Dazzle camouflage was invented by an artist and British naval officer named Norman Wilkinson. His advice was that the British Navy should take a cue from zebras. Their contrasting diagonal stripes are confusing for predators. And Wilkinson figured that if this discombobulated lions, it could throw-off German submarines.

So the Navy went ahead and painted their fleet with a jumble of jagged geometric shapes. The craziest part? Dazzle camouflage actually worked. It obviously made the boats a lot more visible, but it also made them difficult for U-Boats to target while in motion. The camouflage’s influence can still be seen today in modern disruptive patterns, like the Swedish M90. 
 
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Horses used to fly in Atlantic City. Sometimes huge crowds filled the Steel Pier bleachers to watch. Sometimes it was only a handful of people standing around with their necks craned, looking up at the platform forty feet in the air. Either way, the filly appeared. The horse was named Lightning, or John the Baptist, or Silver King, and mounted by a showgirl in a swim suit. Ladies and gentlemen, the Atlantic City Steel Pier presents the amazing world-famous high diving horse! Horse and rider trotted to the edge. And then the bottom of the platform dropped out. 




 

“Rope is probably the most remarkable product known to mankind. It is a simple thing, just a handful of fibers intertwined, its origin lost in the misty beginnings of history. Man has improved its strength, its quality, its uniformity and life, yet after thousands of years its basic construction remains unchanged.”

— Hervey Garrett Smith, The Marlinspike Sailor

The VW pop-top is one of our all-time favorite rides. It looks amazing and you never know when the situation might call for some extra head room. We’re especially into accordion-style van roofs these days, because of our new Expandable Day Bag. It’s the pop-top of briefcases, doubling its carrying capacity with the pull of a zipper. Keep that in mind as you feast your eyes on these beauties from the VW Bus Custom Handbook.

Our limited edition collaboration with Barbour drops today! We got together to design a line of archive-inspired bags and jackets that are one part English countryside, one part NYC. Check it out.