Welcome to a new t-shirts review post. Our first guest for 2014 is The Affair, a brand that makes literature fashionable by creating and selling graphic “T-shirts & Art Prints inspired by your favourite books”. Before we start we must thank them once again for this opportunity and congratulate them for their original concept.
We have chosen 2 tees from The Affair: Mysterious Island and Absinthe.
Even thou the holidays were very close the delivery took only 4 days (again, we are located in Europe), so they arrived just in time to be wrapped up as gifts under the Fancy t-shirts Christmas tree. The package was shipped from UK by air mail and arrived via regular post. The t-shirts were packaged separately in special plastic bags wrapped up together in a resistant plastic A4 envelope. Each t-shirt package was labeled with the t-shirt name, size and a few special specifications.
Besides the literature inspired t-shirts the package contained a nice letter presenting the materials: “These are 100% light weight premium cotton T-shirts and we can vouch for every stitch. The ultra-soft material is custom woven, cut and sewn in a sweatshop free factory in Portugal. The inks we use to screen print are water based and all garments are pre washed until they feel like a huggable old friend that will never shrink.”
Absinthe graphic t-shirt is inspired by Aleister Crowley’s (rambling) treatise Absinthe: The Green Goddess. It is an ice white jersey, a classic cut slim fit graphic t-shirt with a NanoSoft® screenprint.
We would describe it like a classical t-shirt with a large print. Besides the vintage style of the artwork the subtle tint of green makes the whole print very nice, interesting and intriguing.
Besides the high quality of the textile and of the print you can also notice the high attention given to details. Besides the logo being present at the neck on the inside and also on the sleeve, on the inside below the neck label you can read the t-shirt story and also a small quote from the book that inspired it.
“Sip the icy opal; endure till all things change… till you become as gods, knowing both good and evil, and that they are not two but one.” ABSINTHE: THE GREEN GODDESS – ALEISTER CROWLEY (1918)
And this is not all. Besides the many symbols that lay visible or hidden on the main front design there is another small print design on the back of the t-shirt just close to the neck. A real feast of symbols.
Mysterious Island graphic t-shirt is inspired by Jules Verne’s Mysterious Island. It is a bone (off white) jersey, a summer cut slim fit graphic t-shirt with a NanoSoft® screenprint.
Besides the quality of the textile material which has a very smooth feeling, the design is very deep and profound and this is very well sustained by the print quality. The blue-ish tint gives it even more depth and mystery. What we liked a lot about this t-shirt is the ‘summer cut’ style of it. The sleeves and also the neck cuts feel very comfortable and we like a lot the way they look. You can read more about the cuts on the-affair.com/t-shirt-cuts
Talking about the details inside the shirt on the back you have another artistic skull design, the ‘Terra Incognita’ term used in cartography for regions that have not been mapped or documented and the following incentive quote: “Sail forbidden seas… Land on barbarons coasts.”
“It seems wisest to assume the worst from the beginning… and let anything better come as a surprise.” MYSTERIOUS ISLAND – JULES VERNE (1874)
‘Over 100 years before 3D printing revolutionised the world, Jules Verne’s Mysterious Island had exactly the right stuff popping out of thin air at just the right time. Forget the friendship, ingenuity and even the adventure because Mysterious Island is actually a prescient ode to just-in-time manufacturing.’
The Affair ads another nice detail for the French fans and / or connoisseurs the name of the novel, L’île mystérieuse.
From the website we learn that both t-shirts are designed in London and made in Portugal using 100% premium cotton, lightweight 140 gsm jersey, contrast shoulder stitch, vintage prewash.
We recommend The Affair for the original concept, for their clever designs, for the fast delivery, for the quality of materials and prints and for their attention to details. And again for the summer cut style. Check all their t-shirts and prints at the-affair.com.
If you liked ‘Mysterious Island’ or ‘Absinthe’ you can buy them from
the-affair.com/shop/tshirt-jules-verne-mysterious-island and
the-affair.com/shop/tshirt-crowley-absinthe-green-goddess
