Another Wednesday is among us and the weather is beautiful (well where I am) so this makes today even that more special to be #WYKW.
Last week we returned after a brief hiatus from the series and to kick-start things off on the right foot (pun intended) we received a feature from the lovely Liane (@_Gawgeouss).
Trying to get female features, for what has been regarded as a male dominated culture – the sneaker culture -, has been a challenge. But when she responded to the announcement that we were looking for submissions, I was eager to see what she brought to the table.
Kickin’ It With Def Pen: Wear Your Kicks Pt. 22 featured a story about a young ladies love for sneakers but her ability to try something outside of the norm (Jordans, Nikes and even Reeboks) but be just as passionate. Check it out to catch up.
Today, we have a familiar face stepping to the forefront again to showcase his astounding love for sneakers, Mike aka @_MikeSinatra on twitter.
Interesting enough, not done intentionally, today being Kickin’ It With Def Pen: Wear Your Kicks Pt. 23, Mike provided us with a story on what his “Grails”, the Air Jordan 12 ‘Black/Red’ from 1997.
Lets get into this…
It’s been said that every fan of sneakers has that one pair that they seek out and favor more than any other pair, what we call a “Grail” is our most coveted pair. I’m one of the lucky ones to have come across one of my grails, truly an uplifting moment for anyone who collects kicks.
As an avid collector of kicks I’ve had many shoes but none compare to what I’ve decided to write about, everyone has a favorite pair of Jordan’s mine happen to be 4s, 6s, and 12s.
My passion for sports, sneakers and nostalgia (late 80’s and all through the 90’s) has always pushed me to look for sneakers. One pair of 12s in particular that I absolutely love is the black/red (bred) 12s, when they were rereleased in 2009 I was mortified when I saw that they had replaced the leather used in the original models with nubuck.
This eventually fueled me in the search to find either the 1997 OG or the 2003 retro, after years of patiently waiting and watching some sneakers come and go I was lucky enough to find someone who had a pair of 97 bred 12s and all he wanted was a pair of Galaxy kobes I was willing to give up for those.
The day came for the trade and I was eager to finally get my hands on the 12s, finally after years of waiting I was finally going to get my grails. I received a box and it wasn’t like any other, it was an OG Nike box even the size tag on the box was a throwback.
When I looked at the sneakers it was like they were artifacts in the museum and I was the curator, they’re still in amazing condition for an 18-year-old shoe and it brings me great pride to own a piece of history. There is no greater feeling in the world than to finally own a pair of grails as a sneaker fanatic, which is why I take great pride in wearing my kicks #WYKW.
