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I’m a picker. I’m a grinner. I’m a lover and I’m a sinner. These days, so many of us need to be so many things to so many people. What originated with the Model/Actress/Waitress career description has now gone global. Most people come with a cum: architect-cum-DJ, Judge-cum-fisherman, brand installation fabricators-cum-ironic T-Shirt designer.
The former is what Badcock Apparel owner and designer Seth Harris did with his brand of badass t-shirts. Seth kicked off his artistic success with a booming installation business creating concepts and building enormous, artistic communities for many major brands, casinos, even theme parks. If you’ve ever been in an American mall at a Hollister store amongst the plastic palm fronds and thick teak floorings (which house in-store huts with perfectly waxed up surf boards lounging lazily as if just ridden by a young, blonde Z-Boy) then you’ve seen Seth’s work. I guess being around so many t-shirts inspired him to make his own.
And make he did. Badcock Apparel is like the t-shirt you had in high school that is so soft and perfectly worn that you can’t part with it. The uni-sex(y) brand is part on trend fashion and part ironic bad boy-girl smart-ass that only the likes of Chelsea Handler could pull off. Plunging necklines for the ladies with dirty bird quotes like ‘I love (insert image of male rooster here)’ and ‘eye-candy’ come in vintage wash colors of heather grey and periwinkle blue. Of course, they’ve been featured in Playboy and on everyone from Adrian Grenier to America Ferrara. Like I said, the smarty pants celeb set rocks these sexy shirts.
Which got me thinking about what line of tees I would print up. Several years ago, I was the co-host to old school Rap Star, Moni Love on a daily music television show in New York City. I often wore my own Do-It-Yourself t-shirts deconstructed from a Salvation Army tee and then mashed together with safety pins and spray paint. Fans took notice and I launched the ‘Sooki Sooki’ line that I sold on consignment in Brooklyn and Los Feliz boutiques. Kelly Osbourne took a liking and my life as a Celebrity Stylist was born.
Utilizing the same entrepreneurial spirit of the Fake It ‘Til You Make It mantra, getting a line off the ground and on to hipsters everywhere or whatever your target demo is as easy as 1,2,3. Truly, in three steps you can be a Model/Scientist/Teacher-cum-T-Shirt Designer. The first step is finding your base tee. Are you going for a super soft American Apparel blank tee? While it is a perfect fit, it could be a bit pricey if you’re planning on making more than a baker’s dozen. For a beginner line, a three pack of V-neck cotton Hanes from Target or your local pharmacy will do. The next step is choosing what should go on the tee. Are you of an ironic nature or fancy a graphic? Once you decide, a Staples or Office Depot will supply an iron-on paper that you can print gfx or words of the dirty and or political and or nostalgic and or useless variety. You’ve got shirt!
On to the last step – getting your clothing line into stores. If you’re anywhere near a hipster urban stomping ground like a Brooklyn or Portland, you’ll no doubt find a weekend Flea to rent out space and sell, sell, sell your new collection to the masses. Another option is to get online and sell on Etsy or even eBay. The former is a fantastic site dedicated to D-I-Y goods and gives wannabe and successful artists a shot at selling in an online store. The perfect place to test the waters on your t-shirt line. And if your attempt at retail domination doesn’t go anywhere except the back of your dresser drawer, at least you can say ‘all I got was this lousy t-shrt’.
