Yep. More on my Zazzle store.
Apr. 4th, 2011 05:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
capri0mniMan! Now that I've figured out the quirks of their design tools, I can see how this is a potential time-sink to rival TVtropes. Because, truth be told? My mind is always churning out mottos and snarks. It's just that, until now, I haven't had any easy place to put any of them.
Now, well: Fear Me!
Audrey wanted me to put my "Monster on Wheels" design on an adult shirt, so she could wear it, too (so she and he could have the same "team uniform," so to speak). But that made me really uncomfortable, because the disabled (especially disabled kids) are always having their identity appropriated by the able-bodied authority figures around them.
But I also understand the desire to declare your affliations, and to have matching shirts and such. So yesterday, I came up with a tee-shirt for the able-bodied advocates, featuring the same type of monster, but grown-up, and standing and scowling. With the words "Monster Advocate" on the front, and "You haven't seen the last of me." on the back, because I know that she, personally, likes tees with stuff on the back.
On the one hand, I like it, because:
On the other hand, I'm still uncomfortable with it, because it reinforces the idea that the disabled need to depend on able-bodied advocates (and even if it's true that doctors and airline security officials, and waitstaff in restaurants are less likely to take you seriously unless you have an able-bodied person with you, it still stinks).
So now, I feel the urge to make Another design with a disabled adult monster as a self-advocate (you see what I mean about this being a time-sink?).
And, late last night, I couldn't sleep, so I worked on adapting the ADA-anniversary sticker I did last year to a design for a trucker hat (mostly because the graphic I'd already made last year was the right size for that, and I didn't have fiddle much with it. And I really like how that turned out. I took out the specific reference to the ADA and the anniversary, because a) it's no longer a round-number year, and b) I wanted to remove the US-centrism. I had fun writing the description, today, and telling a bit of mythology around Hephaestos, and hinting at how he's also the God of the Ancient geeks.
So, anyway. The conclusion to all this is that I've decided that I will only work on designs to sell for the first 5 days of each month. That way, I'll force myself to think of creating other stuff, too. And my store will be regularly updated.
So.
Now, well: Fear Me!
Audrey wanted me to put my "Monster on Wheels" design on an adult shirt, so she could wear it, too (so she and he could have the same "team uniform," so to speak). But that made me really uncomfortable, because the disabled (especially disabled kids) are always having their identity appropriated by the able-bodied authority figures around them.
But I also understand the desire to declare your affliations, and to have matching shirts and such. So yesterday, I came up with a tee-shirt for the able-bodied advocates, featuring the same type of monster, but grown-up, and standing and scowling. With the words "Monster Advocate" on the front, and "You haven't seen the last of me." on the back, because I know that she, personally, likes tees with stuff on the back.
On the one hand, I like it, because:
- It has the double being an advocate for monsters, and being something of a monster, when you go into advocate mode.
- And it's sort of like the goalie's uniform in Soccer/Football -- it belongs to the same team, but there's a distinct design, because the goalie has a different role to play within the team.
On the other hand, I'm still uncomfortable with it, because it reinforces the idea that the disabled need to depend on able-bodied advocates (and even if it's true that doctors and airline security officials, and waitstaff in restaurants are less likely to take you seriously unless you have an able-bodied person with you, it still stinks).
So now, I feel the urge to make Another design with a disabled adult monster as a self-advocate (you see what I mean about this being a time-sink?).
And, late last night, I couldn't sleep, so I worked on adapting the ADA-anniversary sticker I did last year to a design for a trucker hat (mostly because the graphic I'd already made last year was the right size for that, and I didn't have fiddle much with it. And I really like how that turned out. I took out the specific reference to the ADA and the anniversary, because a) it's no longer a round-number year, and b) I wanted to remove the US-centrism. I had fun writing the description, today, and telling a bit of mythology around Hephaestos, and hinting at how he's also the God of the Ancient geeks.
So, anyway. The conclusion to all this is that I've decided that I will only work on designs to sell for the first 5 days of each month. That way, I'll force myself to think of creating other stuff, too. And my store will be regularly updated.
So.
no subject
Date: 2011-04-05 12:48 am (UTC)T-shirts with clever stuff on the back just irritates my back :,)
I like the duality of monster advocate!
no subject
Date: 2011-04-05 01:49 am (UTC)Indeed. The trick is to pick the right limit. Too strict on myself (such as only one day a month), and I'd freeze myself out with indecision. Too loose, and I think I'd burn myself trying to fill each day with new ideas. I'm not sure what the right balance is, yet. And it may shift, but fingers are crossed.
I like the duality of Monster Advocate!
Thank you. I do, too. Part of designing it is knowing that at least one person will buy it if I make it, so knowing that person's tastes and personality is a good guide.
She's also said that she would buy other tees with some of my other monster designs on them. And heck, since last summer, she always wore a "Tea Party" (yes, that tea party) shirt when she took me places, I'm all in favor of her wearing designs I have some say in.
no subject
Date: 2011-04-05 12:52 pm (UTC)Now I'm picturing that with some form of scary non-cute monster, on the counterpart shirt for adults with disabilities who don't want to wear the baby monster. ;)
Call me on it if that's a bad idea...
Edited for an afterthought -- not to shoot your idea down completelu
Date: 2011-04-05 04:10 pm (UTC)(On second thought: If it were an adult monster that is goofy / obviously spoofing the idea of monsterdom, and there were a Question Mark at the end... that might get folks to recognise their own fears, and pointing out that I really do notice how they react to me.
Zazzle does hats. The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of hats with messages, for folks in chairs, because the message is as high / close to a standing person's eyeline as you can get. One idea I'm contemplating for next month is one that says:
I understand you perfectly
(even your subtext).
Or something along those lines).
However, that slogan with a cartoon image of an artist -- flinging paint around, drawing pen in her teeth, etc. that could be cute.
Actually, I've noticed my ideas are tending to go in either of two directions: affirming the humanity (through irony) of the disabled, and celebrating the creative/artistic impulse.
I think those may be connected.