Hi, and welcome to Part 2 of the Tee Junction Gift Guide! Here I will cover the five last categories of recommendations. Once again, if you have any suggestions, feel free to pitch in via the comments.
Where to get the perfect t-shirt for…
The Scene Kid
(Forgive the unfortunate choice of blanket label; I really have no other idea how to define this group.) If you have a friend or sibling who listens to pop-punk bands and wears skinny jeans/alternative fashion, you’re in luck! There are a ton of indie brands serving this demographic. Glamour Kills has some great designs, and the more mature style they’ve adopted recently means that their tees can be appropriately gifted even to people no longer in high school. If you live across the pond, Drop Dead and Death, Shred! are both worth looking at. (The former also has good USA shipping options thanks to its status as an established brand.) Or you could see if Yellow Bird Project has any shirts designed by your giftee’s favorite band!
Other Places to Look:
The Pop Culture Fan
It’s exceedingly easy to find shirts based on any recent or enduring pop culture phenomenon, whether it be a popular movie/TV show, joke, or Internet meme. There’s also a lot of overlap and idea-recycling, especially among the lower-tier indie companies. Luckily, there are pop culture tee companies which strive to break out of this endless cycle of reference regurgitation. Busted Tees is probably the first place you’ll want to visit — enormous selection, frequently updated stock, and good customer service all make this industry staple stand out among the rest. I also rather like Found Item Clothing, which creates replicas of tees seen within popular movies. If you need something for a female friend or family member, Mighty Fine is one of the few pop culture brands which deals mostly in women’s tees.
Other Places to Look:
The companies listed here mostly stock “official” shirts licensed from the IP owners. So if you’re looking for an official Spiderman shirt, chances are one of these stores will have one.
The Bookworm
There is actually a good handful of brands with a literary theme. My favorite, of course, is Miles to Go (25% off with TEEJUNCTION), whose designs are not simply straightforward references, but artistic interpretations of the themes in literary classics and mythology. On the other side of the spectrum is Out of Print Clothing, which directly translates gorgeous vintage covers into t-shirt designs. Finally, there’s the-affair (10% off with TEEJ10), which takes its artistic interpretations into the realm of the abstract.
Other Places to Look:
The Horror Aficionado
I actually don’t know many people (if any) who would wear the typical horror/hardcore designs so popular in the indie tee community, but if you do know such a person, you have a wealth of good brands to choose from. There’s the ubiquitous Electric Zombie, with its innovative designs and reasonable prices, and DARK EARTH 666, which goes for a simpler palette and an aesthetic that is less 80′s zombie comic and more Norwegian black metal. Mumford Clothing stands out solely through the sheer power of Dan Mumford’s talent. If you’re looking for horror with a twist, Vicious History takes the grotesque imagery and fuses it with classic historical figures.
Other Places to Look:
The Streetwear Buff
You all know about Karmaloop already, so I’ll try to rec some lesser-known names. I really like the twisted satire at 2SickBastards, and the understated elegance of Masked Clothing. And I’ll always take the opportunity to plug Paper Root. Honestly, it’s difficult to pick just a few good streetwear brands, as there are so many, and with such varying styles — why don’t you go look for yourself?
Other Places to Look:











