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Friday, August 14, 2009

New Slap: Crown City Rockers

Due to a lack of updates, one of the things largely lacking from the site has been our beloved 'Slap O' The Week' feature. While I do love The Hood Internet's mash-up of Dead Prez and Grizzly Bear, two months is an excessive amount of time for any song to be playing. We're back though with something new.

This week's featured song is "B-Boy" by Crown City Rockers. I suggest purchasing the original song, because it's dope, but the version actually playing on the site is the B-Boy Remix, which features not only the diverse cast and crew of the Crown City Rockers, but many other recognizable voices as well. Bay Area hip-hop fans should be pleased to know that this group is based out of San Francisco, and that the remix features prominent local artists The Grouch and Zion I.
If you are into these guys at all they will be in town, doing it big time at the Treasure Island Music Festival, joining the world renowned fame of MSTRKRFT, MGMT and many others on stage October 17th. I don't know if L.G. will be there, but I woud give a limb to attend the show show if it came down to it, so you can expect to see me going crazy on Treasure Island, with or without my left leg.

"Hmm, breakdance...or 111? Decisions, decisions" -Crown City Rockers

-B.S.

Hola

It has been a long time since I've posted here. Most likely due to the fact that there has been little to no development on the 111 front. Sad, I know. Hopefully that all changes now that both me and L.G. are back in the Valley and in the midst of a T-shirt project of a very different kind.



"2010, in juncture with 111, goes dumb." -All Old People...Ever

-B.S.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

L.A.

So this past weekend me and L.G. hit up the oh so beautiful and sunny town of Los Angeles. Aside from eating Macaroni Pancakes at BluePlate and checking out some crazy Promenade street acts, including a pair of belligerent, evangelical Christian, anti-evolution open-mic speakers (Hey man! Fuck Chimpanzees!) we checked out a lot of the town's sickest stores. Union, Diamond, Hall of Fame, Supreme, The Hundreds L.A. and Undefeated were just a couple of the cool spots we stopped by. I, for one, can say, that after the speedy drive back from Los Angeles to the Bay Area, I feel all the more excited to start putting designs we have into their much deserved, physical form. SO LOOKOUT!



Above: Macaroni-Pancakes are exactly what you think, just mac and cheese and nice ol' pancakes. Crazy you say? Fucking delicious.


One store I'd like to give a special shoutout to is a store called And Still, which focuses on and specializes in retro (mostly 80s and 90s era, is that retro yet?) sportswear. Whether it be that Run DMC pull-over you always wanted or any assortment of sports team caps from back in the day when all their logos were jacked up and crazy, then this is the spot to be. I could probably dress myself for an entire lifetime just with the awesome inventory they have there. So, my peoples, if you ever get a chance to stop by their store it's at 114 S La Brea. Or hit up their website.






"I'm smoggy, 111, rarely is." -L.A.


-B.S.


Thursday, July 2, 2009

Well...

Okay, so it's been a month, my bad, it was finals week, then it was summer, then I became lazy and all of a sudden 4 weeks had passed. I'm sorry. Not that anyone reads this (yet), but my apologies to, I guess myself, regardless, things are back on track, you can take my word for it.

In the process of getting actual process of getting clothing out there, me and L.G. are on step...I don't know the number of steps actually, but we're still in the design phase. There are too many good ideas cooking in my brain for me to pass this opportunity up. With that being said, incrementally, slowly but surely, shirts are definitely going to be released and printed, there is no doubt in my mind that will be a done deal before the month is over, this time, with plenty of updates. So check back in for info on THAT.

In other news, I haven't been drawing as much as I should or like to, so for the time being I'll be making sure to post as much art and prints/concepts as I can in hopes of keeping myself sharp. This first one came out alright... eh, I'm not even really that pumped about it, but since this site hasn't been updated since June 2nd, BRING THE SHIT ON!




"Mmmmm, 111, yum." -Of Mice and Men (The mice not the men)

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

I, me, myself, have died and gone to the Hood Internet

Alright, so I am tempted to pinch myself or perform some sort of masochistic act in attempt to wake myself from what I can only assume to be a dream. I will preface this post with the fact that as well as a huge hip-hop fan (pickier than most) I am an even bigger electronic-scene fan, but I'm hoping this can be exciting for anyone who likes music at all since these guys seem to be drawing from a lot of genres.



Here's one of their masterfully done song covers (for "Fire Bird"/Modest Mouse x Lil' Wayne) that combine both artists in one photo.


Basically what I have just unwittingly come across, is a site, run by what looks to be two normal looking, if anything mediocre indie-band San Franciscans, who as unlikely as it may seem, enjoy mashing up songs. And if you can't tell from the way I've been hyping it, the tracks are fucking sick. Not only that, but the artists that they have mashed-up with (I'm a slutty music whore so I recognize about 95% of them) are in some cases, while still quality as shit, unknown to the average music-listener. So while the giddy excitement I have may only reflect the views of someone who not only loves hip-hop, but indie bands and LOUD electro-movement music as well, a lot of these tracks would have even impressed Helen Keller.

Enter the slap-matic zone: The Hood Internet



"God [111] and I thought my internet was hood." -Hood Internet

-B.S.

Artiste Locale

Was floating on by one of my personal favorite websites, Vimby (Video in my Backyard) an eclectic video-feature hub that spotlights fashion, art, music and all sorts of creative institutions and figures. One of their most recent videos was on a really interesting artist named Ryan Shaffer, who specializes in minimalist acrylic pieces and is local to our own Bay Area. His clean style and his unique skeletal references remind me of some sort of modernist mausoleum. While one of the designs I'll be posting soon is very ornate and grand in scale, I think that year in and year out, simplicity (coupled with an ample amount of originality) trumps all in the world of design.

VIMBY - Ryan Shaffer



"eughghhhh, I feel 111-ish." -Ryan Shaffer


-B.S.

Friday, May 29, 2009

I swear I can explain....

Basically, I just drew an enormous phallic image on a hat, and colored it in. TO be honest, it's not even really suggestive of a penis, more less, it is a penis. A penis riding a skateboard to be exact, and here's why. As much as I thought our customer base would love giant private parts adorning their outwear (especially their ill-fitting trucker-hats), there's an actual rationale for my actions. In the acting company I'm involved with at my school we (the juniors) do a tribute show the seniors every year. It's an original play in which we all play one of the seniors as a character. The guy I'm portraying is more or less crazy, and let's just say that a penis riding a skateboard, for him, will be like Christmas morning....maybe he's not that weird, but none the less I'm doing this as a tribute to him and as a parting gift. I hope it doesn't get in trouble with Policeman with sexual insecurities (I can only assume there are many of them).



While this is far from my most accurate or artistically sound design, I think the 90s style layout and coloring makes for a crazy-looking unique hat.

When I get more time on my hands I'll be sure to take some nice, lit shots where the color isn't faded and where more detail (you know you want it) is visible.

"Hm, there's a dick on my screen, I am undoubtedly leaving 111's site" -Usain Bolt

-B.S.

Fitted Hawaii “Ali’i Kamehameha” New Era Cap & Tee


One of my favorite stores (that I've never actually been to) is Fitted in Honolulu. It is a custom hat and T-shirt shop that as of late, has been coming out with more and more stuff from their own brand that reflects their neat Hawaiian culture. Personally I could really care less about all the stories and tales that relate to their products, but the bottom line is: they make some cool shit.

This Saturday (5/30) they are dropping one of their signature Kamehameha New Eras, that in proper Fitted fashion will be extremely limited. They will also be dropping a matching shirt to go with it. Check out their full post here


-L.G.

My Favorite God-Damned Band

Alright, so I will let it be known that hands down my favorite artist alongside maybe a few other bands and artists is Modest Mouse. This is a very much a Hip-Hop and street wear oriented blog, so I know this is like trying to dress Jay-Z up as a vagrant hippie, but I feel it is my duty. Below is the crazy, mind contorting music video to one of their great new singles, "Satellite Skin." Enjoy (if you can).


Modest Mouse - Satellite Skin from Old World Monkey on Vimeo.




"I hate life just like I love 111" -Isaac Brock

-B.S.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Could it be?

Along with the launch of our official domain name for the (hopefully not too distant future) webethe111.com comes the decision for a final, official-like version of a logo for our business endeavors. Most of the efforts posted on here have been me (B.S.) idly scribbling away in the late hours of the night, but me and L.G. sat down today together for a marathon session of tweaking the logo. Below is the final result. We're still sitting on it and are gonna give it some deep (oh it can get deep) thought and hopefully have simple, clean looking logo shirts before school gets out. As always, feedback is our friend, we love to hear what people have to say.





Here's a little trinket of a logo I fiddled with right before I made this post live. I think it'll be a great design to get on the back-neckline area of an official tee, but what do I know?




"By God, is that 111's logo *yack*" -Phil Collins

-B.S.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Small Emblem Fun in the (Sun, Rain, Shine, Clouds etc.)

Here are some smaller symbol-like mini icons and logos I've been messing with. These would be great for inside tags, sleeves or even just simple stickers and wallets and SHIYAAAATTTTT. Simple, but explosive, here they come a rumblin'.

I call this the 'Sprite' inspired:




This one is futuristic, clean yet crude:




"Looks like we got here a bullfight, and the Matador is posting 111s" -LeBron James

-B.S.

Fahrenheit 111

Was fooling around in Photoshop... not much more can be said for this, haha.



"111 are Republicans." -Michael Moore

-B.S.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Leggo my Logo?

So, with any company comes a logo. Nike has the swoosh, Converse has the star, Adidas has the....stripe things? Regardless, we want a strong central image that is distinct and recognizable. This is our first pass at a logo, so consider this Version 1. I think it came out legit, lemme' know what you think folks.


Standard Version:


Seaweed/Beach Colorway:





"111 is, logo is as well" -Yoda

-B.S.

Nike Dunk HIgh SB Gucci


This is a new series that I will get started where I will highlight upcoming kicks, clothing, brands, etc. that I think are not only really dope, but that I think everyone should know about. For the first installment, here is a winter Quickstrike release from Nike SB...

Back in 2006, Nike SB planned to release a pair of Quickstrike (very limited) Dunk High SB in Gucci colorway. It was originally be a part of the team manager series and designed by Girl Skateboards. Unfortunately, the project was scrapped due to some issue with Girl. As a result, there were less than 30 sample pairs made. These pairs as seen in this link, from high end sneaker consignment shop Flight Club, show just how much these bad boys fetch for on the market.

If you're like me, and you thought these shoes were one of Nike SB's best releases, then fear not! In the 4th quarter of 2009, we will have this Gucci Dunk SB High back on the market. The shoe is the same color scheme as the 2006 sample with black denim toe cap and heel cap, deep forest toe box and side panel, and red swoosh.

These will probably be extremely limited, but they are definite must cop (assuming you don't have to camp out for them).


-L.G.

Slap O' the Week

So being the baller that I am I've installed an extremely simple little mp3 player on the blog that starts to play when you open up the blog. My friends ridicule me for having a pretty insane taste in music, so we'll try to keep this to stuff we're pretty sure most everyone will be into

I'm thinking, that being the huge music fans (especially of stuff that the general public isn't hyped up on yet) that we are, that me (B.S.) and L.G. would throw up a new song every five to seven days or so to update you on some slumpers out there that, hopefully, no one else is listening to yet.

To start us off, we have a track from DJ Moondance. He's a mash-up guy, very similar to the well known DJ, "Girl Talk." The song only gets better as it progresses, and the last 20 seconds or so are some of the illest notes i've ever heard put together, so take the time to see that track through to the end. Above, is a link of where you can download all this guy's stuff, completely legal.


Enjoy, ill thugs!

-B.S.

A Little Local Flava'

Below is the big legal building that you have to go to if you ever have to deal with your passport, with court dates or anything legal and bureaucratic in nature. Or if you're like L.G. it's where you post up to do Mock-Trial-like duties.

As a kid the building always reminded me of a side of a dictionary, and while this picture has nothing to do with that, this ugly construct holds a lot of memories and nostalgia in an odd sense.

This print is a simple experiment with painting over real photos, post if you're feeling this and would like to see more of this type of stuff. While this exact version probably wouldn't screen on a shirt great and is more of a poster-type of illustration, I think there are some awesome design possibilities for Tees in the near future (Click on image to see full-resolution image).


...And while I'm at it I'll do y'all the favor of posting an older image from way back right when me and L.G. were first talking about this little design company of ours, but here it is anyways. It's very similar in character design, to my dictionary print above which is why it came to mind. This isn't necessarily our artistic direction, but these little blob-men (I call em Southern Polar Bears, for no real great reason) are easy to whip up and look like straight up G's. Hopefully next time I post (I'm busy, could be Millenia!) we get to take another look at some different styles and paths we're looking at exploring (Click on image to see full-resolution image).




"I went to court today. There were 111 jurors, they all found me guilty....Shit!" -Charles Manson

-B.S.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Fly Me to the Moon

Sick looking movie that's been making the big festival circuit. Pretty chill seeing Sam Rockwell in a leading roll as well, he's a talented guy who has been a character actor for forever now. More interestingly is the fact that the director of "Moon" is David Bowie's oldest son....well fuck, just peep this and see if you're catching some of these creative vibes.





"When I was on the moon, I can be certain that I saw 111" -Niel Armstrong

-B.S.

Salutations

Hey this L.G., co creator of 111. I thought it would be appropriate to introduce myself, seeing as my eloquent partner did so as well. Quite frankly it would be rude if I didn't say halla. We're not trying to make this your average mediocre, t-shirt, start-up brand and therefore we are committed to putting in extra time and effort to put out the best product possible. I promise you that we will not let anyone down and that this is gonna be bigger than Rosie O'Donnell.


"When I think of the warm deliciousness of my Cinabuns© I also think of 111" - Pillsbury Doughboy

-L.G.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Inaugural Address


Yo, This is B.S., Co-Creator of 111. This post right here, while a great way for me to make sure I didn't completely shit all over the HTML after tinkering with it, is also my first chance to give a big shout out to anyone who is stopping by to take an interest in, what I think you'll come to find as, an extremely dope venture. As of right now we've got nothing but some art and some style sensibility. My hope is that as time goes on this site will be full of postings of sick art, music and clothing that interest both me and L.G. and most of all news on our own clothing business . Keep checking in though, because in the following weeks we're looking to preview and gain as much feedback as possible for potential t-shirt designs, that I envision on the backs of the masses.



"When I go to Heaven, all I wanna do, is sketch 111" -Herbert Hoover

-B.S.