Category: News

Introduction The survey was made up of 35 questions that were primarily multiple-choice, many included an open field, as well as several open-ended questions for participants to express their opinions. 540 “vintage t-shirt heads” participated between January 6 to January 31 and were given the opportunity to win one of two vintage t-shirts or 1 of 50 gift cards. Defunkd and Citees conceived this survey to help tailor a forthcoming vintage t-shirt authentication app called Legiteem8. The survey was promoted through each company’s social network accounts, primarily through Instagram. Additionally, the survey got coverage on Defunkd.com as well as promotion ... Read more

If you were a vintage t-shirt collector a decade ago you’ll probably remember the legendary t-shirt site “Tee Till Death.” It was conceived in 2009, during eBay’s vintage t-shirt heydays, you know, before the days of Instagram when vintage tee heads frequented blogs and forums. TTD had a team of writers churning out blog posts like there was no tomorrow. The site showcased a mix of vintage tees with some modern-ish stuff mixed in (which is vintage now, a decade later.) They had a particular obsession with hardcore, punk, and metal tees, but covered everything pretty thoroughly over the years, ... Read more

The year is 2022 and we need answers to some age-old questions about vintage t-shirts. Defunkd and Citees have teamed up to go inside the minds of vintage t-shirt heads. It’s about time we came to our census. What’s the actual definition of a true “vintage t-shirt” and “grail”? Can dry rot be cured? What’s the best stain remover? What’s the most liked vintage t-shirt tag? Are modern-printed original design vintage-inspired bootlegs accepted by the community? If you’ve ever wondered the answers to these and many other t-shirt related questions, well, we have the perfect survey for you. Complete it ... Read more

There’s a new record for the most expensive band t-shirt. Back in 2011, we broke the news that a vintage Led Zeppelin t-shirt that sold for $10k on eBay. It took ten years but the record sale for a band tee has not only been broken but smashed, by two Grateful Dead tees. RELATED: Fillmore West Pigpen Stage-Worn Jersey Sells for Over $20k Listed among Sotheby’s “From the Vault: Property from the Grateful Dead and Friends” auction set with the title “Grateful Dead | Designed by Allan ‘Gut’ Terkas,” the tee is described as “One of the earliest official Grateful ... Read more

I took a break for a couple of years from the VTU (vintage tee universe) and all hell broke loose. Marketplace platforms like Grailed and Depop (sold to Etsy!) exploded while a ton of transactions started happening through Instagram DMs. Then the early days of the pandemic ushered in live auctions on IG courtesy of 1980 Something Co. At one point last week five IG accounts I follow were hosting t-shirt auctions at the SAME time. It’s live insanitee. Vintage t-shirt auctions on eBay were huge in the early aughts, people got caught up in the excitement of bidding and ... Read more