Downshift Session 2008 gift bag

Back in October, homeboy Dallas Penn threw down at the big Gran Turismo x Staple Design party, Downshift Session 2008. Held in conjunction with Lotus to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Gran Turismo franchise, it sounded like a straight gala affair. Regrettably, living about an hour and a half away from the city, and it being held in the middle of the week, i was unable to make the 3-hour roundtrip necessary to put in an appearance and donate some face-time to the event.

But in mid-November, on the final leg of the epic Sneaker Fiends United! NYC Tour, as we moved through the LES, from Richie's on Delancey towards Premium Laces in NoLiTa, we dropped by Reed Space, Staple's retail location. Despite keeping it moving - not stopping and copping - that day, i did mention to Dallas that staple is one of the few companies that i am constantly checking for - from the fly and well-made varsity that i saved up and waited a year to cop, to their 10th anniversary collab tees, to their recently expanding ventures into cut-and-sew outerwear, i have come to look up to jeffstaple's personally-directed and -designed brand as tracing the fine edge between being immensely wearable and playfully edgy.

Anyways, Dallas happened to have an extra Downshift Session gift bag lying around his crib, so, after some false starts and his return from a quick jaunt down to the A, I returned to my place after a Friday afternoon staff meeting to find a large brown box waiting downstairs. After some quick key work, I was opening the trademark Reed Space brown shopping bag (how dope is it that even their disposable bags are specifically designed and manufactured for them??) and found the following goodies (no CIARA) awaiting.

1) Staple Design "Alphabeta" scarf (Yellow/Brown). This joint from Staple's F/W 2008 "Only the Educated are Free" collection (the same drop as my varsity) is easily the thickest and most carefully-knit scarf I have seen on the skreets.

The scarf is a double-sided knit, in two colors, displaying all the letters of the alphabet as well as the 10 digits, with the letters S T A P L E and the numbers 1 9 7 5 (jeffstaple's birth year) picked out in contrasting colors on both sides.


Football helmet embroidery... Wish I had this two weeks ago at the Harvard-Yale game... maybe i coulda kicked it outside a little longer before finally succumbing to the cold... egchk. I am for sure packing this today when I head out for a conference in Colorado this week.

2) Downshift Sessions 2008 tee.

A tee specially printed up - designed to look like a racecar hood - with the logos of all the sponsors for the event, including Sony/Polyphony, stpl, and the Gran Turismo team. It is an American Apparel L, which means... not something I'm going to be able to pull off given my stature. But I'm sure this will come in handy some day...

3) Staple Design "Positive" beanie (Purple/whi/blk). The purple on this joint matches our bustout Season 2 Man Vs. City tee as well as the black/white/purple colorway of the Staple varsity that I copped. Similar to the scarf, this is some heavy-duty winter gear; I was rocking through the day and (even given my current depilated state) never felt the wind blow through the window.

Stay positive. +

4) Lotus booklet. Not gonna front, I am never going to own a Lotus Exige. But now I got pictures of one, and a picture is worth a thousand words...

'nuff said. - Stan Lee


Big ups to Dallas for putting me on, the Staple Design collective, and the USPS for moving packages [||] with ease and speed.