WESTBROOK FRAMES

Oklahoma City Thunder Star Brings His Noteworthy Style To Eyewear Collection

By: Cameron Wolf | Photographer: Courtesy of Westbrook Frames

July 13, 2014

Russell Westbrook has always taken the vitriol of the Internet over sacrificing his signature style. He has no stylist, and works with one only when he needs a custom item made. Westbrook visualizes his outfits, and the design of his new sunglass line, Westbrook Frames, as precisely as he plays on the court.

The first collection—dubbed “Gold Series”—consists of ten styles named after neighborhoods in Westbrook’s hometown of Los Angeles. There’s the "Hollywood," a dipped-in-gold pair of aviators that’ll make even the most mundane of sights luxurious with gold-tinted frames. The "Brentwood" is a round frame available in a tortoise shell colorway that could just as easily be rising flames. There’s the sporty "Westwood," the Clubmaster-inspired "Inglewood," and the large square frames that are perfect shields from the sun on the beaches of Santa Monica.

Each of Westbrook’s frames could make an outfit: they’re large, and each comes in four eye-grabbing colors. Westbrook, in the release for the glasses, noted that he sees “eyewear as part of [his] outfit" and he “use[s] eyewear to bring color into [his] outfits.”

Westbrook created eyewear that lives up to this belief, keeping in mind high-quality materials in the process. Westbrook uses high grade Cellulose Acetate for the glasses that are anti-allergenic and biodegradable while giving the glasses a fashionable translucent look. The glasses that don’t utilize this material use high quality metal alloy.

This is only the beginning of Westbrook’s ventures as his multi-season collaboration with Barneys is due to drop soon; a collaboration that will feature three limited edition eyewear styles hand crafted in Italy. For now, though, grab your favorite pair at WestbrookFrames.com.

AIR JORDAN XX9

Take Flight w/the Lightest Air Jordan Yet

By: Daniel Wagowski | Photographer: Courtesy of Nike

August 12, 2014

In the last week of July, The Jordan Brand brought its Take Flight Tour to The Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas, setting up a unique space including a full sized basketball court designed with Jordan Brand imagery. Some of the best high school players in the country were invited to show off their talents while testing out some of Jordan’s newest sneakers and attire.

Jordan unveiled a slew of new products including a new Jordan Future colorway, and the latest edition to the Air Jordan, whose name has been counting up in roman numerals since the original Air Jordan came out way back in 1985. The XX9, (that’s 29 for your non-Romans out there) which will not be released for public consumption until September 6th, sport some of the most advanced footwear technology up to date and are being branded as the lightest Air Jordan ever. To keep the shoe strong and protective while maintaining its insanely lightweight body, Jordan has gone with a performance woven upper, an innovative single-layer engineered to provide comfort, support, strength and protection.

An improved FlightPlate, webbed straps to wrap the foot and integrate with the laces, and a combination of textures on the sole provide durability on a variety of surfaces to keep feet and ankles protected from twists and sprains.

The XX9 will originally be released in two separate colorways – a black, red and white elephant print reminiscent of the Chicago Bulls colors, and a graphite, black, blue and orange Jumpman colorway, more closely resembling Oklahoma City’s colors for whom Russell Westbrook, Jordan Ambassador, and Grungy favorite, plays for.

The XX9 goes on sale September 6th for $225. You may want to start hanging in front of your nearest sneaker store now though, as these Jordan release dates garner huge crowds of loyal followers willing to stand in line for days before the release.