Two New Tees From Hideout

Hideout T-Shirts have just released two new designs, you may recognise the name from our previous review at http://buy-tees.net/2009/03/freestyling-with-hideout-tees. They’re a British label famed amongst the BMX community for both their unique style and extensive sponsorship of the sport. They even make their own BMX videos!

Anyway the two new designs by Tash Walkerdine and Jon Moon, two of the three designers in the partnership. Both tees are available for £12 each and are already proving to be strong sellers in the line. Due to their rather snazzy Flash site I can’t link directly to their products, but you should have fun perusing through their deck of ‘t-shirt cards’ nonetheless

Winding Down Tee

Winding Down is by Tash, originally entitled ‘End of Your Tether’ I think she definitely made the right choice. I love the concept here, essentially the spider appears to be made from little more than thread, and as it pulls itself to the bottom of the t-shirt it’s unravelling the logo above. A very dynamic t-shirt, simple yet effective. I particularly appreciate the woven appearance of the Hideout logo as it pulls apart. This is exactly how logos can be incorporated successfully into fashion design without detracting from the product. I’d encourage every designer out there to take a leaf from Tash’s book, don’t be afraid to degrade or decay or dismantle what seems so familiar to you. Nature can teach designers a lot about building up a brand, the effects of time, the elements, environment, location, they can all contribute to heightening the reality and therefore success of any brand identity. Size 12, 14 and 16 for women and small, medium and large for men at £12. Also available in white.

Bird on a Wire Tee

Bird on a Wire is Jon’s creation, available for women (12-16) and men (s-l) and printed on a sky blue tee, this is a rather intriguing design, I admit it, I’m stumped. I know that Bird on a Wire is a Leonard Cohen song, apparently it pulled him out of a depression (one of many I’m sure judging by the music), there’s a movie, a daft comedy with Mel Gibson and Goldie Hawn who are essentially wrongly accused of murder and go on the run, but I have a feeling this tee is more about surveillance culture. Of course I could be completely wrong, however the style reminds me somewhat of the stylings of the cult 1960s TV series The Prisoner (one of my all-time faves), mainly because, in it’s own camp and irreverent way it managed to predict much of what life is like now. The USA with the help of the Patriot Act was able to push through a raft of laws that near enough demolished the individual’s right to privacy. Europe and much of the world have followed suit, if it’s in the name of ‘national security’ then any government agent can spy on anyone anywhere. Ironically a major tabloid newspaper in the UK has just been caught phone tapping members of parliament, the exact same kind of people that would have sanctioned such laws in the first place. If I am on the right track here this is one hell of a subtle t-shirt, simultaneously lighthearted in appearance yet harbouring a rather serious message for the people.

Take a look at all Hideout’s tees today at http://hideout.enterthetreehouse.com

Be seeing you.