DESTINATION | THE-REED.COM

Hello! The Reed is here! Part blog, part store, and part travel site, I hope you enjoy the new destination of not only this blog, but the other elements of the site as well. I will work to grow and perfect this new venture organically, but it is just the beginning and that means some items are in extremely limited supply. Please bear with The Reed's fledgling state—inventory will get deeper and hiccups will be more infrequent as time goes on and we get in the groove.

Thank you so much for being patient with this transition and being a part of The Reed as it launches! There's some really exciting things coming down the pipeline too, can't wait to share it all!

Please let me know what you think once you're there...or here!

x
LGM

WORD | California Surfing and Climbing in the Fifties

Last night at a dinner party I was given the book California Surfing and Climbing in the Fifties ($32). It came out a year and a half ago but I had never seen it. This is a special book in that it's not just capturing an aesthetic of an era or a niche sport's golden era—although it does that really well, it tells a story about Americans in the 50s. Yvon Chouinard, one of the book's three authors, said it so well in his intro:

"The fifties were easy years in California. With full employment from the Korean War, we were enjoying all the fruits of the fossil fuel culture. Gas was a quarter a gallon, used cars could be bought for twenty-five dollars, campgrounds were free, and you could easily live off the excess fat of society. Those of us in the countercultures of climbing and surfing were, as climber Peter Sinclair said, the last free Americans."

UNIFORM | Mollusk x Tomboy Style Trunks

Even with the resurgence of 1980s and 90s outdoor tech apparel, I felt like there was a dearth when it came to shorts that could double as trunks for women. So, Mollusk and I got together and hammered something out that we felt could work really well for beach biking, swimming, some light surfing, canoeing, beer drinking, trail running—clearly we think they're multi-functional.  They're made from a water resistant blend of cotton and nylon and close with a drawstring but also feature an elastic waist and a zip pocket in the back for a credit card and keys and other miscellany. The Mollusk Tomboy Trunks ($65) come in two colors and are made right here in sunny California! Get 'em while they're hot. 

GEAR | Bowndling

I love this new label out of the UK called Bowndling because they are focusing specifically on trail hiking, walking and running as their inspiration for designing active clothes for women. Sounds niche, but Bowndling has a wide appeal. They are about adventure and exploration as a part of working out which is a refreshing alternative to gymwear. Their first collection is for cold weather (and would probably be more appealing to our southern hemisphere friends these days) with waterproof options that still allow for movement and breathability. They've also got a great duffle bag, and some nice pieces that help transition you from the trail to, say, the cafe, which I really appreciate. I'll be watching for their warm weather collection coming soon, but what I see so far I love. Go Bowndling go!

NOISE | Tom Petty + Stevie Nicks

I'm wondering if there is a more perfect male-female duet in the annals of rock than Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks. They really meld. In 1981 they released two songs together, the Grammy-winning chart topper Stop Draggin' My Heart Around on Stevie's debut solo album and Insider, a deep cut on Petty's fourth album, Hard Promises. Both so good, but I think I'd have to pick Insider if I had to take just one. Have a listen:

GIVEAWAY | Tradlands Shirt + Side Project Skateboard + Tomboy Style x FairEnds Hat

This is most probably the last giveaway we'll do before we move the blog over to The Reed later this month, and we are going out on giveaways with a big old bang! Here's the entirely American-made loot (worth $700+) that's on the table for the lucky winner:

+ Tradlands Shirt (winner chooses size and style)
+ Side Project Skateboard Board No. 4, handmade from recovered hardwoods.
+ Tomboy Style x FairEnds Hat (winner chooses style from what's currently available)

To enter: Leave a comment below and check us all out on Instagram too [@tradlands / @sideprojectskateboards / @lgmettler]. We'll be choosing a winner on Wednesday April 8th and announcing right here. Good luck guys!!

UPDATE:
The winner is: Ally Noyes who said...

I fell off a skateboard on Saturday and must redeem myself. That board is gorgeous.

We hope you redeem yourself and then some! Email me at lizzie(at)gmail(dot)com and we'll get your loot out to you! Congrats.

UNIFORM | Western Rise

Here's a new label to take a look at: Western Rise out of Colorado. Launched just yesterday with their Spring 2015 collection, Western Rise caters to outdoor enthusiasts who like a clean classic look. The apparel was designed by fly fishing guides, ski instructors, mountain bikers and the like, but the most notable detail is that they employ a water-repellent DryRise which keeps water off your skin and out of clothes while still protecting you from the sun. Seems ideal for fishing. They're offering quite a bit more for men than for women currently, but that unisex Bitter Creek Anorak ($299) has already got me interested. We'll look forward to following Western Rise and see where they go. .

SCENE | TOM & BOY travel the world

About a month ago we launched a really fun little collaboration hat with our friends at FairEnds by creating some colorful TOM and BOY hats. Since then the hats have traveled the world, from London to Australia, Brooklyn to Yosemite—one even made its way into the new Tradlands lookbook! Thanks for all the support and thanks for posting your hats on Instagram. As we make room for The Reed Shop's incoming inventory (launching *we hope* next month!), we're offering a deep discount on the few remaining hats left.

ENTER CODE: 35TOMBOY for 35% off  >>> right here.

GEAR | Crisloid Backgammon Set

Photo by Slim Aarons, Acapulco, Mexico, 1972.

Backgammon is one of the oldest games in recorded history and culturally seems to span so many walks of life. From its Middle Eastern roots to the leisure class of Slim Aarons circles to cowboy bars, it's a game that seems to work everywhere. A backgammon attaché is such a great thing to have on hand as temps warm up. Play in the park, the beach, the pool, a canoe—you get the picture, it's just more fun than sitting and looking at your phone. I recently overpaid for a vintage Crisloid set on Etsy, and am kicking myself because I should have just purchased a handsome new Crisloid set ($150 and up) whose designs haven't seemed to change for over half a century. The boards are beautifully crafted and sturdy with gorgeous marbled checkers—all of this I had to find out after the fact. Crisloid was founded in 1948 in Brooklyn by Alphonse and Lucky Lodato, they are now based in Providence, R.I. and proudly manufacture all their products in the USofA. Gotta love that. Crisloid also makes custom boards, in fact our good friends over at Pierrepont Hicks show us how great a bespoke Crisloid board can look.  And a gallery of images from the archives. Is there an intersection of tomboy style and backgammon? Maybe, just maybe. Keep up with Tomboy Style elsewhere: INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK | TWITTER.

UNIFORM | Levi's Vintage Clothing Spring/Summer 2015

The Levi's Vintage Clothing look books are always spectacular in the way they showcase their dedication to bringing back exact replicas of old designs, but the Icons Collection of the Spring/Summer 2015 look book is especially incredible because looking through it was like paging through my parent's college yearbooks. I almost forgot I was looking through something produced this year because it is so exact in its late 60s/early 70s styling. And in case you missed it, much of LVC is now available online! 

WORD | Chloë Sevigny

There are people that can truly embody an iconic style, and then there are those who create it. Does Chloë Sevigny read as a tomboy? Sure, but more so, she reads as Chloë—the downtown creative scene's muse for 20 years. Beginning in the early 90s when she modeled for Sassy Magazine and appeared in a Sonic Youth video, and then starred in the notorious 1995 indie film Kids, Sevigny became the avant-garde style personality of an entire generation.
The new book Chloë Sevigny ($35), which is available for pre-order and officially out April 21st, is full of personal photos, editorials, film stills, friend's photos and personal memorabilia that truly define the preppy-punk actress, designer, and model. Kim Gordon writes in the foreward, "Chloë was the reason for the reinvention of the horrible term it girl, her beguiling charisma  refusing to be reduced to 'sexy' or 'pretty' or 'cute' or any of the other tags the world uses to tell girls what they are."