| A fairly recent, and growing phenomenon, has been | | | | their work. Almost as famous are Cafepress, where |
| the online t-shirt community, like the photocopied | | | | the artist alone uses their work for their own store, |
| zines that some of us were so fond of making, it | | | | the artwork can used on not just t-shirts, but hats, |
| bears the hallmark of the idea that if you have the | | | | hoodies, mugs, prints, cards, pet bowls, even a brand |
| idea, we can print it. | | | | of digital video camera! |
| King of these communities - in the business sense at | | | | Arguably the best of the bunch, but unfortunately |
| least, is the site Threadless, their model has gone | | | | less well-known (at least it was when I joined), is the |
| from a one man and his PC operation, to a thriving, | | | | merchandise community, Zazzle. More of a |
| and successful business model of alternative t-shirts | | | | community than the rest, with forums, fanclubs, and |
| that has gained mainstream attention. And this | | | | the ability to add comments to each others stores, |
| companies range of cutting edge apparel is not | | | | and individual items. More remarkable, is Zazzles model |
| decided in a board-meeting, but online in users' | | | | of making the items for sale fully customizable. A |
| bedrooms, or home offices, and now on the bus or | | | | design you see on a t-shirt for example, could also be |
| the train, with the rise of internet phones. | | | | used on a mug for example. There are exceptions |
| Newer t-shirt community models have emerged | | | | however, artwork created for shoes, would not be |
| though, that put more decision power, and potentially | | | | suited for skateboards, and designs meant for |
| more money in the user's hands.The artist can | | | | stamps (yes, they are real, and have to be approved |
| choose which of their pieces get printed, as they are | | | | by the US postal office) should stay on stamps. |
| printed to order. Among the most well known of | | | | Whichever you decide to use, what we decide to |
| these are Spread shirt, where artwork goes into a | | | | wear, or what we decide to put on our walls, is now |
| collective pool for people to use to populate their | | | | more in our hands. |
| stores, the artist gets a fee per item sold that uses | | | | |