Notes on the Skaters in Tompkins Square Park

The words skater and loser could be synonymous, maybe.

Think of a skater: one would likely imagine a boy who’s only concerned with his board, his tricks, and of course, his cigarettes. Their laissez-faire attitude gives off that they don't care about much else. Don’t let this fool you. More than they’d like to admit, skaters care about fashion. Although not as flashy as other fashion styles, it’s about swag through simplicity.

Tompkins Square Park is my go-to spot to observe skaters and their fashions in the flesh. There’s an area in the park where skaters are confined, attempting tricks over an endless amount of time. I’m admittedly much more focused on their fashion than these tricks. The skate brand, Fucking Awesome is also conveniently a five minute from walk from the park, and some skaters even linger around the store. It’s a great place to observe how skaters interpret their own style.

In my past observations at Tompkins, I’ve seen skaters’ outfits I wouldn’t mind wearing myself.

When looking at the average skater silhouette, nothing about it exudes taste. It mostly prioritizes comfortability through a wide shirt, baggy pants, and beat up skate shoes. But the silhouette balances style through comfortability. It has also developed through time as well. The kids don’t want to wear Vans or tight jeans anymore while skating. The styles skaters have adopted today look like they came out of Lil Wayne’s closet in the 2000s, calling back to the predominant trends during that time.

The modern skate style is defined by embroidered jeans, probably sagging, hoodies with designs, a wonky belt, and a chunky shoe. Hoodies can take various creative patterns, belts are spiked with zebra or cheetah prints, and even DCs are still acceptable to wear. The pants always have to be baggy and it’s weird if they aren't. It’s swaggy, even though it would be a parent’s worst nightmare.

It’s not something that’s hard to curate, or that involves intricate details. Although established brands like Supreme and Stüssy have continued to dominate skater fashion, there are new brands that are emerging that appeal to young skaters. Fuck this Industry, doesn’t take itself too seriously Importantly, FTI almost always includes skaters to model its clothing, either when skating or acting irreverent and off-putting. FTI also promotes this exchange between fashion and skate culture through a surplus of “brainrot” and heavy irony.

The brand’s marketing is mostly ironic memes and funny skating videos. FTI’s social media could include a normal skate clip with a funny noise or video effect added into it, Or it could be a model punching a bag with his pants pulled down. Other brands like Star Team, Punkayo, and Alwaysdowhatyoushoulddo also use skaters, skating, and the occasional meme to market to their audiences. These brands build hype off simplicity and it works.

At their core, the skater in Tompkins Park is fun and carefree.

When they hit the streets, their clothes are bound to get distressed. Sometimes, there’s the occasional hole, or tear, but those never bother the skater I watch in Tompkins. In fact, it seems to add to the style. The holes and tears give character to the clothing. I think in a skater’s mind, they function like an accessory. It’s like a badge they wear proudly, earned from falling more times than they can count.

Skaters are, one could say, fashionable bums.

It’s the art of being effortless and being able to not care what others think. Their clothes always seem to get dirty, but I think it’s part of their charm. They don’t care enough to actually look put-together, but it always seems to work out in the end, creating a style that has endured for decades. There’s a certain aura to that. Maybe the essence of skater fashion is exuding swag while looking like a loser.

Dido Trowell is a PAPER Spring 2026 Intern

Image via Getty