Here’s a great article from My Ink Blog that I found on Twitter (thanks to @designforum) that features 23 apparel related design articles on the web. The post features some of my favorite tee sites, including Pop Culture Tees, Taddict and The Art of Apparel. Some of the topics covered include:
In this weeks Indie Tee Spotlight I feature Jon Wye, a belt and t-shirt designer based out of Washington, D.C. who has been doing his thing for four years now. You might remember that I recently featured the Jon Wye designed Homemaker belt in my last Glorious Nonsensities video review. Jon is the ultimate do-it-yourselfer as he has developed his own methods to produce his signature graphic design belts and buckles. He also has developed a unique method for taking 3D product shots, providing a unique experience for the potential buyer.
I had the opportunity to get to know Jon more and am happy that he was able to share a little about himself and  the company that he has poured his entire self into for the last couple of years.
Coty: Your signature products are your custom made leather belts and buckles. What was your first experience in working with leather and what propelled you to start a company focused on making original and custom made belts?
Jon: It all started with a girl. I think that’s how a lot of good stories start. One of our first dates was making belt buckles out of wax carvings, plaster casting, and melting craft-catalogue pewter into the mold. And when she moved away to Barcelona (pre-planned before we met) I had a lot of time on my hands and so I kept creating. I didn’t want to be the person “left” behind, I wanted to strive for something. So I started making more belt buckles and eventually moved to belts. And the initial ideas for the graphic belt process came about a year into my brand. It was one of those ‘ah ha’ from a dream moments. And it kind of consumed me until I perfected it.
Coty: All of your products are custom made in your shop that you’ve named “the funkfactory.” How did you learn to work with the metal and leather mediums that you use for your belts? Did you learn by trial and error or do you have some formal training?
Jon: It was all trial and error. A lot of error! I worked as an Office Manager (glorified receptionist) at a PR firm for about 4 years. I spent a lot of time researching everything on the Internet. A tidbit here, a tadbit there. No one source spells it all out for you. I simply became a good disseminator of information, coupled with an unquenchable thirst to learn more and more. There is so much knowledge available on the internet for the taking. The key is being able to sift through it. And then once you think you’ve sifted through all you can handle you take the plunge and start to put your money on the line and test things out. So my whole shop, process, everything came from being willing to learn and never be too set in my ways, which is something I think a lot of people get hung up on. You have to be fluid.
Coty: We cover a lot about marketing and branding techniques. Have you done anything, either locally or online, different or unique to market the Jon Wye brand? What techniques have worked best for you?
Nothing, absolutely nothing beats getting out into the public! I spent the last 3 years selling at various outdoor events in the DC area, building my name. Every time people saw my display it was bigger and better. When I made money it went right into new displays (all custom built) and new products. People love to see you growing, and love to know that the money they spend on you is helping to build something special… that they had a hand in your success.
I once took out an expensive add in the back of Rolling Stone magazine… worst mistake ever! I spent $2000 thinking I was going to be selling belts and tees like crazy! I think I made about $250 back. I took the spanking and walked away from paid advertising. I started doing what I learned at the PR Firm. I wrote press releases, and came up with unique twists for announcements. And that led to some feature articles in the Washington Post that people still remember to this day.
And I talk about the brand. As one PR person told me, if you don’t talk about you, no one will. It’s true! It might feel odd at first, but if you truly believe in what you are creating it will come across as sincere when you tell people about you creations.
And lastly, my Pink Ducky sticker. One of my supremely talented artists, David William, helped me create a JonWye iconic image. My Pink Ducky sticker is known around DC and is included in every order from online. It was a big risk to create the stickers considering I give them away for free, but I have seen my return 100 fold. People love the darn thing and are shocked that I give it away for free. It’s waterproof and really durable. I made sure the quality of the sticker matched the quality of my brand.
Coty: You’ve been building the Jon Wye brand for three years now. What has been your greatest experience so far? What has been the most difficult or stressful part of running your own small business?
Jon: Actually I’ve been building it for 4 years as of January 2nd. YEAH… 4 year Anniversary! That’s why the JUNK buckles are on sale for $10. It was the first buckle!
I used to look for that great moment, the tipping point (BTW, I highly suggest reading ‘The Tipping Point’) but it’s been more of a slow and steady build. Each year is better than the last. Each year has great moments, but all in all it’s been the whole of it, the journey, the mental game of creating something that has been the most rewarding.
The most difficult or stressful part? OYE! Sticking to my ideas even though every sign around me said it wasn’t right. There were many moments where I didn’t know if I was going to be able to make my credit card payments. Times when I invested in new machines and products when I didn’t necessarily have the money. It is no joke when I say that I have put everything I have into this company, and then some. Thing are still tight, but thanks to all the wonderful people that have supported me the light at the end of the tunnel is peering through.
Coty: How much do you think the D.C. culture has influenced your designs and the direction of your clothing line?
Jon: The easy answer is that I am a product of my environment. I grew up here. I know people in DC, myself included, talk about politics on a more regular basis, as we are inundated. But I am separated from the political scene. And DC’s rich underbelly of Punk Rock, Bike Polo, etc is something I am just now becoming more aware of.
Congratulations to AJ Dimarucot, better know in the indie tee world as CollisionTheory for winning the 2009 Uneetee Kick Off Design Contest! He won $3,000 from this contest, to add to his growing list of contest winnings. You might remember that last September he won $10,000 in the Design By Humans contest. One has to ask, what’s next? Maybe a Threadless Bestee Award?Â
The winning tee is named An Offer You Can’t Refuse and comes in two flavors, black and white. The tee is available now at Uneetee for a measly $12, so be sure to pick one up!
Dance Party Massacre posted a sneak peeks of a couple of their new products recently on the DPM blog. They previewed three new items, one of which is the first ever DPM sweater. They’ve also got Something’s After Us in a new colorway and a design with a gnarly gangsta wolf printed on an acid wash tee.Â
The items are not available for sale just yet, but they will be on the site once DPM wraps up their photo and video shoot for the new products.Â
What do you guys think of the new DPM products? To check out their current line go here.Â
Eric did a great job with his second Linty Fresh live show! There were about 40-50 viewers watching the live feed the entire time which is a great turn out. For those of you who missed the show and want to watch it check out the embed above. I’ve also provided a transcript of the show below, for those of you who rather not watch the full 2 hours, or just missed a few questions, or just like text better. Thanks again, Eric!
The following Q&A was taken from the Linty Fresh Live Show #2. I had to type really fast so they are not direct quotes. But it’s as close as I could get. Enjoy with tea and a comfy tee!
Is it a good idea to use models for product shots or not?
Difficult to use models every month so very hectic. Can be flexible, time wise, if you don’t use models. More professional to use models and people may be more likely to purchase your product.
What do you use for your newsletters?
I use campaignmonitor.com to keep people in touch. Don’t over do it or it will be ignored like SPAM.
Do you change your style when doing commission work?
Yes, like to keep the LINTY FRESH style for LINTY FRESH.
How do I define LINTY FRESH’s target demographic?
Online: Guys 15 to mid to late 30′s. In person I sell more to the ladies, between tweens and 30′s. Girls less likely to buy things online vs. guys. Hipster scene if I needed to classify it, though a lot of people enjoy it.
I’ve been a Flickr user for a while now, but in no means would I consider myself a Flickr poweruser. However, I’ve been exploring Flickr a bit more as of late and found that they’ve got lots of awesome T-Shirt related groups that you can join. Thanks to bigguybigcity better known as tee blogger hideyourarms, designer Olly Moss and the T-critic blogger Karl Long, I found these groups while scouring their profiles!
1. T-Shirts. 10,709 Tees. This group is lied by Little Dragon and seems to be the group with the most tees added amongst this lot. Another plus with this group is its active discussion area – lots of talk going on there compared to the other groups. Here’s the group description:
Tees – hell… shirts, sweaters, hoodies – nowadays have crazy, witty and overall funny sayings, sayings and icons, pictures and colours. Post pictures of people in funny and/or odd t-shirts here.
2. Funny T-Shirts. 500 Tees. This is the site specifically for funny tees, in fact, according to admin TheNakedPhotographer“Your shit better be funny or worth being in here or I will delete it, add shit shirts here twice and I will ban you!” Whenever you see a funny tee, snap a pic of it and upload it to the Funny T-Shirts group.
3. T-Shirt Revolution. 8,964 Tees. This is the group that’s all about printing and making your own tee designs. If you made the tee, post it here! They also have active discussions on transferring designs to blank tees and on blank tee types in general. If you’re a do-it-yourself-er than be sure to add this group and start contributing! The group admin is Stephane Vendran.Â
4. Fresh Tees. 3,787 Tees. This is the official addic[tee]d Flickr group run by Mr. Fresh. addic[tee]d is a tee blog that is based in Athens, Greece. The addic[tee]d tee blog has been around since 2005. This group does not allow “plain text” tees so be careful not to add those.
5. I Love T-Shirts. 2,136 Tees. This is a Brazilian group run by Aline Szucs. Although not in English, they do have a ton of fun tees in this group. Definitely worth checking out. And if you understand Portuguese then here’s the group description:
Camisetas são Ãtens básicos e indispensáveis no guarda-roupa que vão conosco a qualquer lugar! Trocas, dicas, dúvidas, são os objetivos deste grupo! Trocas: peço a todos que organizarem ou participarem, manter sempre o respeito uns para com os outros, pois este tipo de interação tem como objetivo descontarir e não “estressar”, ok? Fotos: somente de camisetas, blusinhas e afins!!! Estão proibidos: xingamentos, ofensas, material inadequado e tudo que possa prejudicar o grupo. Abs!
I’ve been getting some great items in the mail for me to review, and have been for the past few months. I enjoy all the stuff I’ve been receiving and really appreciate it! Anyhow, I thought I would bring back the video reviews that I started last August and then abandoned after just three episodes. I decided to give the video thing another go, this time with me being a little less eccentric, going without the Twitter nonsense in the middle and much much more information about the product and brand.
I’m going to be keep these in “beta” for the first four episodes (yes, I’ve pre-recorded four of these) so they’re pretty raw. We’ll see how the first four episodes of season 2 (and I use that term lightly since there wasn’t much of a season 1, LOL) go and if you guys like them then I’ll keep going with them. So, let me know what you liked and what you didn’t like.Â
In this episode I wear Monkeys! by Christian San Jose, available at Hippie Fruit, and review a belt sent to me by belt and shirt designer, Jon Wye. To get a close up view of the belt check out this 3D preview by Jon. Enjoy with tea and a comfy tee!
Monkeys. Good: great fit, huge print, print by Jimmy Heartcore, cheap  and sweatshop free. Bad: Some moms might cringe when seeing this tee. Price: $11.
Homemaker Belt by Jon Wye. Good: genuine leather, custom made in the USA, very detailed print, colors are very vibrant, print on front and back, tiny signature on buckle (nice touch), nice keychain adds a nice touch, everything hand made by Jon Wye. Bad: Nothing really, might be a bit flashy for some but he also sells blank black belts and other designer belts. Price: $65.
If you have an awesome product that you want reviewed please feel free to contact me! Thanks for watching.
Now this is a tee that suits me! The newest tee (released yesterday) by Glenn Jones of Glennz Tees, Insomniac Innovations, is the perfect tee for anyone who likes to stay up during the weee hours of night all the way into the early morning. This is also the first tee in Glennz shop to sport Glow In The Dark ink, which is pretty cool and goes well with the theme of the shirt. Insomniac Innovations is available now for $19.95. I don’t own any tees by Glenn yet, should this be the one that I pick up?
It’s the Semi-Annual Super Sale over at BustedTees – but I am sure that you already know that as this has got a lot of coverage on the tee blogs in the past two days or so. I finally had the chance to check the sale out, they’ve got 100 shirts priced at $10. They had a lot of seasonal stuff on sale – for instance, a lot of the election 2008 themed tees are up for grabs at the $10 price tag and so yes, you too can have a ‘McCain 1908′ T-Shirt for Men shirt. Here’s are two other tees that caught my eye: ‘Rollin’ in my 64′ T-Shirt for Men and ‘GA Shirt’ T-Shirt for Men.
Other than single rare collaboration (see Eye Scream below), Eric Terry of Linty Fresh has been running his brand on his own for the past three years. He has been the solo designer of his tee designs, buttons, website and even marketing materials. Despite this, Eric announced on the Linty Fresh blog that starting in March, he will be  releasing more collaborative based products.
It seems that the Linty Fresh brand is getting bigger and it’s good to see that Eric is broadening his horizons, so to speak. He did mention that the design concepts, as with his current line, will be his own. He feels that by working with other artists on these concepts, they can bring fresh and new styles to the Linty Fresh brand.
I look forward to seeing what Eric has up his sleeve and am quite interested to see who he will be working with in the future!
In other news, the next Linty Fresh live chat is schedule for this Sunday, January 11. Check it out on ustream.
