Benji Blunt x adidas Superstar Tea J’s Tribute to She-One

• MODEL: ADIDAS SUPERSTAR SKATE
• CUSTOMIZED BY: BENJI BLUNT
• MADE IN: UNITED KINGDOM
• MADE ON: --/12

Benji Blunt kept busy through the Winter of 2012 on a variety of projects, including (of course) another Superstar, this time tributing She-One.

Considering both of their passions for the music and culture of hip hop, it’s no surprise that Benji blunt and Tea J (owner of Bboy Laces, RareAdidas, and Mr. ShoeShotta) came together to honor a fellow four-elementalist. The London-based graffit artist is most notably known for his incredibly abstract ‘stroke’ style of covering large and even sometimes unruly spaces with severe depth and colorful expression. His canvases are quite crazy too.

Off the street and outside the art world he’s been caught in action with Addict working on gear such as an anorak and a New Era baseball cap. In both these apparel designs SheOne implemented his own ‘stroke’ version of camouflage patterning, put to work on Benji’s latest creations shown here, as a tip of the hat to a fellow artist. Benji explains himself the story behind the pair:

Tom (aka Tea J) wanted a representation of the Addict x She-One camo print, a design he likes very much. He wanted the colours altered slightly to his tastes. We used an adidas Superstar 80s Pete Eldridge Skateboarding shoe. We took the camo elements and played with them a little to fit the shoe. We ran the pattern through the stripes and heel tab, changing the pattern to grey on chalk, to tie in with the shoe’s chalk sole and shell. We ran the grey on chalk on the tongue too. We kept the shoe simple with no logos or trefoils, just the camo. I drilled out the lace holes a little to make it easier for Tea J to get his XL fatties in and out. I complimented the shoe with some dog tags made of leather with pinked edges, featuring some Benji Blunt logos. The shoes were dressed with Tom’s BBoy Chalk laces.

Some low key kicks in Benji’s own words (and by his standards), partly to keep the shoe clean and simple, though still one can see that the attention to detail and level of craftsmanship is absurdly high (as usual). What he didn’t mention – which we’ve actually not yet seen on a Benji Blunt shoe before – is the (soon to be signature?) “Honour Before Victory” tag on the inner tongue face. Always something new and hidden coming out the Blunt laboratories.

Let’s hope that Tea J, and especially SheOne, appreciate these as much as we do here at eatmoreshoes.

written by Dylan Cromwell

photography by errol

shoes contributed by Tea J