retro campaigns review

Kennedy 68. Read - American political (and with the twisting motions of time), pop culture reference. That's cool, I guess... But I am, on last inspection, an Australian, and even though our 'cultures' are becoming ever more indecipherable by the day, I am still left a little cold by this tee. Yeah I saw the footage of his head going pop... Yeah I watched it again zoomed in and on slo-mo, but I am still lacking the vital connection to justify this tee beating others to the privilege of adorning my torso.

ANSWER!!! Re-define and post justify. Just like everything else I do.

I don't know how many of you out there have heard of a little Australian soap called 'Neighbours'... Frankly, It's fucking awful, but it does enjoy a long standing, cult like status. One of the stalwarts of this appalling excuse for a t.v. show is a character called 'Karl Kennedy' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr._Karl_Kennedy). You can see where I'm going with this. So I tell the people I meet who are left equally cold by American politics, that this tee is to commemorate the year Karl Kennedy fell out of a tree at his uncles farm and cut his nut sack on a the barb wire Kangaroo fence. Instant cultural poignancy that justifies me wearing this shirt. This would work equally well, if not better in the UK, because for some unfathomable reason the show is even more popular over there than it is here.

I raise my thoughts on this tee from irrelevant to awesome. I recommend buying it and telling lies.

STATS
Model models: Manly L, American Apparel tee.
Advantages: Great quality tee and print. Good time for politics.
Disadvantages: Works best if you're from the US.
Buy it from: Retro Campaigns
Get out your wallets: US$19.99

art in the age real life review

Out of all the tees we get here at... my living room, this is one of my favourites. The fabric is a really neat sheer/not sheer mixture of tee material (sorry, that's the best explanation I can give, I can't find the damn page that I was reading about the fabric!), and the tee is extra long, sweet.
Get checking out their site for this little baby, and one of my newfound favourites, this-a-one.

STATS
Model models: Girly medium
Advantages: Awesome.
Disadvantages: Boobies make the smokestacks bendy.
Buy it from: Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction
Get out your wallets: US$36

defunkd real life review

Genuine awesomeness from 1984 comes to us from Defunkd, the recently award winning vintage stuff sellers. I was hugely impressed by the quality of this tee given its age. The only giveaway was the yellowed tag... i guess that was the only bit hanging out of the hermetically sealed bag this tee's lived in for the last 23 years. Seriously, it looks brand new.
Anyway, awesome tee, awesome service, and a great range of vintage tees and buying guides to ensure you don't get done when buying vintage.

STATS
Advantages: Real, proper vintage.
Disadvantages: The tag's a bit yellow.
Buy it from: Defunkd
Get out your wallets: US$49.00

electrobug real life review

Well... It's a mechanical bug. I may have missed something. Some other meaning. It's quite pretty. Pretty enough anyway. The simple fact of the matter is that amongst the phalanx of T-shirts in my possession, this one gets a frequent wearing. It's not extraordinary or hilarious, but in ordinary life it's a very good shirt. I wear it to meetings. Though that says more about me than the shirt. So the best thing you can say about any shirt in the long run is that it gets worn out rather than eaten away by the darkness and moths at the bottom of the pile.

STATS
Advantages: Quality everyday fare.
Disadvantages: Scares Entomophobic Luddites.
Buy it from: SharpShirter
Get out your wallets: US$22
In stock: man: S-XL lady: S-L
Model models: Man L

the ryde fish real life review

I have to be honest and say I didn't get this shirt at first. When the Funky duds site mistress handed it over to me, she neglected to tell me where it was from. My first assumption was that it was a Brazilian born again Christian pro euphemism shirt. Oh dear... But if meant ironically, funny enough.

But when the mistress informed me that it was from the surfing themed theryde.com, I could only presume that the imaged mackrel on the shirt is in fact stoned and has delusions of religious grandeur. Much better.

STATS
Advantages: Bright!
Disadvantages: Bright...
Buy it from: The Ryde
Get out your wallets: US$24
In stock: man: S-XL lady: S-XL
Model models: Mannish L

bleed the scene real life review

Let's be upfront about this... I have a propensity toward the dark. Not necessarily macabre, but the dark. Nothing makes the joy more joyful than a seething underbelly of discontent and angst. I listen to a lot of Radiohead... it makes me happy, I'm not a Goths or anything :)

Firstly, this shirt IS pretty. No doubt about that. I hang around with mostly designer types, and this shirt always pulls a positive reaction. Pulling a reaction in any case is impressive because face it, though they are designer arty types, they are still Australians, and getting any more than a grunt and a tipping of the stubby out of them is a challenge.

Secondly is the interaction and ultimate glory of embruing confusion amongst others. They are all like "Wow, that's nice! What does it say? What does it mean?", And I'm all like "It's about wanting to die, and the words are messages of terminal discontent with one's existence". Their faces then drop, or contort with a sense of non-comprehension. Then I'm all like "Cool huh?", smile and go on with my day, just a little happier than I was.

Thirdly, It has a Casper the friendly ghost/dinosaur mashup monster saying "Poop on me". Cool...

Verdict: Certainly our cup of tee.

STATS
Advantages: Nifty super-fine print on a well fitting Alstyle tee.
Disadvantages: None, brother.
Buy it from: Bleed the Scene
Get out your wallets: £10 SALE!
Model models: Manly L
Review by: Thomp

keep calm and carry on review

There is nothing I like more than a good concept tee. Yay Verily! I feel lost without a concept. All like 'It's a picture of a ninja, like whatever'.

Anyway, the tee. The design is based on a poster from the British Ministry for Propaganda. If you are going to pick a source...

Any way, the afore mentioned ministry released this exact design on a poster, as a message from King George VI to ease the nerves of the British people at the start of WWII. So wonderfully British. I like telling people the story. Even when they don't ask. Even when they don't want to know. Only one person has thought it was a commentary on gay rights.

So next time the Hun lay waste to your homeland, take your gender non-specific partner firmly by the correct parts and remember to keep calm and carry on.

STATS
Advantages: Made of good Tshirt
Disadvantages: Keep calming to sleep.
Buy it from: Keep Calm and Carry On
Get out your wallets: £20.00
In stock: man: S-XL lady: S-XL
Model models: Manly L

umpqua real life review

This tee from SubUrbanRiot gets the thumbs-up from us, fits great, looks great, and may or may not attract lightning during storms. Plus it comes with a handy book of matches so you can burn it if you're not 100% happy. So the moral of the story is go and buy one/something else in their shop now.

STATS
Advantages: Great quality
Disadvantages: Can't think of any
Buy it from: SubUrbanRiot
Get out your wallets: US$32
In stock: lady: XS-L
Model models: Lady M

good at magic review

I love this tee. Maybe because I work in an industry where the producer takes all the credit. (Umm if my producer reads this... it's all a dream, go back to sleep...) So I love the tee and I love the little "Peek-a-Belly" anecdote printed on the inside, but seriously, the ladies tee is too short. And a little oddly shaped for my liking. But having said that, I'm a weird shape so the rest of you humans will probably find it quite satisfactory. I'll just wack a tank on underneath my balloon and be on my merry way.

STATS
Advantages: Nifty concept. Also check out 'Off the Wall' for some good lookin' goodness.
Disadvantages: It done don't fits me right.
Buy it from: Good At Magic
Get out your wallets: £21
In stock: man: S-L lady: S-M
Model models: Lady M

skellington real life review

"ROCKIN ROLLS!". Now I don't know if it was only an Australian ad campaign. It was for 'pocket pizzas' or something and it had Spinal Tap in it. It was funny, and re-introduced Spinal tap to a new generation, as well as microwavable pocket pizza things.
ANYWAY, the T-shirt. I completely love the concept behind how these guys work. Using designs from shirts people have worn in movies and printing them in real life! SO COOL! This one was of course worn by Nigel from Spinal Tap. He had it with the sleeves cut off as I recall, but compromises must be made.
It is a good quality shirt and the printing front and back is real pretty. It also gets lots of funny comments from people (especially when you work in an office) and you feel super cool when you tell people where the design comes from. ROCKIN' ROLL!

STATS
Advantages: Nice shirt, nice story. Nice.
Disadvantages: Old and conservative types tend to avoid you.
Buy it from: Found Item Clothing
Get out your wallets: US$21.95
In stock: man: S-2XL
Model models: Man L
Reviewed by: ThomP

eio jebus real life review

Word up to Jesus. Not because I necessarily "believe" in him as such, but making a celebrity endorsement is a big move. He could have gone for Coke, or Jeep or even Nike would seem strangely appropriate. Word up to Jesus for picking EIO.

The problem is this... No body gets it. I was a little worried test driving this shirt in the real world, but I thought "It's funny, they'll get it". Alas, they didn't. I wore this to where I work in a large design practise and they didn't get it. I'm afraid that it has put a dent in my reputation as an avid Post-Structural, Existential, Darwinian Evolutionist. I feel ignorant having put my faith in the capacity of others to get stuff. Bugger...

The shirt however, was nice and soft, the graphic has a cool distressed half tone thing going on and it generally looks neat.

STATS
Advantages: It's nice to work for god.
Disadvantages: Atheists need not apply.
Buy it from: Eio Clothing
Get out your wallets: £25.00
In stock: man: M-XL
Model models: Man L
Review by: ThomP

without pockets real life review

I giggle every time I catch sight of myself in a reflection or mirror. I go to the toilet 5 times more often so I can wash my hands in front of the mirror and giggle. I had to start washing my hands... This shirt is brilliant because it falls solidly into the category of the 'in joke'. For those who don't get it, this is a take off of a Joy Division album cover. For those who don't know who Joy Division are, go and die. Harsh!

That said, they don't actually mention anything about it being a take off of the afore mentioned album cover. I really hope it is a take off... If not it is a SCARILY close peice of design (apart from the ducks). Lets hope they didn't mention it in avoidance of copyright laws and not as an unfortunate case of subliminally inspired design.

It fits great, wears great, washes great, keeps colour and smells super even in the nastier smelling section of the kipper shed.

STATS
Advantages: All round good-osity
Disadvantages: God hates the 70's. Shirt may attract smiting.
Buy it from: Without Pockets
Get out your wallets: AU$35
In stock: man: All lady: All
Model models: Man L
Reviewed by: ThomP

spamshirt real life review

As the kids at SpamShirt say, "spam gets right on your tits'. They mean it literally. Great idea for a tee shop, fills a nice niche that I wasn't aware actually existed until now. Basically you can choose from a huge number of popular and hideously annoying spam messages, choose your colour scheme, give them some money and wait till your tee arrives.
On the quality front, this tee's great, the material is quite heavy for a normal tee, it's more like a ummm heavy-tee. The cut is also a little different from your usual AA, I'd suggest checking the sizing chart before you purchase. The print is also different than your usual screened tees, it feels more like a transfer of some kind - but don't freak out, it's not your usual peely, crappy transfer. The print is actually very well wearing and doesn't seem to crack or peel after several washes. I wouldn't want a picture printed in this stuff, but they're selling words, not pictures and for words it's perfect.

STATS
Advantages: Gets the attention.
Disadvantages: Kinda heavy material.
Buy it from: SpamShirt
Get out your wallets: €29
Model models: Ladies M

Additional: Karmaloop is having a spiffy coupon deal atta moment;
Code: MISSYA
Spend: $50 or more and get free shipping & 20% off your entire order!! (International customers get $5 off on shipping instead of free shipping)

amtrea real life review

Tck Tck Tck Tsssshhhhhhhhh Tck Tck Tck Tsssshhhhhhhhh. How much do I fuggin love this tee. It makes me turn into a bit of a tard. I walk around telling people how cool it is. HOW GOOD IS IT! I love a simple good idea. Simple - good - fuggin! Tck Tck Tck Tsssshhhhhhhhh.

On the boring side, this tee is classic Fruit of the Loom (50/50 Best T) quality, it washes well without shrinking or losing colour. The guys at Amtrea were great and postage was fast like the wind. I always appreciate a company who has their own tag/logo print... tends to show quality commitment (funnily enough, this rule often doesn't apply to tees with company logos printed on the outside). In conclusion, Amtrea tees are highly recommended for your buying convenience.

Review by: Test Monkey #5

STATS
Advantages: Reminds me of the happy Primary School oval times.
Disadvantages: Never with the ladies sizes.
Buy it from: Amtrea
Get out your wallets: US$18
In stock: man: S-XL
Model models: Men's L

vintage vantage real life review 2

TITS! I have a new corroborative noun for things that exceed my expectations of wonderment! Tits. In my opinion this tee is sweet as tits! It is fully Tits as! It sorts the clever from the dumb and the humoured from the less humour endowed. If anyone asks me "what is an acronym?", they are instantly no-longer my friend. EASY!

This shirt doesn't get many outright comments, but an extraordinary amount of smiles, giggles, and knowing nods. The shirt is of typically high 'Vantagesoft' quality and the print is equally good. I am a big fan of the Vintage Vantage crew in all arenas at present (I'm creeping myself out), and they seem to be able to do no wrong. High quality, superfast postage (faster than jungle monkey post), and fully furnished with fully sick design - both shirt and website.

Review by shirt test monkey #5.

STATS
Advantages: Just about everything!
Disadvantages: Wear it often enough to be accused of not washing my clothes.
Buy it from: Vintage Vantage
Get out your wallets: US$22.50
In stock: lady: all man: all
Model models: Men's L

dephect real life review

Now I'm not really into the kids' hippidy-hoppity music, nor the clothing that oft comes with it, but from hippidy-hoppity stores can come good things.
Enter 'Monster Toy' from Dephect.
This tee imitates Japanese toy packaging to great effect. It's a great fitting tee and washes well, the only small gripe I have is that the sleeves are a slightly different colour to the torso. It's really not very noticeable as you can see in the pic, but there if you're looking for problems.
Anyway, all in all a nifty tee that arrived quickly with some shiny stickers, which makes me happy.
If you're checking out the site, have a look at the new Zombie Monkeys tees, pretty nifty.

STATS
Advantages: Gotta love Japanese references
Disadvantages: Nothin' really!
Buy it from: Dephect Clothing
Get out your wallets: £26
In stock: man: S, XL
Model models: Men's L

nerdy shirts real life review

Welcome to our latest RLR in which we'll discuss 'Nostalgia' from Nerdy Shirts. Well, we won't be discussing it, I'll just be tellin'.
Anyways, here we have us another Olly Moss special which some have called 'the ultimate shirt'. I must disagree and counter that Olly Moss' 'Ultimate Shirt' is in fact the ultimate shirt, though this one comes ga-damn close.
Being of American Apparel stock, the tee washes well and fits like a moose for your body. A body moose.
What's not to like about this great tee? Well the two separate colours are hard to discern but that's not really an issue, just saying, is all.
While you're over at Nerdy Shirts check out another of my favourites 'Bauer Power' and keep your eyes peeled for Olly's newest addition coming soon... it's a beauty.
STATS
Advantages: Olly Moss is my hero.
Disadvantages: Everyone keeps asking whether the little company logo on the back is a sticker.
Buy it from: Nerdy Shirts
Get out your wallets: US$20
In stock: lady: S-L man: S-XL
Model models: Ladies M

80s tees real life review

When will I stop with the 80s tees? Never I tells you, never. This little beauty from 80s tees is from Junkfood so it's soft as soft can be, and as always, Junkfood tees wash well without shrinkage and are a great fit. I'm loving the huge distressed print (see, I'm down with the kids) and the tops choice of colours. This is a particular favourite because it's not just a MLP on a tee, someone's actually used their brain and designed it. Sizes are in 'Juniors' which we don't actually have where I'm from. I've thought about it and have decided that the phenomenon of 'Juniors' must mean that everyone in the world should be skinny like famous people.

STATS
Advantages: Soooo cute.
Disadvantages: Sizings
Buy it from: 80s tees
Get out your wallets: US$26
In stock: lady: Jr S-XL
Model models: Junior L

t-shirt hell real life review

Ahh T-Shirt Hell. How I love you but how I hate myself for it. The particular tee that we're road-testing today (as Don Burke would put it) is actually found in 'Baby Hell', the kids section. No, our model isn't a midget or freaky man-child - you can get Baby Hell tees in big people's sizes too. Actually, you'll find that most tees in T-Shirt Hell come in every cut/size/colour you could wish for, without the reduction in quality that you might find on other sites with similar choices (which shall remain nameless).
The tee itself is great quality, fits perfectly and washes without shrinking.
My personal opinion is that the design is a little clunky, but it's not an opinion shared by anyone else it would seem!
This is the most commented upon tee that our road-tester has worn. Comments ranged from, 'that's grose', to, 'that is the coolest fucking t-shirt I have ever seen'.
STATS
Advantages: Attracts people of a joyfully twisted disposition.
Disadvantages: Some people don't have a sense of humour.
Buy it from: T-Shirt Hell (Baby Hell section)
Get out your wallets: US$18
Model models: Men's L

vintage vantage real life review

Vintage Vantage is the love of my life and now that they've sent me t-shirts we're going to be best friends forever. I have absolutely nothing bad to say about this tee. At first I thought it was a teense tight, but after a wear it's perfect.
Shipping was super-fast and customer service was spiffing. I've never met them but they seem like people I'd like to hang about with at a pub on a Sunday evening.
Wearing their 'VantageSoft' fabric is like rubbing angels against your naked body. It's similar to JunkFood, but 100% cotton so your pores should be throwing a pore-party in your honour if you buy this tee.
During said tee wearage, I had several strangers come and talk to me. One spoke about how society is becoming humourless, the supermarket checkout guy told me all about his collection of offensive t-shirts, and others just thought I was hot I guess. Two separate people commented that it 'should have a baby eating a dingo on it, that'd be way funnier,' but people are dumb.
STATS
Advantages: Great for picking up.
Disadvantages: Made me like wearing yellow tees. Now there's a whole new world out there for my credit card to explore.
Buy it from: Vintage Vantage
Get out your wallets: US$22.50
In stock: lady: XS-L man: S-XXL
Model models: Ladies M