t-shirt

This post, and this whole new exciting side to 3stylelife has been a year and a half in the making.

In May 2008, I opened my first website (fashionablemathematician). The point was to start talking online about two things; fashion and mathematics. Looking back, I was deluding myself; diluting my ambitions by tacking mathematics on to that. I was afraid of what people would think if I started a fashion website; if a legitimate goal of mine was to design and sell clothes. So I hedged my bets.

In August 2008, I opened this site, with a slightly greater focus on fashion (the site has since gone essentially all personal thoughts and fashion since then, as evidenced by the two categories of posts). And yet again; designing and selling clothes wasn’t an appropriate goal for me. I was too academic for that. Thus, I spun my wheels some more; doing interesting, but not dreamworthy, work looking at fashion philosophy and science (stuff that won’t drop from my repertoire). Once again, I shaped my dreams to what I thought other people would find acceptable. I shaped my dreams to what was appropriate. This is doomed to failure.

Thus, after many false starts, many lies to myself, and much procrastination; it’s quite a glorious thing to be here; on the cusp of releasing my first shirt.

Finally, I dropped the shields and decided to just start walking.

People underestimate just how hard it is to take that first step towards your aspirations, dreams, or goals. In my case; it took almost 2 years. School, life, work, strangers, even family and friends may seem to stand in your way. Even when you recognize that it’s happening, it can debilitate you. (Note that the linked post was written 11 months ago).

I don’t know exactly what got me over the wall, what got me started. Perhaps it was some dissatisfaction with my current existence, perhaps it was an internal clock beginning to tick. All I know is that it feels right.

To everyone reading; if you haven’t really, truly, begun to pursue your most basic dreams: start walking. If you have begun: keep walking.

My first shirt design (available here!) was born from this message. I hope that it will help someone out there take that first step. Future designs probably won’t be as dramatic, but it felt important to start with this.

Finally, I know with certainty that having a friend in the same position has helped immensely. If it helps; tell me what your first steps are going to be. Tell me what your dream is. We can all get where we want to go, if we help each other take the first step.

-Barry

This article is an example, method, technique or idea related to my concept of microdesign. If you’re new here, or want a refresher, read my article on the basis of microdesign.

I’ve mentioned the theoretical idea of doing cutaway shirts a few times here. To remind everyone, a cutaway shirt is simply a shirt in which the design is cut out of the shirt, leaving a “negative” of the desired image. The cutaway shirt is then worn over a second shirt of contrasting color to produce the image.

Cutaway shirts are excellent examples of microdesign. If we simply add design to a blank shirt, we get a 1 for 1 deal; we can no longer use the blank shirt, but we get a new shirt, one with a design on it. On the other hand, a cutaway shirt takes advantage of the required combination with another shirt. This leaves the wearer a significant design choice; what color to make the design image. Further, we get a much better trade! If you own ten t-shirts which can be worn beneath the cutaway, you get ten new designs, for the cost of one blank shirt, a much more efficient change.

Yesterday, I made my first attempts at creating a cutaway shirt, which I’ll detail here. I learned a lot along the way that will make my next project more effective, but I’m still pleased with the result.

All photos can also be found at my Flickr site.

What you need:
A t-shirt you don’t mind cutting up.
A pair of scissors
Chalk
(optional) A Ruler

Where to get supplies:
Again, you’ll probably be using a relatively cheap shirt, either a free one with a lame design, or a solid color basic, like you can pick up at Target or Old Navy.

The other supplies can be found at a standard office supply store or drugstore. Surprisingly, you don’t need extraordinarily powerful scissors, standard fare will do, so don’t spend too much on that either.

Method (with pictures!)

Our goal is simple, to cut out a simple image from our t-shirt to create a negative image. We begin by laying out our shirt (a purple Old Navy basic) on the desk (table, floor, workspace):

I think that it’s prudent at this point to use your ruler to mark a center point for the design. This will ensure your design is centered both left-to-right, and up-and-down. Be especially careful centering horizontally, as this is more noticeable if done incorrectly.

After this, the ruler can be helpful in drawing the design. Using chalk for the design makes it easy to wash any excess lines off. Today, we’re going to be cutting out a plus symbol:

The most difficult part is starting the first cut. I recommend pinching the fabric (make sure you only get the top layer) in the center of the design, then forcing one blade of the scissors through, making a small hole. Doing this in the center of the design ensures that this cut won’t be visible in the final product.

After this point, insert the bottom blade underneath the fabric as close to the hinge of the scissor as possible, and then cut with short, controlled strokes. This makes it easy to cut through the fabric and maintain straight lines:

One quick tip is to anchor the shirt so that the fabric remains taut, which I’ve done here in my desk drawer:

When cutting any corners, try to slide the bottom edge of the blade out through the previous cut as pictured below. This will make sure that no extra fabric gets cut:

After all the cutting is done, check the results and then throw it on over another shirt (remember, you can try many different colors to attain different designs). Here is the plus symbol shown through a graphic tee:

And there we have it, a simple example of microdesign that all of you can do! One problem I had with this particular attempt is that the bottom corners are not supported by anything, and thus sometimes fall down. If you plan any designs which will have any unsupported regions, you might need to apply tape when wearing them. I’ll likely do another case of cutaway microdesign as I learn more about the process and work out the kinks, but you can start right now!

-Barry

I recently came across an excellent design tutorial video while investigating some techniques for microdesign.

Kat Von D put together a very clear tutorial on how to cut a t-shirt in her personal style. The video is clearly geared towards women, but the techniques she presents should be useful to anyone. It’s always impressive what you can accomplish with just a pair of scissors and some creativity.

I appreciated that the method of tying strips together in the back makes it possible to transform shirts which are far too large into wearable pieces (this is often useful for free t-shirts, so ubiquitous at college). The fact that the fit can be adjusted, and that the back patterning can be modified between wearing is a nice microdesign element, even though the garments are irrevocably altered.

This work by a very creative women is highly recommended.

-Barry

This article is an example, method, technique or idea related to my concept of microdesign. If you’re new here, or want a refresher, read my article on the basis of microdesign.

Have you heard of Megan Nicolay? You probably don’t know her name off the top of your head, unless you’ve been studying the world of microdesign and “fashion hacking.” Megan is the brainchild behind the book Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-Shirt, which as the title suggests, describes a large number of ways to modify a T-shirt for fashion purposes.

The book has clear instructions, and a wide range of complexities, from simple microdesigns to full-scale sewing projects. Because of this, I recommend it for the microdesigner of any experience level. At the very least, you’ll learn something new, or a new way to do something.

Even better than the specific ideas (some ofwhich, admittedly, can be found in a number of other sewing and craft books) is the ideal taken by Nicolay. She firmly drives the reader towards involvement in their own clothing, and being a part of what they wear, being creative and constructive. It fits in perfectly with the microdesign concept.

Megan really lives this stuff; it wasn’t just a book project to make money. Check out her involvement in a convention on “fashion hacking” held in Istanbul showcased on Current TV.

I’m sure you’ll be seeing ideas inspired by the book in the future, and I hope to see more of Megan Nicolay’s work in the future.

-Barry

This article is an example, method, technique or idea related to my concept of microdesign. If you’re new here, or want a refresher, read my article on the basis of microdesign.

It’s fitting that my first practical post here in some time (with actual pictures!) is going to be a remix/rehash of one of my first posts at my first blog. It represents my first personal excursion into microdesign.

My materials were simple, as were my methods. Thus, this project (which can be repeated hundreds of times over) should be appropriate for even the newest microdesigners.

We’re going to be designing personalized graphic tees beginning with standard solid color tees and sharpie (or other permanent) markers.

What you need:
(at least) 1 t-shirt
(at least) 1 sharpie marker

I recommend you have a flat surface to work on, and a ruler may be useful.

Where to get supplies:

I wouldn’t spend much money on the t-shirt, you can get a solid basic tee from Target, Old Navy, or your local department store. Online you can get them cheap as well (I recommend ordering a few to cut down on shipping costs).

Sharpies are also pretty easy to find, at Staples, Office Depot, or your local drugstore. Online is good as well, especially if you’re looking for variety. I particularly like the metallic selections.

Method

1. Come up with an image or design you want to put on your shirt.
   —
   This may very well be the hardest part, since there are so many cool designs out there! How could you choose! If you’ve got a mental block, think simple; objects, logos, geometric designs, and text are all easy design classes appropriate for the graphic tee.Try to keep your design simple and uncluttered. The sharpie markers have naturally thick lines, so you’re not going to recreate something like this, but you could do something like this without much trouble.
2. Lay your shirt on a flat surface and smooth out the wrinkles.
   —
   This will make it easier to write on with the sharpie, which tends to pull at and catch on any wrinkles in the fabric. You can also use the ruler at this point to get an idea for where your design should be placed, and how large it will be. This is also important for centering the design well.
3. Tips for drawing the actual design:
   • Use short, controlled strokes. It’s much easier to maintain a correct path when you only move short distances. It cuts down on the complex physics your arm has to navigate in keeping your fingers, wrist, and forearm working as a team to move your marker. The overlap between strokes is very difficult to see on the shirt, since the marker cuts a fairly wide path and multiple strokes don’t make the ink appear noticeably darker.
   • Use physical guides as much as possible. For circles, use a mug or a pot. For lines, use a ruler. This will take a lot of the guesswork out things and make the end product look a lot cleaner.
   • Take your time. There’s only so much you can fit on the shirt, so even if you’re patient and take it slow, doing this usually won’t take more than 15-20 minutes. Slow down. It’s a lot easier to do it right the first time.
4. (Optional) You may also create a ringer tee effect by methodically filling in the heavier fabric trim at the sleeve ends and neckline for a color contrast. Doing this takes a lot of ink, so be prepared with an extra marker.
5. Hang your shirt (or lay it over a chair) to dry.
   —
   The marker won’t easily smudge, even seconds after application. This step is mostly to let the powerful marker smell dissipate before wearing, and usually doesn’t take more than ten minutes.

Here are a few examples of these shirts (from long ago). You can also find the images on my Flickr account, in the “Old Pictures” photoset.

Pros and Cons

Pros

1. Cheap (total cost can be under ten dollars)
2. Fast (even more complex drawings typically don’t take more than twenty minutes)
3. The method can be applied many times to create completely different designs.

Cons

1. The size of the markers does limit you somewhat in designing (not necessarily bad for those of us with less than stellar drawing skills).
2. As we can see in the photo below, the markers do wash out over time, though I’ve yet to completely wash out a design (you can see the old design faintly beneath the new one). This means this particular technique is only somewhat reversible. If anyone finds markers than wash out nicely, please let me know!

Go forth and design! Make your own graphic tee shirt! You have the tools and the knowledge (and can probably outdraw me), so what’s stopping you?! If you make a project, let me know how it goes in the comments, or send me a link, or a picture on Flickr!

-III