Let’s just keep this simple in explanation and get down to why both of us are here…
I’m not a skateboarder
Well, I mean, I used to be, but now I’m in my 30′s and I can’t nollie kickflip like I used to. Ok, I just can’t do it anymore. I’m old. That being said, I’m a graphic designer. When it’s slow at work, I try to find interesting decks on the web and either lust after them, add them to my “want to own one day own but probably never will” list or buy the ones I can afford to hang on my wall. I’m a collector now and to some, that’s a dirty word. So be it.
Why you’re here
I would like to think of this as a place for those kind of people who are like me. You may be an avid skater, or you may be a trendy scenester who just has too much cash and likes to collect decks. Regardless, it’s a different kind of website. (I’ll get to that in one second.)
This site is about collecting
Not one single deck on this site should ever see a truck or a curb in my eyes. They are pieces of art in my opinion and should be treated as such. Therein lies the second interesting aspect. Most, if not all of them are limited in nature. This makes them a) limited (duh), valuable to whoever sees value in them and c) (the best part) hard to find.
I think the biggest bit of fun I get out of collecting is well, collecting. Hunting down a certain deck or the 5th deck out of a 5-deck series for months and finally getting it. Hopefully this site will help fill in some gaps.
Annnnd, the rub.
Let’s be honest here, 95% of this hobby revolves around money. Buying, selling, etc. But here’s the cool thing for which I would like to change. The major board makers out there putting out KILLER designs (ala Chocolate for example), make several series a year that are kick-you-in-the-face-gorgeous. Normal every day skaters buy them as they should and do but just think, what would these companies do if they realized (as I’m sure they already are), that collectors were buying these series by the fistful?
It’s a little circle of life thing. We buy decks, they make more, even hire out some hot-as-shit artists to make some, we keep buying. Art for art’s sake. Plain and simple, I’m all for merging things that I have a passion for. I love the shape of the skateboard as a canvas. It’s limiting yet vast all at the same time. If you print something on it that evokes thought/conversation/awe, then, well, that’s what we’re all hopefully here for.
Best,
Jason and the 7 Layer Crew