It Began Just Because Tee

admin    T-Shirts     It Began Just Because, Sheol, UK t-shirts, art shirts, photomontage

This one’s via UK’s Sheol Clothing, an indie tee label with just three tees on their books, still it’s a nice subtle number…

It Began Just Because Tee

It reminds me Japanese ghost stories and the deliberate over exposure of the photographic sequence harks back to Warhol’s experimentation with screen printing, i.e. letting the ‘juice‘ run out… Dreamy, beguiling, I’m rather transfixed. Just £12 in sizes S-L it’s definitely a bargain for the art house crowd.

Not too keen on the other two, still, fingers crossed more inspiration will come Sheol’s way. I have to admit the story behind the name is pretty wild too…’Sheol is the ‘grave’, ‘pit’ or ‘abyss’, as a concept it predates the Christian and Muslim ideas of judgement after death and differs from Heaven and Hell. Dichotomous and ambiguous, Sheol opens the possibility of interpretation; it allows space for free will. You can push and pull the concept and find your own boundaries.’

Love it. The guys seem sound and I like the concept, but more well conceived tee graphics should be at the top of their agenda right now. See what ya think here.

Dephect

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     Dephect, UK t-shirts, designer, graff t-shirts, graphic tees, hip-hop t-shirts, indie tees, urban tees

I’ve been meaning to get around to reviewing UK label Dephect for ages, I have no excuses bar the fact they’re so well known I wasn’t sure what I could “add to the mix”, but seeing as I’ve already reviewed their mates over at Sutsu it seems only fair! If you haven’t come across Dephect before (where have you been?) then you’re in for a treat. As for all those more familiar with the label I’ve lined up a few of their delectable screen printed tees from their latest Spring / Summer 2011 Collection. So it’s all good ;)

Dephect was borne from the mutual love of skater culture, the 90′s hip hop scene, and the passion of four friends in London for underground art and design. All this and more was to collide in a symphony of creative energy that eventually developed into a signature urban Brit fashion label with fans across the world. The site is as slick as the tees, and this latest collection pulls out all the stops when it comes to street savvy style with a London bad ass attitude that takes no prisoners.

In addition to their classic graphic tees Dephect have released a selection of high-end progressive cut and sew pieces, heightening the quality and experimentation for this unique brand all the more. Original design is abound at their store, created by hand picked artistic talent from around the world, each with their own cool biography page. Men’s tees are RRP. £24.99 but with the sale on there are plenty up at just £14.99 and for the girls £22.99 RRP and just £9.99 for the sale items!

Scrawl Tee

Damn, nice style! Designed by UK graff artist Dan Kitchener, this takes me back to the good old days, 2000 AD, Alan Moore knows the score. Sweet. (Also available in white).

Face Tee

This one’s by El Niño de las Pinturas (The Boy of Paintings) who’s something of a cult hero in the streets of Granada. A dreamy graffiti style tee that’s available in a selection of colours and cuts.

London Black Book Tee

This limited edition shirt, designed by old school London graf artist Met, to accompany the London Black Book which features rare and unseen sketches and characters from over 200 of London’s top graffiti artists including Elk, Zomby, Drax, Mode 2, Cazbee, Goldie, Teach, Coma, Vibes, Neas and Met plus many more. Also available in white. Funny thing is the book is cheaper :0

Skull ‘N’ Mics Tee

The ultimate pirate tee, if you’re gonna’ rip that beat do it in style ;) Also available for guys in heather.

Finally a couple of real bargains from the sale section…

Mr Vinyl Tee

Love it, vinyl nostalgia, the best there is. Get this one in heather and charcoal for the guys and olive for the girls.

Staying on the vinyl theme here’s another total bargain from the sale…

Remixomatic Tee

Ver..ver..ver.v..v..v..very funky with a nice set of colours to match you can get this at £9.99 for girls and £14.99 for guys. Loving the gold version to bits, or should that be bytes?

There’s plenty more on offer including sweats, hoodies and prints, plus videos and tunes when you’re brassic. Unleash your dephectiveness at www.Dephect.com.

Geisha Tee By Equilibrium Clothing

admin    T-Shirts     Equilibrium, Equilibrium Clothing, Geisha Tee, Japanese t-shirt, UK designers, UK t-shirts

Here’s a real bargain from a brand new UK label Equilibrium Clothing. Just £10 for this very cool Geisha Tee in royal blue.

Geisha Tee

A nice traditional etching never goes amiss on a tee, this one is no exception. You will love this tee long time at £10 each in sizes S-L.

I’d recommend that E.C do some work on the main website though, Flash is really off putting if it isn’t done well. Keep it simple and slick I’d say. Anyway see one more t-shirt at their site www.equilibrium-clothing.com.

Lamp Tee @ Plane Clothing

admin    T-Shirts     20th century design, Lamp Tee, UK t-shirts, classic tees, designer tees

If you’re as much of a fan of classic design as I am, you will definitely appreciate the love that UK indie label Plane Clothing are showing for the humble anglepoise. Invented by British architect George Carwardine in 1932, it’s still a familiar site on many office desks to this day. If you’d like to share the tribute then you’ll appreciate Plane Clothing’s Lamp Tee. The design is actually based upon “a photograph of our favourite lamp in the studio, found abandoned at the Upmarket.”

Lamp Tee

Available for £20 in white, sizes S-XL. An enlightened design.

Brand info:

Set up in East London 5 years ago by designer and photographer Gerry Buxton, who designs and hand prints (with water-based inks) all the tees and hoodies at www.planeclothing.co.uk. For more information about the design process and a behind the scenes look at Gerry’s studio, check out his Facebook page. Plane Clothing can also be found on the Upmarket next to Brick Lane every Sunday and on Spitalfields on Fridays.

Wasted Heroes

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     Russell Reid, UK t-shirts, Wasted Heroes, art shirts, graphic tees, indie tees

Russell Reid is a British designer, the founder of the UK fashion label Wasted Heroes, and a maverick. His most popular designs are more surreal, more twisted than the norm, and that’s just the way I like them. He works in all areas of design, and is closely associated with the music scene, especially in Liverpool. But for me his t-shirt designs simply jump off the store page they’re that strong. Creating a collection that’s a step ahead of the usual graphic styles of many labels is no mean feat, and Russell has done it from the ground up. He creates everything in-house including screen printing the tees himself (as well as prints on paper) and takes meticulous care when it comes to producing his line.

Wasted Heroes can be broken down to three distinct styles, amusing pithy typographic designs, salubriously surreal photo montages, and my personal favourites, beautifully conceived and deceptively simple graphic arts pieces. All of the tees at Wasted Heroes are available for £18 each, there are admittedly a lot more on offer for the guys, though there are still a few stunners for the girls which I will endeavour to include here. Take a look..

Droplet Face Tee

Classic abstract design. Superb.

Triangle Signature Tee

One of two new additions to the collections. Currently only available for the guys :/ The other new tee is called Lion.

Butterfly Vs. Blade Tee

A lovely iconographic combo.

Circles of Mickey’s Tee

The Circles of Mickey’s Tee is a dedication to two of my all-time fave artists – Samo (Samo was the street name of Jean-Michel Basquiat) and The Radiant One (The Radiant One is in reference to Keith Haring), two artists who where heavily influenced by the original street graffiti movement of seventies New York and inspirational figures to guest designer Framedink. Also available as as a set of 3 hand pulled screen prints.

To see more visit www.WastedHeroes.com and whilst your at it you can read a rather cool interview with Russell here.

The Science of T-Shirt Design @ T-lab

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     European tees, T-lab, UK t-shirts, graphic tees, minimalist t-shirts

There’s going back to basics and then there’s going back to basics. T-lab are here, to put it as bluntly as possible, to cut the metaphorical crap and boil down t-shirt and hoodie design to a visually sub-atomic level. If you’re looking for beautiful illustrative meanderings, bawdy humour, cute factor, or anything you’ve come to love and expect from t-shirt design then exit the T-lab now. If on the other hand you have a penchant for the abstract, classic European minimalist design  and a cool calm theme for your collection then don the proverbial white coat and safety glasses, and step into the hermetically sealed environment of this uniquely experimental UK fashion brand.

Although their tees are on sale at a slightly pricey £25 each, they do use traditional screen print methods for ultra crisp designs and very high quality shirts from ethical suppliers. What’s more you’ll be very pleased to know I’ve managed to wrangle a very generous discount for all you lucky lucky readers :D Get 15% off all T-lab products by entering the code buytees15 at the checkout!

Downhill Tee

Inspired by a combination of Ski Tirol posters and 80′s one-piece ski suits.

Snoflake Tee

Reinventing a seasonal icon. Check out those subtle psychedelics.

Surveillance Tee

Prying eyes in all 3 dimensions.

For more plenty more graphic abstract tees and hoodies visit www.t-lab.eu.

World Party Clothing

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     UK t-shirts, World Party Clothing, bike t-shirts, eco tees, environmental tees, indie British t-shirts, wake and bake

This label have literally just launched (6pm last night oops), unfortunately I was so snowed under with emails, posts, work etc., I missed the official moment. Still, I’m sure plenty of you have too so here’s the low-down – World Party Clothing are a fiercely independent streetwear brand from the North of England, in fact they approached us for a review because they appreciate Buy Tees love for the indie brand – which is good to hear! They hand print all their own tees, have strong ethical leanings, every shirt is Fair Trade and all the inks used in the printing process are water based. You know this is a seriously committed brand, they even use 100% recycled envelopes (which are cheaper BTW)!

The subject matter is left field including some environmentalism and an expression of love for the humble bicycle. I have an old Raleigh Chopper downstairs, I really have to get it pimped somewhere so I can ride the damn thing. When Chris and I lived in Bristol in the early 90s I bought us a couple of cheap bikes and we rode all the way to Bath and back, unfortunately by the end of the journey all I had left of my reclaimed Postman’s bike was the bell :/ I ride hard! Still excuses asides we should all be getting on our bikes if we want the planet to survive another few decades! My fave tee of all has to be Wake and Bake which is bloody hilarious, if you’re a stoner you’ll probably snap this one up when you can remember how to use your credit card :D

Get ‘em all for £20 each in all sizes.

Wake and Bake Tee

Looks like that Frood (Freud) Dude.

Life Cycle Tee

What goes round comes round.

Bikes On The Brain Tee

Those cogs keep turning.

IScream Tee

Land of liberty.

Here’s their rather snazzy tag too:-

See more at www.WorldPartyClothing.com.

Optical Illusion Tee

admin    T-Shirts     UK t-shirts, UK tees, bird in the cage tee, optical illusion t-shirt, optical illusion tee, we are vultures, wearevultures

Here’s a new one on me, it’s a very limited edition tee (just 20 for sale) titled Bird in the Cage by the UK label We Are Vultures. Essentially it’s based on an old Victorian spinning to that creates an optical illusion consisting of two images, one of an empty cage and the other of a bird.

There’s a rather cool video by expertvillage at Youtube that shows you how to make your own bird in a cage optical illusion, but I think that We Are Vulture’s t-shirt looks a lot more fun, especially as it must involve someone spinning around until they’re on the verge of spewing. Yes I still do have a streak of respect for juvenile humour. Anyway, you can get one of only 20 of these tees for 20 quid each in sizes small and medium (I guess the large ones have already sold out!).

Bird in the Cage Tee

This little gem and a couple of other (not quite as spectacular) tees are available at www.WeAreVultures.com.

The Thug Tee @ Socialfabrik

admin    T-Shirts     Brit t-shirts, Socialfabrik, UK t-shirts, indie tees, street art tees

I got an email from Eddie Sadowski who runs and designs for Manchester, UK based indie fashion label Socialfabrik. Now that is a great name for a brand! In particular he wanted me to pay particular attention to their latest shirt Thug – which I must admit is absolutely awesome! It’s based on a police marksman target that’s been used since the 1960s and definitely fits in with the whole “fabric of society” theme I’m picking up off this brand. It’s available for £20 in white and grey in all sizes.

The Thug Tee

Here it’s being modelled by Gary Briggs, frontman and guitarist of UK rock band Strays.

Adult Classifieds Tee

Whilst I’m at it I did spot this Adult Classifieds tee, I created a print on similar lines a while back – hey great minds think alike after all… Love it, but it just ain’t available quite yet – sorry folks :/

Socialfabrik already have a strong cult following in Manchester, soon their store will be an art gallery for limited edition art prints and the t-shirts will be the canvas. They aim to take street art from the city walls and onto the public themselves! Check out the rest at www.socialfabrik.co.uk.

Cheer Up Clothing

admin    T-Shirt Reviews     British tees, Cheer Up Clothing, Cheer up, UK t-shirts, designer t-shirts

Cheer Up Clothing is a UK based fashion label that offers a range of simple yet stylish graphic, logo/branded and typographic tees and hoodies for a discerning market. They’ve already had a ton of press coverage here in Britain including Front and Kerrang Magazine. They’re also big on music and sponsor several highly acclaimed bands and touring artistes, such as Four Year Strong, You Me At Six, All American Rejects, The King Blue and more. They’re constantly producing home-grown best sellers and are tipped for the top, especially in the international market.

CUC is what I’d call a “real” fashion brand, high quality and confident branding whilst creating a unified style for their collection – which is not an easy thing to do. I’m not so keen on the pocket logo apparel, I remember as a kid everyone buying Lacoste sweaters sporting a tiny crocodile logo. A savvy kid at the school yard asked his dad, who ran an embroidery business, to print up a few hundred tiny crocodile patches. Yes he sold out the first day. I didn’t even buy one of those. Still, even if I am a fashion Marxist I can still appreciate their more creative graphic shirts and the inventive use of their rather groovy logo in their collection. Expect plenty of ice cream themed tees – I’ve even included one in this post. All the tees are unisex and sell for between £20 and £22 (except one on sale for £16) each and are available in a wide range of colours dependent upon the design. Sizes range from XS-L and I’ve noticed a few discontinued t-shirts so watch out – when they’re sold out they’re really sold out.

CU wanted me to mention that their latest collection will be released Wednesday 17th November in celebration of their third anniversary – but as usual I’m featuring my faves across the board.

Tag Foil Tee

Higgledy Tee

Spaceman Tee

Scribbles Tee

All in all there’s some very cool stuff on offer at Cheer Up Clothing, personally speaking I love the Spaceman Tee – but I always like astronaut-themed tees. Maybe it’s something to do with wanting to be a spaceman as a kid and then discovering that I sucked at maths.

Anyhoo, take a look for yourself, it might just put a smile on your face… www.CheerUpClothing.com.