Cult of the Well-Worn Hoodie

Sure most modern hoodies rock the hidden iPod picket, but doesn’t your personal media player deserve to be decked out too? Maybe if it were wearing one of these awesome iPod hoodies, you wouldn’t be so quick to tuck it away.

Designed by entrepreneur Ashley Davidson, the iPod hoodies are available for 3rd and 4th generation iPod photo/video (the big one), iPod Nano and iPod mini, and come in two colors - heather grey and bubblegum pink. The hoodies can also be customized with one of four screen-printed designs: the Doodled (featured above), the tattoo-style limited edition “All loved up”, and the Merch, with patterns paying homage to four different music styles.

No word yet on whether the lineup will be refreshed for the new models, but if you’ve got an iPod today that could stand to be a little more cozy, prices range from £9.99 (approx. $20) to £12.99 (approx. $26), and orders are processed through Paypal. Shipping takes 3-5 days inside the UK, though the company will ship worldwide for around £3.00 ($6).

In case you’re looking for more protection than your Bape crime-fighting cowl offers (or have concerns about getting holes torn in a $450 piece of fashion), the Bladerunner Slash Resistant Hooded Top might be right for you.

The Bladerunner brand, based out of Romford, Essex, has recently expanded beyond their security community focus to offer protective clothing to parents of students and concerned citizens everywhere. Strong sales and a series of positive news stories (although most of the ones I was able to find read more like press releases) have convinced the label to branch out into the consumer market, offering several style and color alternatives to their dark black hoods, and an urban-themed portal site to buy them from.

Prices run from £ 20.00 (approx. $40) for the unlined hoodies, up to £64.99 (approx $130) for the kevlar-lined hoodies. They come in solid colors or “chemical print” and “razorwire” designs, and in addition to the traditional black Bladerunner has pink and light blue styles designed for female joggers. Sizes run from small to 3XL.

Given the bad rap hoodies traditionally receive in the UK, I don’t know whether something like this is good or bad for the stereotype.

You love your hoodies. Shouldn’t your furniture enjoy that same level of comfort?

Originating from a 2003 Campana brothers workshop with the themes “containment” and “constructing from deconstruction”, the Hood Chair by Swedish firm BRDA - Broberg & Ridderstråle Design & Architecture - plays upon the different visual appearances furniture takes on when in use, such as the look of a chair when someone “claims” it by laying their jacket or hoodie over the back.

BRDA does some fantastic conceptual design, though I could find no indication that this chair is currently for sale. It would make a great addition to any apartment, though I wouldn’t act too surprised when your cat claims the hood as her own space.

It’s mid-afternoon, and I could use a siesta. So with fair warning that it might be the somnolence speaking, I’m really digging Burton’s Sleeper hoodie.

It’s cool, stylish, and chock-full of functional and impractical embellishments that are the mark of any good outerwear; the biggest strike against it is the airplane emblazoned on the front, which a month or so on looks out of place without two snakes wrapped around it.

Things like the built-in earphone compartment and iPod pocket are becoming standard on kitted-out hoodies, so it’s the snap-out, fold-down light shield and inflatable neck pillow that really set this hoodie apart. Unfortunately there’s no info on Burton’s site, leaving me to imagine a Nike Pump style inflatable button for filling the neck piece with air. Regardless, it’s infinitely more stylish than those inflatable neck pillows that look like they could double as hemoroid aids.

The idea seems to be borrowed from Matthew Gale’s Excubo jacket, winner of the national DYSON Eye for Why Design Competition (and quite a bit more Blade Runner-ish).

The Burton sleeper is $100 and available in black and heather grey from the Burton online store.