 In this week’s installment of Shirts that Make You Go Hmm….
Sleepless Peruvian farmer Ignacio was watching the same Saturday Night Live rerun for the 50th time in his lonely Andes hut with his trusty llama Fernando, and realized that he still had no answer as to who Quién es Más Macho – Ricardo Montalban, or Fernando Lamas?
Ignacio looked to his Fernando for guidance, but Fernando wasn’t interested. Such matters were above him, and in any case Fernando himself felt that he was clearly más macho than either aging star mentioned.
 Ignacio then realized that Fernando the Llama was, indeed, the most macho of all. But was he the most macho of all llamas? He posed this question to Fernando, who snorted his derision while chewing some freshly harvested alfalfa and then proceeded to spit at the television in annoyance. Ignacio understood, and happened to agree – could anybody compare with the lush brown and white coat, the perfect roman nose, the bountiful fringe of lash highlighting the bright and lively eyes of his own Fernando?
Not having a llama version of Dogster for a comparison point, Ignacio decided to investigate the situation by examining neighboring llamas to determine quién indeed was el más macho de todos in the llama world. And so he and Fernando trekked bravely through the Andes, searching high and low for other (and often inferior) llamas.
After a few failed attempts at closer llama inspection from farmers who didn’t appreciate the handsome duo trespassing on their lands (Ignacio, truth be told, wasn’t a bad-looking fellow himself), and the awkward matter of approaching perfect strangers during other random llama sightings with such an odd request, Ignacio realized that he’d have to be more official if he were to continue his llama census without the inconvenience of shouted insults, off-putting dogs and the occasional brandished weapon.
And so he and Fernando came up with the perfect T-shirt to formalize their project. The “random llama inspection” T-shirt, above, was just perfect for the bilingual llama owner ISO other attractive llamas as a comparison point.
(Regrettably, Fernando himself did not fit into the T-shirt, and as far as we know nobody makes llama-wear yet. He’s considering that as his next project.)
 CafePress celebrated Halloween with lots of baked goodies and a slew of fun festivities for both CafePressers and their kids. Competitions help keep things interesting… and this party was no exception! Check out the photos below for the winners and other fun photos.
Bake-off: All the treats were spooktacular but the prize (special stein trophy) goes to Joe for the best tasting treat - pumpkin bars. Yum! Unfortunately the pumpkin bars were gone (they were that good!) before we got a chance to take a photo. Other fun treats include a CafePress Rice Krispy Pumpkin and a Weepy Ghost Cake (ghouls included).
   
Trick or Treat competition: CafePressers brought candy to hand out to the kids with the kids selecting the winner for the best candy. And the winner is Karen (pictured below) – she gave out mini cauldrons of candy and treats.
 
Costume competition: What’s a Halloween party without a costume competition? The costumes were creative and funny – we’ll let the pictures do the talking…
For the winners: Best group costume goes to the ladies of the Team Cullen baseball team (for all you Twihards out there). Allison the robot took the prize for best individual costume as it was a big hit with the kids.
 
Costumes worth mentioing: the CafePress 10th birthday design, bits of bytes, ear of corn, Alan from The Hangover, and sumo wrestler.
 
 
 Strike Maine off the list of states that recognize same-sex marriage. Today, the political consultants that brought Proposition 8 to California (Schubert/Flint) had another success with Question 1 in Maine. Like its California counterpart, Question 1 overturned the previous rights of same-sex couples to marry.
Both initiatives were based on the premise that gay marriage is harmful to traditional marriage, with very similar websites highlighting the ill-effects that legal same-sex unions will have on this country’s children. Like the Protect Marriage site (California), the Stand for Marriage Maine site has a variety of video and calls-to-action focused on mobilizing supporters to rescue marriage from the calamitous harm that would befall society should homosexual unions be legally recognized.
One man, though, doesn’t think that Schubert/Flint is being effective enough. He too has a website with a variety of video and calls-to-action, all focused around protecting our country’s children and restoring traditional marriage.
 That man is John Marcotte of Rescue Marriage, who was disappointed by Proposition 8 due to its inability to actually protect traditional marriage from anything but gay people. Marcotte notes that the true enemy of marriage is divorce, and therefore seeks to save the institution by outlawing divorce in the state of California.
Marcotte, of course, wasted no time in setting up a CafePress shop so that like-minded supporters can raise awareness of his worthy cause. In addition to the shop, Marcotte has also arranged a Wedding March on the Capitol, to be held in Sacramento on November 14, 2009.
 Whether Marcotte will follow in the footsteps of Schubert/Flint and clone his pro-marriage initiative in Maine at some point is TBD.
Incidentally, the people of Maine did pass a medical marijuana bill along with Question 1. So if you’re gay and in Maine, you still can’t get married – but if this news sends you into uncontrollable depression, insomnia or premature glaucoma, you do have a new resource available to help numb the pain.
 The Phillies may be down 2-3 in the World Series count, but Macy’s is apparently feeling optimistic. An ad congratulating the Phillies on back-to-back World Series wins ran in today’s Tegucigalpa Daily News (per the Macy’s Marketing Director) and, closer to home and perhaps of more interest to the locals, in the Philly Inquirer.
While Yanks fans derisively laugh at the baseball version of “Dewey Defeats Truman,” the question being asked by Philly Phans is why the ad is such a laughable concept. Sure, it ran early – but Philly residents will tell you that the Yanks don’t have this nailed down yet.
Which is to say that Philly fans are echoing last year’s “Why Can’t Us?” as the response to the snorts and chuckles over the ad. And so we bestow a Fantasy T-Wearer Award today to the apologetic Howard Griffin, Vice President, National Advertising for the Philadelphia Inquirer. May he enjoy the “Why Can’t Us?” T-shirt, above.
 It all started with a spider.
Well, actually, it all started with a spider drawing.
Well, no, it actually all started with an overdue chiropractic bill and the resulting email exchange regarding that bill. (As well as, one might imagine, a terrifically colorful childhood.)
Ill-adjusted (that’s a chiropractor joke, folks – sometimes you just have to walk through that door) Australian e-mail guerilla aficionado David Thorne bravely addressed this overdue bill by sending a personally-crafted drawing of a 7-legged spider (some might call it “defective;” we call it art) as compensation. This back-and-forth exchange didn’t, regrettably, get him out of his bill (art valuation is so subjective). The e-mails did however make him groovily e-famous, putting him in hallowed company with likes of RatherGood and Beached As and the Flying Spaghetti Monster – namely, as an insider T-shirt joke among those of us who simply spend far too much time on the interwebs (a series of tubes). The spider first made an appearance on T-shirts last year and has been adorning the chests of snarky e-mail fans ever since.
We too had the distinct pleasure of an intriguing e-mail exchange with David Thorne (and a spider drawing exchange, to be entirely truthful), and as it happens seems we’re not alone. David now has a book out (with the rather jaunty title “The Internet is a Playground“), and so if you feel a need to immortalize the digital playground that binds us all together, hey – buy the book. It’s funny. And it gives you an excuse to doodle spiders with a questionable limb count.
We recently asked David 5 Very Important & Investigative Questions to get to the bottom of this offbeat merchandising success story. Here is our official 1-part, 5 question interview:
1. CP: Do you believe that the 8th leg of the spider is worth more than any individual of the 7?
DT: Surprisingly enough, every day I am sent emails with an attachment of the missing leg from people thinking they are the first to do so. I now have enough collected to make several hundred spiders. If each of those was actually worth the original, I would have enough money to quit my job and devote my time to developing my idea for a television series about a talking car that fights crime.
2. CP: How has your CafePress shop changed your life?
DT: The extra spending money each month has come in quite handy. Not that long ago, I worried a lot about paying the bills, having food in the fridge and even buying my son a birthday present. Now that I can afford decent drugs, these things no longer concern me at all.
 3. CP: Why did you write a book?
DT: There was certain content on the website that had to be removed or amended due to legal reasons. This did not apply to the book which annoyed some and amused me. I also had a few people at the time telling me that it would be great if the content was in book form so they could give it to people they don’t like.
4. CP: Have you seen Jane since your coy email exchange?
DT: No, I have not been back to that chiropractor and will never go to another. It is a well known fact that the medical test for becoming a qualified chiropractor is to sing as much of the ‘hip bone is connected to the thigh bone’ song as you can remember. This test can be completed online or by mail.
5. CP: Why is Australia so freaking far away from everything else?
DT: Although Australia is well known for its native pandas and snow capped mountains, its large volume of New Zealand immigrants, spiders the size of small children and khaki wearing crocodile wrestlers means that the distance from other countries is probably best for all. The only country worse, and thankfully even further away, is New Zealand.
–
So if you want to support David’s effort to improve his attitude and overall worldview via abundant self-medication, buy the book. And if you just want to enjoy some free laughs, check out the 27bslash6 website.
Not to scare you, but Halloween is hours away. If you haven’t found an outfit (gulp), it’s do-or-die time.
We can help, but let’s keep it simple. Start with our better together (part 1) and better together (part 2) T-shirts. Collectively, they’re a springboard to infinite self expression (and possibly poor taste?).
If you have a partner in crime: With a little imagination and a few household items (who doesn’t have a 1930’s machine gun sitting around?), the two of you can go as Bonnie & Clyde, Bill & Hillary, John & Yoko, Kanye & Taylor, Captain Kirk & Spock … you name it. Or think outside the box: Peanut Butter & Jelly, Gin & Vermouth, Leather & Lace or Smoke & Mirrors. The possibilities are endless. 
If you’re flying solo, but have an inflatable doll: See notes above, only dress-up and carry the doll. (However, be prepared for questions on why you own an inflatable doll. Not recommended for church parties, grandma’s house, etc.).
If you’re single, but ready to mingle: Wear one T-shirt (plus appropriate costume accessories), and carry the other T-shirt in your free hand. Wave it in the air occasionally, letting people know you’re looking for someone to be your better half. You can’t go wrong dressing as Annie (looking for Daddy Warbucks), Prince Charming (looking for Cinderella), Beauty (looking for the Beast), or Guns (looking for Roses).
 This month, CafePress turns 10. Woo-hoo! What started as a garage-based start-up in San Leandro, California has grown into a global corporation with locations in San Mateo, California, Louisville, Kentucky and has international websites in the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. (After all, unleashing the power of human expression can only go so far in a garage.)
A few words from Fred, our CEO and Co-founder:
“Ten years ago we launched CafePress, and while our most-popular designs may change from day-to-day (depending on the latest talk around water coolers), one thing remains the same: CafePress is a where people come to express their unique personalities. I can’t begin to thank everyone enough for making CafePress such a fun destination for self-expression.”
How about a few fun stats to put it all in perspective?
- We’ve amassed over nine million registered users who make and sell unique T-shirts, bumper stickers, buttons, mugs and more – as a matter of fact they created an online catalog of over 250 million different products.
- On average, the CafePress community adds over 250,000 new products to CafePress everyday. That’s over 10,000 an hour, almost 200 a minute – three new products every second! That’s a whole lot of self-expression!
- Next stop, Paris? If you were to line up all of the T-shirts CafePress has sold, they would stretch from San Francisco to London.
- Wow, talk about sticker shock! With all the bumper stickers CafePress has sold, you could wallpaper the Washington Monument. Six times.
- No laundry until Friday? If you bought one of each available CafePress kid’s garments, you’d have four outfits for every 10-year old in America.
How did we celebrate here in the office? In our own way of course!
We celebrated ’round these parts with a choice of three fun activities: baking class, Go Kart racing, and sailing. All smiles and in our special 10 birthday T-shirts, we boarded our respective buses to take us to our destinations where we spent a few hours enjoying our event. The we all came back together at the Steelhead Brewery for lunch, games, and more fun.
Check out the photos below.
Kitchen on Fire baking class:
“Drinking champagne for breakfast is not generally a workplace activity, but what better way to ring in 10 years with fellow CP’ers? Baking focaccia with the CFO calls for bubbles – especially when she brings the bubbles.” Leslie, CafePress Blogger – 6 years
 
   
Go Kart racing:
“We work fast and we play fast but unlike the track, in the office I don’t have co-workers slamming me into the wall. Well not unless it’s bagel day. Can’t wait to see what the next 10 laps brings here at CafePress.” Randy, Customer Service Director – 3 1/2 years
 
   
Sailing on the Bay:
“Our morning sailing adventure started off on a foggy note, and we were stuck at the dock for an hour waiting for the morning fog to clear. But once we left, we were treated to a great trip on the bay. Looking out over San Francisco, it was fun to think about how far we’ve come and all the opportunity ahead of us. It continues to be a great journey.” Maheesh, founder – 10 years, since the beginning!
 
   
Celebrating 10 years – the CafePress team!
Thanks so much to the CafePress Community that’s made it all possible! Happy Anniversary to you, too.
 This week we’re thinking of groovy costumes one can assemble from the CafePress catalogue, and given the interest our design community has had in the H1N1 scare it seemed remiss to leave out such an easy costume.
Swine Flu has garnered more designs than Bird Flu and Anthrax together, and brought to us the brand-new term “Hamthrax.”
So, costume #4:
Swine Flu (potential) victim
What you’ll need:
See? Easy. A blue surgical mask is so much more comfortable and practical than that plastic Transformers mask you were thinking about anyway.
If you’re really feeling it, adding tourism-style accessories (camera around the neck, fanny pack, hat, tropical shirt over your swine flu T-shirt) will give you extra bonus points and a perfect excuse to carry around frosty beverages bedecked by umbrellas and fruit. Optional: portable blender to make one’s own frosty beverages throughout the evening. Bonus: carrying a portable blender is a really good way to make a lot of new friends.
 With the Balloon Boy hoax having taken over the airwaves for a week, inspiring our design community to get busy making Balloon Boy T-shirts and such, it seems only fitting that The Great Balloon Boy Saga Hoax be our third Halloween costume suggestion this week.
There are a few variations of this costume, and all can involve a groovy T-shirt.
Costume 1: Balloon Boy
What you need:
If you’re an overachiever and you have friends that want to be part of a group costume, you can easily outfit the Heene parents with some relevant T-shirts and have your other friends dress as the paparazzi. Or reporters. Or Wolf Blitzer.
Extra bonus points: build a cardboard TV screen frame and carry it around, posing with reporters behind it at random.
Extra extra bonus points: actually go out on the town with Wolf Blitzer.
Costume 2: The Balloon Boy Saga
Carrying around a mylar balloon and an empty box all night can be so cumbersome, and it takes away your drinking hand. With 6 simple T-shirts, you (or you and 5 friends) can be the balloon boy saga. Either line up together, or if you’re solo just layer them (it’s chilly on Halloween anyway – layers are good!) and then, at random, blow a whistle* to let people know that you’re about to dramatically re-enact the balloon boy hoax.
What you’ll need:
- A collection of T-shirts (below is a suggested narrative, but you have lots to choose from)
- *a whistle (but only if you want to call attention to periodic, dramatic re-enactments)
- friends (but only if you want to share the glory)
     
 Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, who stepped down from her post in July, signed a $1M+ book deal with HarperCollins. The book, entitled “Going Rogue: an American Life,” is slated to release November 17th.
Sarah Palin inspired T-shirt designers like no other Vice Presidential candidate ever has, with Sarah Palin T-shirts and other groovy gifts numbering over 1 million.
Perhaps our fondest memory of Sarah Palin is the Great Moose Bag Sighting, which led some folks to design rebuttal bags on behalf of the moose and moved us to recommend a Sarah Palin costume for Halloween. Since we’re recommending random Halloween costumes this week (yesterday’s suggestion: be the “Saw” franchise), today we’ll revisit last year’s Palin plan with some slight alterations.
How to be Sarah Palin for Halloween this year:
 Swap out the business suit for a snow-machine suit (easily obtainable on the cheap at larger thrift shops) and stuff your pockets full of dollar bills. Don’t forget your moose bag and your glasses, though.- Mock up a few fake copies of “Going Rogue” to hand out to screaming fans, and bring a pen to sign them. (Yep, we make books. No, we are not advocating trademark infringement. Call the book whatever you’d like, or just carry Dr. Seuss’s “My Book About Me” for kicks.)
- Engage friends to be your screaming literary fans. It’s an easy costume for them; we have tons of flair that they can wear to express their love for all things Palin (read: you).
Just don’t forget your lipstick. Extra bonus points to anyone who brings their pit bull and lipstick – but unless the lipstick is bacon-flavored, please do keep it off your dog. (And if you find bacon-flavored lipstick, please let us know. That would be a find.)
Older Posts »
|
|
