Attn. Spreadshirt Shoppers, Part 2

Just wanted to give an update on the digital design production delay at Spreadshirt. They've been working around the clock and even added a second printing setup - it seems like they've got things running fairly smoothly again over there!

Triple Feature from New Artist, Taikuodo

Introducing yet another new artist, Taikuodo (aka Andrew). Here's a quick pick - triple feature - power preview of three of his designs! Hehe.


Guinea Pig On Drugs
OK, I'll admit that this is my favorite of all Taikuodo's designs. I laughed so hard when I saw it!
Great concept. Great execution. Totally hilarious shirt.
'Nuff said.





Learn to Fly
This design stood out to me since I'm working on one that is a slightly similar idea. I think Andrew had the Foo Fighters in mind when he came up with this one. This is a really fun one to play with in the t-shirt designer - lots of great color combos to mess around with.





Love Machine
I love "Love Machine" because I'm a sucker for the triple 7's - my husband and I were married on 7-7-07 (more for the religious reference to the number). This design is a really cute take on traditional lucky 7 and slot designs. I'm curious as to whether the man is the artist himself?

Grab these shirts in the Insan Art Store, go make your own (under borrowed designs) or visit Taikuodo's whole collection here: http://kuoindustries.vze.com/

Attention Spreadshirt Shoppers!

I just wanted to let all Spreadshirt shoppers know that due to a high volume of summer t-shirt sales, Spreadshirt is FAR behind in the production process of all digital printed orders!

What to do if you've placed an order with a digital print:
Please be patient! All customers whose orders are effected should have received an email warning them of the delay. This email initially said it would be a delay of about 4 days, but that delay has grown to about 10 days! (I believe the email no longer states a specific time period) Regardless, your order will be produced as soon as possible! Spreadshirt wants to not only get all orders out, but make sure they're all printed properly as well.

What to do if you're looking to do some shopping at Spreadshirt right now:
Please, keep on buying our products at Spreadshirt!!! To ensure that there is no delay in your order at this time, we suggest sticking to ordering only plot printed items (vector graphics) as these are being produced in the proper amount of time. Not sure which type of graphic you're ordering? On each product detail page, whether in the Spreadshirt marketplace or in a shop, you'll see where it says "print type" in the details section: you're looking for something that says "flock" or "flex" print. Anything that contains the word "digital" will be delayed.

So, keep on shopping, buy lots of vector graphics (which are better than digital anyways!) and stay tuned. I'll post again when the digital design production at Spreadshirt is back to normal!

Thanks! Happy Summer Shopping!

MjrProductions Quick Pick!

Hey Everyone! Those of you who have been reading (and I thank you for sticking with me) know that this time of year is extremely busy for me. But, that doesn't mean there aren't any shirts to feature!! So, in an extra effort to get 'em out on time, I'm going to start doing some more multi-design features and quick picks...

... since MjrProductions is up next in the feature queue, I thought I'd talk about the rest of his really great vintage advertisement designs (you may remember I posted the first one a few months ago here). I loved the first design so much that I decided to feature some of the other vintage ads he's got:

MacNiven & Cameron
Vintage ad from the 1890's. Not sure what they're selling, but it's "Sold Everywhere" and a wise old owl watches over the commerce atop his neat, 4-way street sign (one of the signs does say "pens"). I'll bug Mjr about getting a better image of this design.

"REX" Tailor-Made Shirt
I think this is probably my favorite of the 3 (although, it could have something to do with the fact that I put it on my favorite style shirt...). It's a vintage ad from the 1890's and reads, "Proper Fit Guaranteed" & "Special Orders in Four Days". Lol, sounds like Spreadshirt. Again, need to bug Mjr for a better picture of the design because I really would like to know what the guy is putting up to his face - a pipe perhaps?







Ransomes Lawn Mowers
"Ransomes Lawn Mowers, the Best in the World!" This is a vintage ad from 1910. Mjr says that it was a "firm in my home town of Ipswich, UK". That's one hell of a funky looking lawn mower. They advertise both hand AND motor powered mowers.

So, if you're into vintage advertising, one of these shirts might be for you! Check them all out in our featured guest designs section at the Insan Art Store or go ahead and make your own shirt with our design your own t-shirt shop (to find these designs, please choose "grabbed designs" under the menu where it says "top graphics").

Summer Fun from new designers...

The blog is definitely due for a Summer feature and what better time than now to introduce 3 of our new featured designers? Here's a quick peek at our newest designers and a hot summer design from each...
- Summer: Everybody Loves the Sunshine by birdy27

Birdy27 (aka veggie27) is the master of slogan designs. I promised I would squeeze some in and check it out Veg, it didn't take me long! This summer design (which is available with multiple phrases), when paired with the chocolate ringer totally screams vintage. I think it just might be the 70's again every time I see it! The simplicity of the overall design and beautiful tri-color use evoke fond memories of classic iron-on designs.






- Sundown by lucentdesign

Although it's not a vector, I had to pick this one up - Sundown from lucentdesign. I love Japanese art and this design is a really nice twist on the good ol' "rising sun" motif, plus slap in the wings and you've got one hell of a modernization of traditional Japanese styling.
PS lucent, vector this puppy ASAP. It is such a nice design, I hate to see it ruined with digital printing.




- Bikini Girl by undrcentr23

Grab this Bikini Girl design by undrcentr23 and you can have a hot girl in a bikini ON YOU all day long. HA! But, seriously, this shirt is almost an instant beach classic, just add shorts, flip-flops and some shades and get ready for fun in the sun! To be completely honest, open this one up in the t-shirt designer (under "grabbed designs") and play with the colors - the design looks so neat depending on what color shirt it's on. Though I'm not usually into the orange and blue retro ringer, I absolutely adore it with this design - you can match the design blue color to the shirt, and the orange color shows through as hair - she's a fiesty redhead!!

So go ahead, grab one (or all) of these shirts in the Insan Art Store or make your own!

My APOLOGIES (the continuing Skateboard Mural Saga)

I know - this isn't t-shirts, but I feel the need to discuss it!

First I must apologize to all my readers, subscribers and featured shopkeepers/designers for such a long delay in new posts here on the blog. I've been sooooo busy!

Second, I'd like to thank Jill Nickerson (and her husband Shane, whom the project was for) for commissioning such a demanding piece!

The Blossburg Skateboard Mural - AYE! What a hell of a project! When Jill first came to me with the commission, I figured it to be about a 50-60 hour maximum project (in painting). Well, 50-60 hours painting turned into about 200 hours (I think, not sure, stopped counting after 150). This is not counting the time I spent prepping the boards - they were blank maple skateboard decks with varnish that had to be sanded, taped and primed before painting.

The first problem (not SO much a problem) came with the extensive detail in my own damn design. Areas I was painting that I figured to take a few hours turned into 3-5 times as much work. Again, this wasn't so much a problem, just a huge effort to actually get the work done and make sure it was quality work. I certainly could've done the same work in half the time, but it would've sucked, and I don't work that way.

The second (and major/real) problem came next. I finished the painting around 4am last Friday (June 20th). I REJOICED and let it sit for about 20 hours. Then I started to seal it - I planned to use a two-part liquid fiberglass resin, commonly used for car and boat repair, but it works very nicely as a SUPER DURABLE sealant. So, never having used this stuff on a piece so large, I set out by mixing a small batch and coating the first board. The first batch got me all the way through to the third board, but when I was about to finish the bottom portion, the resin started to seize up. It had felt stiff since the beginning so I figured, "Hey, I can smooth on another few inches, right?" Wrong. The bottom of board three, which you can kind of see in the detail photo to the right (the "O" board), has some chunks that I just couldn't smooth out.

I figured that my first batch of resin was mixed too "hot" (too much hardener), so I checked my measurements and made sure to mix the second batch with the proper amount (and stir it GOOD). However, the second boards, to me, turned out worse than the rest ('cept for chunky letter "O"). There are some really nasty chunky spots (I've circled the most visible in the top photo, mostly on board "U"), but there are multiple spots that, even after the resin had dried, bubbled up the next day as a storm and high humidity rolled through.

So, that's pretty much where I'm at with the skateboard mural. I've gone and talked to the Nickersons, hoping they understand my woes (and they do as far as I can tell - they are extremely great folks). I do feel absolutely horrible about the whole thing though because I was supposed to have this done for Shane's birthday, nearly 2 weeks ago!

AGAIN, I apologize to everyone who has been reading! I promise, there are are more posts to come with designs from myself and our current featured designers, as well as a few new designers coming soon!

Thank you for reading! AND, if you have any similar experience working with the kind of fiberglass resin I'm using (I believe it was actually the "Bondo" brand), I would appreciate any advice!! Just leave a comment.

ON VACATION (from the blog)

OK. So, not really on vacation from anything, but rather hella busy on other projects this week. I've spent about 70 hours this week painting a mural on skateboards (yes, skateboards - it'll be on the Insan Art Blog soon...). My painting/typing hand is CRAMPED and my ankles are swollen from standing for so long in my 100 degree studio!

Needless to say, yesterday and today were spent lounging with a frosty one (or 2 or 3) in my local swimming hole.

No worries. I'll be back next week with new designs to feature! FYI though, summer is very busy for me, so if my posts become (even more) intermittent, then you know why.

2x the Twisted Pleasure from Shivtees

If there's one thing I love about the designs from Shivtees, it's got to be the consistent theme of twisted sarcasm (I also dig the fact that ALL the designs maintain a very distinct style that is simple yet hugely professional!).

This first design from Shivtees is called "Gingerbread Cannibalism". The name alone is pretty catching. The design itself is SO simple, but has an extremely funny and hardy message. The gingerbread men make this shirt work for Christmas, but the sarcastic tone makes it a no-brainer for t-shirt loving jokesters to wear year-round.

This next design is "Freedom from Prehistoric Oil". I'm always looking for well-executed, environmentally-conscious designs, so this one stood out. However, I think that this design is perhaps a step above the rest of Shivtees' designs. The style is consistent with the rest of Shiv's designs, but rather than simply a play on words, Shiv takes this one and makes it a sarcastic view on a very real, very timely problem. As a design in the environmental genre, "Freedom from Prehistoric Oil" is SO timely and SO original that it stands out miles ahead of the rest of the "Earth Day" pack.

Catch one of these tees at the Insan Art Store or make your own!

Animal Double Feature by Aspa Shirts

Well, first I must apologize for missing yet ANOTHER week - I had totally meant to do a vacation post, but my lack of time got the best of me!

Of course, Aspa noticed I was gone - that's funny, Aspa is next up on the design feature queue!

So, my apologies for the wait and to make up for it, here's a double feature from Aspa Shirts.

First is the "Red Dragon" design (which I've changed to the green dragon since that's my favorite color). It was neat to see the development of this one - Aspa had posted several incarnations of it to the Spreadshirt Forum, knocking around different ideas and colors, while playing with the design requirements. I honestly love the wings - very batty! The fire is designed nicely too, giving it a very rich, dimensional feeling.

Next is "Crocodile" which comes in two versions: a "full" colored one (on the white shirt) and a "simple" colored one (on the tan shirt). Both designs are 3 colors, but the latter has much more of a minimalist feel.

I meant to ask about this, but the design immediately makes me think of the "Lacoste" alligator (or is it a crocodile?).

Both these designs are perfect for your favorite animal (or mythical creature) lover! Check them out at the Insan Art Store and as always, if you don't like what you see, you can make your own!

the Squid Shop Re-Launch by Insan Art

This may be old news since I re-launched it a week or so ago, but the The Squid Shop is all new and available at www.thesquidshop.com!!!

There is an all new section for photos of people wearing their shirts and hats (and I haven't received any yet!) - for a limited time, I'm offering a free lightweight mens or womens t-shirt with the Squid Shop graphic of your choice to the first person that sends me a photo of themselves (or someone else) wearing one of my Booty Hunter hats while hanging out the window of a broken down car (like Early in the show intro). See the "show off" section of the site for details.

Also new is the "beyond the hats" section. It contains designs inspired by the show, but not from an Early hat. Designs available include the "Sharif Badge" (sheriff star for those who spell correctly) and the "Git Yer Yankee Ass Off My Property" slogan.

AND, IMPORTANT NEWS!!! - Spreadshirt is finally offering white flex-fit baseball caps starting May 30th so in the beginning of June, look for hats available in the Squid Shop!

Get on over to the all new Squid Shop and get yourself some spankin' new squid gear (or make your own!).