I ♥ T-Shirts: Forbidden Island

Comfortable, practical, and these days the only accessory you need to make a statement, it's hard to imagine a world without the ubiquitous T-shirt. I ♥ T-Shirts takes a subjective approach to this modern fashion phenomenon with each post dealing with a favorite shirt.

Shirt: Forbidden Island
Designer: Tiki Diablo (the tiki on the back), Martin Cate (lettering), Hanford Lemoore (boards, tiki torches and flames)
Price: ???
Purchased: Gift from the Forbidden Island staff
Status: Top of the stack!

Waaaaaaaaaaaaay back in November (seems like ages ago now) while tiki road trippin' through California, I had the pleasure of mingling and drinking a few times at Forbidden Island, a fine little Polynesian-themed bar in the East Bay town of Alameda. In a show of aloha spirit, the folks there were kind enough to slide a free FI T-shirt my way. Mahalo! It's a comfortable Hanes "Tagless 6.1" (whatever that means), and I wear it often. There's a big ass tiki on the back of the shirt (an image based upon an actual carving in the bar). The graphics on the front are pretty awesome too. I love the crossed tiki torches and wonky letters. I'm not sure if you can order the shirts online (click here for the FI website) but that's all the more reason to visit one of the San Francisco Bay area's coolest bars.
























Interested in contributing a review of a favourite T-shirt or perhaps sending along a sample Tee to be reviewed? Click here to access my email address. Then, send an email with a brief description of your idea/product along with any relevant online links.

I ♥ T-Shirts is sponsored by Chongolio's Lost-Isle.

I ♥ T-Shirts: SLAYER (31DoHM07)

Comfortable, practical, and these days the only accessory you need to make a statement, it's hard to imagine a world without the ubiquitous T-shirt. I ♥ T-Shirts takes a subjective approach to this modern fashion phenomenon with each post dealing with a favorite shirt. In this Halloween-related post, I blog about one of my favourite "in a mood" T-shirts.

Shirt: Slayer
Designer: ??
Price: Under $5
Purchased: 2007 on eBay
Status: I wear it when I'm in a "mood"

No deep story behind this T-shirt. It was simply an impulse buy on eBay one night when a song by Slayer (a long standing favourite band of mine) came up on my iTunes shuffle. The tee's image of a human skeleton with swords forming some sort of monster skull is ridiculous yet menacing and reminds me of just the sort of bad movies and good books I delved into as a kid. Indeed, ever since I was twelve, I've been drawn to graphics accompanying Slayer merchandise. Back then, my mom would have probably burned any such T-shirt and by the time of my later teen years, I was way too cool to be seen in such garb. Perhaps the purchase of this shirt was a symptom of a mild form of not-quite-mid-life-crisis? A moment of Death Metal Peter Pan-ic?

Whatever my convoluted motives, I particularly enjoy watching for any passer-by reactions when I wear my Slayer T-shirt with, say, something along the lines of my Barbour jacket. When the mood's right, nothing beats having a Slayer T-shirt stowed away to add a pinch of grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr to my day.

Photography by BlasFamous © 2007

Interested in contributing a review of a favourite T-shirt or perhaps sending along a sample T to be reviewed? Click here to access my email address. Then, send an email with a brief description of your idea/product along with any relevant online links.

I ♥ T-Shirts is sponsored by Chongolio's Lost-Isle.

Happy 31 Days of Halloween Madness from Tiki Chris

I ♥ T-Shirts: Hukilau 2007

Comfortable, practical, and these days the only accessory you need to make a statement, it's hard to imagine a world without the ubiquitous T-shirt. I ♥ T-Shirts takes a subjective approach to this modern fashion phenomenon with each post dealing with a favorite shirt. In this post, I take a look back a fun Tee I picked up at this year's Hukilau in Ft Lauderdale.

Shirt: Hukilau 2007
Designer: Kevin Kidney
Price: $20
Purchased: June 2007 at the Hukilau in Ft Lauderdale, Florida
Status: Still has that "new car" smell

Back in June, I had the good fortune of attending the 2007 Hukilau, "a celebration of midcentury Polynesian Pop splendor at the historic Mai-Kai in Ft Lauderdale, Florida" (click here for more Hukilau posts). Needless to say I had a fantastic time. While there, I also did a little shopping, picking up an official Hukilau T-shirt along with the rest of my plunder.

According to its accompanying tag, this "vintage soft" brown shirt made by Alternative Apparel, is "printed with water based inks to become more uniquely yours after each wash." It features Hukilau logo artist Kevin Kidney's phenomenal artwork. Kidney is perhaps best known for his work with Jody Daily designing more than 200 items to mark the 50th Anniversary of Disneyland. Kidney's Hukilau design is especially neato with its contemporary yet "could have been made decades ago" feel.


The 2007 Hukilau T-shirt is a cool little souvenir that quickly became a prominent standby when I needed something comfortable to wear these past few months, adding some much needed Florida sunshine to a more dreary than usual English summer.

Once home in London, I found that when I wore my Hukilau T-shirt I possessed super Tiki powers! Photography by Emiana © 2007

Interested in contributing a review of a favourite T-shirt or perhaps sending along a sample T to be reviewed? Click here to access my email address. Then, send an email with a brief description of your idea/product along with any relevant online links.

I ♥ T-Shirts is sponsored by Chongolio's Lost-Isle.

I ♥ T-Shirts: Tiki Racer

Comfortable, practical, and these days the only accessory you need to make a statement, it's hard to imagine a world without the ubiquitous T-shirt. I ♥ T-Shirts takes a subjective approach to this modern fashion phenomenon with each post dealing with a favorite shirt.

Shirt: Tiki Racer
Designer: Tiki Racer
Price: £24.80
Purchased: Gift from artist
Status: I wear it once every couple of weeks

With last month's Artist Profile of Tiki Racer, I thought it a perfect opportunity to write about a Tee that I truly love and often wear: the official Tiki Racer T-shirt! This sturdy black 215 gram combed cotton shirt fits well - and to be all cotton has shrunk very little in the several months that I've owned it. I love the vinyl cut design of the little helmeted Tiki dude holding a steering wheel. And using the Tiki's eyes as racing goggles is a very clever idea. The strip of mysterious Tiki Racer icons on the back of the shirt is cool as well. I especially like the cute, wonky skull.

To be honest, I usually place this T-shirt at the bottom of any stack of clean shirts because I'm so apt to choose it over most of the others. That trick usually works ... until I start rummaging around for something to keep the hum-drum ordinariness of daily life in check. Then, this Tee races right back to the top of the heap!

Click here to visit the Tiki Racer Gift Shop and get your own official Tiki Racer T-shirt!
























Interested in contributing a review of a favourite T-shirt or perhaps sending along a sample Tee to be reviewed? Click here to access my email address. Then, send an email with a brief description of your idea/product along with any relevant online links.

I ♥ T-Shirts is sponsored by Chongolio's Lost-Isle.

I ♥ T-Shirts: Up With Blimps

Comfortable, practical, and these days the only accessory you need to make a statement, it's hard to imagine a world without the ubiquitous T-shirt. I ♥ T-Shirts takes a subjective approach to this modern fashion phenomenon with each post dealing with a favorite shirt. Our latest T-Shirt post is provided couresty of Jen Cwiok. Thanks Jen!

Shirt: Up With Blimps
Designer: Rachel Carns
Price: $15
Purchased: A few years back on buyolympia.com
Status: Still goin' strong!

A few years back, I was newly broken-up and I had a lot of time on my hands. To mend my broken heart, I engaged in a good deal of Internet shopping. CDs, books, accessories, and T-shirts were being delivered to my address at a furious pace and dare I say a void was filled. Out of all of my frivolous purchases during that tumultuous time, my favorite is my "Up With Blimps" T-shirt.

The "Up With Blimps" T-shirt immediately attracted my attention just for the immeasurable hilarity of the words "Up With Blimps." The T-shirt was designed by Olympia, Washington based artist, Rachel Carns. I became familiar with Carns’ work through her bands Kicking Giant and The Need. Her unconventional drumming style (standing up) and her bizarre artwork that appeared on The Need’s album covers made me a diehard fan.I found the "Up With Blimps" T-shirt on the website buyolympia.com, an online market for Olympia-based artists to sell their wares.

I have yet to see another hipster sporting the "Up With Blimps" design, which makes me feel like I’ve got something special. To see more of Carns’ work, check out her website LUX.

Jen Cwiok is a librarian living in New York City. She administers a little blog she likes to call Chive Talk.

Interested in contributing a review of a favourite T-shirt or perhaps sending along a sample to be reviewed? Click here to access my email address. Then, send an email with a brief description of your idea/product along with any relevant online links.

I ♥ T-Shirts is sponsored by Chongolio's Lost-Isle.

I ♥ T-Shirts: The Tall Ship Moai

Comfortable, practical, and these days the only accessory you need to make a statement, it's hard to imagine a world without the ubiquitous T-shirt. I ♥ T-Shirts takes a subjective approach to this modern fashion phenomenon with each post dealing with a favorite shirt.

Shirt: The Tall Ship Moai
Designer: The tag disappeared months ago
Price: I don't remember but approximately US$25
Purchased: January 2006 at Mataveri International Airport (Hanga Roa, Rapa Nui)
Status: Still goin' strong!

Last month's I ♥ T-Shirts post was about a well-worn souvenir from Spain that I begrudgingly retired in Chile at the end of 2005. That shirt, the Toro Sombra, was soon replaced by a new fave, which I picked up on the second leg of that Chilean trip. After a week in mainland Chile, Emiana and I jetted over to Rapa Nui (aka Easter Island) for the rest of our adventure. With that visit, a life long dream had been realized. In fact, that trip moved me so much that I wrote a book about the experience and started a news blog about Rapa Nui.

Among the more-than-usual number of souvenirs that I purchased in Rapa Nui, I picked up a very cool T-shirt. I got the shirt on our last day while waiting at the airport for our flight back to Santiago. I remember being so incredibly bummed about having to leave the island. I was antsy as we waited to board our flight. I paced from one souvenir shop to another, buying a few tchotchkes here and there in a feeble attempt to hold onto my island time a little longer. While shopping, my attention was drawn to a white graphic on a navy T-shirt hanging from the ceiling of one of the shops. The image depicted one of the island's more unique moai, one with a rudimentary drawing of a European tall ship carved onto it's belly. The bold image of the stoic statue was framed by Rongorongo script, Rapa Nui's bizarre hieroglyphic text that has yet to be conclusively deciphered.

Does the carving of the tall ship mark the moment of European contact? Was it an act of graffiti or made with the sanction of whomever made such decisions?

These were the questions I asked myself when I saw the actual statue in situ at the island's Rano Raraku quarry. These same questions returned to the fore of my thoughts when I spotted the shirt. Whenever I see it stacked in my closet among my other shirts, I remember those questions and the wonder of that mysterious island. Luckily, it's super comfy and pretty durable because I'm apt to choose it over most of my other T-shirts. It's fun to go about my day, wearing a bit of mystery while holding onto my island time just a little longer.

Photography by Emiana © 2007

Interested in contributing a review of a favourite T-shirt or perhaps sending along a sample T to be reviewed? Click here to access my email address. Then, send an email with a brief description of your idea/product along with any relevant online links.

I ♥ T-Shirts is sponsored by Chongolio's Lost-Isle.

I ♥ T-Shirts: Toro Sombra

Comfortable, practical, and these days the only accessory you need to make a statement, it's hard to imagine a world without the ubiquitous T-shirt. I ♥ T-Shirts takes a subjective approach to this modern fashion phenomenon with each post dealing with a favorite shirt.

Shirt: Toro Sombra
Designer: Aldo Cruz
Price: Around 15€
Purchased: Tourist shop in Sevilla, Spain during Semana Santa 2002
Status: Retired

If you spent any real amount of time with me from April 2002 until the end of 2005, there's a good chance you got to know this shirt all too well. It was just so damn cool and light that I wore it all the time. Of course when I purchased it, I wasn't thinking about how comfy - and durable - this stone-washed cotton shirt would be. In fact, I wasn't even looking for a T-shirt at all (I certainly didn't need one).

Designed by Aldo Cruz, "Toro Sombra" features a stylized bull, with black body and white horns and eyes, casting a long shadow. At once, it sums up the traditionally perceived image of Andalusia (big ass bull in the full-on sun) while retaining the fun, youthful edge of contemporary Spanish design. Such a strong, iconic and simple graphic on the shirt's fire-red background stood out amid a sea of shirts and souvenirs on one of the more touristy streets of Sevilla during Semana Santa, catching my attention and cinching the sell. And, for the next four years, the shirt served as a glad reminder of a fascinating time in a gorgeous city. It also saw more than its far share of wear and tear as I always threw it in my bag when heading out of town. I retired "Toro sombra" at the end of December 2006, after a week's worth of hiking and exploring with Emiana in Chile's Altiplano (see below).

Interested in contributing a review of a favourite T-shirt or perhaps sending along a sample T to be reviewed? Click here to access my email address. Then, send an email with a brief description of your idea/product along with any relevant online links.

I ♥ T-Shirts is sponsored by Chongolio's Lost-Isle.