Vans #0101

The collector: Ervin Fiellateau, Birmingham (UK)

The collection: Vans

The story behind the collection...

I love, love my Vans. I started collecting them because I wanted an alternative to standard trainers so I went hunting. I bought my first pair in a little boutique in Birmingham called Autograph and I haven’t looked back ever since. Vans are so comfortable and versatile. I like to pair them with anything in my wardrobe from trousers to jeans to suits. They are the accent point of what I’m wearing.

I first started buying them back in around 1999 or 2000. I'd seen a few pairs and thought "they are so off key, so individual." Then I found a shop that was selling them off cheap and I'd be in there every month buying two or three pairs. At one point I had over 45 pairs, but I had to get rid of some of them as I had nowhere to store them. I gave some away to my brother, my dad and my nephew. I think I probably have about 30 pairs at the moment.

Vans have become very popular but not many people wear the extreme prints. Most people tend to wear the bold blocked lace ups not the slip-ons. I only wear the slip-ons. They are just so comfortable. I don't like the lace ups - they tend not to have the better designs. Everyone is wearing lace up block colour and I don't want to be in that bracket. I do have a pair of pony skin lace ups though. They were just a find. They jumped out at me. My friend who I was with at the time said "you can't wear those, they are so weird - it's like you've killed a pony." I said "I don't care. These are just so off, I have to wear them."

I veered off the Vans thing for a while and tried to collect Ralph Lauren Polo slip-ons but they are not as comfortable. I do sometimes wear other brands though. I have 5 pairs of McQueen shoes - they were also going cheap and are comfortable. I also have 5 pairs by Prada (shoes, not slip-ons). If I get into a brand it's because they are comfortable and good quality. Comfort is key. If it's sylish as well I'm very happy. Vans tend to be quite cheap in the sale. I never buy them at full price, never. They cost from £10 up to £45-£60. The leather ones are more expensive than the canvas.

When I first started to collect them there were a lot of skateboarders wearing them. Not everyone was into Vans - you were either in the Vans camp or the Converse camp. A couple of my friends wear them but they are not as obsessed as I am. My nephew loves them and borrows them. He's 12 and I've put him on the trail already. I've passed the mantle on to him and he won't wear anything else now. Some of his friends wear Converse but he will only wear Vans.

I used to keep all the boxes but I don't have room any more, so I only keep the boxes for the ones that are really obscure, for example my leather woven pair, the ponyskins, the Hawaiian burgundy printed ones and the tartan. Some are more precious than others.

How do I decide which ones to wear? It's random. I don't set out to co-ordinate them. Sometimes I will think "How bold is that? It's so off key it will clash with anything." For example, I might wear a suit with my petrol blue chequered vans because it's so random.

I do have some pairs which I wear for best. For example, my leather woven ones will come out with my Armani trousers and the ponyskin will come out with my McQueen stuff.

If I'm buying a pair of vans I like them to be colourful, bold and individual. I wear them as an accent on my outfit, or sometimes it works in reverse and I buy the Vans first and then build up my outfit around them.

When I wear my Vans I'm a bit more casual, I'm not so much in a hurry, I'm comfortable. If I wear them with a suit it makes me a bit more casual, a bit more laid back about the day or the event, than if I am wearing shoes. I equate Vans with comfort, chilling out, having a good time, not worrying about things too much but I am a bit precious about them. For example if someone stands on my foot then the OCD kicks in. I get a bit irate and think "don't do that". Nobody can stand on my vans or mistreat them.

A lot of people just wear one pair of Vans at a time but I collect them because I think "you're not going to get that again".

I can't imagine ever not wearing Vans. I'll always be a Vans man. They are my constant. When I discovered them I thought they were so amazing. They are cheap, versatile, comfortable and stylish - the more bizarre and quirky the design is the better. My feet feel at home in a pair of Vans, and home is where the heart is.

Images © Obsessionistas with the kind permission of Ervin Fiellateau.