By Alexandra Falchi
I never thought I could look sexy in sports attire until I saw the jacket: a vintage camo button-up with Matisse nudes emblazoned next to a Golden State Warriors patch. Damn, I thought as I carefully evaluated the gorgeous handmade creation, experiencing an “I’ve got to have that” fashion moment I’d never felt before when picking out an outfit for game day.
Out of all places, I found the jacket at a humble table set up on the street as I was heading to a Warriors game. I’d noticed these types of stands with homemade clothes before, but I’d never given them much attention. Instead, I always opted for the corporate gear we’ve all been brainwashed into buying and wearing like lemmings.
Impulsively, I bought the jacket and threw it on, showing up to the game feeling like a boss. It was an instant conversation starter—everyone wanted to know where I had gotten such a beaut. Turns out, that was exactly the intention of the mastermind who made it: local designer Luke Fraser, founder of the company Bart Bridge, which offers Bay Area fans a local and more provocative alternative to the “official” big-box apparel.
From hats to overalls to fanny packs, Bart Bridge offers fashion for nearly all the Bay Area’s beloved teams: the San Francisco Giants, the San Francisco 49ers, the Oakland A’s, the Oakland Raiders, the San Jose Sharks and the Sacramento Kings. In an era when we are all trying to shop local, why shouldn’t this apply to sports attire too?
I recently caught up with Fraser at the Bart Bridge booth at Oakland First Fridays, learning about the unconventional path that led to him creating these unconventional clothes. Fraser spent years traveling the US, at one point bicycling across the country and living in towns along the way. “Sometimes the only thing I had in common with people was the love for sports,” says Fraser, working the booth. Donning a Bart Bridge hat and vintage flannel, he’s got a wide grin that’s charming the crowd as he cracks jokes with everyone he meets. “It’s surprising how much sports can bridge all sorts of gaps. Political, economic, racial—you name it.”
Searching for something new to wear before a Giants-Dodgers game back in 2012, he found himself frustrated by the unimaginative and expensive sports apparel made by large corporations. Eventually, he found a bounty of vintage sports attire at a local thrift store, busted out his sewing machine and got to work. And Bart Bridge was born.
Ever since, he’s been crafting piece after piece, quietly growing a cult following in the Bay Area. He was voted Best of Oakland in 2017, beloved by fans of on-trend and fashion-forward items. Just as all was looking upward, it all came crashing down. The roaring Nuns Fire — one of the largest of the Northern California fires to strike last fall — took everything he had: his live/work studio in Sonoma County, his equipment and his entire inventory.
“It was hard to accept that some of the one-of-a-kind pieces were gone forever—a lot of the vintage fabrics and materials were irreplaceable and were acquired through hours of sifting through vintage stores and flea markets,” said Fraser.
But once the shock wore off, he got back to work. “If a writer lost the only draft of a novel, would he or she stop writing? Of course not,” he added.
After spending the winter in a FEMA-issued trailer working like a mad scientist, he recently emerged like a phoenix with a brand-new collection. Fraser describes Bart Bridge’s style as “Ikebana fashion,” referencing the Japanese art of flower arrangement. In essence, that means stripping things down to their essential parts and accentuating the beauty of those parts. With ikebana floral arrangements, for example, that may entail finding a unique vase, an unusual branch or a singular flower in order to create a stark and unusual arrangement that pulls people in.
“Similarly, while a sea of traditional jerseys gets lost on a BART train headed to a Warriors game, Bart Bridge’s simple and eye-catching pieces, like the vintage military jacket with contrasting fabric and a patch, stop people in their tracks,” said Fraser.
Bart Bridge expresses Fraser’s love for his home. A pair of denim overalls with a print of Huey Newton and a vintage Raiders patch is a perfect example. From the style to the historical reference to the handmade, repurposed quality, this piece is something you might see hung at the Oakland Museum.
Remember the moment when you realized that a certain poster on your wall in middle school was no longer cool, and you threw it in the trash and never looked back? I think it’s time for all of us to do that with our team-store apparel — they will just no longer suffice.
