety. They break in easily and hug your foot while still leaving noticeable room in the toe-box area. Because the flexible waffled rubber sole and vulcanized construction make them comfortable enough for everyday use, they’re appropriate for nearly every activity ranging from walks around campus to frat parties to weight lifting. If the black-and-white Old Skools are too overplayed for you, take your pick from the variety of colors and interesting prints available, including floral designs, hot-rod-looking flames, and even cartoon characters.

Your orthopedist might cringe at the fallen arches in your feet, but if you also don't mind being called a sheep by your non-conformist friends, you can actually wear Vans the rest of your life and never have unstylish shoe game. While Vans have been around for decades, never give up on keeping them current by wearing them with fresh looks.

The Looks

Monochromatic

Urban Outfitters black beanie
ALLSAINTS “Noise” black/grey crewneck t-shirt (bought from Buffalo Exchange)
Calvin Klein black reversible leather belt (from Macy’s)
Topman black ripped skinny jeans
Tissot PR100 metal band watch
Vans black/white “Old Skool”

The black Vans Old Skools tie together my “edgy hipster reads a high-fashion magazine once” look. It’s an an easy yet effective way to nail an all-black outfit without looking like a funeral procession attendant or a high school theater stage crew member. The white accents on the Vans - along with the belt buckle, straight knee rips on the jeans, and graphic design on the t-shirt - visually "break up" the outfit and subconsciously slow down a viewer's eyes as they glance at the outfit from head to toe. These details make the individual pieces of the all-black outfit more “visible”, especially in high contrast lighting, and prevent you from giving off a “locked character in a video game menu” vibe. While black Old Skools and all-black clothes themselves aren’t mind-blowingly creative, you can make a simple outfit quite interesting by playing with proportions, silhouettes, and accessories. This might include cuffing the hem of your jeans and tucking in your shirt, as shown here. I accessorized this outfit with a simple beanie and a metal watch, but rings and a necklace would look cool too.

Campus cozy

Ariana Grande “Dangerous Woman Tour” black hoodie (from Urban Outfitters)
Champion black cap (from PacSun)
Adidas Tiro 17 Training Pant, collegiate red with black stripes (from Amazon.com, currently sold out in this color)
Vans black/white checkerboard slip-ons

Vans have your back on those “bumming-it-out in the library” days, especially during dead week. However, low-effort outfits don’t need to look like you sleep in them. The cozy oversized hoodie is a must. Too lazy to style your hair? Throw on a dad cap or beanie. No time to put on a belt or fuss with buttons? Track pants. Are shoelaces even way too much work? Vans slip-ons got you. The versatility of a standard Vans style makes picking shoes in the morning require less mental effort than passing an American Studies class. As far as the rest of the “lazy day” outfit goes, please don’t ruin it by smashing together a mess of colors, graphic designs, and advertisements - I’m looking at you, dude in Cal sweatpants and career fair t-shirt. While monochromatic pieces are an easy go-to for avoiding a scroungy color mess, you can still throw in a little bit of “extra” if it’s done sparingly: here, the checkered print on the Vans adds a mildly eye-catching visual endpoint without clashing with other patterns since there aren’t many others. Meanwhile, the Vans, hoodie, and hat are consistently black and white, allowing you to rock colored track pants without worrying about clashing colors.

prep casual

Banana Republic Dark Indigo denim jacket
GAP white cotton oxford shirt with light blue vertical stripes
GAP Vintage Olive green skinny stretch chinos
Vans in light brown suede
Tissot PR100 metal watch
Philz Coffee small “Jacob’s Wunderbar” with light cream and sugar

Vans don’t need to be just a streetwear trend. Here’s is a classic preppy University student look and a throwback to the private high school dress code - great for looking like a 4.0 without being overdressed. I picked a solid light-brown suede pair of Vans since the material resembles that of a more classic shoe; wearing patterns and harsher colors (e.g. black) on the Vans or anywhere else on the outfit might throw off the outfit’s balance of color shades and stand out awkwardly, especially during the day time. The brown rope-like laces (as opposed to white ones), while rugged-looking, help to dress the sneaker up a bit and make it look more “mature”. Appropriately for Spring, I also wore a lightweight vintage olive-colored chinos and a striped white-and-blue cotton oxford shirt, topping it off with a dark denim jacket from Banana Republic. For this kind of look, try to stick with a slim fit on each item, opt for minimal visible branding and distressing, and utilize a basic color palette of grey, navy, olive, light blue, brown, and their variations as much as possible.

Streetwear

North Face light grey hoodie with red box logo (from Urban Outfitters)
Topman extended (longline) white tee
MNML distressed jeans (light blue M1 denim)
Vans black/white checkerboard slip-ons

The black-and-white checkered Vans, with their eye-grabbing pattern on a streamlined silhouette, find themselves at-home in streetwear looks. This style gained popularity in mid-to-late 2016 with the blowup of the Fear of God and Yeezy aesthetic movements along with the aggressive frequency of outfit posts from streetwear Instagrammers. The main components of this outfit are your Vans, heavily distressed skinny jeans (alternatively: zippered jeans or "moto" jeans), and an ensemble of two to four layers on top, each layer being thicker and shorter than the layer beneath it. I went with a thin North Face box-logo hoodie on top of a plain extended (aka longline) white tee, but feel free to either keep it plain or flex your loud Supreme, Bape, or Off-White hypebeast pick-ups. Other layers might consist of a flannel shirt, a denim or bomber jacket, or a coat. Thankfully, the color scheme of the Vans allows them to smoothly integrate with most dark, light, and high-contrast urban outfits.

Conclusion

Vans have been both a wardrobe staple and the antidote for my occasional overthinking with regards to footwear. Berkeley’s Urban Outfitters (on Bancroft), Bancroft Clothing Co, Bows and Arrows, and 510 Skateboard all carry quite a few styles, but you can also order them from the Vans website with free shipping. Thanks to their popularity and timelessness, you can find further inspiration on wearing Vans by observing most other well-dressed people that you know, whether that may be fellow students or celebrities.

Words by Chris Jereza

Photos by Jessica Tin

Keep It Old Skool - Re(Van)ping Vans