What unites Beatles and skinheads?

Fashion is present in all cultures and subcultures, always being a key piece of expression. Tell me how you dress and I'll tell you how you think.

With our clothing we say who we are, what we think, how we feel and of course, what we represent. Today we want to bring you closer to the movements that have inspired us to design our Military Trend collection .

A selection of military boots and ankle boots made of 100% leather based on the styles of the Mod and skinhead culture of the 60s and 70s. And no! Skinheads are not always fans of the ultra-right, in fact they are very far from the cliché that television has taught us. Keep reading and get to know both cultures in depth!

Mod culture and the Beatles

If we want to take a trip to the past to find out where Chelsea shoes, like our Brooklyn ankle boots , come from, we have to go precisely to that neighborhood of London and look very closely at an English subculture that dazzled an entire generation: the Mods.

Yes, the Beatles were Mods, but what were they? It was a youth movement that was "hot" in England in the 60s. The boys dressed in suits and Chelseas and the girls wore short dresses and you could also see them with loafers. (You can see what they looked like here)

The idea was to go very elegant and dance to ska and Jamaican reggae. The modern ones of the time who traveled with vespas and scooters and who made these ankle boots that were worn by everyone from The Beatles to the Rolling Stones fashionable.

In fact, it was the Beatles who expanded this style at the beginning of their career with those characteristic suits that they wore with their Chelsea boots.

Brooklyn are Chelsea style boots based on its main lines: rubber on the outside and everything being one piece. We wanted to incorporate more modern elements with 5 centimeter striped platforms and an interior zipper to facilitate closure. Comfortable and super versatile.

How did Skinhead culture emerge and what does it have to do with fashion?

Fashion is everywhere.

We leave the Mods with their suits and ties to move on to an English fashion that is beginning to be much harsher. The social context is not good and young people no longer want to appear elegant and neat: hard-mods emerge, first cousins ​​of those who will become skinheads.

This movement took styles from the working class: jeans, suspenders and the crown jewel: military boots. They wanted to express where they came from and celebrate their roots.

Military boots are a very characteristic element of skinhead clothing and an icon of the working class and it is at this moment in history when they reemerge as a fashion element.

Our Billie boots capture all this spirit: higher than normal shaft, a super trend now, and 5 centimeter platforms to give it more strength. It also has an interior zipper so you don't go crazy every time you want to put them on.

The skinheads listened to the same music as the Mods and maintained certain similarities, but little by little they defined themselves by showing a marked ideology. They were anti-racist and their intention was to protect the working class from which they inspired their clothing. In fact, there were many Jamaicans and immigrants who promoted and followed this culture. However, due to the violent presence of a neo-Nazi faction of the movement, the press began to label all skinheads as fascists and hence their fame.

There are many movements within this culture: apolitical, left-wing, right-wing, more social, more violent, less violent,... Fashion is what unites all of them and the symbols are what separate them. This culture has survived to this day and was the precursor of punk.

We are left with the use that skinhead girls gave to military boots and ankle boots . Very urban looks that combined with Scottish print skirts, high-leg jeans and the famous Fred Perry polo shirts.

A way of dressing that broke gender stereotypes and that helped express the discontent of a warrior generation.

The design of the Berta military boot is the closest to what skinhead girls could use in the 70s in Bryan's entire collection. It is a low-top boot that is tied with laces (they have two interchangeable ones) that looks great with stockings or fishnet socks. Perfect to give a more powerful touch to your looks.

Military boots and Chelsea boots appear in the world of fashion to stay and are models closely linked to the culture that accompanied them. These stories and their background are what inspire us to make collections with depth, with soul.