Option G apparel is an extension of an already successful design company with top notch clients throughout the music and media. Cole Gerst’s designs are all hand drawn styles, which he says and I agree stand out against a very computer generated world of t-shirts. They say the lines current inspiration comes from forest animals, hip-hop lyrics, Gerst’s paintings and happy accidents. You can take a sneak peak at the new line not available for sale yet–it includes some really stellar t-shirt designs, as-well as some hoodies and bags. They also have a sneak peak at a really interesting lineup called “Army With Harmony“, a line of t-shirts designed by musicians, rappers, and DJ’s. First in the series are designs by Ben Lee, Grandaddy, and Rooney.

Formed in 2003 by Ryan Weiss, Hello Base has a nice lineup of t-shirts, posters, and as they put it “other creative goodness”. They pride themselves on making fun, inspiring, random-nature theme products. One of my favorite designs has got to be this elephant playing the drums– a nice juxtaposition. The theme for hellobase is a return to nature, of all things pure and true and free. The designers are independent, the shirts are sweatshop free, and they’re all limited edition.