Category: Shirts

A Shallow Dive Into Adult Swim T-Shirts: Space Ghost and Beyond

@tiltedmoons is the online moniker of t-shirt collector Brian Lugo. Self-described, “Chicago has-been with Floridian funk.” visit his page on Instagram to see more of his vintage Space Ghost shirt collection along with other gems from the 90s-00s. Our story starts with Space Ghost. The classic Hanna-Barbera property that was given a new life by being reimagined from his 60s intergalactic superhero persona into an overly confident, yet very out of place, 90s late-night talk show host. “Space Ghost Coast to Coast” was one of Cartoon Network’s first original productions. The weirdness of the show eventually gave way to the ... Read more

An Interview With a Guy Who Collects Vintage Jesus T-Shirts, Religiously

Not long ago, vintage religious-based t-shirts were a tough sell. In fact, the religion category on our website was among our least popular. But everyone loves a great comeback story, especially Jesus. One of the things we love about the new age of vintage t-shirt wearers is their appreciation for niche tees. We’ve seen collections of anatomical, recording studios, adult swim, and serial killer tees. Hell, even vintage Country t-shirts are having their moment, which is a sentence I never thought I would write. To help us make sense of all this we caught up with Javier, the man behind ... Read more

Can Dry Rot Be Detected With a High-Powered Microscope?

Dry rot continues to tear the vintage t-shirt community apart. While some people claim they’ve found a cure, we’ve been busy in the Defunkd labs trying to detect and prevent dry rot. This latest experiment was inspired by our colleague, Dereke from @waxandthreadsvintage. The man should be given a Nobel Prize for his non-invasive way to test a t-shirt for dry rot. More importantly, though, his process enables us to detect if a deadstock t-shirt’s pH levels are headed in the wrong direction can potentially save a t-shirt destined to become dust in the wind. But part of Dereke’s body ... Read more

Vintage Ron “Pigpen” McKernan Worn Fillmore Jersey Shirt Sells for $21,420

Sotheby’s “From the Vault: Property from the Grateful Dead and Friends” auction ended with some amazing results in the clothing category. Not only did two vintage Grateful Dead t-shirts combine for over 30k, but another shirt on their auction block brought in $21,420 USD. This relic was worn on stage by Pigpen, aka Ron McKernan who was a founding member of the Dead and was with the band until 1972. Factor in that it was worn during the Sand Storm Festival in 1970 – there are multiple layers of value due to some pretty unique provenance. Sotheby’s There’s been some ... Read more

Inside the Mind of Stephen Voland, Vintage T-Shirt Aficionado

Vintage Rock t-shirts have always been a part of author and collector Stephen Voland’s life. From pouring over old pictures of his super cool rock and roll parents to fighting over first dibs on the black shirt section with his thrifting friends in Jr. High, it’s been Stephen’s passion for music history, foresight, and commitment to the hunt that has led to an insane amassment of vintage music t-shirts. I sat down with Stephen to talk about what gets him out there hunting, how vintage shirt popularity has changed the way he shops, and of course what’s the worst shirt ... Read more