{"id":62220,"date":"2025-05-28T19:48:10","date_gmt":"2025-05-28T19:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/62220\/"},"modified":"2025-05-28T19:48:10","modified_gmt":"2025-05-28T19:48:10","slug":"i-created-the-madison-square-guardian-jacket-so-ny-sports-fans-can-support-multiple-teams-at-once","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/62220\/","title":{"rendered":"I created the Madison Square Guardian jacket so NY sports fans can support multiple teams at once"},"content":{"rendered":"

New York sports fans are known to loudly wear their hearts on their sleeves, and this jacket does the talking for them \u2014 on the court, the rink and on the field.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s all about the New York Knicks right now, with the team on a stunning and historic winning streak, but Madison Square Garden regulars \u2014 both on and off the court \u2014\u00a0don\u2019t want to forget their other hometown heroes.<\/p>\n

To the rescue comes Alex Ruffin, a 31-year-old Connecticut designer who created the \u201cMadison Square Guardian,\u201d a $1,400 bespoke jacket \u2014 one half repping the Rangers, the other the Knicks \u2014 so fans could celebrate the beating heart of Big Apple sports, win or lose.<\/p>\n

\u201cMSG \u2014 that\u2019s the mecca right there,\u201d he told The Post. \u201cBabies are born every day into a fandom\u2026 Sports unify a lot of people.\u201d<\/p>\n

The coat of many colors is part of the \u201cHometown Hero\u201d series, from Ruffin\u2019s A Thrifted Temple<\/a> label \u2014\u00a0 a fun fusion of two vintage team jackets from the same city or state, chopped up and sewn together to create an even bolder statement. <\/p>\n

No two jackets are ever the same \u2014 \u201cthey all have their own stories,\u201d Ruffin said. The humble designer works out of his living room. Samuel Corum for N.Y.Post<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople resonate with my jackets to the degree that they do because sports is the one thing on this planet that transcends,\u201d said Ruffin, who created the concept three years ago in his Stamford home.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought it was a brilliant idea, because who doesn\u2019t like to represent where they\u2019re from?\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Even Jalen Brunson, the Knicks\u2019 star guard, is on board.<\/p>\n

\u201cJalen\u2019s jacket that I made for him is very special for me,\u201d Ruffin said of the $1,400 sold-out style worn by Brunson last month<\/a>. \u201cIt made a lot of sense, just knowing the history of the team and the owners, then knowing that Jalen Brunson\u2019s father played for the Knicks back in the day as well, so it was a really cool full-circle moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

And it\u2019s a full-circle moment indeed, considering the Knicks are in the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000<\/a> \u2014 when Brunson\u2019s dad Rick was on the team.<\/p>\n

A winning combo <\/p>\n

Ruffin\u2019s rad rags start at $800, with the most popular designs spotlighting New York teams \u2014\u00a0but they\u2019ve been seen sported all over the country, by the likes of Davion Mitchell<\/a>, who currently plays for the Miami Heat, and the Milwaukee Bucks\u2019 Andre Jackson Jr.<\/a> as well as rappers Westside Gunn<\/a>, Anderson .Paak, Lil Yachty<\/a> and Big Sean.<\/p>\n

The craze kicked off when Yankees player Jazz Chisholm Jr. wore a specially-made Hometown Hero jacket<\/a> (Knicks-Yankees) at MSG \u2014 a surreal moment for Ruffin, who played baseball for 10 years growing up.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey had him on the Jumbotron, and he\u2019s showing both sides of the jacket off,\u201d Ruffin said. \u201cI was just like, it\u2019s happening. It\u2019s finally happening. Everything since has been crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ultimate slam dunk came after Brunson\u2019s big reveal, however \u2014\u00a0leading to fans from all over reaching out with requests for their own personal pairings. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe wore [the jacket] to Madison Square Garden, and I think that was the first time that I was put in the world and noticed, this is my work and this is who I am,\u201d Ruffin said of Jazz Chisholm Jr., seen here with Spike Lee. JASON SZENES FOR THE NEW YORK POST<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a hot commodity right now, and it\u2019s almost overwhelming to a degree, but in a good way. A lot of people want my work,\u201d Ruffin said. \u201cIt\u2019s crazy because I don\u2019t just view my jackets as jackets, I view them as art pieces.\u201d<\/p>\n

Court couture <\/p>\n

Ruffin is a self-taught sewer, having bought a machine in 2018. \u201cIt was just sitting there for years catching dust \u2014 and then I felt a huge shift in myself, creatively speaking.\u201d Samuel Corum for N.Y.Post<\/p>\n

Ruffin can make up to four jackets in a day and most have a base price of $500 to $600 \u2014 though New York designs, which are in high demand, have a higher price tag.<\/p>\n

Sourcing the originals to Frankenstein together is tricky \u2014 he relies on Mercari, eBay, Depop or local thrift stores, though clients can supply two jackets to fuse together \u2014 and so is keeping up with the influx of orders, especially since the Knicks\u2019 streak. <\/p>\n

But for the in-demand creator, it\u2019s all in a day\u2019s work. \u201cThey say this all the time, if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew once I figured the concept out, I\u2019d be able to make a lot of these at my own free will, and that\u2019s what happened \u2014 and it\u2019s just been catching on everywhere since,\u201d he said. Samuel Corum for N.Y.Post<\/p>\n

Often, buyers snatch up the jackets almost immediately after he posts about restocks on social media. So far, he\u2019s sold about 100 Hometown Hero jackets.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith these jackets that I make, I feel I\u2019m like knighting people. Like, this is like a battle armor for you that I feel is yours and belongs to you solely,\u201d Ruffin said.<\/p>\n

But it was a little less than three years ago that he started sewing seriously and bringing his designs to life to begin with \u2014 and he\u2019s completely self-taught.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s almost like trying to learn a new language,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Comeback story<\/p>\n

Ruffin\u2019s big win comes a little over a decade after he was forced to drop out of college at age 18 to take care of his mom when she was diagnosed with cancer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember clear as day, having that weight at such a young age, it does something to you,\u201d Ruffin said. \u201cTo see somebody that you have such a bond with disintegrate right in front of you and lose all aspects of themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although he was painting on canvases and clothing since he was a kid, he didn\u2019t take his passion seriously until after his parents passed away in his 20s. Samuel Corum for N.Y.Post<\/p>\n

She died in 2013, a few weeks after his 20th birthday, and Ruffin\u2019s father passed away a few years later at the age of 51.<\/p>\n

Experiencing immense loss at such a young age could\u2019ve broken him, but he learned to turn his pain into art. He reintroduced himself to drawing and started painting his designs on clothes, which he found therapeutic. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt would ease my mind from the loss,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving all these different forms and mediums of art has helped me cope with a lot of the loss that I\u2019ve experienced in my life,\u201d Ruffin said. Samuel Corum for N.Y.Post<\/p>\n

He sold his first painted jacket for $80 and, in the years since, he has been able to quit his day job at Sprint and \u201cthrow caution to the wind\u201d to focus solely on A Thrifted Temple.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really humbling to me because I made these jackets in my apartment. It\u2019s just me, my living room space and my sewing machine,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s now making more than any previous gig \u2014 and his life is a lot richer, too.<\/p>\n

Ruffin has been able to quit his day job at Sprint to focus on his business full-time. Samuel Corum for N.Y.Post<\/p>\n

Though he might not be here to see it, Ruffin said he\u2019s sure he made his father, a \u201cdie-hard\u201d New York sports fan, proud.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know my mom, my dad and my grandma are all with me in spirit on this journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

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