Complex Blog » T-shirts

Best of the 2000’s: The Top 10 Blank T-Shirts

Bradley — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:24:25 +0000

If you’ve been following our ongoing “Best of the 2000s” series, then you probably checked out this week’s massive countdown, The Top 100 T-Shirts (click here if you missed it). But with all the graphic goodness over the last decade, we didn’t have a chance to show love to the greatest blank T-shirts that we’ve worn over the last 10 years. Blank Tees are gonna be all the rage this winter anyway, so it makes sense for us to count them down, and put you on in time for the indoor season. Hit the jump for the Greatest Blank T-Shirts of the 2000s…

#10: NIKE
Price Range: $10-80
What is this “Nike” you speak of? Crazy. In all realness though, Nike has elevated the basic T to an art, from Loopwheeler hookups to the Athletic Ts with Dri-Fit. Kings, again. Check the full line out HERE.

#9: GAP/BANANA REPUBLIC
Price Range: $5-25
These two brothers from the same corporate mother made it OK to look like everyone else at your school/mall/work in the ’90s, and have been holding down casual wear ever since. In the 2000s, either of these stores was the place to get consistent, reliable sizes and fits no matter where in the country you were. Online copping goes down HERE.

#8: HANES
Price Range: $1-8
Believe it or not, Hanes also made our “Best Blank T-Shirts of the 1900s” list. Haha, we kid, everyone knows there was no internets before 2000! Anyway, Hanes beefy are the shit, whether or not Micheal Jordan is wearing them. Oh, and this year’s Supreme collab helped super cool guys get kitted up. Cop the Supreme ones HERE.

#7: J. CREW
Price Range: $10-36
From the land of privileged whiteys comes a great set of casual Ts. Rock J. Crew head to toe and we’ll punch you in the mouth, but stitch for stitch, these guys have the best basics in the biz. Buy them HERE.

#6: CALVIN KLEIN
Price Range: $18-30
Maybe it’s all the Eva Mendes nakedness, but we can’t get our minds off of Calvin Klein this week. In the past ten years (plus a few more), this brand held it down. If you wanted/needed a step up in undershirts, this was where you turned. Need it now? Click HERE.

#5: UNIQLO
Price Range: $10-15
Uniqlo might date back to the ’80s for the Japanese, but for us, it’s a 2000s brand. These makers of all things simple and awesome barnstormed our basics closet in 2006 and we haven’t looked back since. Check the latest colors HERE.

#4: ALTERNATIVE APPAREL
Price Range: $24-40
Alternative Apparel is just that: an alternative to American Appy, and produces a great line and selection of blank awesomeness. Bless them for their burn out Ts on ladies in the summer months, and for letting us get some white Ts that can wash up without shrinking into idiocy. Online shopping goes down HERE.

#3: POLO
Price Range: $30-50
Polo had the “Power Suit” on lock during the ’80s, but in the ’90s and ’00s, it was all about the T-shirt. How do you make a white T cooler/better? Put a little Polo man on the bottom. Fanciness can be purchased HERE.

#2: AMERICAN APPAREL
Price Range: $15-30
No single brand has defined the unemployed 20-something upper middle class degenerate in the 2000s like American Apparel. Shouts to Dov, you diiiiid it mang. LOL to your heart’s buying content at the online shop HERE.

#1: JAMES PERSE
Price Range: $50-95
The ultimate blank T comes at a price. While forking over close to a hundred bucks for a blank T seems like blasphemy, do it and you’ll be psyched. The sleeper uber-get of the 2000s. Cop HERE.

Complex Presents: The 100 Best T-Shirts Of The 2000’s

Joe — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:29:48 +0000

A t-shirt is just a t-shirt, right? Wrong. Especially wrong if you’ve been around this niche little industry we call streetwear. The past decade saw a rise in independent street fashion labels cranking out t-shirts with meanings, homages and dope graphics that became instant classics. We’ve even seem some brands who we thought would be around forever close up shop. Trust, a lot has gone on. Continuing with our Best Of The 2000s series (in case you missed ’em: Top 100 Girls | Top 100 Albums | Top 100 Sneakers | Top 100 Movies | Top 100 Internet Videos), we now turn to the 100 Best T-Shirts of the last 9 years. Expect to see some you lined up for, as well as some under-the-radar shirts that you probably slept on. Let the madness begin…

• CLICK HERE TO SEE THE TOP 100 T-SHIRTS OF THE DECADE!

Buy It Now: 3Sixteen The Last Shall Be First Tee

intern — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 15:32:53 +0000

With artists like Kid Cudi, B.o.B, and Donnis getting so much shine recently, it’s clear that it’s been the year of the oddball. All of a sudden the qualities that used to make these guys strange are the same qualities that are bringing them to the forefront. Talk about revenge of the nerds.

So if you find yourself getting hiked on because you stand out, today’s Buy It Now is perfect for you. Rep for yourself, and let the haters know your time will come with The Last Shall Be First Tee from 3Sixteen. And when you see these clowns down the line, think like 50: “Damn homie! In high school, you was the man, homie…what the fuck happened to you?” Revenge is sweeter served cold, so we prefer the murdered-out all-black version, but read on to see the other color and how to Buy It Now….

3Sixteen The Last Shall Be First Tee
BLACK: CLICK here to BUY IT NOW at 3Sixteen, $35

WHITE: CLICK here to BUY IT NOW at 3Sixteen, $35

• CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE “BUY IT NOW” POSTS!

The 16 Best Back To School T-Shirts

donniek — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 19:23:45 +0000

Graphic T-shirts are dead, long live graphic T-shirts. Really though, what the eff else are you gonna rock in the weeks leading up to jacket weather? A striped button-up? FOH. We’re getting into back to school mode, so having already brought you the 15 best backpacks, today we’re showcasing the 16 best T-shirts of the season. We’ve got budget-friendly cool from Complex co-signed brands like Rockers NYC and RVCA, higher-end flavor from Passarella Death Squad and Maiden Noir, and a lot of dope shit in between. See below to re-up your wardrobe in time to meet the new freshwomen…

MAIDEN NOIR PIPER SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at Maiden Noir, $50

HUF HOUSTON DITCH TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at HUF SF, $30

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

10DEEP WE DON’T PLAY TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at Commonwealth, $32

BLOOD IS THE NEW BLACK STEPS TO THE END SHIRT
Click here to Buy it Now at Blood is the New Black, $36

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

MAUI AND SONS ACID WASHES T-SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at Opening Ceremony, $39

OPENING CEREMONY OC FLAG T-SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at Opening Ceremony, $50

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

ROCKERS NYC CYCO KILLER SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at Mauve, $24

INSIGHT KOMAKINO T-SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at Loser Kids, $32

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

ORIGINAL FAKE CHOMPER FENCE TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at Commonwealth, $55

FUCT CULTURAL REVOLUTION SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at Moose Shirts, $36

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

RVCA SONIC PALACE S/S TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at Swell, $20

OBEY PUMP IT UP LIMITED SERIES TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at 80s Purple, $24

————————————————————————————————————————————————————

ROCKWELL DO NOTHING T-SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at Rockwell, $57

PASSARELLA DEATH SQUAD LE TUEUR S’EVEILLE TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at Aloha Rag, $98

————————————————————————————————————————————————————

ELECTRONIC POET PYMCA GIRL T-SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at Oki-Ni, $65

FALSE SKULLED TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at Boundless NY, $40

————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Buy It Now: M.I.A. President Tee

intern — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:03:12 +0000

No one on the corner has swagger like M.I.A., but today’s Buy It Now might lend you some of that freshness you’ve been looking for. The rapper, singer, producer, artist, and now fashion designer takes inspiration from African, Mexican, and Muslim prints for her namesake clothing line. This cotton T-shirt is especially dope because it features her face—which means all the quirky hipster chicks will be running up on you asking where you copped it. Now that’s swagger on a hundred, thousand, trillion! See below for details, pics, and Buy It Now info…

M.I.A. PRESIDENT TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at openingceremony.us, $85

Check Out Ecko’s New Halo T-Shirt Collection

intern — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 21:06:23 +0000

Finally, there’s a way to show off how serious you are about Halo without scaring the neighbors. And if you’re like us, you’re probably sick of wearing the same grease-stained undershirt when you go on week-long benders glued to the couch playing Halo and taking bong hits until you’re eyeballs retract into your brain. Complex’s bossman Marc Ecko has taken the dive into the gaming world with his new collection that features six Halo-inspired t-shirts.

CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT ECKO’S FULL HALO COLLECTION

Buy It Now: KR3W Eleven Vintage Shirt

intern — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:48:25 +0000

When it comes to T-shirts, it’s better to be soft, my dudes. Back in the day, when it was all about logos, not fabrics, it seemed like every streetwear T-shirt was made of some cheapie, stiff, rash-inducing cotton. These days, fancy graphics have taken a backseat to quality materials and comfort.

Case in point: today’s Buy It Now, the Eleven Vintage Shirt from KR3W. Available in three colors, this T-shirt is 50%-cotton, 50%-poly jersey, which makes it stretchier and lighter than the average. In fact, this shirt is so comfy that we’ll forgive the skull graphic on the back. For detail pics and Buy It Now info, see below…

KR3W ELEVEN VINTAGE T-SHIRT

CLICK here to BUY IT NOW at standardboardshop.com, $32

Buy It Now: Sabit Check T-Shirt

donniek — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:56:53 +0000

You know, we’re all for the current movement toward classic, “timeless” looks in menswear, but sometimes being a little behind the trend is OK. Think about it: When your kids look at photos of a young you, they should be able to chuckle at your goofy graphic T-shirts just like you laughed at your dad’s turquoise polyester button-ups. Let’s not totally kill the cycle of “humorous period fashion,” people. Besides, even if you’re decidedly over the whole Skittles shit, you can still cop this and put it on ice for the inevitable slate of “2003″ parties that’ll hit four years from now.

Today’s Buy It Now is from Sabit, a.k.a. Swizz Beatz’ favorite brand of the moment. The line, launched in 2006 by former Ecko outerwear designer Shoichi Amemiya, is inspired by Japanese premium streetwear and contemporary American music—two peas in a pod, if you ask us. To see the backs of the pictured T-shirts and for Buy It Now info, see below…

SABIT CHECK T-SHIRT
Click here to Buy It Now at SabitNYCShop, $40
RED:

BLACK:

PURPLE:

Buy It Now: Mos Def x Undrcrwn

donniek — Thu, 28 May 2009 18:24:25 +0000

Time to dust off the ol’ Jansports, people! Mos Def and Talib Kweli are reuniting as Black Star for a one-time concert at the Nokia Theatre in NYC on Saturday night. Though each MC brings his own unique style to the Black Star sound, the Mighty Mos has always been the bigger star. That’s why Dante’s the one with the streetwear collabos, House roles and tell-all books from ex-stripper wives and all that. But we still fuck with you, Talib. No worries.

To commemorate the weekend show, UNDRCRWN is reintroducing its Mos Def x Dustin Canalin collection, which features a bunch of T-shirts and a track jacket. For detail pics and more info on today’s Buy It Now—two tees and the jacket— see below…

“BIG MOS” TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at Undercrown.com, $36

“BROOKNAM” TRACK JACKET
Click here to Buy It Now at Undercrown.com, $125

“CROWN MOS DEF” TEE
Click here to Buy It Now at Undercrown.com, $36

To see the entire Mos Def x UNDRCRWN collection, click here.

Buy It Now: FUCT x VNGRD Sangue Italiano

donniek — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:59:46 +0000

The streetwear stalwart FUCT has collaborated with up-and-coming Italian brand VNGRD for the ill Sangue Italiano T-shirt—we wouldn’t be surprised to see Lil Wayne rockin’ one day soon. This is old-school streetwear at its finest: Get two cool brands, get a cool artist (VNGRD’s Giorgio Di Salvo), print a cool shirt. Sometimes it’s that simple, folks.

Today’s Buy It Now is the FUCT x VNGRD T-shirt, which is a soft-washed custom tee, not the Hanes 3-pack steez. (FYI, “Sangue Italiano” means “Italian Blood.”) For Buy It Now info and some (suggestive) detail pics, see below…

FUCT x VNGRD SANGUE ITALIANO
Click Here To Buy It Now At Mauve Online, $36

Trendhumper: Scoop Neck T-Shirts

frederickm — Fri, 08 May 2009 19:16:46 +0000

It’s getting warmer out and people have been rocking scoop neck T-shirts everywhere. Like the love child of a crewneck and a v-neck, scoop tees have long been a favorite of female shoppers but are now becoming popular among the skinny-hipster set as well as rock stars like Lenny Kravitz. But do you cosign this onslaught of man-cleavage? Vote ‘HUMP’ or ‘DUMP’ below…

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Buy It Now: Cheap Monday Axel Striped T-Shirt

donniek — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 17:55:16 +0000

The Swedish masterminds behind Cheap Monday were awfully prescient back in 2004 when they set out to create a boutique-friendly line and sell it at bargain prices. Five years later, in the midst of a global recession, Cheap Monday is—now more than ever—an important brand to remember for top-quality, affordable clothing.

Today’s Buy It Now is the Axel Striped T-Shirt by Cheap Monday, a spring-ready white-and-heather gray cotton jersey with sewn cuff sleeves. Take note of the scoop neckline and make sure your collarbone game is tight. For Buy It Now info and a detail pic, see below…

CHEAP MONDAY AXEL STRIPED T-SHIRT
Click Here To Buy It Now At SSense.com, $31

Buy It Now: Bwood x Vinnie’s Alumni Tee

donniek — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 15:45:10 +0000

The artwork for A Tribe Called Quest’s Midnight Marauders is like the “Impeach the President” of album covers: ~~bitten~~ sampled a million times over. The latest interpretation comes from NYC-based artist/designer Brian Wood, who collaborated with Brooklyn boutique Vinnie’s Styles on a limited-edition T-shirt that pays homage to the greatest ’90s MCs. The usual suspects—Nas, Jigga, Pun, ‘Pac, etc.—are all here, but special props to Mr. Wood for including Sadat X in the mix. Also, unlike some of those janky hip-hop illustrations you might see at your local barbershop, the rappers on the shirt actually resemble their real-life counterparts. Word is bond.

Today’s Buy It Now is the BWood x Vinnie’s Alumni Tee, available exclusively at Vinnie’s Styles (and Stadium in Tokyo). The back has a graphic of a pager (more nostalgia!) and each shirt comes with a CD featuring Mickey Factz, Fresh Daily, Homeboy Sandman, P Casso, Soul Purpose, A-Butta, Christina K and Peter Hadar. Will any of them appear on a T-shirt in 20 years? Time will tell. For Buy It Now info and available colors, see below…

BWOOD X VINNIE’S ALUMNI TEE – RED, WHITE OR AQUA
Click Here To Buy It Now At ShopVinnies.com, $50

Web sites: Vinnie’s Styles; Brian Wood

Buy It Now: Blood is the New Black Moto Vest Tee

donniek — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 15:13:04 +0000

We would never encourage you to take style cues from your favorite rappers, but sometimes, just sometimes, they actually get it right. So big ups to Lil Wayne’s stylist for putting him in a Blood is the New Black T-shirt on the cover of his new single “Hot Revolver.” We’re longtime fans of BITNB, the artist-driven T-shirt brand started by Mitra Khayyam in L.A.

Today’s Buy It Now is the Moto Vest Tee, from designer Brian Lichtenberg. Weezy’s on his punk rock shit, and nothing’s more rock'n'roll than a T-shirt with the image of a faux-leather vest on it. Well, actually, there are probably like 1,468 things more rock'n'roll, but the shirt’s still dope. Even doper is BITNB’s retail site, which has T-shirts from over a dozen different artists/designers'we guarantee you’ll find something you like. For Buy It Now info and a link to the BITNB site, see below…

BLOOD IS THE NEW BLACK MOTO VEST TEE
Click Here To Buy It Now At Blood is the New Black, $42

Web site: Blood is the New Black

Buy It Now: Reigning Champ Gradient Tee

donniek — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 18:11:22 +0000

Who remembers Hypercolor T-shirts? For you youngins out there, Hypercolor made shirts that'through the magic of science and Japanese know-how'changed color with heat. It was a pretty cool concept that flamed out once people realized how easy it was to fuck them up in the laundry. Having a random handprint permanently in the middle of your chest is not a good look.

We’re reminiscing on this because today’s Buy It Now, from Canadian brand Reigning Champ, kind of reminds us of Hypercolor. No, the Gradient Tee does not change colors, but its color scheme and design hearkens back to the '80s style phenomenon. It comes from the dudes who make Wings + Horns and produce stuff for Supreme and Alife, so you know it’s top-quality. Plus it won’t get ruined in the wash! For detail pics and Buy It Now info, see below…

REIGNING CHAMP GRADIENT TEE
Click Here To Buy It Now At Haven Shop, $47

Buy It Now: Deter T-Shirts

donniek — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 21:07:30 +0000

When we first saw the name for the brand Deter, we were pronouncing it “Sprockets”-style, like a German name. Then, we remembered that “deter” is actually a real word'to discourage someone from doing something. Aha! But then, we looked at the Deter web site and found out that the name is actually short for determined. Like, deter-mined. So basically, we fucked that one all the way up. Whatever the case, Deter is a Cali brand that makes interesting graphic T-shirts. Yeah, remember those?

Today’s Buy It Now focuses on two Deter designs'the Come Up shirt features a pimp-ass chimp (word to Bubbles), while the Detropolis is a play on the poster for Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (1927). For Buy It Now info and close-up shots of each T-shirt, see below…

DETER “THE COME UP” TEE
Click Here To Buy It Now At Karmaloop.com, $32

DETER “THE DETROPOLIS” TEE
Click Here To Buy It Now At Karmaloop.com, $32

Complex Style & Design News: December 3, 2008

Bradley — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 22:10:57 +0000

Hey! Buy this T-shirt. It’s a collab between Craig Metzger (artist and former creative director of eS and Instant Winner/Acapulco Gold) and the Mountain. If you don’t know, he was doing sneaker collabs with Invisible:Man before anyone in the blogosphere knew who Andrew Lee was. The shirt is for a good cause too: $5 from each purchase goes to the NRDC. [Enginesystem]

KozynDan, the great married art duo, just dropped a collab with Puma. We would have liked to see more of the art, but these are cool. [Highsnobiety]

Lacoste has been getting blog hype with the Stash shoes, which is great. If you’re buying though, check these Missouri’s in black by Shoes Up. Very nice. [Nice Kicks]

Let Banksy draw on your house, cash in for double! [Slam x Hype]

December SB launch images. Yawn. When can we get to June? That’s when the fire hits. [Hypbeast]

Streetwear For The McCain Campaign

Joe — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 19:48:40 +0000

If you frequent the streetwear blogs, it’s hard not to notice the overwhelming support for Obama. Undrcrwn and Upper Playground are just two of the many brands who have created popular T-shirts featuring the Democratic candidate, making Barack as big in the label-loving crowd as Hiroshi Fujiwara. But what about John McCain? Old people can't get down with streetwear?

In order to introduce the Maverick to the limited-edition T-shirt set (and restart his “suspended” campaign) we churned out a set of five McCain T-shirts that might have the Hypebeast crowd switching sides come November. Check the ~~Old G.~~ O.G.'s first range of tees below…

llustration By Sophia Chang

Once Upon A Time x McCain/Palin '08

Lemar And Dauley x McCain/Palin '08

Experimental Jetset x McCain/Palin '08

Supreme x McCain/Palin '08

BBC x McCain/Palin '08

Celebri-tee

treats — Fri, 25 Aug 2006 17:41:36 +0000

The never-ending list of T-shirt brands is getting a kick in the pants, um chest, with the new Gap ad campaign featuring Jeremy Piven, Aaron Eckhart, Natasha Bedingfield, Common and Eva Herzigova. Chill, they're not dancing around in khakis singing show tunes. This fall season the retailer teamed up with these notable faces to hawk their T-shirts. Yesterday, we dropped in at one of the Gap's New York locations where Common silk-screened custom tees for shoppers young and old, some of whom hadn't even heard of the Chi-town rap vet. Watch out for mom when she starts ogling your aNYthing tee.

Be the silk-screen.

Common’s simple sketch design.

You’ve seen this ad for the Gap’s T-shirt Shop campaign. No music to accompany this one.