With T-Shirts, It's an Easy Choice To Make a Positive Impact

The other day, I designed a new sign for STAY VOCAL events. I wanted to make a quicker explanation of the brand, rather than the short essays that I tend to write. And I decided on a closing slogan of, "Be a part of the solution, not the problem."

Yesterday was my first event that I did with it. Many people read the sign and then either looked through the shirts, talked to me briefly about the brand, or bought something. But one couple read the sign and scoffingly said something to the effect of, "Well, that's a bit much."

Sure, it may be a dose of harsh reality, but I think about how many gallons of water it takes to make 1 T-Shirt: 700+ gallons, which is enough water for 3 people to drink in a year. THAT is a "bit much." If I had a choice between those two things, I'd certainly opt to give water to 3 people for a year. Droughts are affecting so much of the world right now.

The slogan is not a judgement. It's just a fact. With every single that choice we make, we can either be a part of the problem or a part of the solution. We have so much power to make a positive impact.

And hey, none of us are perfect. We're all "part of the problem" in various ways. But when it comes to things as easily accessible as T-Shirts, it's a lot easier to be a part of the solution. Used options are everywhere: Thrift Stores, Vintage Shops, eBay, Depop, your mom's closet, the list goes on...

Some of you have been hearing me talk about this since I first started making reuse T-Shirts over 20 years ago. But the problems are still here and in fact, they're worse. But the solutions are still here too and in fact, they work.

Whenever you need to buy anything at all, consider a used option. That's the mindset we need to start with.