Kia ora and welcome to clipboard, a semi-regular newsletter about good shit by me, Reilly Hodson. This time around, we’re going through the stuff I bought in Melbourne, an incredibly stylish town. If you enjoy clipboard, forward this email to your bestie who exclusively drinks wine with watercolour labels and waxed corks.
a shopping trip
Last time, I waxed lyrical about the awesome hospo in Melbourne, and this time I am going to do something similar about the fashion. The city I love and call home, Tāmaki Makaurau, has an excellent and growing men’s fashion scene, but on the whole, people (and in particular, cishet men) here dress like crap.
Melbourne isn’t like that. Maybe it’s that sweet Australian mining money, maybe it’s the excellent boutiques (and the fact that they have Uniqlo), maybe it’s just sheer numbers or my specific taste, but an average walk around town saw way more excellent fits than even a meander down Karangahape Road.
Before we crack into what I bought, here’s a quick scene report on Melbourne street style:
Black denim everywhere, often paired with triple black sneakers (think Asics, Salomon, New Balance)
Just millions of young guys in Birkenstock Bostons (which you get here also)
Big pants
Big over-ear headphones
Clothes that fit
It’s the little things, as we all know, that make the difference.
I went over there expecting to shop a lot, but in the end it ended up being relatively quiet on that front. We went into some amazing shops, and I will gladly send a detailed list of stores if anyone wants one (bang my line), but I think the stuff I ended up buying is probably a bit more instructive.
So here it is, an old school haul!
Clark’s Wallabees
I’ve been on a long journey looking for new shoes to wear to work, and I had pretty strict criteria - they couldn’t be black, or leather, or too formal, but still had to hold up in what is an office that straddles the line between corporate and creative - white Vejas are acceptable, my all-black Salomons might be pushing the boat a bit too much.
Enter these Wallabees, which I bought from HAVN on Gertrude Street (a must-visit store with awesome service and an insane selection). They’re comfy, in a classic style that you don’t see around too much in Tāmaki, and go with everything. Excellent - although the Gen Xers in my life keep laughing at me for wearing Nomads, whatever those are.
Uniqlo U Regular Jeans
I’ve been talking a lot about raw denim on this newsletter, but didn’t really want to blow $300-$400 on OrSlows before I was sure that I could integrate them into my wardrobe.
These $50 jeans from Uniqlo, designed by Christophe Lemaire for their collaborative U line, are the perfect entry point, and the perfect explanation of why Uniqlo is the only good “fast” fashion. They’re pretty good quality, designed by a big-name designer, and won’t go out of style in 3 months when TikTok moves on.
OrSlows are on the list for the next trip…
Uniqlo x JW Anderson Cap and Tote Bag
Continuing the Uniqlo story, we were in town for the release day of the Uniqlo x JW Anderson collection. Again, pieces from a really well-regarded designer that I would never be able to afford, at a very accessible price point. Also, just a nice hat and bag!
I also picked up a bunch of other Uniqlo miscellany: boxy t-shirt, underwear, white socks, all that good stuff that AS Colour just doesn’t do quite the same.
Muji Pens - Tons of them
Muji pens are the best pens - no ifs, ands or maybes. So we bought like 50 of them in various shades of black and dark blue. Simple as. If you find yourself in a Muji, pick some up and introduce some joy into your handwritten to-do lists.
And that’s about it - like I said, pretty quiet, all told. I close this newsletter with a simple request to the retail powers that be in Aotearoa - can we please replace all the H&Ms and Typos (ugly) with Uniqlos and Mujis (functional, tasteful)? Let me know who I need to lobby to make that happen.
That’s all for clipboard this time, thanks for reading! The next issue will be a jumbo clips only issue for September, so stay tuned for that. If you want to get in touch with questions, requests or offers of work, you can do so via email or on Instagram. See you later!