Sneakers 101

Every game has them, here are tips and rules every sneaker junkie should know.

1. Fat Laces Are Eternally Cool

In the 80s, 90s and into the 2000s, fat laces were known to "freshen" up your kicks. In the past 5 years, the fat lace has been kept somewhat in the background since the new wave of sneakerheads have emerged from outside of the old school. To those in the know, white fat laces add instant freshness to white sole kicks. Any of the primary colors, or mixing of, work for dark soled sneakers. In all, whatever goes. Don't forget to sweeten your sneakers with fat laces.

2. White Soles Over Dark

White soles give you a clean fresh look, while dark soles give you a slick lean look. Both are good, but white soles will always be preferred.

3. Style Over Brand

If you see a cool pair of sneakers, but you've never heard of the brand, who cares? Grab them! In the sneaker game, you earn more brownie points for finding exclusive rare kicks that nobody else has. Style and design matter over brand name.

4. Don't Forget the Bleach Stick

Best way to clean sneakers is with a Clorax bleach pen. Go over your white soles with a bleaching pen for a quick sneaker revamp - and don't forget to swap out the laces.

5. Choose Genuine Leather or Canvas

Leather or cotton canvas sneakers are way preferred over those made with synthetic materials. Cotton is the doctor's preferred choice for ALL your clothing, for it allows your skin to breathe. Also, if you have any skin irritations or excessive sweating, swelling, or itching reactions on your feet, then consider switching your sneakers to leather or cotton. Your feet need to BREATHE. Try to avoid sneakers that say or mention any of these words: man made upper, PU, PCU, pleather, vinyl upper, or patent leather.

6. Old School Sneakers Are Kosher

Old school retro sneaker styles are stylistically kosher across all sub-cultures. If you don't know what to get and need something versatile, choose a solid color in any retro sneaker style on the market.

7. Asian Drops Are Overrated

Some of the best sneaker colorways are released only for the Asian markets. But don't you fret, the GOOD colorways that don't scream birthday party are actually minimal compared to western releases. So in the end, it all balances out. I'll admit this, most Asian releases look like they were designed for little kids. Some are way, way cool, but some stuff I'm glad they don't drop in the States. Plus, when buying eastern drops, most of it is FAKE. Beware.

8. Extremes and Exclusives

If you are looking for rare colorways, always look in athletic catalogs geared towards school athletic teams and the general youth. You can request catalogs online and they'll arrive next week in your mailbox. Start looking for obscure soccer supply retailers, or those catering to any field sport will do. Eastbay used to be really cool for finding cool color schemes and limited editions until they became super popular. Don't look where everyone else is looking, go right if everyone is going left.

All the same Everywhere you go have a sneaker on...:)