Sugar Steak Apparel

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     Sugar Steak, Sugar Steak Apparel, comic t-shirts, funny t shirts, limited edition tees, retro tees, toon tees

I’ve never had a sugar steak, I think it must be an American thing, a big fat American thing, you tell me, I’m just a skinny Limey. Anyway, Sugar Steak Apparel was founded by Kyle Creek in order to counteract the “the affliction of overly macho, predictable, and all-too-common attire in our society”. I’m not sure how much overly macho fashion you’ve come across but I’d say there’s plenty of variety out there no matter your taste. However I’m glad to introduce SSA to the mix because they really do make some cool tees, neither macho nor effeminate, they’re just cool. If you like street art, comics, and low run tees, (sometimes limited editions) then you really need to check them out. Their t-shirts are all available for $19.95 each (limited editions are $24.95) – they also do few nice sweats, decals and some special prices on their bundled shirts. What’s more all their tees come with a free decal too!

Short-STACK Tee

One of a couple of highly limited shirts, I love the crazy promo shot for this tee, the graphics are of course great, it looks like someone is bulking up lol. ;) There’s a nice little piece of subtle logo branding on the back too.

Ass-Backwards Tee

Probably the best piece of branding subterfuge I’ve ever seen. Geddit?

Party Animal Tee (Limited Edition)

Here’s a limited edition tee for the girls (or “dolls” according to SSA). I love the design but I’m not so keen on the colour combo, although I’m not a “doll” unless it’s Action Man I suppose hah.

Sweet ‘n’ Simple Tee

Last but not least it’s the Sweet ‘n’ Simple Tee, an ultra clean design, really smooth lines, and more food related craziness from the team at SSA. Very tasty…

See ‘em all at www.sgrstk.com.

Mister Black and The Children of the 80s

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     80s t-shirts, 80s tees, Ghostbusters, Mister Black Tee, Spanish t-shirts, cartoon tees, graphic tees, retro tees, robot tee, toon t-shirts

Spanish tee label Mister Black celebrate the lowbrow visual culture of the 1980s, harking back to a time when the Internet was still a military/educational project, the nearest Brits could get to Anime was Battle of the Planets, when a Walkman was the nearest you’d get to an iPhone, and almost every action packed Hollywood blockbuster was aimed squarely at the funny bone. It’s in this slice of history that you’ll find Mister Black’s diorama of mass cultural iconography and artefact, scraped from the underbelly of nostalgia, and jazzed up for our now far more sophisticated palettes.

If you like your art to lean decidedly on the toon side, wallow in the veritable delights of TV and movie nostalgia, and have an eye for sharp swift graphic illustrations, then Mr. Black has what you need. All the tees on offer are large prints, superbly detailed (I’ll include some photographic proof of that in a moment), cartoon friendly and essentially a lot of fun! I love the site/store design too, the house style is very reminiscent of the artwork of animator Genndy Tartakovsky (creator of classics like Samurai Jack and Dexter’s Laboratory. Just check out Mr. B’s Xmas logo to see what I mean.)

All the tees come in a range of blacks, well what did you expect? Available for guys and girls at (around) €22.99 to €24.99 each although the listed prices on the homepage are correct, the prices displayed in the men’s and women’s sections are incorrect so that needs some fixing! However you can get yourself some free shipping by using the code MERRY XMAS at the checkout until the 7th of January! Anyway here are my faves…

Gonna Call Tee

Yes, if you’re a Brit then Ghostbusters will have been ruined for you by the heavily advertised directory services company The Number. Still, this cool tee should help deprogram you and get you back on track for some fond and funny memories. Love the detail on this one, in fact nearly all Mr. B’s tees are amazingly detailed.  Sorry girls this one is sold out… but if you’re into Gonna Call then there’s a few more tees like this one including the Action Tee, the 007 Tee, and the Director Cute  Tee.

Big Robot Tee

Perhaps my overall fave, this one’s cheaper at €21.99 each for guys and girls. I’m a sucker for robots, although not in the way some guys love their vacuum cleaner. The girls’ version is sold out, there’s a another version called Big Robot II. but there are only guys sizes left – I have a feeling that the highly organised female collective mind might have bought all their tees early for Xmas.

Face Tee and Doll Face Tee

If the Mr. Men and Little Misses had been French they’d have looked as stylish as these two!

Afrodita Tee

Here’s one just for the girls, seeing as Mr. B has sold out so many others! “For those who are like Sayaka Yumi!”. Only available in sizes M-XL though :/

Mister Black is definitely a popular label, especially with the ladies, he must be a very smooth talker ;) See more, read more, buy some at www.mbtee.com.

Charliegh Tees

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     California, Charliegh, minimalist, retro tees, vintage tees

Here’s a new launch for you, Charliegh is a Californian label with a brand spanking new collection of cool slick tees for the girl or guy around town. Offering up a blend of graphic and logo design, there’s something extremely laid back and retro about the house style. Exactly what I have come to expect from the West Coast, oodles of cool laid over a bed of vintage savvy. What’s more they’ve got a really big deal on offer right now…

Purchase any of their tees and get yourself a totally free typography t-shirt! The label is aiming at a unisex look and the designs back that notion, still it would be nice to see a ladies cut too. All the tees are available at $20 ea. in all sizes – anyway, take a looksie for yourself:

Define Yourself Tee

Emblem Tee

Anchor Tee

Free Typography Tees

Hop over to www.charliegh.com for the full low down.

People Like Me – People Like You

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     People Like Me, funny tees, kitsch tees, pop culture tees, retro tees, street fashion, witty

People Like Me is one helluva’ crazy looking store, it shouts, nay screams kitsch, retro, and all the other buzz words that any trendy fashion aficionado will slaver over. The t-shirt are simple but striking and very well thought out, perhaps I’m getting a little jaded these days, having reviewed literally hundreds and hundreds of tees but their Consumer tee really jumps out at me in a big big way. It’s one of those t-shirt design ideas that any designer worth their salt will slap their forehead the moment they see it and think “why the hell didn’t I think of that?”. What’s even more exciting is they’re holding a big ‘ol sale on right now so if you want to save a few bucks for that next night out then you can wow your friends and potential “pick-ups” on just about everything on offer at the store, which includes some funky bags and accessories.

What’s really smart about PLM’s collection for both guys and girls is the generous helping of very witty design savvy. They’re not highly illustrated, in fact they’re as simple as t-shirt designs come, but they smack of an über coolness that’s something of a rare commodity these days in the world of fashion, even street fashion. So without further a due get your highly greedy mitts on any of these beauties from between $19.50 and $22.50 each (usually $26-$30).

Consumer Tee

This t-shirt is my new best friend, I’m fickle that way ;) Seriously though, there’s a powerful Dada feel to this design, although reading their blurb it says “Stylistically, we owe our bright colors and bold illustration to anything from Tammy Faye’s make-up, to comic books and Adam West Batman reruns.”. Still… totally gorge.

Ad Space Tee

Who’s says the world’s becoming to commercialised? Well, everyone really, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em? Nice choice on the Gothic/tattoo font too.

Vain Tee

Ooh nice touch reversing the text, I had a similar idea for an “ambulance t-shirt” once, still I’ve just given that one away now lol. If you’re so vain you probably think this tee is about you then you’d better head on over to PLM’s site at www.peoplelikemestore.com.

Adam Jackson Tees

admin    T-Shirt Designers     Adam Jackson, illustration, retro tees, vintage t-shirts

If you love beautifully drawn illustrated tees then do keep an eye out for Adam Isaac Jackson, an amazingly talented Seattle-based designer, brought up in Japan, with an incredible knack for retro/vintage pin-up designs, tattoo art and a generally moody style that has to be seen to be believed. If you love your t-shirts dark and sexy then this is the guy to look out for. You can read up on all his latest t-shirts at his blog at www.adamants.wordpress.com. Although you’ll have to be quick, almost all his designs sell out straight away, still you can always sign up for his newsfeed.

Medusa T-Shirt

This tee is “coming soon”, I can’t give you an exact date, but when it does you’d better be quick or you’ll lose out! It’s just $20 and gloriously designed, one of the slickest one-colour print tees I’ve ever seen… if you’re desperate for more info all I can recommend is that you hook up with them at their MySpace page or contact Diamonds and Demons via their contact form!

This one has almost sold out already, considering it’s the only t-shirt for sale so far I think you get my drift…

Death Becomes Her T-Shirt

Perhaps the most beautiful zombie tee ever made. Check out this pic for a better idea of what you’re missing.

Day of the Dead meets retro pin-up nostalgia, love it, and so does everyone else by the looks of it, there’s only a few left in XL size, so hurry! Get it here.

For those with a slighter build don’t worry, I’ve found Adam Isaac Jackson’s own little t-shirt store with a couple of tees on offer, including this beauty:

Land of The Free T-Shirt

The Land of the Free T-Shirt is gorgeous, on sale for $30 and available in all sizes, yes all of them, it’s even signed by the artist! Well worth a gander. Get it here.

This guy needs to get cracking, or at least a few labels he’s worked for before need to get their act together and re-release a few of his past designs like Deadly, which used to be for sale at Imperial Motion, (one of my personal faves). Wake up Adam, we want more, more, more!

What A Card – New Funny Tees At Busted

admin    T-Shirt News     BustedTees.com, busted tees, funny t shirts, humour tees, retro tees, someecards, vintage tees

Got a friendly little email from Diana Chang at the snarky ecard site Someecards.com – and wouldn’t you know it they’ve started selling their designs as tees – makes sense to me. Anyway here’s where you’ll find their tees – http://www.bustedtees.com/someecards. Yep they’re at Busted Tees which is quite a coup, I guarantee that many of these t-shirts are going to sell out, not just because they’re genuinely funny in a faux-retro post modern sneering fashion, but also down to the fact their holding sale at the moment.

Usually on sale for $20 each you can get some of them now with a whopping 60% discount for a paltry $8 – the sale ranges from 15% up. Take a look at some of my personal faves for some idea of their humour wavelength – it’s vintage, dry as the Sahara, pithy as a week old lemon and as sarcastic as any celebrity gossip blogger. read more

Trippin’ Through Time With Homage T-Shirts

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     Homage Clothing, retro t-shirts, retro tees, vintage t-shirts, vintage tees, www.homageclothing.com

There’s retro and then there’s retro. We’ve reviewed plenty of “themed” retro t-shirt labels before, sometimes movies-orientated sometimes music, but Homage Clothing take it to all the way, to the bridge and back again, and then some. If you’re hooked on the past you’re not alone, retro and vintage styles are a mainstay of the modern fashion scene. Perhaps it all started with hip hop, sampling to be exact, the hip hop fraternity realised through a blend of necessity (such as lack of budget) and lessons learned in history, that sometimes the best has been and gone. What’s the point in emulating the classics of post-modern culture, be it the greatest beats, the slickest movies, the highs and lows of sports, or the most fabulous of fabulous of fashions when it’s already there, laid out like a feast of cocaine caviare on a bed of the sweetest tasting mutual memories that mankind will ever muster. I know at least one label who’ll back me up on this and that’s Homage – www.HomageClothing.com deliver what their brand promises. More than merely peeking in to the past, this label ‘s tees proudly toots the horn of nostalgia, lighting the way towards a triumphant past strewn with the glittering memories of both the highs and lows of the 20th century, and to be honest I doubt that anyone out there, however attached to the present they maybe, can blame them.

You can find their unique blend of authentic vintage tees all around the world, including stockists in N.Y, UK and Japan, their quirky taste for the eclectic past are self evident from the moment you visit their online store, expect a barrage of long forgotten (but still loved) cultural titbits such as Cheech and Chong, Rubik’s Cube, the Moon landing and even jelly beans (which is actually a cunning jibe about the quirks of Ronald Reagan when he was in presidency). Anyway I won’t give it all away, take a trip through time yourself and see what you’ve been missing at Homage T-Shirts – or keep reading on to see a few of my faves from this slick and sassy vintage label for kids of an uncertain future hooked on the warm glow of the past. read more

The Tees From Ipanema At Carioca Salt

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     80s, Brazil, Brazilian, Carioca Salt, Cariocasalt.com, Duran Duran, Ipanema, Rio, Rio Duran Duran, beach, beach t-shirts, beach tees, beachwear, eighties, retro tees, summer t-shirts

Cool, sultry, sexy, vibrant, tropically sophisticated, shimmying to a chilled out samba beat on Ipanema Beach, what more could you ask for? I’ve never personally been jealous of a t-shirt before, but if, and this is a big “if”, if I was to be reincarnated and I had to come back as an inanimate object, i’d like it to be as one of Carioca Salt’s smooth and sophisticated tees, especially if its modelled by one of the models (female) in their ever so sexy video featured at their website www.cariocasalt.com.

I have always had a thing for Brazil, if I wasn’t such a workaholic without a bean in the bank I’m sure I’d be heading off there every year, the fact is if you have a significant other and a pot belly in development, you will probably develop something of a complex, people were never designed to be that beautiful, but just about everyone you find strolling, parading, playing or lounging on a beach in Rio looks like they’ve just come off the front cover of a magazine.

Most likely inspired, if not left totally agog by the sights and sounds of Rio, Adam Dunning, a business and legal wizard with a fair bit of experience in the UK media, decided to leave the security of his BBC and tabloid career behind and set out on a fashion adventure. Just one year ago, whilst sitting on the famed and aforementioned Ipanema Beach, Adam Dunning vowed to himself to create his own Brazilian t-shirt brand that would truly represent the life and soul of Rio de Janeiro, otherwise know as the Cariocas. The people of Cariocas live and breathe music, the sun, and have a unique taste for colour, design and fashion, and Adam was determined to capture its essence in his own unique fashion label.

Thus the name Carioca Salt was born on the shores of Rio, whilst walking on the beach at sunset, Adam found the words to capture the Carioca Spirit, the salty sexuality of Rio, and buzzing beach lifestyle. The label was an instant success, by combining uniquely light and airy Brazilian textiles with an array of over-dyed colours of the tropical summer, Carioca Salt’s name spread far and wide.

They ship worldwide and their latest designs are always available at their online store. For us mere mortals who’d like to share a taste of the high life and proverbially dip our toes in to the Brazillian beach fashion scene, Carioca Salt have a fine selection of tees to whet your appetite. So when you’re quite finished flexing your muscles in front of the mirror we’ll peruse the latest offerings from the sunnier side of the beach… read more

New Season For Gfunk And Batz

admin    T-Shirt News     GFUNK&BATZ, Gfunk and Batz, football shirts, football tees, footie shirts, retro sports t-shirts, retro tees, soccer t-shirts, soccer tees

Remember GFUNK&BATZ? We reviewed them a while back here, well anyway these football loving maniacs with a passion for the beautiful game hooked up with us recently to announce their continuing plans for world domination, and here are the latest results. First of all they’re building a highly devoted fan base at Facebook.com, so if you want to keep up with all the latest on their football-related fashion shenanigans then head on down to their Facebook Fan Page and hook up with the most savvy and fashion-concious football t-shirt designers you’ll ever hope to meet.

You’ll be able to chat with Gfunk and Batz about all their latest designs and even get a sneak preview on the latest offerings from their store. What’s more they’re now selling their top-notch tees at Soccer Fever in Richmond, Victoria, Australia. Let’s hope this is the start of something big for G&B, they’ve come a long way since we first reviewed them, their website is looking great and I really like their unique stance in the sports fashion market. Their basic attitude to design is this; if you love the game of football and want to show your allegiance, but still have an eye for great style and would rather stand out in a crowd for all the right reasons rather than be immediately clocked as a yob by the locals at the bar, club, or trendy hotspots around town, then Gfunk and Batz are the place to shop.

They take their unique inspiration from a wide variety of football teams and footage from around the world and throughout history, expect subtle references, even football art if you will, this is definitely not the place to by a Ronaldo shirt or the latest Man United kit, think retro, think global, think stylish, think Gfunk and Batz. read more

Vintage Vantage Have The Advantage

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     classic designs, funny tees, retro, retro tees, vintage t-shirts, vintage vantage, vintagevantage.com

Now, I don’t normally ‘do’ funny t-shirt sites, there are plenty of them out there and for the main part they all clone Busted Tees style, quality, format, and even jokes to a tee, well no they don’t, because if they did they’d be as successful if not more. But VintageVantage.com have a distinct advantage over many of their competitors in the humorous t-shirt field, not only are their jokes genuinely funny, they actually create stylish shirts you’d be proud to wear, well proud if you’re a cynical nostalgic like me at least. read more