Dragon Slayer

Dragon Slayer from Dream On Dreamer

Yeah I know I have said before that I don't generally do band tees, but like the Miss May I "Slime Burger" recently, this is just too good not to show. The artwork is just fantastic, with an incredible amount of detail in the illustration work. It manages to take a heavy metal cliche to a whole new level.

Monster In The Closet

Monster in the Closet by Efrem Palacios

There is a big blue monster in the closet and he is going to eat you. Um, well he will if you are a baked tasty treat. The Cookie Monster is real and lurks in closets, attacking little biscuits that don't know how to protect themselves by hiding under the blankets.

Sevenly

Sevenly

I am doing something a bit different today. I am writing about a tshirt site instead of showcasing a particular tee. There is good reason though, it is for charity. A lot of charities suffer from a lack of awareness and funding. It is a classic catch 22 situation that without one you can't get the other. Right there is where the genius of Sevenly comes in. Each week they release a new tee design. Seven dollars from each shirt sold goes to the charity. Beyond the much needed cash donation the charities also get exposure across multiple sites and social networks, giving them more followers. So click through, check out the tee on offer this week and learn about the charity. Do your bit.

Enfys Zombie

Enfys Zombie from Sacred Stitches

Sexy zombie - Duh winning. I am totally in love with this tee. Everything about it in fact. From the gorgeous artwork to the faded, vintage look of the print. It is just so refreshing in a world dominate by vector style evil male zombies. I just want one.

Spirit Dreams

Spirit Dreams from Qetza

There are a lot of tees out there with Native American inspired imagery yet this one really stands out from the pack. The incredible amount of detail in the artwork is just staggering, inviting you closer to take another look. You will keep seeing more things you missed. I think the use of blue ink is inspired. It looks like one of those incredible biro illustrations you see occasionally on the net and I really like that. It would be like walking around with a masterpiece on your chest.

Chucker

Chucker from Electric Zombie

Totally tubular dude. Yes Michelangelo has been re-imagined. No not the painter, the mutant turtle. Radical. I really like how the artist has brought his own style to this. It is simultaneously unique and yet instantly recognizable as the pop culture icon. Duality at its finest.

Ch-ch-ch-changes!

Ch-ch-ch-changes! by krisvahl

At one time or another we have all had to deal with fussy clients / bosses. Those beasts that always want it done better, faster, differently, their way. Impossible to deal with. You know what I am talking about.

Bountiful Booty

Bountiful Booty from Immortal Revenge

Sexy woman pirate - check. Overflowing teasure chest - check. Skull - check. Ship in peril - check. So what is missing - the ability to buy it. Sadly this awesome tee is sold out so you can just go ahead and add it to the denial files. Hopefully they will reprint it.

Silly Nameless Terror

Silly Nameless Terror from 6 Dollar Shirts

What a mash up. H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu drawn as Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse. You could go reading a lot into this as there are a lot of wild stories about Walt circulating the net. Everything from him beating up children to being a Nazi. I prefer to look at it as a bit of tongue in cheek fun and for just 6 bucks you can't go wrong.

Poseidon

Poseidon from Protest The Hero

The Greek God of the sea has never looked this good. The illustration work is just amazing. In fact I was so blown away I went surfing the net to find out more about it. This is the work of the legendary Dan Mumford, a name well known to those in the t shirt world. I don't know how I hadn't come across this one before but I am certainly glad I found it. I actually found a larger picture where you could see the details better but now I can't find it again, sorry.

Voyages Extraordinaires

Voyages Extraordinaires by Luke Drozd

I just realised that I have not posted a denial for some time. Luckily I had this one tucked away ready to be dragged back into the limelight. Originally it was sold on Teefury way back in 2009. I really like the playfulness of this as Vernes writing was the same way. A perfect match.

Threadless Tees After Multiple Washes

Threadless Tshirts

A lot of people I talk to tell me that they won't buy tees online because they just don't know what type of quality they will receive. That is understandable. You don't want to go throwing away your hard earned on junk and we have all heard horror stories.

I thought it would be interesting to show people some shirts that have been washed multiple times so I went and dragged a couple of clean ones out under the camera for you. These are both from Threadless and I purchased them last year. Not too sure of the exact dates but they have both been around for a while.

My tees don't exactly get pampered. They are washed in the machine then either chucked in the drier or hung up. I don't have an outside washing line so they are hung up inside. This means mine will not be as faded as those that are hung out in the sun. I am not sure how many times these have been washed (I wasn't keeping count) but it is at least 30 times each. (conservative estimate)

As you can see these are both a bit faded but I like that. It gives them a nice vintage look. You can see the things that people worry about like cracking, peeling etc just have not happened.

The best piece of advice I can give you if you are thinking of purchasing tees online for the first time is to stick to big well known stores. Many independent brands use well known printers for their apparel so you are safe there as well. You can easily do some research. You are likely to run into trouble on sites like Ebay and similar. As a general rule of thumb if the brand does not have its own website you need to be a little careful. The exception to this are the large competition sites like Threadless, Teefury, Designs By Humans etc. or the POD (print on demand) sites like zazzle, redbubble etc. Many designers / artists use these type of sites when starting out. These are large sites with good reputations that stand by their products.

I hope this has helped you. Now all you have to do is choose which shirts you want out of the millions available.

Death

Death by Edgar R. McCherly

It is so refreshing to see the Grim Reaper portrayed in such a cartoonish manner, yet this tee goes so much further than that. In this culture death has become something to be feared. It has become a taboo subject that we don't talk to our children about which in turn leads to the self reciprocating cycle. The fact is death is a part of life. I really like how that has been illustrated here. Even though the body is scared and trying to hold on, the spirit is very happy to be free.

Slime Burger

Slime Burger from Miss May I

I don't usually get into band tees but this is just too good not to share. With an obesity epidemic all around us we all know junk food is bad for you. Cheap food made from god only knows what, swimming in fat and turning us into mindless zombies ready for our next salty, greasy, delicious........... damn it I want a burger. NOW. I am out of here.

Deep Dive

Deep Dive by Studio8Worx

At first glance I thought this was just a mess of splatters but then I noticed the man. While somebody diving into water has been done many times before the unusual use of colors help keep this fresh. To me it also has a dream like quality. What I like most though is the shapes and lines in the background that hint at buildings and really add a sense of depth.

Grizzly Grunt

Grizzly Grunt by krisvahl

War is hard to bear. Ok excuse the bad pun but I just couldn't resist. Now look at the tee. War, grimace, cigar - yet it is still cute. This could be Darwins theory of evolution at work. Is it possible that multiple generations growing up with teddy bears has changed our perceptions? Then again it could have something to do with the color purple.

I Knifed a Noob

I Knifed a Noob from J!NX

"I knifed a noob and I liked it, Snuck up and then just mouseclicked. I knifed a noob just to try it, I've got the best K/D don't you deny it."

If Music Be The Food Of Love

If Music Be The Food Of Love from Artis Opus

When I first saw this tee the only thing I could say was Oh - as in my God. This is just mind blowingly good. A bit of detective work revealed that the artwork is by Christopher Lovell. Even better I found a large picture so you can really check it out. This is available in both mens and womens sizes but I can't guarantee how long it will be around. Get one now while you can.

Done With Problems

Done With Problems by Mathiole

There are a lot of space theme shirts out there but they all tend to be either skulls in spacesuits or complete sci fi. This is a breath of fresh air with a parody of the famous "Houston we have a problem" line. Stating that you are done with problems while holding a white flag would seem to be giving up but the peace sign gives it a new perspective. It is if the astronaut has given up on Earth and now that he is in space has no problems.

Lady Fox

Lady Fox by Arindra Prakoso

At first glance this tee reminded me of RED as they both feature girls wearing canine heads as hats. That is as far as the similarities go though. Instead of relying on a well known fairy tale this forges its own path and tells a whole new story. I really like the way the amazing illustration work is contrasted by the messy watercolor style splashes extending right out of the picture up onto the shoulder. It ads an unexpected sense of danger and movement.

Blue Horde

Blue Horde from 604Republic

The zombie apocalypse has reached the Smurf village and is wreaking havoc. Only two are left unaffected. Luckily Smurfette is one of them so if they survive they can repopulate. I am not sure who the other one is but I am hoping it is Brawny so he can kick some zombie ass.

Master Of Disguise

Master Of Disguise by WanderingBert

We all know about the chameleons ability to change color to blend in with its surroundings. This is the first time I thought about the fact that they are the original masters of disguise though. You just can't help but smile when you look at this tee.

Atlas

Corelia Exclusive from Venus Fallen

While this tee is inspired by the story of Atlas the artwork is quite different to the norm. The usual images show Atlas holding up a round Earth, which is wrong. When the story was written people believed that the world was flat. I really like this tee for the fact that they have portrayed it that way yet given it a modern, mystical feel with the colorful nebulae as a background. It is like a clash of old and new.

Don't Drink Or Drive

Amish - Don't Drink Or Drive by strk3

I hope you are all enjoying your Easter break and don't have to work like me. This whole thing has got me thinking though about the problems associated with getting home after a big night. It seems the simplest way would be to copy the Amish and neither drink nor drive. Ummmm, yeah right. We all know that is not going to happen.

I Love Rock N' Roll

I Love Rock N' Roll by Wirdou

It is Easter and I didn't want to post a themed shirt because that is what everyone else is doing. I like to be different. The fact is I know most of you get a long break so I expect you to get out there and party - hard. Rock on peeps and have a wild weekend.

Expansion

Expansion by a.mar.illo

I have seen quite a few images where cities stick out all around the earth, usually photo manipulations. I originally thought this tee was in the same vein. A closer look reveals something quite different though. A lot of the towers look organic, sort of like giant anthills. There are lots of shapes flying off the planet and a good look reveals a fair amount of them have unhappy faces. My interpretation is that it is the opposite of what is happening on Earth. Here the organic towers are taking over, forcing all the manmade type things out.

Self Worth

Self Worth by ryan6424

At first glance I thought this was just a tee with a print of internal organs on it, but noticing the writing I clicked through to check it out. I am so glad I did. Apart from the impressive illustration work what really blew me away is the concept. This takes the idea of self worth literally by pricing the organs. It is very cool in a conceptual albiet creepy way

Rock On!

Rock On! by Qimstudio

This tee is for the denial files. It has been up for voting for quite some time on Qwertee yet has been completely overlooked. That saddens me as it reminds me of the movie The Big Lebrowski. The dude may abide but he can't own this.

Build Robots Today!

Build Robots Today! from Sneaky Store

Right now we need robot propaganda. The human race has been scared by such movies as Terminator and The Matrix where things go horribly wrong. It is time to face facts though. When an advanced race of aliens attack us we are going to need robots as well as heroes like Will Smith and Bruce Willis. We can use the robots as an expendable army instead of humans dying.

Chalkboard Tshirts

The Chalkboard Tee

If you are looking for something completely different have a look at these chalkboard tees. Yes you draw onto them with chalk then proudly wear your art around. The chalkboards are available in a wide variety of shapes which is really cool. Not just for kids these beauties come in adult sizes as well. I can see these being a hit for birthdays, hens nights etc.