When Sales Attack.

If you're like me, you haven't been at my blog since February. A lot has happened since then, but most of it has been pretty disheartening, and since I -try- to use this blog predominantly for things which are great or, at least, unique and worthy of highlighting, it has been really difficult to bring myself to break the silence. Also, busy-ness. The state of the tee art world reflects the state of the real world, but even so, some things are more important.

One thing that becomes vital to note now happened at Threadless. Longtime followers will perhaps recall years ago when Threadless streamlined their tees to all be $18, with Selects sitting at $25, for their outside of the norm content, frequently experimental print processes, and untested popularity. This wasn't ideal, really... prior, threadless tees fluctuated a lot print to print, but for the majority of prints, $18 was more than one would have paid before. Still, $18 was fair, and remains the standard in the tee world. But then we started seeing some full tee prints sell at $20, undermining the original intent, and it wasn't long before the average tee sold at that price point. What I didn't notice until just recently, however, was that the prices slipped up again... the average tee in the last few weeks has been sitting pretty at $22.



This sort of silent inflation makes a sale like the brief Camp Wannatee one Threadless is featuring this week (potentially til Wednesday, but Threadless is known for extensions, so who knows) both more exciting and somewhat insulting. A $12 tee is always a good deal, especially when the base price is higher, but the sale serves mainly to point out just how much a Threadless tee goes for these days. One can't expect the $5 clearances of the days when this blog began, but there is a certain disturbing nature to it, especially when one considers the other changes made throughout the tee world in that time. The vapid lie of "printing this mediocre work helps us afford to print less popular but better work" is clearly exposed when one sees this happening... either that road isn't working, and the site is still scraping by no matter what they print, or the price hike has nothing to do with necessity, which implies that perhaps the print choices have nothing to do with necessity either. Whichever way the truth tilts, it's a worrisome omen for artists and other sites alike.

That said, there are still regularly Threadless tees to be excited about, and sometimes they come from the least expected places. Above, we see sketchboy01's brand new print "Arabian Crescent," clearly an incredibly weak pun, but illustrated beyond its title. The magic of the Arabian Nights is present in the illustration... there's the twinkle of the stars, the exotic shapes of buildings... and that sliver of moon which came from the equally slim punchline creates its own otherworldly imagery, not only for the outer-space textures and craters, but the idea of this beautiful city springing out from the rock, hidden in a cave or carved from a mountain. The overall effect is one that creates a haunting new world out of a very old one. Our Western eyes still often see the Arab world as a large question mark... framing it against space makes it literally otherworldly, and anyone who has ever used their imagination is fascinated by the unfamiliar. Taking two images which we can easily identify, yet in most cases do not fully understand, lets the viewer walk the line between comfort and curiosity, and the lovely execution sells a piece that quite likely was conceived as a cheap joke, elevating it to stunning illustration.

By contrast, Design By Humans, once the white truffle of these sorts of tee sites with its regular $24 offerings, has become a comparatively affordable option. This is no small feat, since DBH is a far more "exclusive" tee site. Its designs tend to seek out a specific audience, and a far less populist one than most. Its inventory is without a doubt smaller than its closest competition. Its prints, while no longer as regularly experimental as in the past, still tend to be far bigger and often more complex than any site I can think of. It seems odd that they'd be able to maintain what is now a reasonable price point while other places are ever rising.

Once again, it is the current sale which highlights my concerns. DBH has, in the last year, been incredibly sale-happy, and while most people would likely be ecstatic to have the chance to pick up cheaper designs, a sale week at DBH is also not a print week. The concern, therefore, is that they're no better off... having to drop prices even further so frequently, at the expense of paying out to new designs, doesn't imply the sort of success the site should be enjoying. Long story short, for a paranoid sort like myself, the two top dogs in the tee world giving signs of weakness does not bode well for the scene as a whole.

That being said, the trouble with conjecture is that it's only conjecture without knowing something deeper about selections, sales, and the like. The evidence is worrying, but the truth could just be that DBH wants you to buy awesome shirts like ecsu's "Decay (We're All Made of Stars)" and save some extra green while doing it. Not that it's not worth full price: the progression of the images makes for one of my favorite designs in a long while. The pink and the black provide a great contrast, and helps link the worlds of the self and the outside. The decomposition is shown in reverse... as the arm becomes built up, it is fleshed out, but it also becomes less corporeal. The idea is that the decay of one thing can create the growth of another. The stark colors also make the whole thing feel a bit more synthetic, though, as well. There seems to be another layer of commentary beneath the obvious themes, as though we are both built from and destroyed by the extraneous and the unreal. Whatever the case, though, it's a striking and original design, and something that makes me quite happy to see exist. Take advantage of the sales to show your support for this, or Arabian Crescent, or any truly worthy piece on either site. At the end of the day, this blog is about great tees. Find them, wear them, and support the continued spread of new ones. Because no matter what else might be happening under the surface, supporting great work is the best way to get more of it out there, and that should be the vast majority of what we're seeing. After all, I can't praise great art if it's not there.

Dead Buried Hart

Design by Humans: I love you guys, I really do. Sometimes you lapse into a sort of self-parody with the designs you select, but even as you've softened your edge over time, you're still one of the riskiest sites. You've got an amazing blank for your product and a strong print reputation. In the list of sites I'd love to see thrive for years to come, your best work keeps you in the running.

But I don't get this "sale" thing.

Sure, I love that I can get any shirt in your entire catalog for $12 until Monday, especially with all the super strong pieces you've released in the last month or two. Yes, I know that it provides a nice build-up (and a sales cushion) for the 10K finalists and winner to be announced this coming week. Certainly I know that sales bring sales, and a slightly higher-end shop can use them to tempt more frugal customers. But sales also mean no new tees at DBH land. Which is either worrisome in that great talent and tees don't get printed, or frightening in thinking that maybe you guys really need the sales. So while I am all for saving money, I worry 'bout you guys, guys. We cool? Good.

Because seriously, I've gotta say, this is probably THE BEST time to buy some DBH swag. Over the summer some bolt of inspiration came up out of nowhere, and especially in the last month or two we've seen winner after winner print. Winners like After Death, by TobiasFonseca. It's an incredibly classy one-color print, one of the more powerful takes on the "life from death" concept with a great style...it looks almost pieced together, but not in a clip-art way but in a way that gives the idea of being given a whole bunch of little white stones and arranging them into this art. The flow and arrangement really honors the idea without making it tacky, clunky, heavy-handed, etc. It actually takes a tired concept (life in death), and a tired juxtaposition (antlers as trees) and makes it look like you'd never seen it before. And that's what great art and great design does.

Oh, and did I mention it was $12 til Monday? Because if not, I should probably mention you can also save an additional 10% with code K4XZYZ. That's good until October 7, so even if you're holding out for the 10K winners, don't be afraid to use it.

Dogs Bark + Hoot

Design by Humans, as I'm sure is not remotely a shock to you guys (even as rarely as I update lately), is in the midst of its 10K contest. Top 8 was announced on Monday, and while I had the best of intentions to get you a Top 24 post last week, it's appropriate to discuss now anyway, because Monday's shirt was, to me, fully worthy of that $10,000. So we'll get to the contestants later. First, it's time to gush.

Sanguine Parliament by thunderpeel is the sort of tee that makes a cynic like me excited for graphic arts again at a site which is struggling with its identity as one of the last bastions of true design, creativity, and boldness. DBH doesn't want to fully enter that realm, and some weeks that shows more obviously than others, but there just aren't many places willing to take these sorts of risks. This just isn't "marketable," or "familiar," but it is amazing. It takes full advantage of what vector art does best, with slick, smooth design that doesn't feel cloying and cloned, but also an absolutely delicious palette. The white and pink and yellow on feels like some sort of futuristic Neapolitan ice cream, and this might sound odd, but with the drips and such up above, it even evokes cool and creamy. It looks like ice cream tastes. Put that in your weird description pipe and smoke it. The layout, too, is choice. I love how the owls morph into the wolf, giving their ominous glares more power, and making their chubby, cute bodies more vicious for the more powerful predator they are framed by. The echo of the wolf-head, the similar but distinct owls, the flow of the drips... all motifs that are incredibly pleasing to me and cohesive with this slightly odd idea. And who can forget use of blank? This is a big, bold print, but it is totally breathable with all that black being used. And most important, it is simply unlike anything else. People so regularly laud the familiar, and sometimes even use uncreative as a positive, or a quality which evokes no response. There are constantly examples of people pushing forward in all art. There's no excuse to recycle. And it's a boon when any site takes the bull by the horns and is willing to print something of that nature.

Sadly, even at 24 level there weren't any pieces AS exciting as Sanguine Parliament, but most of my favorites were, as ever, leveled. However, I would definitely suggest you vote for a few of the top 8, and help then get printed next week: I am a big fan of the execution and concept of buko's Unleashed Imagination and the stellar illustration put forth in alvarejo's The Perfect Murder, and I encourage you to give them your support. However, to me, $10,000 is about something totally worthy. Something skillfully created. Something dramatic and striking. Something unique and daring. Something that I've never seen before. There simply isn't a single design in the top-8 (nor were there really any in the top-24, despite having high-hopes for a few to go further) that embodies this more than Yonil's "We Did This To Ourselves." It's currently in distant third against some promotional giants. Votes allegedly count less this year, but let's not kid ourselves, we need to fight to prove it's the right choice. I simply cannot see another tee that would deserve the honor more. Any prize this large should truly favor innovation over certain other factors, or else why would anyone bother putting in their A-game for such a huge prize?

Quite the Trend

I don't quite expect anything I say to make a difference in a world that has made art into pure commodity, especially as time has made the blog itself more and more sporadic and sparse. I fight to prove there's someone out there that cares, and simply hope that someday, the right people will get it. So I don't really think anything I said last week has changed anything this quickly at Design by Humans. Even so, it's a pretty nice turn of events.

The fact is there's been a run of 6-for-7 solid tees at DBH, starting with last week's rant tee and coming full circle now with yet another great one from Againstbound: "Leader of the Pack." It's great to see a designer like him getting recognition. His style has always been one of the most distinctive out there, and this piece, created to evoke Mr. B7, another underappreciated designer, really takes it to another level. The art definitely takes the best of both designers into one piece, and the purple shirt is just sweet as hell. It's bold in coloration, yet the statement remains attractive and wearable. And the fill and flow of the shirt is perfect.

The fact is that at this point, there are probably millions of shirts out there. I've scored nearly 50K at Threadless alone, and I haven't scratched the surface considering all the older entries and handfuls I've missed, not to mention those at DBH, past woot entries, emptees shirts that have never been entered elsewhere. If even 1/100th of those tees are printworthy, and we look at that minimum that I myself have scored, it's still way more than any single site can print. So it is SO important that we keep promoting and building up these designs that really matter. The ones that make you see something you aren't as familiar with. The ones that create fashion and push envelopes, and the ones that put wearable creativity at the forefront, not familiarity. It's great to see this sort of thing find its way into printing over the course of the last few weeks, and so consistently, but tomorrow is a new day, and who knows what prints then. Let's keep doing our best to make sure it's something truly worth the prize. And here's hoping "Dark Matter" shows up on schedule on Wednesday!

The Waiting Game

Look here, shirt sites, and listen the hell up.

We all want to see awesome, deserving tees print. It's human nature. I would rather wait years to get a chance to own a totally worthwhile tee than never see it happen. But this is getting out of hand.

Just last week, we thrilled to a totally deserving Threadless design getting what it deserved a year after submission. This week it's Design By Humans' turn. The irony, to me, is that both designs went up for voting at the other site before finally being printed by the original one. And this is where my issue lies.

Againstbound's Ominous and Ghastly Mont Noir was a top 20 contender from last year's DBH10K (going on now for 2010). Almost every top 20 was printed within the month or so after the winners were announced. This was one of approximately four not to. The layers of elements are no less awesome now, the art is no less original to the designer, the design is not somehow more printable than it always was. It's a surefire buy when I get to it. But I just don't get what took so long. Even in the worst-case scenario, by a month or two after the 10K, Againstbound should easily have had mail expressing intent to print this later. Yet it made its way to another site. In the interim, DBH printed things like Guntree and Dogfight, among the worst prints I've ever seen. So why couldn't this one be fit in until now?

The business of selling art is getting cowardly, it seems. They're afraid to print work they clearly like. And seeing pieces like this and the other from last week finally print proves that fear. These are tees they liked, as evidenced by the late printing. But waiting a year is just wrong. Waiting so long to even tell an artist you want to print their piece that they have taken it elsewhere is wrong. You need to suck it up and make the plunge. And when I see some sites printing work that is absolutely uninspired after a month or two at most, this really should be unacceptable. There have been well over 300 days to find a spot for this design to print. So while I am excited by it, and excited to wear it, it really proves just how married the design world is to the business aspect, and how scared they are about the art side. I don't want to live in a world so close-minded that this would never print, but in some ways, knowing this would take so long to do so is just as scary a commentary about both our cultural and capitalistic tendencies.

If your business ostensibly sells art, it is your obligation to sell art. Otherwise, you are only damaging the art world. And art is more important to society than your corporate savings being full.

Feline By Humans

At this point some things have ceased to shock me.

Infuriate? Sure, sometimes. I'm a firm believer that people who can't get angry about something don't actually care about it all that much. There's no passion, no concern. Only a dead resignation. But that's not a matter of shock. Shock is about outright surprise.

Among the things that fail to faze me lately? Design by Humans sales. Last year Uneetee was frequently jabbed at for going in a pseudo-DBH direction with it's print selections. This year, one could argue DBH is paying its own respects by taking Uneetee's habit of infrequently selecting new prizewinners. Don't get me wrong, I love a good sale, and DBH still has some of the best blanks in the biz, but more new prints means more new tees for the fans/customers to buy. You can't put the same set of tees on sale a hundred times and expect hugely different results. The true excitement, for me, is seeing new, quality prints.

Thankfully, though, this is a sale and a half. If you're willing to rummage the eBargain Bin of remaindered sizes, you can find some classics and quality tees for only $7, with others available for $10. At DBH price and quality, this is a hell of a deal, and that makes this sale one worth checking out, even after the glut of recent ones at the site.

Also helpful, in my eyes, is that we've recently gotten some pretty stellar prints out of the ol' DBH gods. One of my favorites comes from yonil: the long-title-is-long "Apparently cats only have one life just like the rest of us." It was inspired by the artist's loss of his fuzzy friend, but the imagery is gloriously weird and acceptable for even non-cat-lovers. The illustration leaves much up to the viewer: the cat is huge and imposing, possibly floating up through the rainclouds, possibly about to hover over and destroy Tokyo. The colors are bright and make the scene seem more alien. And the print, well, it's the size of the cat. Some of y'all with cats will probably have a larger one on your chest than your lap if you pick this up. But it's not just a cat, and that's why it works... the swirls (reminiscent of yarn?) and clouds bring this out of the safe, house-pet confines of a gaudy gramma sweatshirt, and the simple spare style emphasizes that ethereal image of the afterlife, which automatically lends further cred to the concept, making it wearable and lovable even as a full-chest print.

As with most DBH sales, the newer the shirt, or the better the seller, the more chance it'll be discounted less, but with a couple cheaper shirts, you can't go wrong with a piece like this as well. For the still more frugal, try code NS2B8E for 10% off any purchase during the sale and through July 26.

Space is the Place

Ideally, Contest Watch will be back in the ring next week. We (in the royal sense) have been pretty out of it with the reliability of late. Lots of busy and lots of exhaustion, combined with lots of really mediocre and uninspired work. It's been hard to really get stoked for the voting when even the most inspirational designers seem to be unable to do anything worthy of those skills. Repeat after me: "my skills are dramatic enough that I don't need to only draw other people's characters." Feel better? Great. Now to move on.

One great thing is that today comes with NOT A TILTEED TEE. Believe me, I love being able to feature those guys any time I can, and I love being involved with them, but I also love talking up great tees from everywhere. Today, I'm particularly excited at a return to form from Design by Humans. After a couple very questionable releases (Guntree? Dogfight? Srsly?) they've been unloading quite a few sweet ones this week. For me, of course, the creme-de-la-creme has been biotwist, and his "Traveling in my Space Suit," a former contest watch featured design. I love the colors: how they work together, and the economy of them. I love the image itself: it's somewhere between white-collar superhero and formal spaceman, but whatever it is, the juxtaposition of spacesuit and business suit turns something incredibly boring (I am still unconvinced people -aspire- to cubicles) into something incredibly awesome. The thing that's really the best, however, is the outline of the spaceman, or perhaps I should say the lack thereof. he's framed by stars, flames, action and light, but he has no defined outline. I've always loved the effect, though... the way the background creates an outline where there is none, so in those places where there is no background (see the raised arm), your eye draws one anyway. Maybe I'm easily amused as a non-artist, but I think it's hard to deny this tee's awesomeness either way. I'm just glad to see it print: it makes me feel like my design-mojo is back, and along with the Sonmi print earlier (and an interesting one from "DarkChocolat" between then) seems to show a DBH which hopefully is regaining their own mojo. Go pick one up and show them cats that they're on the right path.

Caesium: The Day

Sometimes here at the blog, it's clear when a contest watch tee is destined to print. It's obvious by the comments, the theme, the overall feel of the score's potential. There are indeed also times when I know that even the most flowery blog will not save a design... it won't score well and won't print, and I can only hope my words highlighted it for some other company to fall in love with it and offer it a chance. And then, defying both sides, there is ninthWHEEL.

NinthWHEEL, in any of his many capitalization schemes, has held the dubious distinction of now twice printing against all odds. His Final Approach found a home at Woot after being shopped just about everywhere else (which was ludicrous, as it was a brilliant piece), and now, we can finally celebrate Caesium-137's long-overdue print. Like the other, both tees feature birds of prey, but the more important similarity is how both went through hell and back and any number of modifications before finally becoming a real live print. Unlike some tees, there was no reason for this one NOT to print, even though it was also never sure it would, so after so much rejection, this is like a miracle, and a well deserved one.

Design by Humans does the piece proud... a nice huge graphic with the stoic bird against the modern, angular laser-trail, and on a hunter-green blank that looks like it'll be killer in person. I can't wait to see it. If you're as impatient as I am, don't forget to pick one up. To sweeten the pot, we do still have a DBH coupon code going: 37D0MG (That's with a zero) will get you an additional 10% off your purchase until this Thursday, Feb. 18. It's take long enough to get this shirt to the chests of the world... don't go wasting more of it.

We Salute You

Today, I will be rocking out.

If I could, I'd have that as my slogan daily. Today up in the city, tomorrow at the small dive down the road. Local acts and national, friends and strangers, all playing music specially formulated for me to rock out to. If only there were time and money enough in the world.

And, were I living the rock and roll lifestyle 24/7 like that, Metal on Metal by aziritt would probably be the shirt with the quickest turnaround time from chest to laundry back to chest. Design By Humans just selected it Friday, which means I'd never have had time to get it for the show tonight, but in another place and time, it'll be the no-brainer selection. The tee's title is implicitly metal, and certainly the imagery backs it up with the skull right atop the breastbone and the smoke billowing out from where the guitarist's head should be, but it's not your glam metal, your over-the-top cheese, your ludicrous facepainted goth warrior metal... it's about rocking out and rocking out loud. It's Sabbath over Dragonforce, and Maiden over Emperor, but it's nothing so much as those unsung bands that I am not educated enough in the genre to even know... the no frills, no gimmick thrash and sludge. It'll have a special connection for those of the metal persuasion, but anyone with a passion for a great rock tune will be able to relate to this tee. And unlike the average concert tee, this one will be on a blank that feels amazing. No more scratchy $25 Anvils for you!

We love to see awesome things printing at DBH, especially former contest watch pieces, and since we know damn well how poorly being a rock god pays (music, like art, seems to be all about passionless formula these days), grab 10% off this, or any DBH purchase til the 29th, with code A8BK7M

Tee-Cember: My Apologies

Every time I go making promises on this blog, I seem to fall short. Those of you who have been following know that I've been dramatically short of "every day" like I promised my posts would be this month. Mea culpa. I should promise to fall short more often. Maybe I'd overshoot.

However, I'd like to note that recently, I was attacked by huge freaking bees, which has kept me away from the blog for a while lately. As it stands, I am still incredibly puffy, except for my pointer fingers, which I am using to hunt and peck along this blog. To the side, you'll see a photo of me being attacked by the bees. I look very calm about it, but this is because they have already numbed my pain receptors. I assure you this is an accurate photo, and not at all Design By Humans' recent print The Swarm. If it was, you'd notice the strong one-color print's realistic execution, bold size, and how it is unlike so many similar pieces. But here, you can clearly see that these are real albino killer giant bees. And that is why I've been so unreliable on posting lately.

Of course, if you were to go to Design By Humans anyway, I would check out their selected sale tees for as low as $10 on the front page. I wish they were doing this "sale" thing in a week, when I could afford to get the scads of great selections they've got discounted (Lucky Day, Vulpes, Taipei Rocks, Magic Snake, Two Trees... It's a veritable feast for the wardrobe). Presumably there's a final day of them tomorrow, but if you're to be busy, get thee to a credit card tonight.

Yet More Sales: DBH Edition

Obviously in order to keep me on my toes in prep for the busy blogging month I have ahead of me, the big guns have arranged for one sale to be announced per day. Today's announcement: Design By Humans, who are probably among the best sites to peruse on a sale, and who will be having their sale until Monday. It's not that they have the best sales, so much as they seem to have some of the rarest, and the quality tees to be had make it an event to mark on the calendar. And it doesn't hurt that you can save an extra 10% even on the sale prices with discount code 7BX737.

For me, DBH's "Perfect Tees" are my second favorite blank, so anything that's been printed or reprinted in 2009 is almost guaranteed to be awesome. I'm sure I've said that before, and I'm sure you guys have taken me up on the recommendation now and then, so conveniently DBH procured a print right before this sale that you probably HAVEN'T snagged yet: saltyshadow's Dark Side of the Firework. I see it more of a rainbow getting sucked into a black hole than really being fireworks, but that's pretty much why I like the design. The black is smoky and spacey, which gives it a lot of body and has a great flow, while the colors, while streaked along in a watercolor presentation, is bright, yet has that gauzy feel that rainbows can have in the light. I don't know if I can explain that better, so hopefully we're on the same page. Got it? Good. Anyway, I love me some white-on-black contrast, but it's doubly awesome with this much bold color in the mix, breaking through the dark cloud and fading out into the light tee. Just in time to brighten up a dreary winter, and just in time to get on sale. Can't go wrong with that!

Deluge! Boat! Help!

It's always exciting to see Design By Humans come through in the clutch for a contest watch piece. Their schedule allows a turnaround time far longer than most other sites, so when they make a selection we at the blog get all atwitter about, it's usually with the added bonus of total surprise. It's the Christmas effect... it's great to know something awesome is coming up, but when it comes out of nowhere, it can be so much better.

This time around, DBH gives us The Lost Gondolier, by Timizy01. It's an all-over piece that works so well due to that full-print aspect. The waves which cover the shirt do so subtly enough to be simply a backdrop, but swirl and spume up in a quite lovely manner around the gondolier focal point, making them quite worth the notice. The gondolier himself breaks out against all this froth in bold, chunky black lines and fills, helping cement his place alone among a vast world of waves. My only gripe on this is, sadly, one I've had on a number of recent DBH prints of this size... the screen seems to have been made way too large, taking away some of the better aspects of the print. Here, it takes away the prior effect of the moon parting the top of the waters as in the original submission, which I felt added a great void to the piece. Still, the overall product looks great, and will most definitely be a temptation during any sales which may happen over the holiday.

For those of you who want to secure your copy now, and wish DBH was still offering their prior first-day discounts (believe me, you're not alone), try code TNQCQK for 10% off anything in the store 'til Nov. 15.

But For the Grace of Bot

BEEEPBOOPBRRRRRRRWHRRRRRRRR

DEAR EARTH PEOPLE,

WE ARE A RACE OF ROBOTS FROM THE PLANET 287X. WE HAVE BEEN SENT BY XUAL'DAR THE OMNISCIENT TO BRING YOU TO PARADISE. WE COME IN PEACE AND APOLOGIZE FOR STOMPING ON YOUR GARDEN. WE ARE VERY BIG AND MAY NOT SEE IT.

IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU HUMANS WHO WISH TO BE SAVED PURCHASE THIS SHIRT. IT IS CALLED TECHNOPHILIA, AND IT IS SOLD AT YOUR EARTHWEB STORE CALLED DESIGN BY HUMANS. IT FEATURES A SHINY, BEAUTIFULLY RENDERED VERSION OF OUR SELVES. YOU CAN SEE FROM THE IMAGE THAT THERE IS NOTHING TO FEAR. LOOK HOW HAPPY YOUR STUP--- YOUR BROTHER IN ARMS IS. HE IS ABOUT TO CROSS OVER. BUY THIS SACRED IMAGE AND WEAR IT. WE WILL THEN KNOW YOU WISH TO BE SAVED.

FOR THE THRIFTY AMONG YOU EARTH SHOPPERS, YOU MAY PURCHASE THIS FOR THE NEXT 24 EARTH-HOURS FOR ONLY $15. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH EARTH DOLLARS FOR THIS SHIRT, YOU CAN GET 10% OFF THIS, OR ANY PURCHASE AT THIS STORE, WITH THE ENTRY CODE "4VUY42" UNTIL SEPTEMBER'S THIRTIETH DAY. DO NOT DELAY!

END TRANSMISSION-------------------------

Delightful Burnt-orange Hogboy

About 6 months ago, we here at Singularitee sent out an ultimatum to Design by Humans: get an orange blank, in order to do justice to the wonderful Hogboy design Taipei Rocks. We suggested that they could simply dye a bunch of white blanks for the single tee. We even invoked the most horrible fear any site could have: a designer taking their awesome work to shirt.woot instead. And now, nearly 6 months later, we are happy to say DBH has totally delivered.

Taipei Rocks looks just as rockin' (and likely just as Taipei-esque) as I could have hoped for, and while I certainly don't believe I alone influenced the decision, I'm nevertheless stoked that the decision was made. Really, that rich sky blue contrasts so boldly and wonderfully with the orange, which itself is rich and carroty instead of the blindingbright (yet still wonderful) orange of many sites. And of course, all the character whimsy is still here. I want to take a moped ride with mustache-man. I want to have a guitar-off with the big blue robot who looks like a security camera (if only because win or lose, I'm sure it would involve a high-five resulting in rainbows). More than anything, is that a street sign for ice cream? Dude, Taipei is SO my sort of place. Except they might want to check those pink clouds. They look cool and all, but that might not be totally healthy.

For the next 8 hours or so, you can snag this bad boy for only $15, which is an amazing deal for a new shirt color, one of the best quality blanks in the business, and a wonderfully imaginative design. But then, if you miss it, I promise this one will be quite worth the $20.

For sea's a jolly good fellow

Happy birthday to tee... happy birthday to tee... happy birthday Singularitee... happy birthday to teeeeee.

Yes, if memory serves me right, today is the one year anniversary of this here blog, and I'm expecting to bring you guys some new awesomeness every one of these first 7 days of September (that's all week, y'dig?) culminating with something awesome on Monday. Stay tuned!

That said, it is with mixed glee and sadness that we announce the fifth place finisher in the wonderous DBH10K... Umibozu, by thestray. This was one of two pieces I truly loved in the top-20, so I'm ecstatic to see it print, but the ecstasy was a blow to the chest when I finally saw it printed. It's too big, which is ironic considering how one of the selling points of the piece was the oversized design. As printed, though, it's too much... the scene of the creature rising from the deep now becomes the creature, not the rising. The backdrop helped frame the creature's immensity, and now it just looks gawky. On some of the smaller sizes, the ship is hardly even visible due to this scale decision. Also, there's a lack of color, due to the omission of the ship's brown. It's apparently due to a 3-color limit for oversized pieces, but it puts the knife deeper into this piece's heart. I can't honestly believe that DBH accepted this piece, and then put it in the running for 10K, without considering "can we print this as shown?" If the answer was "no," we should never have been allowed to vote for it. We should never have had it selected as a top-20 for a huge prize (can you imagine if this printed like this and also won 10K? Ludicrous!).

The good news, of course, is it printed, and for thestray, it's pretty amazing to make it to 5th in a contest like this to gain your first print. It also looks way better than it did when I originally saw it, which is why I posted the unofficial picture above (the official model poses look unforgivable on the magnitude of Judas betraying Jesus). Therefore, even as it is, there will be some who will still wear the amazing art as a less amazing tee. I'd even pick it up adequately sale-priced. Some people might even like it better this way (though I don't know who). Still, it hurts all the same. It's a huge blow to DBH's credibility and reputation as the best place to get an oversize print (or any artistic piece) printed well, and it seems like a failure that could have been avoided thusly: rejecting the piece early on for not fitting the print capacities. This shirt was to be awesome, but it was not what anyone who voted it into 5th voted on. There's a part of me that feels every fan of this shirt should be obligated to write to DBH customer service. They didn't give us what we were told we were going to get with our vote, and that is what customers deserve and have a right to: what was advertised. But then, who can really expect the site to care about quality if it wouldn't give that quick perusal to start with. I mean, this is a contest decided on pure votes. Quality never need enter into the equation.

Design Blowout! Hoorah!

So Design By Humans is having this huge sale this week. So? So there are shirts as low as $5. That's 75-80% off, homey. The cheap ones are going preeetty quick, so definitely check the stocks ASAP. And hey, with code TJD4K0 (that's a zero in there) you can get another 10% off. Sweet deals. Check 'em out.

What makes this sale extra special, though, is that it is the FIRST DBH sale to discount their newest shirts, printed on their "Perfect Tee" blanks. Compared to the $5 shirts, their discounts might seem paltry, but I cannot say enough nice things about the feel and cut of the new shirts. I'm not huge on the bottom-back-of-shirt brand-tagging, but I -am- sheerly in love with how my body feels in the tee. I don't care if that's an overshare... you need to check out the DBH Perfect, and a sale is the time to do it. You wear it. You understand.

If you need a recommendation (not that you should... there's a whole half a year of Perfects to browse and lust after), I'm oddly drawn to the recent "Technographic". It's not a surprise, color-wise, but is a bit shocking stylistically... it's a big ol' cluster of craziness, done in an oversmooth vector style, which isn't really my bag. Still, when it debuted, I couldn't take my eyes off it. There is SO much to see and to drink in visually that I feel like it would be worth buying just to be able to appreciate it up close... the smoothness comes off as polish here instead of design-by-numbers, due to the mechanical mood given overall, and the lines and cogs and bits and bobs combine in almost alien ways. The hands reaching out are unavoidable visually... they're not a little unsettling, bright red and smothered by technology as they are, but they are arresting for it. It won't be for everyone, but it's definitely a tee worth checking out. And don't forget, any classic DBHer reprinted this year is also now on the Perfects, so if nothing new is appealing to you, maybe there's something old you've been waiting for back in your size?

New DBH print: Cornerstone

I love all my Contest Watch selections like children. I get excited about them as though I created them. Sure, sometimes a couple go ignored without my intending them to... it happens with lots of children. And sometimes I wonder how the ones who disappear to far-off homes are doing. But I love them all.

Like every parent, though, I have favorites, intentionally or not. Today, I'm happy to announce the graduation of one of those favorites: Cornerstone, by beecombs. It's Design by Humans' tee of the day, and it is absolutely gorgeous. To me, it hits the intersection of Design and Art perfectly. It's composed of textures from old books and other copyright-free sources, so it is arguably not "art" in the classic sense. The piece is composed in a very calculated way, with strips of texture stacked atop each other. It's clearly designed, clearly built as opposed to created. This goes against most of what I believe in artistically. Yet I can't get enough. The placement seems simple at first glance, but the strips seem to be arranged just askew enough to not come off as blocky or static. The colors flow in a homogenous way, as if all these pieces were meant to someday interact. The execution is simply too thoughtful to write off, the visual too appealing to not simply become artful. And then there are those strips themselves... each one is an artistic cliffhanger, teasing the viewer... what else is going on? How does the design continue? What sort of scene is being depicted in the full view? Somehow, these swatches capture the imagination by forcing you to fill in the blanks. It's a beautiful thing, and it makes for a beautiful, unique shirt.

Don't forget, DBH is running this at a discount for it's first 24 hours, so now is as good a time as any to snag one. The deal becomes even sweeter with code 4B8GLY: it'll save you 10% off this and all DBH tees until June 12. Which will also give you almost a whole summer to rock what will probably be the most unique shirt on your block.

News briefs

A few quick topics of interest:

~Design by Humans has begun implementing a "deal-a-day" aspect to their site: new releases will be offered at a discount for their debut day. Today's shirt boasts a $7 discount from its regular $25. It is uncertain exactly how their $20 selections will discount. Still, it's a move that will likely help drive DBH sales dramatically, as well as helping more new shirts make their way to "Rockstar" status. Even better, discount codes will still work on the debuts: our current code, KY8UEA, will give you an extra 10% off all orders until May 23.

~Uneetee is offering a $6 mystery tee for what looks like the rest of the week, but certainly at least for now. While not quite the bargain a woot or teefury random is (Uneetee pretty much states you're unlikely to get more than one design if you order more than one tee), it's still something to appeal to the gambler or bargain hunter. And don't forget, if you're unimpressed with your haul, there's always TeeTrade!

~Threadless has just stopped taking submissions for their "Less is More" mini-contest, and the early approvals are proving the saying true. Head over and score them, now and throughout the week, and while you're there, check out Mel Kadel's select, "Mouse Hole," my pick for best new tee of the week.

Requiem for a Jim

When I first "met" Jimiyo, I was unimpressed. In retrospect, I can't pin it down. I'd imagine part of it was the lolcat tees. Maybe it was partly because the other people I respected all seemed to know him immediately, but I didn't get it immediately. Hell, now I'm that person... yknow, the one who laughs to himself when a wooter tells a Threadless artist "have you ever thought of taking this to Threadless?" Yeah, him.

But the truth of the matter is it takes very little time to like Jimiyo. He's the sort of artist who, even when you don't love his work, you can't honestly find fault in the execution. He's equally well-versed in marketing his work as he is in making work worth marketing, and he uses that skill to the benefit of other artists, not just himself. And really, you spend enough time reading his posts or chatting where he's chatting and you can't help but be drawn in by his personality. He's an all around good guy. When he's not London Beat rolling you. Jokes jokes.

So when the new Design By Humans art director becomes the new DBH shirt of the day, no one is ever going to begrudge that. It'd be a loss to the shirt world if he wasn't! As far as I'm concerned, today's tee, Rhanga (a collab with Chris Parks), is among the best he's had printed. It's the colors more than anything, but that linework is exquisite and 100% pro. The mood is perfect, really capturing the Balinese flair the two designers were going for. It straddles the line between grotesquerie and beauty. And while I can see how well designed a shirt Revelations is, and can trip over myself praising the linework and flow of Create, this is the one I feel I'd have to buy.

Code WG2XAE will still get you 10% off until May 8th, so if you're feeling the same way, pick one up, and keep an eye out for a new code in our sidebar this weekend. Also, I get the feeling Jimi might want you to follow his twitter. It's full of WIPs, cats, insights, and even free shirts. Totally worth the feed.

I'm Wearin' It!

I had McDonald's last night.

In all honesty, if I'm going to have fast food at all, I'd much rather hit anywhere than McD's. I'm especially partial to tacos (see our header for more), but I'm more likely to grab Wendy's, and even then, it's rare these days that I'll go for a burger over a chicken sandwich. But yesterday I eventually decided to grab one of those wonderful greasetrap cheeseburgers... the ones you WANT to avoid, but you can't resist forever.

So in some small part, I'd like to believe I willed Design By Humans into printing today's shirt: Sonmi's tribute to everything robotic and yet also beefy, BurgBot. While the Robo-Burger may still exist only in the delicious future, the style of the illustration is firmly planted in the past: the retro style, makes it look like some forgotten fast food mascot, which gives it a nostalgic flair without a generic one. The distressed graphic helps the retro notion, as do the stars, which have a classic diner feel about them. It also has a feel like a sci-fi film of the same era, with the dramatic Superman "up-and-away" stance and the ketchup and mustard lasers. It's a totally fun shirt, and one destined to be noticed and appreciated. All that, and far more healthy than the closest alternative! No wonder I've been loving this since it was entered at Threadless. And no wonder it's a former Contest Watch mention.

Don't forget, you can save 10% at DBH with code WG2XAE until May 8th. Consider it a small consolation if you missed their sale over the last few weeks.