For this month’s Rivista, we caught up with one of Chicago’s best vintage curators and brand owners, Cale Darrell.

Cale is always on the go, digging through bins and second hand stores one day, and sourcing new items at estate sales and styling an artist in town for the weekend the next. Cale's store Good Form Vintage is known for its attention to detail and eye for the tried and true item. Del Toro was lucky enough to drop by his showroom and talk about vintage and of course footwear.  Read the full interview below and be sure to follow his instagram @shop.good.form

 

Tell us a bit about you, and your work.

From the start, Good Form has been a contemporary take on the vintage industry. I wanted to elevate my approach by not only offering clean, ready to wear garments, but also providing a lifestyle-esk brand people could trust/stand behind.

 

What does a typical day look like for you?

The best part about being in this business is a day is never really “typical”… one day you can be creating content in the studio and the next be digging through a strangers house. The day to day is always changing and that is what keeps me juiced.

 

How would you describe your personal style?

I just did a huge closet purge that has really set me on the right path moving forward but overall, I have a pretty simple uniform these days. Although my closet doesn’t necessarily grow anymore, I do tend to cycle in new vintage pieces from time to time. 

My style is more about consistency than anything else.

 

Does that stray from how you approach Good Form?

We are running that same model at G.F.  — When you walk into the showroom for the first time or pop online for a drop, you know exactly what’s going to be there.

 

What does timeless design/product mean to you?

I don’t know who said it first but, “the best clothing has already been made.”

 

What are some new ways that you have worn loafers, or formal shoes?

I’m not one to really step up of the box on such a traditional thing. I liked the tried and true. Dress shoes with jeans is about as far as it goes with me.

 

Do you think footwear is the most important part of an outfit?

It’s always been a fight — Jacket v Footwear. I think they demand the same sort of respect but at the end of the day, its more important to spend money on something that can ultimately make you FEEL better than LOOK better.

 

What is your rarest item?

Oregon Champion Reverse Weave Sweatshirt from just after Steve Prefontaine was at the University.

 

What excites you most about clothing right now? 

Everything is kind of blending together. Vintage clothing can now sit right next to designers and it goes.

 

Do you have any advice for people looking to get into vintage/clothes?

Find someone you trust and know your measurements! When you know exactly what you’re buying it takes away a lot of the hassle.

 

Shop the Men's Black Leather Milano Loafer
Photographs and Interview by Colin Heaberg.