July 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008Derby 53 was the
Double-Take Derby where all the shirts that Woot liked but didn't get printed get a second chance. Right now it appears that Double-Takes will be semi-annual but maybe they'll do them more frequently now that they clearly set aside Honorable Mentions each week. Yesterday, I talked about the top 5 shirts they missed. Today, it will be the top 5 shirts (again in no particular order) that don't look likely to be printed but really should be. In addition, I have predictions for what shirts are likely to be printed next week when Woot picks their Editor's Choices. As usual, click on the thumbnail to see the full-size shirt and comments on Shirt.Woot.
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Tuesday, July 29, 2008We're in the middle of the
Double-Take Derby and since not every shirt can come back for a another chance there are a few entries that are sorely missed. This is the top 5 shirts (in no particular order) that I'm sorry aren't here for a second chance -- the Shoulda Been Awards.
Tomorrow instead of the normal Best Loser Awards there will be another top 5 list -- the top 5 shirts that should have printed but were not. You're welcome to try to sway me with your nominations but there will be no silly award names or write-ups so don't bother sending those.
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Tuesday, July 29, 2008Woot old-timer PenSketch got his classic "Zombie day at the mall" shirt printed at
SplitReason while Artulo got his first entry at
DesignByHumans printed (ironic that he still hasn't been printed at Woot). Click the images below to buy them now.
Monday, July 28, 2008Haxrox is a Woot old-timer with 2 previous prints under his belt: "Nevermore" and "Except in a real race". Here's a few more facts about him.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
16 (Information Graphics) / 2 / 3. I bought Cho's "Risky Business" and Robbie Lee's "Fat Unicorn".
What are you tools of choice?
Compaq TC 4400 tablet PC and
Inkscape.
What is your typical process for going about a design?
I have zero freehand drawing ability, so I try to think of a bunch of ideas, then pick the ones that can be executed with just simple lines, shapes, and repeated patterns. If I can't draw a design using just the mouse, the end result is usually hideous.
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Sunday, July 27, 2008In response to Woot's Honorable Mentions, here's a few that I think they missed. Since these shirts will almost certainly NOT be in the "Best Of" derby, they are excellent candidates to be sold and printed by the artists themselves using
SpreadShirt or other such direct-to-garment shops. Here's a couple of humorous shirts that could do well sold on their own.
Sunday, July 27, 2008NoisDois has only been around a few weeks and has already had his first shirt printed by Woot. Here's a few more facts about him.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
49 (Independence) / 3 / 1. Independence was the first derby that I participated in. I submitted "I Walk Alone" and "No Thanks." I bought "335 Woolloomoo Way", "1986: The Legend Was Born", and now "Curious Little Turtle." "Curious Little Turtle" is my first and only shirt design that has gone to print. I'm still a little new around the com-Woot-ity (Ah man. Let's see how nerdy we can get shall we?)
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Wednesday, July 23, 2008Derby 52's theme was
"Emergency". The "stop sign" rule is back and it seems Woot is pretty relaxed about it. It is described "incidental text" but they are only rejecting shirts that really push it. A normal themed derby felt like such a luxury after the limitations of the pixel derby so the artists went all out. Here are the ones you and I liked best. As usual, click on the thumbnail to see the full-size shirt and comments on Shirt.Woot.
The "Parasolution" Award nominated by eHalcyon
It's not always a good thing to come out smelling like flowers. Dekonstruct illustrates one such scenario in "Emergency Umbrella." Bringing together excellent artwork, creative composition and a touch of whimsy, this design certainly deserved to place much higher.
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Monday, July 21, 2008KlsWoot has been participating in the derbies for a long time and this is her 4th print but the first chance I've had to interview her.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
13 (Halloween) / 40 / 4. My first derby was the Halloween derby. I remember I had one design "A Matisse-Style Halloween" rejected for gradients. I also did a silly pumpkin lineup that earned 52 votes and I was thrilled! I was hooked from that point on. I've probably bought 40 shirts (including randoms) for family and friends. I love giving Woot shirts as gifts, especially when I find one perfect for someone. We've also taken several Woot shirts as gifts when we visit family abroad. I have had four shirts printed at Shirt.Woot (3 Derby shirts "Taking Flight: A Tribute to Leonardo DaVinci", "Swimming Koi" and "(W)Right Angle Neutrality", and 1 daily "Enchanted Garden").
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Sunday, July 20, 2008In response to Woot's Honorable Mentions, here's a few that I think they missed. Since these shirts will almost certainly NOT be in the "Best Of" derby, they are excellent candidates to be sold and printed by the artists themselves using
SpreadShirt or other such direct-to-garment shops. Here's a couple of black shirts that could do well sold on their own.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008Derby 51's theme was
"Pixel Grid". This time there was no thematic limitation (besides no text) but only an unusual technical one -- Woot was looking for a grid of 64x80 1/4" blocks. The results were definitely interesting. The vote counts were low and the sales probably won't be phenomenal but I applaud Woot for keeping the artists challenged and keeping things fresh. There were beautiful, hilarious, and fascinating entries and from all those, here are the ones you and I liked best. As usual, click on the thumbnail to see the full-size shirt and comments on Shirt.Woot.
The "Soap Poisoning" Award nominated by GeekFactor12
"I Eat Soap" by Karisse is one of the best debut entries I've seen in the derby. It's funny, bizarre, and most importantly it looks pretty cool.
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Monday, July 14, 2008Toe2254 has been around for a few months and has scored several Best Loser Awards but this is his first print. Here's a few more things about him.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
38 (The Year You Were Born) / 2 / 1. My first design was rejected within hours of posting it. i learned right away woot has a broader definition of "text" than I do.
What are you tools of choice?
Adobe Illustrator and my
Wacom pad.
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Monday, July 14, 2008In response to Woot's Honorable Mentions, here's a few that I think they missed. Since these shirts will almost certainly NOT be in the "Best Of" derby, they are excellent candidates to be sold and printed by the artists themselves using
SpreadShirt or other such direct-to-garment shops. Here's a couple of humorous shirts that could do well sold on their own.
Monday, July 14, 2008WeezTheJuice has been around for only a couple months and has already scored a print this week. Here's a few more things about him.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
44 (Summer) / 4 / 1. The first derby I entered was derby #44: Summer. I did pretty well, but used it mostly as a feeler as to the whole process. I've been hooked ever since.
So far I've bough "Risky Business", "Madness of Miss Stereo", "Koinnibalism", and now my own - "Circuit-ulatory System".
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Friday, July 11, 2008Jack31081 is a Woot old-timer who hasn't been seen much lately. Last week, he came back from retirement to show us he can still compete with the new kids. I first interviewed Jack way back in
Derby 12. It's been a long time so here's his latest stats and such.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
2 (Heat) / 16 / 4. I've purchased 16 woot shirts in all, and I've gotten 2 more via woot-offs. Needless to say, my drawers are starting to fill up. I've had 4 shirts printed in total. Three have been 1st place finishes in derbies #12 (Night), #16 (Information Graphics) and #50 (Energy) (any award for most time between wins?), and my first print was a daily, but even that design started off as a derby design in derby #4 (Maps). I lost the derby by a single vote, but after Woot started printing the top three finishers, they went back and printed the second place shirts from each of the first four derbies.
What would you like to tell the world?
Anyone wanna start up a 'buy Jack a Macbook Pro' fund? If I'm gonna do this whole "design" thing right, how can I not own a Mac?
Wednesday, July 09, 2008KDeuce is relatively new here but has already had 2 shirts printed -- and both 1st place. In the time since I requested the interview for "335 Woolloomoo Way" he also got "Freebird" printed. Here's some more about him.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
42 (Join the Revolution) / 3 / 2.
What are you tools of choice?
Photoshop.
6x9 Intuos 3. PC.
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Wednesday, July 09, 2008Like I've said before, I don't promote my Woot entries on my blog but have no such scruples when it comes to my entries on other t-shirt sites. Here's my first entry ("Worst. Mixtape. Ever.") at Threadless. It's still in the critique section so I can get some feedback before I really submit it.
Click here to give me some constructive criticism.
Wednesday, July 09, 2008Derby 50's theme was
"Energy". Starting this derby, Woot adopted the more common sense "stop sign rule". Text is allowed as details in the shirt but should not be the centerpiece. It's likely this rule will become the standard for most derbies going forward especially since it seems very few people tried to abuse it. Great theme this week and tons of entries you and I liked. As usual, click on the thumbnail to see the full-size shirt and comments on Shirt.Woot.
The "Matrix Meets Wall-E" Award
DSladek is another artist who consistently has been churning out amazing illustrations since he started participating a few months ago. "Energy Harvester" is no exception with enough fascinating details to make you want to know the story taking place. I can easily imagine this as a sci-fi book cover or movie poster.
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Monday, July 07, 2008
EwingKlipspringer is relatively new here and is just finding his way around. Meanwhile, he came in 3rd in Derby 49 and has a little extra money to spend as he figures this whole Woot thing out. Here's some more about him.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
42 (Join the Revolution) / 5 / 1. My first Derby was #42 -- I hadn't quite figured things out though, and my first entry was rejected. I have bought five shirts so far, though I've wanted to buy a lot more than that.
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Monday, July 07, 2008Here's a couple new artists recently added to the Gallery: Skaght and LeeceTheArtist. Check out their gallery pages by clicking on the shirts below.
If you'd like to join the ranks of artists in the gallery,
upload your shirts and
contact me to create your artist page.
Monday, July 07, 2008In response to Woot's Honorable Mentions, here's a few that I think they missed. Since these shirts will almost certainly NOT be in the "Best Of" derby, they are excellent candidates to be sold and printed by the artists themselves using
SpreadShirt or other such direct-to-garment shops. Here's a couple of blue winged numbers that could do well sold on their own.
Wednesday, July 02, 2008Derby 49's theme was
"Independence". In addition, only red, white, and royal blue shirts are allowed and only a single color ink -- as well as the now all-but-standard "no text" rule. The limited color shirts at the same time as a single color ink limitation seemed to make most of the entries a little dull and repetitive. Many of the ones you and I liked were able to move beyond this with the use of a bold ink color and simple lines. As usual, click on the thumbnail to see the full-size shirt and comments on Shirt.Woot.
The "Unleashed" Award
You can count on TGentry for both crowd-pleasing and artistic shirts. This one probably falls a little more in the 2nd camp with not nearly as many votes as he usually gets. He did an excellent job making up for the limited pallet with extra shading to suggest lighting from the right side.
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Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Here's the extremely late Derby 48 Loser Awards. Hopefully, somebody still cares to see who gets a BLA for last week. Derby 48's theme was
"Bugs". Here's a list of the ones you and I liked. As usual, click on the thumbnail to see the full-size shirt and comments on Shirt.Woot.
The "Who's The Bug Now?" Award nominated by eHalcyon
KDeuce's "ZPXG 241.1" is a monstrosity that manages to look both organic and mechanical at the same time. Though there aren't any other objects in the design to give a sense of scale, I think the bug is stepping on a human. He was probably messing around with some ants. Serves him right. With a beautiful design and perhaps a very subtle animal rights message, kdeuce's entry was certainly one of the better designs this week. Keep those great designs coming!
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Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Mitohapa is relatively new but quickly made a splash with her Revolution entry in derby 42 and has steadily gained votes and skills to get printed this week. Here's a few more interesting tidbits about her.
Shirt.Woot Stats? (first derby / shirts bought / shirts printed)
42 (Join the Revolution) / 2 / 1. I consider my first real derby #42. I’m sure I disturbed some people with the superfluous blood and guillotine thing. Yeah, sorry ‘bout that.
What are you tools of choice?
I tend to use printer paper, a .5 lead mechanical pencil, a truly decrepit scanner,
Photoshop CS, and my beloved laptop and
Wacom Intuos 2.
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