My daughter has a gift. Not sure if she will pursue her gift long-term, so for now I will treasure it for as long as I can. Her gift is the ability to translate the pictures in her mind to paper. We’re not talking classical masterpieces the likes of the greats, but she has a cool style for a four-year-old. I have been truly impressed by many of the drawings she has created for us.

A couple of days ago my daughter was at the table huddled over a piece of paper like she often is. I wasn’t allowed to see what she was working on. Not until it was finished. What she revealed to us was an outstanding picture she drew. It’s a picture of her mom. It was a cute & cool drawing. We heaped lots of praise and encouragement.

I decided to convert the drawing to digital form to keep a copy for myself and then realized it would make a cool shirt. It is now available. When my daughter saw that I put her art on a shirt she grabbed a few more pieces of paper and created additional drawings. I’ve made those available as well. I plan to make more available over time if she is good with it. Some drawings will only be for us. Will be some great memories in the future when we look at the drawings again. We’ve been keeping them in a safe place.

I could not be prouder of her abilities. Her ability to draw what she visualizes far surpasses my skills, even after more than 20 years’ experience. Can’t wait to see more of her creations.

These are the items I have converted to digital and made available here on this site.

The post Natural Talent appeared first on pixelmandan.

Two years have passed and I am beginning to wonder if that translation of hobby to income will ever take place. There has been lots of effort for all involved, but the apparel (especially t-shirts) is hugely competitive. One cool aspect has been the opportunity to design for major brands of the world. However, the designs presented have yet to yield the orders that lead to revenue.

There is no telling how much longer it will take to see the fruits of all the hard work. No idea how long I can hold out for that to happen.

Here’s to the hope something will come to fruition soon.

Much frustration remains.

The post The Apparel Industry appeared first on pixelmandan.

Truth is, I lost my drive to do anything after being asked to stop selling certain items.

My frustration and discouragement led to motivation. I have been asking questions and learning the process for creating and selling officially licensed products. Still learning.

One great thing that has come about was an introduction to a company that is a licensed manufacturer of apparel. No, not Nike or adidas…but a company that has a product I believe in and can stand behind. Their apparel products are made from post-consumer recycled plastic bottles.

I have been designing artwork for the licensed properties they work with. So far I have gotten to design for several universities, my alma mater included. Waiting to see if schools chose to offer the apparel selections in their various retail outlets. A few schools have already; University of Oregon. UMASS, and Ithaca College.

One of the coolest opportunities was designing items for the NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Visitor Complex. Two of my designs were selected and are now in the gift shop and online store for KSC. Funny side note, I started out in Aerospace Engineering in college with dreams of being part of the teams that design and built spacecraft for human travel. That lasted a semester. That field is tough…and meant for the intellectual elite. I found my way to graphic design and now have a product associated with NASA. I’ll take it!

Men’s T-Shirt Official NASA Meatball Recycled Material Gray

Men’s T-Shirt Rocket Science Recycled Material Navy

At some point I plan to offer my own private designs that are not related to trademarked properties on the recycled plastic bottle products. For now, I will gladly continue to design for the different properties and organizations they are connected with. Hopefully their message of sustainable products grows and my designs are part of it.

The post Update appeared first on pixelmandan.

I have inquired about licensing. Was told I do not directly need licensing as long as any designs I offer with trademarks owned by ASU are submitted for approval and then produced by the appropriately licensed company. This is how I plan to proceed.

The next hurdle to clear is meeting the requirements of the licensed screen printers. They cannot offer one at a time (or one-off) printing. It’s not cost effective for anyone involved.  At best, I would need to order 12-15 shirts of the same color that will have the same artwork screen printed on them. That means I would need to take orders for shirts and hold the orders until I have enough to meet the minimum order. This would be the process to start. If I can get enough orders on a regular basis, it makes sense to keep going.

I would then be packaging and shipping shirts myself, instead of using the screen printers for fulfillment. Another thing that I must consider.

It is all possible. It depends on the willingess of people to buy that will keep this process moving forward. If nobody is buying, there is no reason to continue. That is the bottom line in any business. Supply & demand.

Dan

The post Selling Licensed Apparel appeared first on pixelmandan.

I do love Arizona State University Athletics. I love Sparky. I love the pitchfork logo.

I post so many designs on social media that use both. That is considered “fan art”. I do that for fun and enjoyment. When I post those types of items on social media it promotes the various brands of ASU. I am not looking to profit from those “fan art” designs.

There are certain designs that I have created that I offer as apparel. There will be future designs. However, neither Sparky nor the pitchfork logo will be part of the designs.

I cannot offer those registered brand trademarks in my design. Simple as that. It is illegal. I cannot use those items in my products at this time.

I am working on that though. I have spoken to the licensing department at ASU and understand what needs to be done in order to be NCAA licensed. There is a lot to it & I am not there, YET!

I would love for my designs to be sold with Sparky or the pitchfork. That will happen some day. Maybe I will become NCAA licensed and get approval of my designs for sale or maybe one of the apparel companies will be smart and hire me.

Until one of those happens, you’ll see artwork created for fun as “fan art” and designs I release that I intend to sell on my own.

Whew! Now, let’s move along…shall we.

The post If You Love ASU So Much, Where Is Sparky & Pitchfork? appeared first on pixelmandan.