Monday 22 April 2013

PINSETS





























Now then, the next in an ongoing series of our 2-piece pin sets go online this evening at 7pm. The Raging Rowdies - as always. only 100 sets produced, one set per person.
Will probably go dead quick and all that caper. Here's the story so far. TC

SPOTLIGHT ON THE REGENCY SHIRT.


This year saw our second collaboration with tuktuk to release three new shirt styles.
Using our own created block as of all our previous shirt releases we released The Bunyan, The Carter and The RegencyHere we take a closer look at what inspired the Regency shirt...


The name was one we couldn't decide on, but in the end a recent visit to the namesake famous old 'caff in Pimlico swayed it. The Regency is a 1940's well preserved authentic cafe with it's striking Art Deco exterior that's been used in film and TV including the remake of Brighton Rock and of course Layer Cake.
That's right, the shirt - a large red gingham check, is inspired by the old greasy spoons of old and further afield a certain fictional mob hangout which has also had as big an influence as some of the outfits' expanding waistlines.
Satriale's Pork store from the greatest TV show of all time, The Sopranos.
















































There's still a few of these greasy spoon -cum-New Jersey crime family shirts left, grab one while you can! TC

Monday 15 April 2013

OSTI HEAT REACTIVE TEES & BUTTON BADGE SET.





























Now then we have another batch of the Massimo Osti Heat Reactive tees, going up at 7pm which includes the new purple-pink colour. An amazing commission by Manchester illustrator Ben Lamb (Levis, Oi Polloi, Sperry) on an amazing heat-reactive t-shirt as the ultimate tribute to the God of sportswear and innovation in clothing. Limited in numbers but there's more coming if you miss out!



















Also, we've been asked many times over the years to release a set of our famous button badges, these have always been sent out with each order, over the years we have done probably hundreds of designs, from parody's of famous corporate logos in our own inimitable style, to complete shameless nerd chic! We picked 5 original designs from a twist on British Rail, The Campaign for Real Ale, Paris student riots '68 to the Don himself and a nice bit of philosophy.TC

Wednesday 10 April 2013

OLD'S COOL!

































This time last year we stumbled across these superb promotional posters from Royal Mail from the 70's, these were centered around a dress code during the week. Typically British, typically seventies, it's the great, simple illustrations we loved. 
This was one we always wanted to re-interprete in our own usual style. Old and current favourites such as the M&S lambswool crewneck, Stone Island shoulder patch jumper and the timeless Clarks Wallabee and Adidas ZX runners have been worked into this new commission from Peter O'Toole. DC
Source: Retronaut, Saggar Makers Social Club.
All images British Postal Museum and Archive, London, UK/ © Royal Mail Group Ltd 

Sunday 7 April 2013

CASUALS 10TH ANNIVERSARY TEE



















In collaboration with Phil Thornton to celebrate the new anniversary edition of the Casuals book release we go back to our roots to present an exclusive limited edition T-shirt release featuring a new illustration based on the covers by Peter O'Toole.
The Casuals book is re-released in a new and special edition issue after 10 years. The stand out book on casual culture and all that goes with it. We were privileged to play a small part in helping with the release and even more so to be able to release an official tee in celebration. 
The tees will be available in White and Navy and go online from :
Monday 8th April from 7pm 
It will also be available from all our stockists too. TC

Wednesday 3 April 2013

MORE CHANGES TO POSTAL SERVICES!









































Now then! Bit of a dull post this you might think, but it's an important one none the less. Last May  Royal Mail implemented a new pricing structure that was quite the increase of previous years. The last hike was the first year since our inception when we had no choice but to start charging postal prices after previously offering free worldwide shipping!
Well fast forward less than a year and the prices have gone up once again! 
Our services mainly for UK customers cater for First Class Recorded 'packets' that tend to come under the 750g weight bracket on the whole (depending on the product). Last year this rose to the price of £3.65, now this year it's risen again to what will be an (hefty) varied price of £4.10-£6.75 for the usual product! Overseas isn't too different, except of course it's now even more expensive!
Not only have Royal Mail implemented new prices right after the bank holiday but also brought it forward (previous two years was the end of April) leaving no time to prepare and adjust accordingly. BUT, BUT they've also implemented a total new system and structure too. The dozen or so rolls of orange recorded slips (and system we had) are now redundant in favour of a new style, which we're waiting for! As you may or may not be aware we post our product out in bulk form usually 2-3 times a week, so for us this new system arriving after an extended bank holiday weekend means quite a backlog of sales to action, including the bank holiday Monday release of the new shirts to action, process and post. 
We pride ourselves on as fast a turnaround as we can, but after processing a large amount of sales yesterday, these had to be brought back and redone to the new barcodes and price structure. 
If you're still with us, in short it means there's both going to be a bit of a price increase (on future sales) and also a delay in receiving your item if purchased during this Bank Holiday period. We apologise for you having to wait, despite it being a rather unavoidable headache! TC