Insted We Smile makes world’s best surf trunks?

Mr Luke Stedman walked into the Stab office on a dreary monday morning, and we all quickly straightened our crooked office spines. Steds was a literal ray of sunshine. He told us stories of the cyclical nature of fashion and we all had a giggle at a Stab Style cover from 2005 that saw Steds in straw hat, unbuttoned flannel shirt, and Mambo trunks dangling around his ankles. How times have changed! Mr Stedman left us with a gift and departed. I messaged a friend, and known Stedman groupie, and asked him to guess at the identity of our most recent visitor. “Not Shanghai Sex!?” he replied. The very same!

Now, Insted We Smile, Luke’s cleverly-named clothing label, isn’t totally chasing that surf demographic. It mostly plays in high fashion! The gift that Mr Stedman left us with was unanimously agreed upon to be the most divine set of trunks that we’d ever seen. And, part-neoprene! The progression, the innovation! They’re literally what Alexander Wang’s H&M range should’ve looked like.The bottom half is made from thick set nylon, which dries quick, and more importantly, actually feels like you’re wearing something. Not a fan of the lightweight, pipe hugging stretchy gear? One word. Nylon. But the top is where things really turn up…

Insted We Smile’s hi-fash surf crossover has incorporated neoprene into the mix – and it’s pure function. This is a formula that O’Neill first jammed on back in 2001, and did it real well. But Steds’ influences are a little more contemporary: After the success, and functional value, of women’s fashion brands like NLP, Steds knew that he had to put neoprene on his next venture. “The girls just look so amazing in neoprene that I knew that I had to put it in some trunks. And black, always black.” The neoprene adapts to and accommodates the waistline, simultaneously providing some very luxe feels. Stab has rarely seen comfort, practicality and fine taste so perfectly blended in a trunk. It feels like a new age.

So good are these, that they’re already sold out. But, if you express interest via email to [email protected], you’ll be able to snatch a pair. Don’t sleep on it.