More Fun

Thanks to all who entered the Facebook fan celebration giveaway! You sure made me smile, and I learned a lot about you in the record-setting 82 entries. Based on my review of  your entries, I’ve deduced that you are…

Sweet:  “I like crafty family time” (Group crafting = awesome.)

Sentimental: “I like our home, Earth” (Amen to that.)

Irreverent: “I like finger puppets and pie” (Both great things!)

Enthusiastic: “I like penguins!!!!” (‘Nuff said.)

Funny: “I like long walks on the beach and bubble baths” (You had me at ‘I like’.)

More funny: “I like reading. It makes me samrt” (Wicked smaht!)

Celebratory: “I like my new haircut” (Congrats, Dana, on a new ‘do!)

Adventurous: “I like finding tees at Goodwill!” (The thrill of the hunt!)

Playful: “I like pretending to be a T-Rex *roarrrrrrr*” (That’s actually a game my sister and I used to play — T-Rex on bikes!)

Mischievous:  “I like cutting up my boyfriend’s t-shirts to make them mine” (“Oh, that T-shirt?…haven’t seen it.”)

And more! Judging from the chocolate, cookies, and cheesecake you like, you have a sweet tooth. And you’re also into exercise: from kickboxing, to dance,  to soccer, to Zumba. You also like pets: there’s a gerbil named Richard Gere among you as well as a cat named Pickles. You like both peace and quiet and metal music. And you’re crafty, too. You know what? You guys sound like FUN!

What you don’t like is following directions (five words or less, people! ;)) but I forgive you this minor rebellion because your collective enthusiasm is just so darn charming.

Well, that was a long drum-roll, but our winner, chosen at random from a hat (literally, a hat) is…HEATHER DIODATI! Congratulations, Heather (stay tuned for a separate email from me soon so we can arrange the delivery of your prize).

Thanks again, friends — more giveaways to come! In the meantime, let’s aim for 2,000 likes! Cheers, and have a great weekend.

Last August, I visited the West Side Garage Store in Grand Rapids, Michigan to host not one, not two, but three  T-shirt refashioning workshops in one day! It was such amazing fun for everyone involved that they’re doing it again (with two workshop sessions) to celebrate their two-year anniversary. And though I can’t be there in person this time, Generation T will be there in spirit with book giveaways and  goody bag surprises.

So if you’re in the Grand Rapids area, reserve your spot for this Saturday!

The Generation T community is rapidly growing! On a quiet Thursday afternoon last week–June 3, to be exact–Generation T hit an exciting milestone on Facebook. All you scissor-happy folks who “like” Generation T have reached one thousand strong!

To celebrate, I’m giving away one Generation T “A T-shirt is a Terrible Thing to Waste” T-shirt (size L) along with a pair of Generation T scissors to a lucky fan. Just leave a comment telling me in 5 words or less (short and sweet!) what else you like. Your dog? Your new shoes? The weather today? Your newest “I made it myself!” moment? We’ll choose a winner at random end of day Thursday.

In the meantime, here’s to you all, and thanks to each one of you for being a liker, not a fighter. Keep spreading the T-shirt love like!

cheers,

Megan & Generation T

T-shirt art comes in many forms. Sometimes a canvas to screenprint, sometimes a raw material to cut and slash, sometimes a medium to appreciate in mass quantity. New York artist Derick Melander collects already worn clothing (including T-shirts, of course) and uniformly folds and stacks the garments to create Andy Goldsworthy-an sculpture.

Like Goldsworthy, Melander uses materials already existing in the landscape around him–he uses his hands to fold the discarded textiles and thus carve and cultivate our secondhand landscape. From floor-to-ceiling towers (I wonder how much floor-to-ceiling space my current collection takes up!), to blended color studies in columns. In one, parts of the shirts even appear to drip, as paint would.

The crisp folds imposed upon an inherently soft material give  new architecture to garments otherwise cherished for their flexibility. On the other hand, folded clothing is not an uncommon — it’s a process we go through every time we do the laundry!– and yet Melander’s interpretation makes the subject and process far less ordinary.

Watch the video below to get “into the fold” and learn how Melander puts one of these sculptures together. From Melander’s website: “This [particular] event, hosted by the Office of Recycling Outreach and Education, was part of the 5th Annual Green Brooklyn…Green City Fair and Symposium at Brooklyn Borough Hall and Columbus Park.” The 5′ by 7′ sculpture was made using (gulp!) 3615 pounds of recycled clothing, which represents the amount of textile waste that is thrown away every five minutes in New York City.

Into The Fold, Brooklyn Borough Hall from Derick Melander on Vimeo.

Generation T reader Ashley, who’s always looking for ways to “reuse things, save money, and still look like a rockstar,” turns to both books for inspiration.  Well, we think the photo here is significant proof of the rockstar bit! The project featured here is made from one of her husband’s castoffs. Ashley painted embellishments onto it–starting with the red lips and then branching out to the red highlights for the gray lady–before slashing the fabric and lacing up the side to make something new and fabulous! And, of course, who can’t help but love the no-sew glovelets as accessories!

From T-shirt oddities to T-shirt perfection. According to the calendar,  it’s been spring since March 20, but now that the weather says so, too (after a few false starts), we can officially celebrate T-shirt season! And while Generation T is all about T-shirt transforming/refashioning/upcycling/surgery and general reuse of materials that you already have, we can also totally get behind that oh-so-rare gem: the perfect T-shirt. There is most certainly a T-shirt or two in my closet that has come to achieve that level of well-worn perfection and flawless fit–and I wouldn’t think of tarnishing that perfection with a pair of scissors. There’s the thrifted turquoise T-shirt from the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas (that I picked up at a Goodwill in Honolulu); the soft, white hand-me-down Alternative Apparel tee from my sister; or the American Apparel V-neck that, I admit, I bought in two colors–they fit me really well and go with oh-so-many other items in my closet. So what’s your favorite basic T-shirt? Here are some of this season’s best according to and courtesy of Jane Flanagan over at the Readymade blogs:

Top row: Joie Soft Rowena Top from Shopbop / Tissue mini-pocket tee from J. Crew / American Vintage Thin Jersey Short Sleeve Tee from Revolve / S/S crew neck tee from LnA

Bottom row: Organic V-Neck from Alternative Apparel / Kain Pocket Tee from Revolve / James Perse Short Sleeve Relaxed Casual V Neck Tee from Shopbop / The Echo Park Heather Burnout Deep V-Neck from Alternative Apparel

Images via Readymade.

T-shirt designers are awfully clever. When it comes to “painting” their canvases, the results can be sweet, funny, and just plain jaw-dropping. Here are some amazing works of T-shirt ingenuity that we’ve been amused by in recent weeks.

First, some camouflage for when you’re trying to get lost in the urban jungle:

Below is a T-shirt promoting the movie Resident Evil–but I could definitely see some other brilliant non-zombie possibilities for this T-shirt format as well.

Below, the string is actually part of the T-shirt, and the blinds can be raised and lowered by pulling on it! Brilliant.

This one promoting healthy hair growth just makes me smile. I wonder if it comes in blond, brunette, and red hair options! And what about curly and wavy?

Child’s arm becomes elephant trunk. Too cute! I’ve seen variations in which the child’s head replaces the head of an animal printed on the shirt, but in this adaptation, the T-shirt does double-duty as a toy.

The perfect T-shirt showcases any number of perfect accessories. Roller skates, sunglasses–both?

We covered the Chalkboard Tees by Class Attire when they were at Renegade San Francisco last year and I bought a butterfly one for my niece. And yes, they come in adult sizes, too!

So which T-shirt’s your favorite? Have any other good ones to share?

Via Quirky Jessi via 10works.

There’s something in the water over at Workman Publishing (my book publisher): Something that’s causing lots of spring baby bumps! And all the baby bumps mean lots of April showers–baby showers, that is. Workman designer Jen Browning (who actually designed the interior of Generation T: Beyond Fashion, which is awesome) was getting ready to attend her colleague’s baby shower (Barbie, right, is due mid-May) when she thought appropriately, what can I bring make? The gift was a joint effort: fellow designer Rae Ann made the suggestion that they make a gift from the Kid Rock chapter in Generation T: Beyond Fashion, while Jen executed the project–the no-sew Baby Back Bib, project #53, made from an absolutely perfect pink lobster tee! Well done, Jen and Rae Ann!