“Custom, limited and upcycled” wares for men and women are the calling card of clothing upstart apliiq, and the results are punchy shirts, second life Reeboks, and jewelry. The Splesh V-neck tee and Oliver hoody look like something you might create yourself if you had good throwback checkered fabric, decent sewing skills and, oh yes, a solid design aesthetic– check them out.

Ethan Lipsitz started apliiq after stitching hoodies in his UPenn dorm room. “Philly has some great old fabric shops with basements and hidden corners–I felt like a DJ digging for rare records as I would build the fabric collection,” said Lipsitz, an urban development and design student who wanted to encourage customers to be inventive in selecting patterns. The company still uses basic methods and geometric shapes to show off bright materials, and some items can be found online at Cultist and Karmaloop. But the best (and most giftable) option is picking out your own materials and going to town with their team.