Where the heck do I find inspiration?

Inspiration is everywhere.

I write another blog, CaliforniVacation: SoCal Style.  In looking over some of my past posts, I realized I mention parking in just about every article.  Hmmm!  Inspiration.

In yet another blog I write, Six Degrees of Separation: YouTube Style, (see, I told you this was a shameless shillin' blog) all I have to do is input a word or two in the search box.  Voila!  Many videos to choose from.  Many related videos to choose from.  Many bytes of data begging me to design something.

Or take @bryanbrinkman's current design for #DesignAShirtAWeek on Twitter.  A play on the "t" in t-shirt was all the inspiration he needed to come up with an illustration, a work of art, worthy of gracing a t-shirt anyone would be honored to wear.

See for yourself.



I stuck with the cute for the kids theme this week.  Christmas is coming.  I'm just sayin'!

Okay, sometimes a person has to go to plan B.  I would have loved to insert a MySoti for the following two designs and for some reason I was being denied.  Maybe a blessing in disguise.  This way I showcase my Cafepress shop, which includes so many more items one may buy with the design.  Plus, their infant body suit is only $11.99 while MySoti's is $7 more.  I'm just sayin'!

If you were born to kiss your mommy:

If you were born to kiss your daddy:

Who were you born 2 kiss?

Mmmmwwwwaaaahhhhhhh!

Mahalo!  Aloha!

Where the Wild Things Are

I love checking to see what @bryanbrinkman has created each week for his #DesignAShirtAWeek submission to the cause.

This week's submission is as creative and imaginative as all of @bryanbrinkman's designs have been to date, as you are about to view here:



His unipighorse, by some, might be "pooh pooh'd" since in our current reality there would appear to be no such thing as a unipighorse.  I would argue, "what is real in the realm of imagination and drawing?"  What if Maurice Sendak had felt that way and never wrote and created the "wild things" in his widely celebrated work, "Where the Wild Things Are"?

So this week I am just saying to feel free to let your self be unlimited with your creations and designs.  Let the wild things out...you know...as long as they aren't going to harm someone else.

Lest you think I forgot, I haven't.  Below is my submission for this week.



I went for the cute factor this week.  What's more cute than paws and babies?

Lastly, for the third week in a row the Marilyn Slade t-shirt is MySoti's sales topper.  Way to go!

Oh wait!  Now really lastly, as always, please consider this blog an open invite to share your designs or tips and the like.  We love hearing from you.

Happy Halloween and All Saints Day to all the sinners and saints alike.

Is it Saturday Already?

I have a challenge I want to put out to the cyber Universe and t-shirt designers in particular.

My last name is Bjork.  In many ways I am a dork.  And I have an seemingly incomprehensible and no reason admiration for that hybrid utensil, the spork.  I also have a love for Taco Bell's Baja Blast Soda.  Taco Bell is still one of the few places I know I can go and be reminded of my love for sporks.  In case you have no idea what a spork is, click here to see its wikipedia page.

I love @bryanbrinkman's designs and admire them immensely because he has a talent either I don't or am unwilling to practice to see if I can excel with it more, illustration.  I am good with coming up with a design that I can create within my skill of the tools available via Paint Shop Pro and relying on words.  @bryanbrinkman can illustrate and is confident enough to let the design speak for itself without words.

Don't get me wrong and this is one of this posts point, my seeming limitations don't have to keep me from prospering with my own design astetic.  Nor should you allow it to limit you.  Picasso, Van Gogh and Warhol all had different styles, yet prospered dare I say because of their uniqueness.

My other point, I could well envision myself having some sort of pop art spork-inspired design empire some day.  In the meantime, I had an idea for a t-shirt design that I would name "Sporkberry Fields Forever".  I even have somewhat of an idea how I would have the spork look.  That's about it.  That seems to be as far as I get.

My hope is that I may inspire some t-shirt designers in cyberspace to take my idea and run with it and come up with something awesome we could both promote and prosper from.  Maybe if enough of you submit designs, we could have an entire collection of sporkberry designs.

One of MySoti's most popular designs is Marilyn Sane (see below), which combines two items from pop culture in clever way.  Together we may be able to come up with something similarly ingenous by combining two pop culture icons into one design.


Below is @bryanbrinkman week #8 #DesignAShirtAWeek submission "cat + ice cream = <3".  Now I really understand why I feel the way I do about math. 



Below is my week #8 submission.  Many hearts, one love.  It's one for the girls.



Until next time, live creative and prosper.

It's Saturday Somewhere

When I started this blog, I had the idea I would write every Saturday to coincide with my first bryanbrinkman/Twitter #DesignAShirtAWeek connection.  Most who read this will never know I missed last Saturday.  For those who do.  Sorry!

For this weeks blog, I decided to pimp my design for one of my other blogs, CaliforniVacation: SoCal Style.  In the process, instead of finding yet another web presence you may upload your t-shirt design to, I would mention (in case you didn't know 'cuz you may not) your awesome t-shirt designs may also be uploaded for use on other products you may offer for sale through sites like CafePress and Zazzle.

For CaliforniVacation: SoCal Style I wanted to go for an entire theme.  In Southern California (SoCal) a load of people live here and a load of people visit as tourists (how's that for being specific?)  We are low on water and high on trash.  In an effort to be green, I desired to include in my theme a SIGG Bottle,

a tote bag,

a t-shirt,



and a beach towel.

Search as I might, I only found one web presence that offered customizable beach towels but not in a way that CafePress, Zazzle and MySoti let you offer them.  To use this service I would have to preorder myself a number of towels with my design and then handle the money and shipping, etc. myself.   No thanks!

In the meantime, I am a little excited about some of the products Zazzle offers.  You can put your design on a skateboard.  You can have your design on a pair of women's KEDS shoes.

You can create your own Converse Chuck Taylors.  Although, as exciting as this is you can customize color combos according to their color selections for different parts of the shoe but you can't upload a design and have them print that on the canvas.  Who knows?  That day may soon come.  That would be exciting.

And as sometimes happens, perhaps I am not the only one who would love to buy custom beach towels.  A whole in the market perhaps?

So, enough about me.  Here is @bryanbrinkman week #7 entry:



Another brilliant (may I say and he doesn't pay me to) design.  Love how the apple is implied instead of shown.  Love the t-shirt placement.  Love the originality.

I'd include the most bought MySoti t-shirt here, but it is the same as my last blog post.

And I'd include (happy to pimp) one of this blog readers designs here.  Alas, I know of none.  This spot in future blog posts is certainly available along with any inspiration or tips you'd like to share.

Until next time, live creative and prosper.