Teaser from the Keystone Design Union just came through with these awesome designs featuring iconic creatures of the pacific northwest for K2 Snowboards’ 25 Year Anniversary Collection. I’m already lusting after all of the stickers and shirts ~ everything from owls and beavers ~ bears and deer ~ to bigfoot! Nice black and white, fun “Don’t Mess With The North West” slogan, and illustrations that just scream ROAR. Take a look at more graphics on the next page!

TO PAGE 2 of "K2 Snowboards 25 Year Anniversary Collection"! ----->

Tags: animals - gifts - graphic - nature - shirts - shopping - stickers

Popculturally ~ i feel like i’ve grown up on Junk Food’s tees ~ they’ve been doing the super soft, perfectly cut, retro-tastic tees since 1998, licensing everything from star wars and branded goods to your favorite saturday morning cartoons for years. Faded in as if you’ve had them for decades, cheeky designs, and a comfiness that always makes them your favorites…

Well, now they are branching into being an Art House! And their inaugural artist is Anthony Lister! With murals popping up all over LA, super heroes flanking the exterior of their space, paintings to tempt you… as well as letting him do his thing to their ice cream truck… and of course two awesome limited edition tees ( womens and mens)… it was a fun art opening/party tonight! Take a peek on the next page at all the visual goodness to indulge in!

p.s. While they won’t divulge who’s lined up next yet… they do promise that they have quite the line up of artist coming up FAST for their Art House collection! Can’t wait!

TO PAGE 2 of "Lister - Junk Food Art House"! ----->

Tags: art - gallery - opening - shirts

Lovely details on this new shirt… A modern twist on a timeless classic, the Urbaneering Workshirt from Serum Venom embodies the Street/Spec design the brand strives for, combining tactical functionality with everyday comfort. “Serum Venom set out to investigate how to push the limits of a modern workshirt, without compromising its classic appeal. We focused on combining the attention to detail and strength of military specification garments with the day to day functionality requirements of an urban existence. Our conclusion is a system of design we refer to as Street/Spec, which combines extreme tactical functionality with everyday comfort. The Urbaneering Shirt has multiple function pockets, reinforced cuffs, lower placket tab closures, heavy duty under arm vents, rear hidden hang strap, reinforced front placket strap loops, authentic vintage metal workwear button, side tension stash pocket and reinforced universal internal seams.” See more details on the next page!

TO PAGE 2 of "Serum Venom Urbaneering Workshirt"! ----->

Tags: fashion - gifts - shirts - shopping

Exploring La Roma, stumbled upon Guru ~ a gallery and shop filled with low brow/surrealist/playful art, it was filled with so many NOTCOT favorites (both artists and products!) So, as i hunted to learn more about similar mexican artists, i discovered them putting up some beautiful black vinyl sticker silhouettes for an opening tonight by a Mexican creative collective, Cría Cuervos, in the back room. Being only two blocks away, i couldn’t resist popping by tonight to check it out ~ and it was beautiful! And packed! There was even a cop on the corner across the way watching/waiting… as people overflowed into the street. But about the show… Amor des Amor is an exposition of tshirts ~ each of the 11 artists (Ángeles Barajas, Cristina Medrano, Alejandra Aguirre, Ernesto Alcántara, Luis Flores, Jonathan López, Allan G. Ramírez, Miguel A. Cárdenas, Alejandro Gómez, Erick Knobl and Abraham Solís) designed a tshirt, which is hung in a gilded frame over the black vinyl stickers on the white walls… with the love/valentine’s day theme, it was the perfect shopping opportunity and people were snapping up the shirts quickly! Take a peek at the scene and designs on the next page!

TO PAGE 2 of "Cría Cuervos Amor des Amor"! ----->

Tags: art - gifts - illustration - mexico - mexico city - shirts - shopping - travel

Just discovered these Eero Aarnio Ts and Totes over at Publik in Japan… AND they are half off! Such fun designs for such iconic pop classics… see the rest on the next page!

TO PAGE 2 of "Eero Aarnio Ts and Totes"! ----->

Tags: bags - gifts - reusable bag - shirts - shopping

Amazing. I’m literally in complete awe as i write this post, under the glow of the Kraken Lamp, while sipping some Kraken Rum on ice. There’s just something too awesome about great things feeding and inspiring each other ~ in this case Kraken Rum coupled with incredible design studio, Dead As We Know It, and launching quite possibly the coolest product line yet! The product line is lustworthy on its own… but still noteworthy, when’s the last time a Rum inspired you to redecorate? Rum inspired housewares, art work, and wearables? Even handkerchiefs for the dandiest fellow on your gift list… Take a peek at some of my favorites from the new Kraken Rum Store on the next page… and i can’t wait to see what else the Kraken will inspire in all of us!

TO PAGE 2 of "Kraken Rum: The Gift Guide!"! ----->

Tags: bathroom - fashion - gift guide - gifts - home - lighting - shirts - shopping

Masashi Kawamura has found a beautiful way to mix typography and couture with the ‘T’ Shirt line. As his site describes so well - ‘T’ shirts are T shirts that was designed to have the silhouette of 5 famous typefaces; Helvetica, Caslon, Baskerville, Courier, and Cooper Black.

In the designing process of these shirts, I aimed to capture the character of each typeface and tried to give them a unique look and presence once worn. By collaborating with Itaru Yonenaga, I feel we were able to produce a collection of shirts that is not only conceptual, but wearable as real clothes. I hope you will find your favorite shirt/typeface.

And they are beautifully wearable and actually for purchase from No Control Air in January. With halloween being tomorrow ~ i wish i could have this as my costume! See the rest of the collection on the next page…

TO PAGE 2 of "'T' Shirts by Masashi Kawamura"! ----->

Tags: fashion - gifts - shirts - shopping - typography

The nice folks at Stacks sent over some skateboards and shirts from their new Summer 2010 collection that’s graphically influenced by knights and old school Monte Carlo racing imagery… beautiful graphics by Michael Leon and Paul Hutchinson. Had a lot of fun shooting pics of these on the grass at dusk while getting literally attacked by the fog that i watched roll in across the back yard and engulf me ( and ruin my light!) ~ only to disappear as quickly as it rolled through. Eerie and awesome all at once! Also, now one of two things really needs to happen… i need to learn to skate… and/or it’s definitely time to take the idea of turning a skateboard into a swing for the tree in the front yard further! My not having a skateboard handy was my excuse for procrastination, then Stacks has this magical package sent over… it’s like they KNEW! Anyhow, take a peek at the closeups on the next page! (As well as the sketchstorming Leo did on this skateboard/swing idea!)

TO PAGE 2 of "Stacks Skateboards"! ----->

Tags: gifts - graphic - outdoors - shirts - shopping

On new favorites ~ love this LTD Tee by Camilla D’Errico. A perfect blend of her adorable steampunky girl ~ with red lollipop hugging a gator… AND in the printed box there’s both the tee and a nice little matching print! Quality is great as well…. so i couldn’t help sharing a few close up pics with you on the next page!

TO PAGE 2 of "Camilla D'Errico LTD Tee"! ----->

Tags: art - fashion - gifts - shirts - shopping

I’m not the kind of girl who peruses bridal magazines, wedding dresses dresses, planning websites… i don’t dream about that moment in my life… but somewhere along the way i fell for Max Wanger’s unique style of photographing love ~ for weddings, for engagements, just because. There’s a way he sees the world and the lovers in it… and a way he shares it with all of us that is just irresistibly nostalgic, romantic, and joyful ~ all while feeling like a work of art… you step into the techni-colored dream where only that couple resides… AND, he’s taken it one step further. Now the portrayals of Max Wanger’s most iconic moments of hipster love are translated into t-shirts! Currently there are coming out in limited his and hers editions monthly (available to anyone!)… but imagine doing your engagement shoot, and using that imagery throughout your invitations, your table settings, and then giving away tshirts to your guests or wedding party?

First came the silhouette of the couple with a balloon… Then hands spelling out LOVE… the WISH tickets blowing in the wind… the lone seagull blowing a heart… and freshly launched for March: Giraffe! He’s found a way to capture the essence of a romantic shoot into versatile tshirt designs… as symbolic or literal as you decide to interpret them! See the collection thus far on the next page…

TO PAGE 2 of "Max Wanger - Weddings to Tees"! ----->

Tags: art - gifts - photography - shirts - shopping

On fun press kit design and packaging - this one made me pretty giddy. Nike put a jersey in a bottle! And no, as much as i tried, pulling it out of the little hole doesn’t really work. They ingeniously put a pull tab across the label which hid the split in the bottle. Conceptually it really drives the point home that these super light dry-fit jerseys are each upcycled from 8 plastic bottles. I do hope they didn’t waste more making/using the plastic bottles to house these though! These also came with the most adorable teeny tiny USB keys containing the press releases and high res pics of the newly launched collections.

On design details to watch out for as the Nike World Cup team kits get launched (home kits we got a peek at, but official launches are to come…) ~ All of the 2010 World Cup Nike jerseys have a secret message printed on the inside behind the team emblem, next to the hearts of players ~ for the Brazilian one it says “orgulho e amor”, which is Portuguese for “pride and love”! It was the most exciting feature i was looking forward to once i got the shirt out of the bottle… for the others, waiting to see the artwork/calligraphy when Nike has pics ready! Take a peek at the un-bottling and details on the next page!

TO PAGE 2 of "Nike Jersey in a (Plastic) Bottle"! ----->

Tags: gifts - nike - outdoors - packaging - shirts - shopping - sport - unboxing

On surprise packages ~ fresh from Spain ~ just got an adorable surprise from one of my favorite super awesome artists, Catalina Estrada! She sent over a little notepad ~ and one of her new Grenade shirts! (she has a store filled with tees and prints and pillows!!!) ~ detail i never noticed in the pics before ~ her's like the NOTCOT girl have that one droplet of blood coming down her forehead... and i'm loving the geometric shapes and grenades... Anyhow, quick post before i run off again ~ see more pics on the next page!!! ...and THANK YOU, Cati! I don't know how you guessed, but it's a perfect fit too!

TO PAGE 2 of "Catalina Estrada Surprise Tee"! ----->

Tags: fashion - gifts - reviews - shirts - shopping

GET EXCITED AND MAKE THINGS!!! I can't think of a better message for today... or any day! While there are far too many keep calm and carry on knock offs lately ~ this one just made my Friday. Love the Maker crown of wrenches and all! This is the latest of Howies T-Shirt of the Week ~ Made in Turkey, Designed by Matt 'Black Belt' Jones, and Printed in Westest Wales. Available in Mens and Womens!

Tags: fashion - gifts - graphic - shirts - shopping

Oooh don't forget your green this St Paddy's Day ~ just saw these refreshing on Tcritic from Haha Press. From Haha's founder, Ian Law, there is the 4 Leaf Clover Patch ~ where there may or may not be a 4 leaf clover mixed in there! From Soko, there is a gorgeous Kiss Me Clover tee that applies "a typographic treatment to class-up the classic St. Pat's saying "Kiss Me I'm Irish." See close ups on the next page! And if you want one, shop quick! Both are in limited runs of 50!

TO PAGE 2 of "Haha Press St Paddy's Day"! ----->

Tags: fashion - gifts - graphic - green - shirts - shopping

Finally! An artist's twist on the usual city tourist t-shirt ~ a much classier more exciting gift for those who didn't get to go... Starting today, 3 limited edition t-shirts will be available at The Standard Hotels in LA, NYC, and Miami... Andre Balazs has commissioned three contemporary legends, Natas Kaupas, Eric Haze, and Jose Parla to design these t-shirts for their respective cities, and only 1500 of each design have been produced! When first described to me, i wasn't sure what to make of it, but upon seeing images, it is gorgeous black and white typography bringing out the feeling and culture of the cities ~ and especially when seen together you can really feel how different the vibe is of each... not surprising my favorite is really the LA one, NYC next... and for designs which are so blatantly screaming out the name of a city, they feel more like artwork than branding. Also adorable? The red pouches sporting the artists signatures that the t-shirts come in!

So check out the shirts and more about the artists and this collaboration on the next page!

TO PAGE 2 of "The Standard Hotels Limited Edition Shirts"! ----->

Tags: art - fashion - gifts - hotels - luxury - shirts - shopping - standard

Hard not to be intrigued when you get an email saying "RHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGN PARTNERS WITH THE THREADLESS SELECT SERIES TO LAUNCH FIRST-EVER GUEST CURATED SERIES Collection Curated by RISD President John Maeda to Launch on November 6 Featuring Theme of Newness, with Exclusive Designs by Faculty Members"

Art school president and art world superstar team up with ugc t-shirt company.... that would sound pretty incredible already, but the idea of Threadless Select reaching out and working with John Maeda and RISD staff to create 4 t-shirts just blew my mind a little. So take a look at all 4 designs on the next page, as well as the press release!

TO PAGE 2 of "Threadless Select + RISD"! ----->

Tags: art - gifts - holiday - shirts - shopping

"RVL7 - "REVEL SEVEN". Revel means "to celebrate" - the 7 comes from "24/7". RVL7 has been created to celebrate living a sustainable lifestyle 24/7."

Discovered RVL7 in the Eco-Lands of Outsde Lands - amongst the standard white tents, it was refreshing to see this pre-fab woody oasis of a t-shirt bar filled with stickers, buttons, and gorgeous graphic organic tees... see the pictures on the next page to see some of my favorite designs, and the experience within!

p.s.
Unfortunately the RVL7 site doesn't have a store, gallery, etc etc etc up yet, but hopefully coming soon!

TO PAGE 2 of "RVL7 - prefab t-shirt bar"! ----->

Tags: events - fashion - gifts - green - shirts - shopping

American Apparel Thermochromatic Sheer Jersey T-Shirt!!! I know this is going to sound pretty silly, but first i went over to American Apparel because i was in disbelief that they are making Oxford Shirts... and quickly got distracted by the idea of heat-colorchanging/mood shirts! At which point, Linhchi quickly caught me up that they were bringing the 80s/90s back - and somehow i totally missed that trend as a little kid... but i want one! To play with? Work out in?

And then we hit up Wikipedia - so, catch up on Hypercolor: "Hypercolor was a line of clothing, mainly T-shirts and shorts, that changed color with heat. They were manufactured by Generra (now a division of Public Clothing Company) and marketed in the United States as Generra Hypercolor or Generra Hypergrafix and outside the US as Global Hypercolor. They contained a thermochromic (temperature sensitive) pigment made by Matsui Shikiso Chemical of Japan, that changed between two colors-one when cold, one when warm. The shirts were produced with several color change choices from the late 1980s until the early 1990s. Unfortunately the effect could easily be permanently damaged, particularly when the clothing was placed in a hotter than recommended wash." and on vaguer research, read about Thermochromism (think mood ring tech)...

OH - and see the video of the AA girl microwaving the shirt to white, then wearing it into the freezer!

Tags: fashion - gifts - shirts - shopping

For some reason, these new Tank Theory tee illustration graphics have really grabbed me tonight while i was browsing 80's Purple: I'm not a violent person, Revolution! (close up below of the black/gold going across the back as well), Survivor!... and there is also the Comrade tee below, with the gun behind her back... and on exciting Tank Theory news, i just noticed the really sweet Dungeons buckle that we've gushed about before is back in stock (images below to remind you which one)!

TO PAGE 2 of "I'm Not A Violent Person"! ----->

Tags: accessories - fashion - gifts - shirts - shopping

Respect Your Mother by Local Celebrity... as a t-shirt, this one sky rocketed around the celeb world in green and blue, and as trendy as some things can become, i've always had a soft spot for this design. Loved it secretly, but part of me would never wear it here in LA, maybe while abroad though! BUT, i just spotted that they now have a canvas tote bag with it, and simply had to add it to my pick of the moment for reusable shopping bag options... or for my laptop and other random "won't fit in purse" schlepping. Close up below, and expect this one to show up on the green gift guide to come!

TO PAGE 2 of "Respect Your Mother Tote"! ----->

Tags: bag - fashion - gifts - green - reusable - reusable bag - shirts - shopping

I've been off t-shirts lately, we've been inunddated with them to the point that our closets can no longer handle it and its getting pretty wasteful! BUT the trend of in your face, bold, large fonts on tees to state your cause of the moment has been coming back in a huge way, and there are some pretty nice options out there. (Or perhaps i've just been more conscious of them since the Social Atelier launch) - I just noticed these Katharine Hamnett ones in Domino and the "MAKE TROUBLE question everything" Chomsky tee is terribly tempting as a holiday gift to everyone i know. Other favorites are Clean Up or Die (with skull!), STOP and THINK, EDUCATION not MISSILES, WORLD PEACE NOW, CHOOSE LIFE, SAVE the Rainforest, SAVE the SEA! Anyhow, you get the point, i don't need to keep screaming them at you (do i?) ~ and sure its pretty easy to just grab a sharpie and go at a plain tshirt for a similar impact, so i'm really showing you the Katharine Hamnett line because i also love the way she's shot the shirts on playful models (although a bit borderline AA) and has a sleek website. See more of my faves below!

TO PAGE 2 of "Katharine Hamnett"! ----->

Tags: fashion - gifts - shirts - shopping

Nothing some good old fashioned shopping can't cure. Just spent a few hours at Century City ~ and couldn't resist this C&C California Women's Octopus Tank from their Summer Malibu Collection! Although seldom a fan of their printed pieces... how sweet are these octopi? Currently on sale over at Cusp (Neiman Marcus equiv of Barney's Coop). Also check out the "faded black" (can we just call it GREY?) dress version below ~ not nearly as fun.

TO PAGE 2 of "C&C Octopus"! ----->

Tags: fashion - gifts - shirts - shopping

Imaginary Foundation show opened at the Stussy store on Haight tonight, so i stopped by on the way to Magnolia. Here are some pics to give you a feel for the show... my favorites were their sculptural pieces (see that floral gramophone, the cup in the store window, and the magritte like door)... the shirts and prints didn't blow my mind as much as i'd hoped.

TO PAGE 2 of "Imaginary Foundation @ Stussy"! ----->

Tags: art - fashion - shirts - shopping

On mysterious emails (leading to images and next to no info) too good to resist... here's the latest, apparently Generation Praktikum has a pop up exhibition over at the Frankfurt Fair "Design Annual" that is happening as i write this. All i know? It is brought to you by the brilliant NY based 2x4, and there are some very fun simple vacuum packed yellow tshirts and great portraits of people holding them behind this link. Will keep you posted as i find out more.

Tags: art - shirts - shopping

Social Atelier had an Ethical Night Out tonight in Culver City ~ in a combination that no place can pull off quite like LA. Darfur Benefit + Ridiculously Comfy Tees + Provocative Typography + Fred Segal Man Pop Up Store + Men with no tees, but still typography + Cupcakes and Brownies + Larger than life pictures of hungry kids + Models sporting the 39" 19" 33" tanks + Acai Liquor flowing freely + MySpace Impact crew + and your usual LA social scene. *phew* Can you imagine that? Well if not, you can still picture it after the jump. It fit all things NOTCOT ~ art/design + fashion + food/drinks.

Talk about synergy, kismet, serendipity,... or do you not believe in coincidences? I caught up with Social Atelier's Andrei Najar for a few moments, and it sounds like he and Ya'el Afriat's idea to try to create change, instigate awareness, and make some great tees were meant to be. And all from dropping off a look book at Fred Segal Man, which happened loved the line so much they decided to not only take it on, but showcase it in their windows as well as launch this event with all proceeds of the shirts sold tonight going to benefit Darfur?

TO PAGE 2 of "Social Atelier"! ----->

Tags: fashion - gifts - green - shirts - shopping