We are going to test a different approach this time by assigning a specific challenge (“There is that Blue Again”) instead of being a free-for-all and by uploading all designs on the same day (March 18) instead of over the course of the week (where the last submissions had the least amount of visibility). So…

(In case this “Co-Op Shop” stuff doesn’t make sense, here are all the posts around it.)

1. Getting started

Download the Cotton Bureau mock-up template (157Mb).

Unfortunately the silhouette of the t-shirt is a little clunky but the PSD file has layers for all the t-shirt colors and textures available, so you will definitely want to use it.

2. The Challenge: There is that Blue Again

• As a way to focus your energy, this volume is about nailing down one, two, three, or more t-shirts that pay homage to the “There is that Blue Again” meme that has become popular in the comments. The blue is R:0, G:0, B:255 or PMS Reflex Blue.
• Interpret that in any way you can think of.
• Keep it fun, clean, and inclusive by not being unnecessarily mean and/or overly sarcastic.
• We reserve the right to remove anything we deem offensive or insensitive.
• No logo parodies will be accepted as it’s likely they will attract legal action and we have no interest in fielding cease and desist letters.

3. Design Guidelines

• Limit to 2 ink colors.
• Printable area is 11 inches wide by 14 inches tall on the front and/or the back.
• You can use the front, the back, or both.

4. Posting Guidelines

Do not upload on this post — a new post will be opened on March 1821.

On quantity

• You can post multiple ideas… say, 5.
• Don’t be overwhelming by posting 15 or 20.
• Don’t post minimal variations of the same idea (e.g., same layout and sentence but in 10 different fonts or color combinations).
• Self-edit before posting.

On format

• You are encouraged to stick with the Cotton Bureau template to present your ideas.
• It’s okay if you want to present it in your preferred t-shirt mock-up template.

On upload protocol

• Upload a single t-shirt per comment so that the voting applies to only one design at a time.
• Use the Disqus picture-upload feature to upload your design.

5. Voting Guidelines

• Upvote if you would honestly consider buying the t-shirt.
• You can downvote if you like but, for whatever reason, Disqus has removed the option to publicly see downvotes. Not that they would play a big role anyway as the idea is to move forward with whatever gets upvoted the most.

6. Deadline

• Monday March 18 Wednesday March 20 to submit. We will create a new post on that date for you to upload.
• Wednesday March 20 Friday March 22 to vote.

After March 20 we will work with the most popular t-shirts to move them into Cotton Bureau campaigns and launch a week or so after.

We’ll see how all this works out and make changes if necessary for Volume 3.