I’ve been meaning to write about Retro Campaigns since before my break, and Christine over there has been super cool about the whole deal. Retro Campaigns makes some coolest new-old shirts I’ve come across. Their prints are all made to look like campaign t-shirts from presidential races of bygone days.

In an interesting twist though, you’ll see t-shirts from FAILED campaigns. I think that’s pretty sweet. These shirts get bonus points in a Dewey Defeats Truman sort of way. Nobody usually remembers the guy that didn’t win unless you pull a Dukakis and have an absolutely ridiculous photo of yourself floating around.

Retro Campaigns is one of the few places out there that can pull off politically-themed t-shirts without being…well, political about it. This isn’t about left or right, conservative or liberal, nothing like that. It’s about a whole lot of t-shirt love, right?

Those of you old enough might date yourselves wearing one of their tees, I have to admit. If it’s someone you voted for, then that’s excellent, more power to you! Thankfully though, I was born during the Reagan Administration, so I can wear these tees purely for their cool factor. Does that make me a poser? It might, but at least not in a Vanilla Ice sort of way.

The first tee Retro Campaigns sent me was lost somehow in transit, but Christine was cool enough to send another. When I opened the package, I’ve got to admit that it wasn’t the shirt that first grabbed my eye, but the rest of the material included.

There was a beautifully designed one-pager on the candidate’s history, career and political beliefs. There was also a gorgeous glossy flyer, business card and a note (on RC stationary, no less). I’ve got no idea if the note and business card are part of every shipment or just mine because I’m a reviewer, but it’s all very impressive nonetheless. I’ll try to get a picture of the materials to post back here.

The shirt itself is a classic ringer, printed on a super-soft American Apparel tee. The water-based inks and faded design really contribute to the vintage look and feel. I get the impression that most, if not all of these designs are from the actual campaign materials, which is sweet since I’m a geek for historical accuracy. If any are the original creation of Retro Campaigns, I’m doubly impressed.

It’s really neat to see some of these shirts purely because it reminds you of a time when the things that were important to the American public were much different than they are now. Values were different, and the price of oil wasn’t even a blip on the radar. People were worried about civil rights, the Russians, Vietnam..all things that have since become background scenery for films.

Since I first spoke with RC they’ve added a bunch of new designs as well. It’s really an impressive collection, definitely check it out. Here’s a hats off to Christine and the team at Retro Campaigns, and thanks again for the shirt.

The shirt I’m wearing is Willkie – Wings for America and it’s $19.99.

Check out Retro Campaigns to see the above shirt and many others. As t-shirt company websites go, it’s very well done.

I’m a big Pink Floyd fan, so I might be a little biased here. This album’s an absolute CLASSIC though. People that don’t even listen to Floyd have this album. People that haven’t even heard the album still wear the album cover. I have a tee with the logo in its original orientation, but this shirt sort of took things in another direction with a track listing and album credits. It’s a pretty cool take on a very timeless design by Storm Thorgerson.

Dark Side of the Moon is $19.95 from Waterloo.

 I should open by saying this is certainly a must-see film for any cinema or pop culture aficionado. Hands down. I think I recall seeing a shirt here or there with the film’s logo before, but never anything like this.

Waterloo took things a step further by actually putting silhouettes of the droogs on the tee with the opening monologue from the film. I think this is a really well done shirt. You can get it in a few different color schemes. Seriously though, why get anything but orange?

Waterloo has a pretty sweet collection of classic rock and pop culture tees, running the gamut from The Clash to The Beatles. They’re also one of the few shirt companies I’ve found that have something substantially different to offer both the ladies and the gents. The male version of this shirt is more of a classic t-shirt cut.

Their gallery is also a real pleasure to browse though, and they’ve got a few different photos of each shirt. Definitely a well-done website.

A Clockwork Orange is $24.95 from Waterloo.

When you can’t have a beer in front of you, you might as well have a beer ON the front of you. I came across a small collection of Guinness shirts that celebrate everyone’s favorite “meal in a glass.” They’re done in a vintage style, and some of them are adult slim fits, meaning they’ll be a bit snug unless you order a size up from your usual.

I like the pale colors on this shirt. The drab greenish sort of color is a bit unusual and will stand out both in your closet and in a crowd. I have a M*A*S*H 4077th shirt in a similar color, and whenever it’s clean it grabs my attention, being the only shirt close to that color hanging up. It’s printed on the back too, so when you’re hunched over the bar everyone can tell you’ve got a pint of Irish motor oil in front of you.

This one’s my favorite of the bunch. It’s sort of a rusty brown, and I love the way the logo has been faded and beaten up. It looks less like a shirt that’s been through wash cycles (some faux aged shirts just look like old shirts) and more like a clean new shirt with a faded image. I think you’ll get a bit more life out of it this way. Pretty fitting for a 249 year old beer.

This is probably my least favorite, but it does have a few good things going for it. It’s the only shirt that actually clearly shows a perfect pint on the front. The larger text makes Guinness easier to read from farther away as well.

If you’re going to get a Guinness shirt to wear for St. Patrick’s Day, this is the one. Not only do you not get pinched, but it shows that you came prepared for the official beverage of the evening. If you’ve got an Irish background like I do, you’re showing a bit of heritage at the same time. Who would have figured one shirt could do so much for you? The toucans with the Guinness on their bills used to be part of Guinness advertisements.

All these shirts are available from t-shirts.com for $20. They have SEVEN other Guinness shirts, one on sale for $10, and one at an outrageous $28. There are also shirts there for Schlitz, Stroh’s, Jack Daniels, Patron, and Molson as well as non-alcoholic beverages like Pepsi, Coke and Sprite.