I have always loved Japanese Graphic Design elements. The font stylings and colorations just always felt really cool to me and friends know this about me, so they send me things. Well, two sweet finds have come to my attention lately: one that I trust, and one that I’d tell people “Buyer Beware” on. Have a look.
Rucking Fotten‘s “A Poster Art Show”
This first one has to do with Rucking Fotten-designed posters that will be on display in a Spoke Art exhibition taking place in San Francisco (starting March 6th) & digitally (starting March 11th at 10 AM according to this post). A friend made me aware of it because he knows I dig stuff like this.
I mean look at this “Do The Right Thing Poster”…
It just looks like a solid conversation piece for any Spike Lee fan or 90s Hiphop head out there.
I also liked this “Big Trouble in Little China” one a lot…
Again – randomly cool-looking Japanese-inspired designs from a clothing brand, with a unique flair for Japanese street style, based in Toledo, OH. Haha – the only real info I could find on them was “私たちを脅かすであろう者への死” which means “Death to those who would threaten us” (LOL – and this is the one I trust) – but they’re legit. They’ve been in the game for a little while and have a following — so worth checking out.
If you want more details about that event, click here.
This exhibition only lasts until March 27th — just a heads up.
An Akira Shirt I Love (But Won’t Buy)
I believe in serving up the goods first sometimes so, here’s the shirt…
I.
LOVE.
THIS.
SHIRT.
I really want it – but I’ll never buy it for a few reasons.
First – I’m only seeing it on questionable websites. I first came across it because of a Facebook ad (they seem to be getting a sense of what I like now — that worries me). And that took me to this site that states that the sweatshirt can be purchased for a huge discount! The site proudly proclaims that they sell it for $49.99 USD, but it’s regularly $189.99 USD. Which, while steep for an original price, I could believe if there were a higher-end version of it out there, because “streetwear”.
News Flash: I can’t find it.
But, what I did find were two other websites that sold the exact same design at lower prices and on different shirt formats (which is likely where the first site is getting their supply from). One was going for as low as $9 while another was $19.
This screams, “Please put me in one of those articles you see online of people who bought an item online for $20 that normally costs $200 and got something that looks nothing like what’s shown on the site.”
But, that brings me to the next thing – If I can’t see a clothing item from multiple angles or on a photographed model, I get nervous. If I want a shirt and I can’t see the back – that tells me that the design is likely limited to the front of the shirt vs. being a full wrap. If it says that it’s made for some super low price with Asian sourcing, there’s a high likelihood that the sizing is off. If I order a Large, I may end up with a Medium or worse. And don’t get me started on the potential for the item being ruined once it’s washed.
What I’m saying is that there are A LOT of flags on this one although I love the idea of this shirt. That said, I don’t trust it and I’d urge people to avoid this one unless you start seeing photos from happy customers out there rocking the shirt.
Anywho, that’s it. I just wanted to share those two things with you because I thought they looked cool. I plan to check out the digital showing of those posters because it just looks dope. Have you ever bought anything online for a low price only to end up with something you didn’t want? If so, tell me about it in the comment section below.
Peace, and thanks for reading.
The soundtrack for this post provided by…
Image Credits:
– Cover Image © local_doctor (Shutterstock)
– Body Images 1 & 2 © Rucking Fotten
– Body Image 3 © Unknown (characters originally created by Katsuhiro Otomo)