DBH Spring Cleaning Sale

Design By Humans has been in need of a good sale... It's spring, and the weather is getting gorgeous. It's the perfect time to snag some new tees for the new season. So it is a bit unsurprising to us that DBH announced their Spring Closeout sale today, but no less exciting. Prices are $12 to $15 on all their older shirts, but until April 25th, you can save even more by using discount code RSPAUF (10% more to be exact). The majority are at the lower price point, a fact worthy of rejoicing over, and with DBH's prices and quality, that means grabbing at least one is a wise idea.

The one downside? Their "Perfect" tee stock is still full-price... bad news if you're mostly caught up with their back-catalog. Still, with your money going further elsewhere, sometimes it's worth a splurge. We're personally eying Imagination, one of last week's prints. It's nothing special in words: a ball of ornate linework coming out of a little dude. Still, that ornate linework is pretty awesome, flowing in and out and around the orb, and the dude, in his rough, small and simple style, provides a great and unobtrusive contrast. I really love how saam (the designer) makes this shine... when I first saw it, it looked like there were specialty inks all over it, but it's really nothing more than two colors and standard inks. It's impressive how golden it looks, and enticing how well that shade pops off the dark brown blank.

Of course, if even the sale tees don't fit in your budget at the moment, don't forget about their Serendipitees... at $10 a pop, it might just be worth the gamble of having DBH select for you.

Print Review: Teextile

We hope you all went over to Teextile yesterday to get the awesome "Trampoline" (shown above), but if you missed it, all is not lost: it'll still be available for the weekend at $15. Of course, many of you might be wondering if the premium is worth it. Thankfully, Teextile was kind enough to send a sample my way, and these, my friends, are my findings:

Blank: Most of the big players in the shirt game use American Apparel blanks, and Teextile is no exception. It means you know you're getting a quality product from the get-go. If you've been reading this blog, you're probably used to AA's blanks, and fashion-fit tees in general. If not, I'm still glad to have you, but be warned... AAs often shrink, and probably have a different cut than you're used to. Most people recommend a size up, but personally, I'd do a little research and then trust your gut (no pun intended).

Print: They sent me a copy of "I Want to Dance, Too," by RecycledWax, which couldn't have worked out better. I have to say, I was incredibly impressed with these guys in the print department. The printer they're working with was able to handle the more complex watercolor look of the piece with relative ease, leading to a print that really captures the charm of the original submission. What I was really impressed by, however, was the SOFTNESS. It hardly feels like there's ink at all... just soft, soft shirt. And there's nothing wrong with that.

Shipping Info: I've been hearing reports around the webs of people feeling the shipping was a bit slow... I didn't notice, personally, but as I think back, it was my experience also. Still, for $2 shipped (and free shipping for any design you voted for in scoring), I'm personally pretty forgiving if my tee takes the scenic route, especially since Teextile prints to order (meaning shipping time includes the tee getting printed, as well). One thing to consider: I got my order in one of those mailers with the clear plastic window, sort of like DBH and Teefury do. If you're ordering a gift, or live in a sketchier neighborhood than most, you'll probably want to take that into account.

Overall, I'm definitely recommending Teextile. They've been getting some really diverse designs, and unlike some other new contest sites, they're finally hitting a stride with new submissions. It is, of course, to be expected that a new company may come with a couple changes early on: that's true for sure of Teextile's print schedule, but I'm liking what I'm seeing, and trusting that with enough support, they'll only be changing for the better.

Speaking of changing for the better, if there's anything you guys want to see in future print segments, let me know. It probably won't be a regular segment, but there will likely be more (I have Shirtfight lined up for next week already). Of course, if you're a company that would like to put yourself out there, consider this a formal invitation... I'm always happy to have a reason to chat up some of the smaller and newer acts. If interested, contact me at 5songsinc@gmail.com and we'll work something out.

Contest Watch: Week of April 9

Before we go anywhere this week, it's BESTEE TIME again at Threadless! March's choices are up and ready for votes, and I must humbly request that you choose EdgarRMcHerly's "Choose Your Own Adventure" for the nod. It's creative, humorous, looks great on a shirt, and has even sold pretty well. Edgar's an underdog compared to some of the heavy-hitters up there this month, so we'd love to see him pull an upset.

We start off with this week's selection from Design By Humans, as we so often do. It's perhaps worth noting right about here that you can save 10% off all purchases there with discount code RSPAUF until April 25. Before you browse, though, go toss a vote to ninthWHEEL's "Wowlzers." It's an owl, obviously enough... a very geometrical one. That's part of the appeal, I think... taking something natural and organic and transforming it into hard lines and modern design. What seals the deal for me is the lighting, though. While I love the way the colors and textures look more in the creme mock-up (surprise surprise), I also love how those same textures interact on black... the palette the designer uses makes it look to be eminating an eerily beautiful glow from behind the long, blank shafts. A great example of technique turning into something more.

While there were slim pickings in general this week, Threadless, as usual, carried just enough to help round the week off. Sadly, though, it looks like the mediocre Green contest and holiday weekend have really slashed vote totals this week, with lots of entries sitting uncomfortably in the 500 range. Here at Contest Watch, we'd love it if you guys would join us in an effort to vote more and more over there. Entries like The Rainmaker will thank you. Brought to us by the April Fun Club, it's an excellent mix of execution and concept. The illustration is beautifully textured, and I love the idea of a big ol' dude hugging clouds to make the rain... it's almost as if he's wringing them out to dry. The grey tones also rock on this, conveying the feel of a rainy day... everything looks grey when it's grey out. It's true, color is in, and the wildest combinations at that, but sometimes going dull is simply what a piece needs to be beautiful. It's the sort of thing that could fit in really well at Threadless, but it's also the sort of thing that well and truly NEEDS a solid round of votes to be noticed. Low scores, sparse comments and scant votes... a popular designer could get away with it, but new blood is unproven, and may take a lot to prove it's worth the risk.

Of course, that's not to say that popular designers aren't hurt by the scoring drought... take Flying Mouse, for instance. His "Flying Mouse 365" account, which attempts to create a new entry every day for the year, has been churning out some incredibly solid work that simply has to work harder than ever to stand out from the pack... lower vote totals are meaning higher averages, which means having to fight harder for great work to be noticed. One of my favs out of an incredibly consistent output is the recent "New Hair Style". The joke should be obvious enough to not require explanation, which is part of what makes it so solid. The designer's talent is also shown in his ability to truly rock one color... the black looks great against the gold, and what little detail there is is added without the need for anything else but the blank and the black. The real win here, though, is its style. The "Grecian Urn" thing isn't anything new, but the way this is executed is loyal to the style, and the topic is absolutely perfect to be taken on that way. After all, both the urns and the character presented here are the stuff of Greek myth.

So yeah, if you haven't guessed, this week I'm on a "vote more" warpath. It helps new blood stand a chance in an already competitive market, it allows great work to stand out better, and now, finally, it gives designers a fair look at where they stand. Take Last Chance for Kitty, created by the incredibly easy-to-contact nathanwpyle at gmail.com (and yes, that is his user handle). It's a great shirt, with a great flow and an amusing concept and perfect color choices (it slays on orange, but the other options all work, as well). It's youthful but mischievous enough to go older. It fills the shirt well. I've already called it a "surefire print," though lord knows I've ben wrong before. But with low votes, a designer can easily over OR under-estimate their abilities. A 2.8 after 1000 votes means more than the same with 500... the more voters to vote and maintain your high score, the more people truly liked it. For a solid yet unprinted (or even underprinted) designer, this could be a godsend in terms of print likelihood, but it's also depriving them of the praise they deserve. Between this and the designer's near-perfect "Possibilities," I think a print's on the horizon. How much sweeter it would be to have 1000 people looking forward to it instead of 500.

It seems almost fitting, then, to end at shirt.woot with a gem that deserved FAR more votes than it got. If you were around for woot's latest derby (with the perplexing theme of "Almost"), you probably totally overlooked (like I almost did) what might have been the best entry of them all: Jewelwing's "Ben Franklin Just About Discovers Electricity". I am admittedly a sucker for a great title to go with a great design, and I'd say this is one of my new favorites. Ignoring all that, though, I find the composition very interesting... I rather love the scratchiness of Mr. Franklin's silhouette and the rough beauty of the rest of the lines as well. Negative space is used brilliantly here, with plenty of visual but quite economical ink usage. And while the shock of electric yellow is a great focal point, the real treat are the swirls of sky surrounding it, inked in a dull but perfect blue. There's just brilliant artistry at play here... so much so that it almost hides the fact that it's a pretty damn funny shirt to boot.

So there we go. I hope we've all learned a lesson this week, but again, I'll beg you... vote for the sake of your shirt community. Not just for the likely winners. Not just for friends, nor just for what is most easily seen through promotion. Put in a little extra time to uncover some gems. Your wardrobe will thank you for it just as much as the designers will.

What the 'dillo, yo?

What does this week have that other weeks do not? Lots of armadillos! To start, we'd love to give you a heads up on recent Contest Watch design "Trampoline," by jillustration, which is just covered in armadillos. It'll be on sale at Teextile Friday (when we'll chat more about it), but if you want to grab it early for $15, snag it at this link any time this week.

Today, though, and for one day only, you can snag Burrowish, by the wondertastic Torakamikaze, at Teefury. Originally submitted into DBH's contest, Burrowish is a great shirt that should have made it there, but is at least being granted a brief life at TF. It's got absolutely lovely detail, a pleasant dark earth-tone palette, and features an armadillo genie... that alone should totally worth the $11 price of admission. It's also a former contest watch design, and while we definitely prefer to see such designs find a permanent home somewhere, SingulariTee loves Teefury anyway, even if Wotto has been trying to bankrupt us with his last three picks. Give 'em some serious love today... Tora deserves it.

Contest Watch: Week of April 2

Thur's no day like Thursday. That's the day we take a look at some of the sweetest shirts yet-to-be on this beautiful nearly-spring day. And while my service to you comes first, it is not preventing me from opening a window and enjoying the fresh, cool air outside from inside. Anyway, on with it, eh?

Though I live by a bay, the air I've got coming in is nothing like the scent of sea air, a segue which makes far more sense when you check out Kaloyster's Great Kanagawa Eagle. The piece, up for voting at Design By Humans, is all but cloned from the classic Hokusai print, but it becomes a melting pot of homage and creativity (as well as of cultures) by the incorporation of an eagle's head in the crest of a wave. While a bit of smart art humor, it's far more impressive compositionally... seeing an eagle in the wave is a stretch most couldn't take, but once it's there, it's just so perfect that you can't believe you hadn't seen it before. The placement, along the bottom seam, doesn't hurt the cause either. A great example of where imitation crosses to inspiration.

A bit older than Hokusai, dinosaurs aplenty were provided us during shirt.woot's at first frightening Dinosaur derby, and while voters turned a surprisingly good derby into the normal upsetting final results, it can take nothing away from the quality work that somehow arose from a potentially stunting theme. Take tgentry's "All Dinosaurs Go to Heaven," which somehow takes dinosaurs, a perpetual staple of kids' and nerds' imaginative diets, and makes 'em all grown up. The flow of the design is excellent, and the concept is sorta lovely... regardless of the realities of the afterlife, there's something about seeing these massive victims of extinction wending their way weightless up to an eternal life of whatever heaven would be to a ridiculously large monster-lizard. I'm also impressed with the colors... they're mostly dull greys, yet they come across beautifully instead. One'd never have thought you could have an adult dino-themed tee, but it is quite arguable that the designer pulled it off.

On the other hand, there's dekonstruct's "Brontosnorus Saves the World," which is decidedly less mature but still all kinds of wonderful. The stark black and white design makes a solid case for the much maligned white tee, and the concept is a charmer. I love the idea that the dino (who has quite the bed set-up, I must say) is dreaming of not only the extreme future in his sporty spaceship, but the not-so-distant future as he pulverizes the asteroid which will likely end his and his kinds' existence. Great concept.

Getting back to the Asian inspiration, and keeping things rooted in the past for this contest watch, we head out to Threadless for one of the most jaw-droppingly awesome designs I've seen here at contest watch. It certainly should be, too: Solar Power is a collab between two pros, Xiaobaosg and FlyingMouse, and the two pull out all the stops. Their geisha is beautifully rendered. Also, she's huge and sitting among the mountains. I'm not really sure why, but it's a largely moot point since she's lighting a branch WITH THE FREAKING SUN for the purposes of also lighting her pipe. The sun, and fire in general, is no less gorgeous than the geisha, and adds some nice color to the otherwise earthy palette. It's funny, though... when I find a design like this, which is so unspeakably perfectly done, the less I can find words to talk about it. Which is probably fair... my words can't do this justice. It speaks for itself. It's probably better to just look, smile, and vote for it.

Finally, we check out Threadless' "Loves Green" competition. I have been fairly harsh toward this competition lately, and to be honest, it deserves it. The trite imagery and hackneyed messages were only part of it... somehow, having a more political theme kept even good designers down to talking points and imagery I expect to see at free tees from local Earthfests. It made me want to go pollute or deforest. Thankfully there were a few saving graces, one of which was mr spiers' "The Last Resort." I'm a little torn on it, namely because it's not the best of the contest, but it is probably my favorite, and it is one that would make far less sense printing outside of the context of the contest. I like that instead of making an elaborate tree like everyone else, this was done in a simple, charming style. I like that instead of trying to make a helpful tip like "switch off appliances" somehow be a meaningful tee, the designer kept it as simply a list of cartoon paneled tips. It is perhaps my loathing for most of the work in the competition that makes me even not hate the boxy nature that the design's concept brings about. But I especially like the "little green man" character. I like him bicycling. I like him laying insulation. I like him changing light bulbs. And I especially like him in the one-two punch of punchlines in the design... first the subtle one in the last panel on the front, and then the more obvious titular joke on the back. Does it work better as a comic than a shirt? Probably. But I've seen lesser designs succeed on this principle. I can't help it if I think this one is better.

And thus it ends. What do you guys think? Were you also shocked by good dinosaurs? Have you had to hold back from spilling oil after a night of scoring Green designs? And are you eloquent enough to explain how awesome solar power is? The comments are yours until next week.

Not Fade Away

Sister sites Design By Humans and TeeFury are doing awesome things today. To start, TF is offering up "Fat Pony," by the amazingly and beautifully odd Monsieur Pimpant. We can't recommend stopping by and grabbing it enough, as it's an absolute classic from one of the tee world's most underappreciated minds (and one of my personal fav artists). You've got under 9 hours before it's left to the winds of fate once more, so make haste!

But the elder of the two, DBH, is bringing us awesomeness of a more permanent variety with Laserbread's Caspian Tiger (1947). The irony, of course, is that the design is born of a sad truth that nothing is truly permanent. It features a sketch of a Caspian tiger, one of three extinct modern species. For all the beauty of the top half's rendering, the bottom half has been erased... a clean line but an intentionally sloppy erasure, leaving just the faint image and a lot of destruction behind. It's a blindsidingly powerful image... it simply impressed me how beautifully and boldly it told the story of life and death when I first talked it up in voting. But above that, it's perfectly DBH. Skilled art, execution that pushes boundaries... both hallmarks of the brand.

As a side note, I recently stumbled across this designer's "Make Something Cool Everyday" flickr pool though a Threadless blog. Some seriously amazing stuff. Check it, but preferably after sticking his tiger in your cart.

Seaquine

Oh, Uneetee, how long your decisions do take! Just when you presume a shirt is doomed to print obscurity, they come back and wow you. Take Artulo's "Not Your Average Seahorse," the piece they decided to come back from a week's vacation with. We wrote about this one back before Halloween, and we're just now seeing it before Easter. No complaints really... it DOES give me hope for some other Uneetee favs to finally print... but it just seems like quite the wait. Anyway, I said at the time this'd be a surefire buy, and I do believe it still is (even if it may be a while... I said the same thing about the artist's "Line Rhino" at DBH, and that sure hasn't come to my door yet). It's all about the unique style of the pieces, for me... the animal built from simple thin lines, in this case almost taking on a jeweled look with the ornate details of the art... a faberge seahorse, if you will. If you're lovin' it, I quite recommend snagging it this week while it's at $12, especially with Uneetee's catalog prices being a bit steep lately, but I also recommend scanning their daily Insanitee deals... you might be able to snag a $10 shirt too and save on shipping.

With Apologies

This weekend I was going to post print reviews of both Teextile and Shirtfight, but have been held up by lingering computer issues, which have kept me tentative about connecting my camera. I intend to have this resolved by next week. I apologize especially to the respective sites if they have been keeping an eye on me... t'will be 'round next weekend.

Contest Watch: Week of March 26

Slow week for us in the contest world, if a busy-as-a-beaver one in other ways. Makes it a bit hard to really select some great work when there's not a lot that really wowed, but it does allow for more diversity. Please enjoy below.

Shirt 1: Trampoline. Designer: Jillustration. Site: Teextile. The comments point to this one being a former Threadless sub, and I am honestly baffled as to why they passed it up. It's quirky and charming and plenty humorous... all things the site does so well and the fans eat up. I totally love the side placement on this, as well as the arrangement of the little armored critters, with some doing flips, and all of them placed as to give a juggling feel. I enjoy the mix of details and cartoon in the style, which should curry favor with a number of different sorts of shirt-buyers. Also, I'm a big fan of armadillos in general (this is far from the first that I've praised in CW), so I was sold before I even realized it existed, and Teextile's quality product makes me completely unhesitant (see more this weekend).

Shirt 2: Luchazilla. Designer: Sassatattoo. Site: Shirtfight, which is also going to get a good chat-up over the weekend. Hopefully we'll get to talk up this shirt a bit more then, because one is tempting us for a couple reasons. Firstly, the colors... they're vibrant and look simply stunning in conjunction with each other and against the dull, dark asphalt blank. They also really pay homage to the absurdity of wrestling get-ups. Slightly more sensible than a wrestler's fashion sense: the idea of Godzilla as a luchador, which is what this entire design is based on. It's a totally left-field idea, and I cannot help but love it. Like, seriously, I don't even care that there is text in the background explaining what's going on... it almost feels appropriate having the titular elements smack dab on the tee. The design revels in ridiculous, so why not make sure everyone knows the wacky idea at play here. The illustration rocks too, of course, but I'm more caught up in the bigger questions: will I bite like I'm tempted to if this goes to print? Does a Mothrador exist somewhere so I can get a matching pair? And will Shirtfight print the regular design, or the optional "caipirinha mode" version (which is the same, except ol' G-Zil is holding a lemonade for reasons unexplained). I think pushing the caipirinha would possibly push my payment over to the tee's side... a suggestion I hope Shirtfight catches if this is going for print, and hope the designer considers for future submissions if they pass it over.

Shirt 3: The Last Note. Designer: Drakxxx. Site: Shirt.woot. I'm not always a lover of the dark and macabre on my tees, but this takes death and does beautiful things with it. I love the stark whites on black, and the flow as Death engulfs the piano player. It makes that dark image feel comforting, despite that iconic grinning skull closing in from behind... the way his hands fall on the player's, the way his cloak takes over the scene, and the tired, dark eyes on the pianist give the impression that while death is right over his shoulder, it is a peaceful surrender... one orchestrated with beautiful poetry as the reaper aids the fading musician in completing one final song as his spirit peters out. I'll accept that I'm quite possibly reading too much into things, but that I can write such beauty into the piece speaks to the artistry in a way that even the capable linework cannot. Whew... give me something light-hearted after that, Jeeves.

Shirt 4: Paperclip and Paperbird. Designer: TangYauHoong. Site: Threadless. Ah, yes, this is much more lighthearted. While I'm feeling like the "origami animals in place of real animals" trend may be one I tire of before any of the current crop even get printed, I can do nothing but praise the designer here for putting forth the definition of simple elegance. Which isn't to pass the piece off as simple: it takes the time to really explore the art of drawing the art of paper folding, and while I highly doubt the final result is based on anything replicable, it does show respect for the wrinkles and textures left behind when creating your own origami masterworks (the folds on the chest especially feel authentic). Similarly, the bird's paperclip "perch" has a lot of respect for, er, paperclippyness? It's a unique construct from the simple clips were used to, but a shape I have indeed seen out there. Put 'em together and you get the simplicity of the whole: the two items working together as they should, even in different forms... after all, what is a paperclip for if not holding paper, right? I see no reason this shouldn't print. Though I've said that plenty often enough before and been wrong. We need more right going on 'round here.

Shirt 5: Overcompetsation. Designer: TGWA. Site: Cameesa. Yes, on a slow week like this, I'd like to chat up a design up for support at the wonderful crowdfunding site Cameesa. It's definitely worthy of some support there. I've always loved the visual humor on it, and find the illustration to be just lovely even without the joke. The bright yellow makes it distinctive and perfect for the upcoming spring and summer months. I've seen this piece die in the clutch a number of times despite solid scores, and I'd sorta like to own it some day. Interested in voting? Well, Cameesa works a little different... instead of votes, they rely on "crowdfunding." Instead of a vote, consider it like the cheapest (and possibly slowest) pre-order you've ever made. If you aren't already supporting over at Cameesa (and why aren't you?) it only costs $10+shipping to throw your support behind as many tees as you wish to get them one step closer to print. The first tee that gets fully supported is yours. Simple enough, if you're willing to wait for the stuff you love most. I'm hoping this is one I won't have to wait for much longer.

And so we say adieu to this week. Fingers are crossed for a more readily available set next week, but whatever comes, know it'll be worth seeing.

Fooled Again

At the risk of sounding like an ingrate, I am left feeling pretty dramatically let down by Threadless' April Fools offerings this year. The tradition is simple and respectable... once a year, they print awesome shirts that never got the love they deserved. This is something many of us wish would happen more often, of course, but until that day, it's exciting to have something to look forward to for those of us who often love the low-scores the most.

As that goes, this round is a bit of a let-down for a couple reasons. It's easily argued that these shirts could have fit into any cycle of shirts, but for many of last year's this is also the case. The bigger crimes are these two: a run of only 5 shirts, cut dramatically from last year's (pretty successful and solid) set of 9, makes the whole event less special. Even shirt.woot, notorious for happily neglecting the best work, runs 16 underscored "editor's choice" prints a year... it's going to make a lot of people really let down. But the biggest crime, to me and probably to many, are the scores. Last year ran the gamut from 1.67 to 2.08 (with only two of the 9 breaching the 2.0 mark). This year, 80% of the prints scored above a 2.25, with one of them scoring a 2.6. Is 2.6 the new unprintable? If so, Threadless really needs to reconsider its priorities. As the industry leader in fashion tees, they have every ability to push the envelope and shape the market. It's at least mildly disappointing that when given the chance, they've erred on the side of total caution.

Which isn't to say I am not totally in love with the site for finally printing one Monsieur Pimpant, a favorite designer of mine. The owner of that disappointing 2.6 score, Pimpant's TIN TINTIN TINTINTIN TIN TIN sums up his incredibly bizarre mind just in the title. It, of course, doesn't hurt a bit that the deft and distinctive sketch that makes up the tee's design is of a literal one-man band, a character created out of accordions. The gold tee brings out plenty of pop into that sketchy world, and the simple face with the jaunty French mustache makes me, at least, feel like I've got a glimpse into the joy and creativity the designer must feel all the time. Still, much as I love this, there's that nagging question: since when is 2.6 unprintable? Didn't current Bestee winner Her Hair score a 2.66 and then win a freaking Bestee? Happy as I am to see this in print, I seriously don't see why this couldn't have found itself in an actual print rotation, while a much lower-scoring piece by the same designer could have printed now. Coupled with the small amount of prints produced today, it seems unfair to the scads of amazing, low-scored designers to pick something that scored well enough to print normally. Especially since as of last night, exactly 2 shirts still existed from last year's round (that would be two shirts total, not two designs... everything else sold out within the year, with most of the content gone or decimated by the end of the summer sale). With those sort of stats, and some severely well-scored designs showing surprisingly low sales since printing, I feel as though we deserve better from the site that made internet t-sales hip.

Either way, though, if last year was any indication, you'll want to snag your shirts quickly, especially since Threadless doesn't seem to have that much confidence in them (judging by the largest and smallest sizes, I'd say these tees are printing at about half the normal stock quantities). Because when it all comes down to it, any underscored prints are better than none.