One of the most-hyped rumors of last spring came to fruition a few weeks ago when Nike and Off-White founder, Virgil Abloh, hosted a three-day event in NYC to exhibit and explain their much-awaited collaboration. Entitled, ‘TEN ICONS RECONSTRUCTED,’ the collection consists of ten different styles of sneakers and was split into two themes “REVEALING and “GHOSTING” to accommodate their release. The first five “REVEALING” styles (Air Jordan 1, Nike Blazer, Nike Air Presto, Air Max90, and Nike VaporMax) were made available for purchase during the three-day “Off Campus” event and as attendees, we were lucky enough to get our hands on two of the exclusive styles.

As genuine admirers of both Nike and Abloh, it was a pretty big effing deal to walk out of 23 Wall Street that day carrying two pairs of their brainchildren— but not just because the sneakers are so difficult to get. While ‘The Cop’ can be thrilling and inflating, what meant more than just possessing something so desirable was understanding its context. After having attended the various panels and discussions the couple days before, after having learned the intentions, effort and thought put into every detail of the collaboration, the designs and the release of the sneakers meant so much more than their material worth.

On the first day of “Off Campus,” Abloh and Nike’s VP of Footwear Design, Andy Caine, sat down with journalist Phoebe Lovatt to discuss the inspiration for and conception of the project. During the talk, Abloh cited a particular meeting with Nike in which he took an X-ACTO knife to some sneakers as a reference point that would ultimately drive and help define the collaboration. Abloh explained the reason he wanted to chop up the sneakers was so that he could reveal what the shoes were made of, a tradition an arguably ‘good’ design aims to hide.

It was with that sort of rebellion and exposure in mind that we decided to style our two pairs of The Ten. Because business wear isn’t supposed to be worn with sneakers, we wore it. Because a suit isn’t supposed to be worn apart, we split one up. Because we’re not supposed to reveal what’s underneath it, we exposed our respective sports bras and compression shorts. Keep in mind this was also shot in the Government Center of Boston, where many suit-clad men and women stopped to stare. Enjoy the photos above and refer to the bar below to shop similar items.

All photos by: Drew Ciggna | @a_ciggs

Creating a popular namesake label doesn’t seem as easy as it lets on. You’re essentially asking the consumer to buy into you, instead of an abstract and flexible concept or brand. I’m always surprised to see people wearing merchandise with someone’s name stamped on it, and especially when that name is relatively new. Heron Preston, however, isn’t relatively new. He’s been mentioned in streetwear articles for years. In fact, if you’re somewhat of a seasoned vet within that realm, you’ll recognize him as one of the creators of Been Trill (RIP kind of), a label that epitomized the strength of internet hype back in 2013. Though Heron only debuted his first solo collection at NYFW last year, it’s easy to understand why this new namesake brand has the potential to blow up and actually stick around this time. Since his break away and launch of HPC Trading Co., Heron seems to have nailed down and capitalized on his strengths. Innovative, experimental, and unpredictable, he has a unique knack for taking conventional themes and reinterpreting them. With the internet era making us all increasingly dependent on the new and salivating over the unique, Heron Preston seems to be pressing all the right buttons. Check out photos above, where we interpret pieces from his “For You, The World” collection, and shop a similar look below.