Le Messie and Amanda from FALSE have created the perfect blend of DIY and independent fashion label with their brands. They are an inspiration for what we do here at CVLT Nation, and as a testament to the beautiful things that two people can create together. Each piece they make for their three brands, FALSE, Better Off Dead and Fallacy of Rome, has their personal touch on it, and most of what they make is constructed and silkscreened by hand. At a time where “Made in the USA” means nothing to the average consumer, who is happy to spend their life in Target, it is refreshing to see people who are making a success out of DIY! I am really happy I got the chance to interview them and get a glimpse into their world…after the jump, read about what makes Le Messie and Amanda my new favorite people…

Houston street artist GIVE UP just wrapped up volume two of his book “Lonely days and wasted nights”. It contains one hundred and eighty-eight black and white pages of street art, stencils, photography, and so on. The book comes with an alternative cover and packaging.  Two color 4×6 screen printed art cards, stickers, random 4×6 photo, and a 8.5×5.5 photocopy card reproduction of the original book poster. For those of you who aren’t familiar with GIVE UP he’s a street artist from Houston, TX. His work as been seen all through out the United States and album artwork including his recent work with ROT IN HELL. Give up recently printed up new shirts and are available in his webstore. Tons of pictures after the jump.

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I think I have already mentioned my appreciation for DIY fashion and general craftsmanwomanship. Here at CVLT Nation, we have our own DIY projects underway. Not only are we in the process of launching our own line of tees, tops and hats by the end of the month, we will also be debuting a collection of hand-studded vintage combat boots in the next month or so at Radd Lounge in Tokyo. We use black oxidized nickel solid cone studs, so they are heavy and all-around ass kicking boots. The studs are put on with a kick-press, so they have a flat backing and don’t catch on anything, plus the boots have leather laces that will last forever. We have already done a couple of pairs, which you can find here, but the majority will be available at a later date. We have also made some leather medicine pouches for your poisons or your healing crystals. Check out more pictures of our DIY projects after the jump…

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The metal/crust vest, aka the battle jacket, is something that has survived the ages and is still going strong today. Some people hate on them, but I think that’s because they are kind of older and embittered, and have forgotten the enthusiasm of youth when it comes to sharing their musical tastes with strangers. No offense. That isn’t to say that there aren’t some 40- or 50-something heads out there who still rock their battle jackets, or who have kept them and still cherish them. But I think the battle jacket is still the territory of the young and passionate. You have to have a decent amount of time on your hands (ie. no full time job), or be really into making shit, to spend the hours it takes to hand stud and sew patches on a vest. That kind of patience and dedication to the cause I admire.

I recently stumbled across a website that I think I will be spending hours pouring over and posting about – T-shirt Slayer. It’s basically a forum where metal and crust heads from around the world share their creations and their favorite tees with each other. I only spent about an hour on there, but I came away with some excellent specimens of the battle jacket, which I will share with you after the jump…

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There was only ever a very fine line between goth and d-beat, you know besides the whole politics. Visually these kids look more like GBH than Bauhaus. As Post-Punk moved into Positive-Punk the style and aesthetic moved from cold, simple sterility to a reflection of alienation in a generation of gap-year glory boys and girls. These kids are the epitome of independent fashion. After the jump witness the children of the shadows.

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FALSE is a brand my husband has been telling me about for a while, but unfortunately I didn’t get around to checking them out until recently. I say unfortunately, because they have so many dope accessories on their site that are now sold out! However, it gives me hope that this Singapore-based couple, Le Messie and Amanda, will be putting up more of their hand-made, hand-silkscreened shoes and accessories again soon. They actually run a company/webstore called Anti-Anti (they are all about Anarchy), which houses FALSE as well as their other lines – Fallacy Of Rome & Better Off Dead. First of all, I am amazed at how many fashion labels, records labels, and blogs are out there being run by couples; maybe I’m biased, but it’s pretty rad to see how much creativity is coming out of these relationships, especially when people generally assume that couples can’t work together. But also, I am just really stoked on the product that FALSE is putting out, and they hand make 90% of it in-house in Singapore. They literally silkscreen all their tees, stud and sew their deerskin cuffs and wallets, and reconstruct their Converse. And the finished product is beautiful! As someone who likes to hand-make shit, I understand how difficult it can be to maintain consistency, but their quality is really impressive. Check out some of my favorite pieces after the jump…

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When it comes to making authentic crusty/metal clothing with a fashion twist, Japanese brands are way ahead of the curve, probably because their market is as well. BLACK MEANS is a brand out of Tokyo, started in 2005 as a leather goods manufacturer, and in 2008 they started producing their own lines of leather motorcycle jackets, belts and accessories. While a lot of their product is just well-made motorcycle jackets, which is good enough for me, in true Japanese style they also mix it up with some wacky pieces. I’ve noticed that Japanese designers are really into the half-this-half-that piece, and BLACK MEANS did a pretty epic half-motorcycle jacket and half-sweater thing (photos after the jump). Who needs to layer when you can wear both in one piece right? It’s a little bit outside the norm for a lot of people in the community, but isn’t that the whole point of being kvlt in the first place??

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Text: Terminal-Boredom by Jesse Conway

Crust Pants. What are they? Where do they come from? Where do they go?

Chances are, if you are living in the USA and not in Minneapolis or Portland, you will have no idea what this article is talking about. Don’t be afraid, loyal reader, and follow me on a wonderful journey through one of the many fashion subcultures of a musical subgenre of a musical subculture known as punk. You have probably guessed that the “crust” in “crust pants” is referring to crust punk, that subgenre easily related to people whose main interests are dogs on ropes, panhandling, riding the rails, and stabbing Jack Control. Believe it or not, there are crust fans outside of these pathetic examples of humanity – whether they are more or less pathetic depends on what side you’re on.
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by Sean Reveron (CVLT Nation)

This is my past, present & beyond. Since 1982, I have been into the art form of the punk studded jacket. People thought we were lazy in the 80′s but kids would spend hours working on their leather & studs! It was not only art that could be worn, but a statement against the society that tried to put us in a box. Plus, it just looked fucking awesome! Over the past couple of years I have tried to take flicks of crusty kids whenever possible. I would love to amass enough flicks to put together a book of DIY crusty fashion. It’s pretty cool to see the art form of leather & studs did not die, it just multiplied! Now check this out…

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