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Interview with Threadless Loves Green Winner Kanzaki Choi

I had the opportunity to interview Kanzaki Choi, who this week won the Threadless Loves Green Contest! Post in the comments section here what you’ve been doing to help keep the earth green and you could win the Threadless Loves Green winning design, Show Me The Vanilla Sky..Pls!! (1 winner will be randomly chosen from the pool of people that leave a comment here). Good luck and congratulations Kanzaki! 

Coty: What was your reaction when you found out that you won the Threadless Loves Green contest with your entry, Show Me The Vanilla Sky..Pls!!?

Kanzaki: It was the best moment in my life….I was crying, screaming, howling, spanking myself and finally I found it wasn’t a dream!!! Thanks Threadless and the amazing community gave me the staggering journey.

Coty: What was the inspiration behind your winning design?

Kanzaki: The bird eyes view line drawing has its thrill, it is dramatic and epic for story telling, you can find it very common in Japanese Manga. The design is a story telling approach, I try to tell the audients how do our animal friends feels while we human beings turning the planet to a furiously polluted “vanilla sky”, though they cannot say anything to complain, we should feel guilty when seeing the vanilla sky scene from their perspective. I think the bird eyes view is perfect to deliver that kind of impact both visually and psychologically how we perceive the message.

Coty: Along with the cash prize from Threadless, you will also be receiving a ton of community donated prizes – which of these prizes are you most looking forward to?

Kanzaki: Yea!!! This is definitely one of the best part of this contest and thanks Threadless had this great idea!! :) Though it is very hard to pick they all sounds great! I would say I’m anticipating goodies from bnannas, who courtesy an original song about whatever I like!! Alvarejo, the amazing artist who courtesy an “insanely detailed” portrait of me!! Haha… how funny that will turn out!! And ivejustquitsmoking (Marco), the creative genius who will courtesy an “experimental painted pair of shoes” !!:D

Coty: Which of the Loves Green entries were your favorites, which ones did you think would win?

Kanzaki: There are just too many top designs! Threadless can simply print the Green subs for a new line of green tees!! “Carpooling is Fun!” by Alvarejo, it has so much fun and goodness in one!! Killer work for sure! “Clean-Up, Clean-Up, Everybody, Everywhere”. A great idea with epic execution by alexmdc, the winning contender of the last two Threadless loves contest. They are the winners for me, and still many designs that I really love personally, such as “The Vicious Circle of Deforestation” by Tang Yau Hoong, “The Beginner’s Guide to Tree hugging” by gumbolimbo and “Forget Me Not” by yeohgh.

Coty: What are some of the things that you do to help keep the planet green?

Kanzaki: There are many things we can do to help reduce harm to the planet, one of those that not many people know is buying less bottled water. I don’t purchase bottled water, as it uses up oil and other fossil fuels to be produced and shipped, fills up landfills, represents wasted money, produce of CO2, thus contribute to global warming. It is very simple that we can drink tap water and reuse plastic bottles to help keep the planet green.

Thanks again to Kanzaki Choi for taking the time to chat with me, and remember, leave a comment here for your chance to win Show Me The Vanilla Sky..Pls!! by Kanzaki Choi!

Show Me The Vanilla Sky Pls!! by Kanzaki Choi

Show Me The Vanilla Sky by Kanzaki Choi

Posted on April 21, 2009 by Coty, under T-Shirts. 1,299 views

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32 Comments to “Interview with Threadless Loves Green Winner Kanzaki Choi”

#1 Posted by Loren (April 21 '09 at 08:55 am )

Great interview Coty! It’s cool that you were able to get a chance to interview such a cool designer… if only he could speak better english!

-Loren

#2 Posted by garciagirl (April 21 '09 at 09:10 am )

This shirt is so fantastic! Nice interview :)
I try to keep green by washing all my laundry in cold water and changed all of my lightbulbs to energy efficient ones.
Cheers!

#3 Posted by Meg (April 21 '09 at 09:22 am )

Love the shirt!! :D

I stay green by not drinking bottled water, I just put tap water in the fridge and drink that, saves lots of plastic :D

#4 Posted by Coty (April 21 '09 at 09:28 am )

Awesome guys and great tips for going green! Keep them coming!!!

#5 Posted by lunchboxbrain (April 21 '09 at 09:38 am )

Great interview! My wife and I bring canvas bags with us when we go grocery shopping. I also try and ride my bike to work whenever possible.

#6 Posted by rodrigobhz (April 21 '09 at 09:47 am )

Great interview and congrats Kanzaki! I stay green in many ways but I’m very concerned about water. So I don’t buy bottled water – I have a mud filter (I don’t know the right word for this) in my house – I close the tap when I’m taking a shower – white using the soap – and when I’m brushin my teeth :)

#7 Posted by Remy (April 21 '09 at 10:35 am )

Congrats! I love this shirt! It makes me smile. Happy almost Earth Day everyone!

My go green tip for this year is PLARN! I love to knit and I hate using plastic grocery bags, so I’ve collected all of the plastic bags laying around my house and from friends houses and even been known to raid plastic bag recycling drop offs. Then I use the bags to make plastic yarn and knit my own grocery bags and all sorts of fun things like that!

Here’s the directions. Have fun!!

http://www.myrecycledbags.com/2007/02/17/instructions-for-cutting-plastic-bags-creating-recycled-plastic-yarn/

#8 Posted by Kirsten (April 21 '09 at 10:37 am )

Awesome shirt!

I stay green by drying my clothes on the line and I bought a water bottle that I use instead of a new plastic one every day.

#9 Posted by Eddie Bynog (April 21 '09 at 10:39 am )

I stay green by using cold water to wash dishes, chargiing my laptop with a solar charger, and buying CFL’s

#10 Posted by seven (April 21 '09 at 10:39 am )

Congrats on winning! As for a green tip… I made my own grocery bags out of vintage fabric!

#11 Posted by katesnowbird (April 21 '09 at 10:44 am )

love the shirt, really digging the hazy effects you got on the edges. feels like smog. nice job.

#12 Posted by katesnowbird (April 21 '09 at 10:46 am )

tip for going green: reuse mason jars. I eat a lot of pasta and love the Classico variety, and the jars are kinda pretty. they make good ice tea glasses, storage for nuts and bolts, bathroom supplies, leftovers, general storage.

#13 Posted by trendyrende (April 21 '09 at 10:49 am )

I really enjoy Kanzaki’s shirt, great work!
My green tip: don’t trash it! Take out bags can be trash can liners. The aluminum foil you toasted a plain bagel on can be rinsed off and toasted on again. And if you kept a relatively neat food in a ziploc you can rinse and dry that and use it again too! I don’t expect people to scrub cheese off their tin foil and toast it 15 times, but a lot of things can be used more than once before they get trashed.

#14 Posted by Spammy (April 21 '09 at 10:52 am )

That’s a wicked T-shirt and an awesome interview!

To stay green I walk everywhere or use public transit. I always carry reusable bags with me (I use these ones because they fold up really small: http://www.chicobag.com/). I also use an old wine bottle to refrigerate my tap water and carry it in my steel reusable water bottle and of course I recycle!

#15 Posted by hannabear (April 21 '09 at 10:53 am )

Awesome interview and congrats to Kanzaki! I’m definitely purchasing it!

Some of the ways I stay green are by riding the bus everyday, using CFLs, and using warm tap water for boiling.

#16 Posted by theis_to_meet_you (April 21 '09 at 10:57 am )

share many of the same practices as previous posters. i choose paperless options for all banking and utility bill accounts. i turn off lights at work that others don’t bother to turn off.

all little things, but hopefully they help.

#17 Posted by Spammy (April 21 '09 at 11:21 am )

I also wrap gifts in newspaper or old magazines. If I have them around I use scraps of material to make cloth bags. I also find that wrapping things in scarves works really well and it’s like two presents in one.

#18 Posted by eric (April 21 '09 at 11:49 am )

Replaced all the old windows in my home with energy efficient ones, insulated some areas better.

I also make a point to buy fresh and local when things are in season, and frozen when they’re not.

#19 Posted by Laura (April 21 '09 at 11:56 am )

Great interview! no worries on the english, i understood everything.. :)

Some “stay-green” tips that i use:
1. I filter my tap water and fill up my own bottles. A good choice are refillable non-BPA bottles. They’re stronger than regular bottles and don’t contain a potentially harmful substance used in making plastic bottles.
2. I bike and use mass transportation. Carpooling is also a good idea.
3. I try to buy products from companies that are trying to be more environmentally responsible.
4. I buy local or organic produce whenever I can. There are less chemicals involved and the stuff tastes fresher and tastier.
5. I wash most clothes in cold/cool water and let them airdry. Hot water requires alot of energy to make and if it’s not necessary I try not to use it.
6. I close the lights/TV/computer whenever I’m not using them.
7. I use a cloth bag when i shop and/or reuse the shopping bags I do get for the trash.

#20 Posted by This Random Commenter (April 21 '09 at 12:26 pm )

Love the shirt, it’s so detailed! And I can relate with its theme.
Several green tips I do is washing my clothes and dishes in cold water, unplug electronics when they’re not in use, ride the bus, drink tap water, and canceling junk mail subscriptions that are mailed to my house.

#21 Posted by tiffa34 (April 21 '09 at 01:24 pm )

Great tshirt and interview!

To try and be green I do some of the stuff mentioned above such as changing lights throughout the house to energy efficient ones, taking cloth bags to the supermarket, drinking tap water, and reusing water bottles and zip lock bags. I also use rechargeable batteries, and sometimes buy clothes from op shops.

#22 Posted by Coty (April 21 '09 at 01:27 pm )

These are all so amazing! I’ll compile all of the suggestions into one post before the end of the week!

In the meantime, keep the Green Tips coming for a chance to win this tee!

#23 Posted by elinel (April 21 '09 at 02:12 pm )

Unusual yet effective design. The city outline is so detailed for being that small! And I love that there’s a bunny sitting on top of the giraffe’s head. so cute.

Green tip: If you can’t avoid using plastic bags at the grocery store, then don’t buy garbage bags anymore. Use the plastic grocery bags to dispose of your household waste! You’ll be using less plastic and because they’re smaller than garbage bags and you’ll become more conscious to create less waste because less can fit in the bag! :D

#24 Posted by jedelano (April 21 '09 at 04:42 pm )

Love the design, and props to all you earth friendly folks!
In addition to the mentioned green practices, I ride my bike often. Not only is it relaxing, but I don’t have to feel guilty about wasting gas and whatnot. Luckily, my work is also within a few miles :)

#25 Posted by elenjay (April 21 '09 at 05:29 pm )

congrats!

for my green-ness(: I bring my lunch to school in the plastic grocery bags from the store. I wish I had the reusable ones, but for some reason my father refuses to buy one.

#26 Posted by Liquid (April 21 '09 at 07:35 pm )

WTG!!

I am green in the way I only buy stocks and invest my money on things that were produced in the greenest possible manner. Invest in green, reep the green!!

#27 Posted by ivejustquitsmoking (April 21 '09 at 10:56 pm )

Awesome interview yet again Coty! Congrats Kanzaki :)

I’m green by not smoking and not contributing to air pollution :D

#28 Posted by Coty (April 22 '09 at 12:50 am )

Thanks Marco – I appreciate it! And Im glad you’ve quit smoking, lol!

#29 Posted by joelsabugo (April 22 '09 at 12:59 am )

After I finish frying foods such as fish, pork, and vegetables, I fill up bottles of the excess oils so I can reuse them. Well I don’t do it but my family usually does hah.

#30 Posted by Aubrey Erickson (April 22 '09 at 01:28 am )

Great interview!

I recycle, of course, at home and at work. I also filter my own water, and re-use one bottle for months at a time. At work, we also use our paper shreddings as packing material. :)

#31 Posted by immortalrevenge (April 22 '09 at 08:15 am )

Kanzaki does awesome work!

Immortal Revenge is Going Green by printing on Organic Cotton shirts! Also 90% of our paperwork has gone digital with very little paper.
We also make our own hang tangs from earth friendly hemp and recycled paper.

#32 Posted by Coty Loves Threadless Contest #1 Winner | Coty Gonzales | Glorious Nonsensities of the Random Kind. (April 25 '09 at 12:08 am )

[...] Show Me The Vanilla Sky…Pls!! by Kanzaki Choi. Also, thanks to everyone who checked out the Kanzaki Choi interview and also those that left a “go green tip” in the comments – you guys are greenmazing! You can check out the video below to see how I selected [...]