It’s been over two years since I first reviewed Threads by Ian Marsh, the original unofficial iPhone app for Threadless. Threads was (and still is) a pretty simple and straightforward app. The app allowed you to save wallpaper sized photos of your favorite Threadless designs and even offered links to purchase Threadless within Safari. ♥s Threadless is a brand new iPhone app for the iPhone that does a LOT more than Threads.
♥s Threadless was designed by Threadless mega fan (since 2005 according to his Threadless profile) Hung Truong. He built the app as way to browse the Threadless catalog simply and easily, with full view previews of each T-Shirt design. And he accomplishes this by allowing users to scroll up and down, from the newest to oldest designs. And when I say old I mean old. If you scroll all the way to the bottom, you’ll see some of the earliest Threadless designs printed. Pretty neat! However, I think that there are a few things that Hung can do to improve this functionality. First, to get to the bottom of the Threadless catalog, users must swipe all the way down. This is time consuming and not fun. Why not add jumps to the sidebar so that you can jump (with the tap of the bottom of the sidebar) from the top of the catalog to the bottom without having to swipe a billion times. I guess this would be analogous to how you can jump from letter to letter in the Contacts app without having to swipe through every letter to get to the name that you want. And while you’re at, how about allowing users to tap on the top bar to allow us to shoot straight back up to the top of the catalog. With such a large catoalog of tees, I think this is necessary add to the functionality of the app.
What ♥s Threadless brings new to the table is it’s ability to share your favorite Threadless designs with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. Awesome, I really like this. But here’s a suggestion. Everyone loves Street Team points. Would it be possible for a user to input his or her Street Team information somewhere and then have that information (?streetteam=Username) appended to all outgoing links? This would probably give users of this app an incentive to actually share their favorite designs. I think that would be a damn cool feature.
Like Threads, ♥s Threadless can save your favorite designs as a wallpaper. My only issue is that unlike Threads, it doesn’t save it to size, as in the iPhone screen resolution. So, if you do want to use the saved photo as wallpaper, you’ll get a nasty black border on the top and the bottom of the image which isn’t very sexy at all. If Threads can do it, so can you ♥s Threadless.
The strongest feature of ♥s Threadless is its filter feature. You can filter by category (i.e. animals, abstract, classic, etc.) and by color. Cool. I really dig this feature.
The weakness of both Threads and ♥s Threadless is in actually purchasing Threadless T-Shirts. Like Threads, ♥s Threadless opens up the desired design within Safari when you actually want to buy said design. Since there’s no Threadless API there is probably no getting around. But hey, wouldn’t it be great if we could purchase tees directly within the app.
Lastly, how about an iPad optimized version? If you want nice, big previews while perusing the Threadless catalog -- an iPad version would be perfect.
Why can’t you make the design save full screen, so that it would make for a better iPhone wallpaper (see the Threads example below)?
Cool, but how about allowing us to share the links with our Threadless Street Team information included? So that when they click on the short link it goes to the Threadless link with ?streetteam=Username appended. You could add a Settings menu section to the app and include a field for this information and then have all outgoing links add this Street Team info. Now that would be pretty awesome.
You remember my friend Carlos J. EasyBake, right? He not only makes wonderful baked goods, but is also the purveyor of some damn sexy T-Shirts. Carlos has really been pumping out some awesome stuff with the Oven Fresh Dreams “Collaborate & Dream” Series. Oven Fresh Dreams isn’t a clothing brand per se, but OFD does collaborate with some of the best indie designers. You just need to look at his recent collaborations with Reuben Levi of GRITS Apparel, Nick Automatic and Filipino designer Chad Manzo to see how serious OFD really is. The latest OFD shirt is called Gritty Dreams and was a collaboration between a friend that he made while living in Houston, Texas.
“Levi (GRITS designer & owner) & I have been good friends for several months now. We met through mutual friends while I living in Houston. We instantly gained respect for each other during one of my weekly dinner parties. The “Gritty Dreams” collaboration shows the connection between the New York City & Houston lifestyles. It also symbolizes the bond I made with Levi & Houston. We are both dreamers, who know how to keep it trill & you can too!” – Carlos J. Easybake
The Oven Fresh Dreams X GRITS Apparel tee, Gritty Dreams comes in two colorways. The New York Knicks colorway (top) is available at Oven Fresh Dreams for $20, while the Houston Oilers (bottom) colorway is available over at GRITS Apparel for $25.
Below are two sneak peeks at some upcoming Oven Fresh Dreams pieces. The purple Star Wars / Legend of Zelda mashup was designed by Filipino artist Chad Manzo. Below that, is the second Oven Fresh Dreams X Nick Automatic collaboration tee. I’ve got their first collab tee, and trust me when I say that I want version 2.0.
I’ll keep you guys updated and let you all know when these two go on sale. Keep an eye out! Now, go bake stuff.
Our friends over at Milk & Eggs Co. just released a slew of new T-Shirts that are definitely worth checking out. I actually think this new line is a step up from their last release, which I thought was a bit too “kid-ish” for my taste. Needless to say, I think that Milk & Eggs Co. really do excel with their simple illustrative style, with each shirt telling its own story.
My favorites from this line has got to be 3D Eyes – it’s minimal and a bit haunting. I love it! Walk Like an Egyptian is hilarious. At first I thought that was a turkey on the top of the pharaoh’s head and with its fall colors it would have made for the perfect Thanksgivings T-Shirt.
The new Milk & Eggs Co. T-Shirts are available now and are priced between $20-$22.
Hey T-Shirt fanatics, welcome to my 2010 Holiday Gift Guide series! I feature some of my favorite T-shirt related items and even some things beyond T-shirts that I simply just love and would like to recommend to all of you. If there’s something that you think would fit in this list then please feel free to link to it in the comments! Enjoy and please feel free to share on Twitter using the Hashtag #GiftGuide.
One of my favorite genre of T-Shirt is Typography tees. This genre of tees are often very simplistic and quite minimal, two design qualities that I really dig. Having said that, if you know someone that appreciates good type then one of these featured tees will probably be enough to wet their palate.
1. If I’m recommending type themed tees than I MUST recommend that you checkout out Ugmonk. This is definitely one of my favorite indie brands and am the satisfied owner of a handful of Ugmonk tees. And Then I Woke Up is a classic, but if you’re looking for something new then I’d recommend Better Than I Deserve or It’s About Time. Ugmonk, Price: $24.00 (Use code GIVEBACK at checkout for an extra 15% off your entire order).
2. Geez Louise, this is the newest tee on the Gift Guide. It’s an obvious play on the classic Snellen Eye Chart, but its infused with a lot of subtle Star Wars goodness. Perfect for the font enthusiast with a soft spot for Star Wars. This is Not The Eye Chart You’re Looking For by Threadless, $9.00.
3. You’ve got a New Yorker on your list, who, incidentally is a font snob? Well I’ve got the perfect shirt for you. Destination NYC by Random Objects, Price: $23.00.
4. The phrase “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” is probably ingrained into the minds of every typface designer on planet Earth. The Quick Brown Fox by DADADA Studio, 19 Euro.
5. The black Hello T-Shirt from Budy Carr Skateboards was one of my Favorite T-Shirts of 2009. In 2010, I bought the same T-Shirt in white. I love it so much. The tee runs a bit small so I’d recommend buying one size up. Hello by Buddy Carr Skateboards, Price: $22.00.
BONUS: I’d also recommend that you check out this list of 250 Beautiful Typography T-Shirts from our good friend Andy of Hide Your Arms.
You might also want to consider:
Helvetica is a film that I stumbled upon while perusing Netflix one night. It was such a great watch and quite the eye opener. You don’t realize how much Helvetica is integrated into our lives until you see this film. This is a guaranteed hit present for any Typography fiend. Helvetica [Blu-ray], $25.49.
As a bonus, you could also include the official Helvetica Film T-Shirt, which is available for $$20.00.
Hey. You. Want a sneak peek of the upcoming Fur Face Boy Series 4 collection? Well here you go! Our buddy Ha Mai posted a few photos, albeit blurred out ones, of his soon to be released Series 4 Fur Face Boy T-Shirts. You might recall that Co-Tee TV episodes 70-79 were dedicated to the Fur Face Boy Series 3 line. Needless to say, I’m seriously stoked to see what he has in store with this Series 4.
Based on the photos, I’m guessing that the new line will have around 8-9 new T-Shirts. Maybe a remix if Bearmai? I also extracted images from a high speed GIF that Ha Mai posted over on the Fur Face Boy blog to get a closer look at the new goods.
Fur Face Boy Series 4 releases THIS Saturday at The Public Trust Gallery. If you plan to go then be sure to RSVP. I’m sure that these will also be posted online soon after the offline release.
BIG QUESTION: What do you guys think will be on the Series 4 tees. We all know that Ha Mai loves to infuse his childhood and pop culture into his designs so what do you think he has in store for us with Series 4? Post your thoughts in the comments.
Hey T-Shirt fanatics, welcome to my 2010 Holiday Gift Guide series! I feature some of my favorite T-shirt related items and even some things beyond T-shirts that I simply just love and would like to recommend to all of you. If there’s something that you think would fit in this list then please feel free to link to it in the comments! Enjoy and please feel free to share on Twitter using the Hashtag #GiftGuide.
You could probably best categorize me into two specific sub-categories of geek: 1. science geek, and 2. gadget geek. This gift guide is dedicated to the gadget geek in me and the gadget geek and general nerd on your Christmas shopping list.
1. If the gadget geek in question owns an iPod, iPhone, MacBook Pro, and/or Apple TV then it is highly likely that he/she will LOVE the Steve-In-Sane T-Shirt from Might Tees. Can someone get ME this tee?! Steve-In-Sane by Might Tees, Price: $23.99.
2. The ultimate threat to the dominance of Apple’s iOS is the Android platform. I hate to admit it, but there are a lot of people that love Android. To each their own! [By the way, did you know that this T-Shirt was inspired by a post of mine, yup!] Unstoppable Andy, Price: $19.00.
3. Do you know exaclty what kind of nerd you’re buying for? Not sure? Well, be sure nd get this T-Shirt for the nerd in your life. It’s highly likely that his/her geekdom is featured on this Threadless tee by Riccardo Bucchioni. Know Your Nerds by Threadless, Price: $10.
4. Yep, that’s right. This T-Shirt has a built in inconspicuous spy camera built right into the design of the tee. And now your favorite gadget geek can get his voyeuristic spy side on. Electronic Spy Camera T-Shirt by ThinkGeek, Price: $39.99.
5. There is absolutely nothing that nerds love more than ROBOTS. weRobot from the Chop Shop features 51 of the most iconic robots in pop culture. And even better, it glows in the dark! weRobot by The Chop Shop, Price: $20.00.
6. Gadgets are great, but sometimes, one less unnecessary gadget is even better. That’s why I LOVE Dropbox. With Dropbox, I no longer need or even use flash drives / thumb drives. I keep all of my important files and stuff that I am currently working on synced between multiple computers and it just works perfectly. Dropbox is free up to 2GB, but of course, the tech nerd needs more than that. Dropbox doesn’t offer a gift option but you could always offer to pay for a year worth of Premium Ugrades for a favorite friend. ($99 for a year upgrade of 50 GB).
When it comes to Gadgets, my iPad and my iPhone 4 are my go to tech toys. However, if I had to suggest something for the gadget geek, it would be the Terminal Backpack by DAKINE. I love this backpack because it’s so spacious and fits my 15 inch MacBook Pro perfectly. You’ll be able to fit every single one of you gadgets in hear and then some. Right now, I have some spare ethernet cords, a couple of various adaptor cords for the MacBook, a VGA cable for the iPad, an HDMI cable just in case. My laser pointer and presentation clicker for when I give lectures. And of course, I’ve got my Flip Mino and digital camera in there for those special moments. And then you’ve got lots of room in there for the vintage stuff like pens and paper (not like you’ll need it when you carry around an iPad).
Over a year ago I ditched messenger bags (because of shoulder and back issues) and have been using the Terminal Bag by DAKINE since. It’s a solid bag and a great investment, and easy on the back. Dakine Terminal Pack, Black, Price: $89.95.
Hey T-Shirt fanatics, welcome to my 2010 Holiday Gift Guide series! I feature some of my favorite T-shirt related items and even some things beyond T-shirts that I simply just love and would like to recommend to all of you. If there’s something that you think would fit in this list then please feel free to link to it in the comments! Enjoy and please feel free to share on Twitter using the Hashtag #GiftGuide.
I’m not a big book person, but there are times when I love to just sit back, relax and enjoy a good ol’ book. More recently, I’ve been spending more time reading books using my trusty iPad. Needless to say, if you’ve got a friend or family member that you know loves to read, then infuse some of your T-Shirt passion into their love for books by picking them up one of these amazing gifts.
1. Know someone who is a fan of classic literature? Well, your first stop should be Kafkacotton. They’ve got a bunch of tees that are inspired by the classics, or for some, those books that we were forced to read in middle school. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kafkacotton, Price: $24.00.
2. Chances are that if you’re buying a gift for a T-shirt fanatic, said T-shirt fanatic probably has some knowledge of Threadless. It’s even more likely that they have a closet full of multi-colored Threadless tees (maybe even duplicates of their favorites). And if they do, they’ll definitely love the recently released Threadless 10 Year Anniversary book by company founder Jake Nickell. Threadless: Ten Years of T-shirts from the World’s Most Inspiring Online Design Community by Jake Nickell, Price: $15.
3. Torso presents t-shirts whose motifs not only function as a means of personal communication, but also reflect and increasingly influence the complete spectrum of modern graphic design. As the first book to focus on t-shirts created by the most innovative and style-setting streetwear brands, it is the definitive guide to the t-shirt culture of streetwear. Torso: Streetwear T-Shirt Graphics Exposed by Daniel Eckler, Price: $34.00.
4. Out of Print Clothing celebrates the world’s great stories through fashion. Score a fashionable tee featuring the classic artwork from Catcher in The Rye (one of my personal all-time favorites) as well as a bunch of others. Catcher In The Rye by Out of Print Clothing, Price: $28.00.
5. Tee Library T-Shirts are hard to find online, but if you live in one of the cities that they are available in then you can score your favorite bookworm an amazing book inspired T-Shirt. Tee Library, Prices: Varies.
6. Threadless released a couple of Comics-on Tees T-Shirts. I believe there are three diferent issues that you can grab, with more expected in the future. Threadless Comics-on Tees Series [click T-Shirt below to go to product page], Prices: $10-15.
7. Tees is one of my favorite T-Shirt related books. It’s got an excellent collection of T-Shirts and brand profiles. It’s a must read for any T-Shirt fan. Still not convinced? Read my review here. Tees Special edition: The Art of the T-Shirt by MAKI Design, Price: $36.00.
You might also want to consider:
I can’t get enough of my iPad. It’s always in my backpack. I bring to work. It’s the perfect lunchtime companion. It’s the best couch device ever. And for bookworms, not only will they have access to books in Apple iBookstore, but they will have access to every book available in the Kindle Bookstore. You’ve got the best of both worlds with the Apple iPad. I’m currently reading The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead and loving it (I must add that this is the perfect book for the zombie enthusiast). I use the 64 GB Wifi edition and I absolutely adore it. Apple iPad (64GB, Wifi), Price: Starting at $542 on Amazon.
What would you do if you won $25,000 to to help fun your great idea? Well, luckily Verde Styles doesn’t have to worry about what they’ll do with $25,000 because they came up with a succinct plan that actually won them that exact amount from the Pepsi Refresh Project. Yes, that huge corporation that makes that very popular soft drink that you love to drink gave an independent T-Shirt company $25,000.
So what did CEO and Founder of Verde Styles, Nish Patel, and the rest of the Verde Styles team plan to do with the money? Read on and find out!
Coty: Tell us a little about the Pepsi Refresh Project and how you found out about it.
Nish: I found out about the Pepsi Refresh Project luckily through MTV considering I hardly every watch it. The Pepsi Refresh Project provides grants to individuals, organizations, and businesses to make the world a better place by giving back. The categories of ideas range include health, culture, education, neighborhoods, and the planet. Thanks to our friends and family religiously voting every day, Verde Styles to 8th for The Planet and won a $25,000 grant.
Coty: Why did you think Verde Style was a perfect fit for the Pepsi Refresh Project?
Nish: Verde Styles was founded on the basis of becoming a business with a major social impact. By not only being profitable, but also helping the community at the same time. We make sure all of our products are made ethically and within the United States. Refreshing is a word which I think describes Verde Styles. Our hip and artistic approach to environmental problems is a refreshing outlook in our world today.
Coty: What were some of the ideas/goals that Verde Styles put forth for the Pepsi Refresh Project?
Nish: Verde Styles main goal is to spread awareness about the environment through our tees. With the grant money, we can now travel to other locations around the country to make our nation a “Verde Nation.” Another idea that we can now fund is a “Zero Carbon Footprint” event planned for Earth Day 2011. The event will be powered by energy generated from people pedaling bicycles.
Coty: Some of your ideas are pretty ambitious, like “Host 20 recycling drives around the nation.” Has it been tough trying to accomplish everything you said that you would do?
Nish: As a small company, it is always tough to organize and plan events while taking care of other things. Luckily, we have many of our friends helping us get the job done, from helping us organize recycling drives at college campuses to thinking of new designs for tees and products. We continue to stay ambitious by keeping our website fresh with a new tee every Wednesday along with a fun interactive Blog.
Coty: Verde Styles was awarded a $25,000 grant last August, what’s your progress been like so far?
Nish: We have been working hard to keep the ball rolling. Just this past October, we traveled to West Chester University and University of Pittsburg for two amazing events. Also, we participated in Sustainability Day on Temple University’s campus. For the future, we have started to plan events at music festivals around the country.
Coty: You guys set out to plant 3,000 brand new trees. How close are you to that number?
Nish: After our successful events this past October, we have reached 2000 trees planted. After we have reached our goal, we will continue to plant trees as well as help other causes that Verde Styles believes in.
Thanks again to Nish Patel for stopping by and sharing his story of how Verde Styles was able to accomplish something pretty amazing. For more information on Verde Styles, please visit their website, you can also purchase their T-Shirts there as well!
, $25.49.
, Price: $89.95.
by Jake Nickell, Price: $15.
by Daniel Eckler, Price: $34.00.
by MAKI Design, Price: $36.00.
. I use the 64 GB Wifi edition and I absolutely adore it. 
, Price: Starting at $542 on Amazon.
