we are the leaders we've been waiting for

One of my dad’s favorite gifts to give and receive are graphic tees, most with inspiring messages or neat-o design. Every Christmas, I’m laden with t-shirts touting Milwaukee as a “Great Place on a Great Lake,” or with a photo of a jazz great on the front and most recently, t-shirts from Sweet Water Organics, his urban fish and vegetable farm.

I’ve got more than enough night-shirts, so I’ve been trying to figure out what to do with them. They have great sentimental value, so donating is out. They’re usually way too big for me, so the obvious choice of wearing them is out. I have considered cutting the front of the tees out and sewing the graphics onto plain colored pillows, which is a great option. But I hadn’t thought of framing them until I saw the Grace Lee Boggs graphic pictured above.

This graphic used to be available in poster form but has been discontinued on her website (If you haven’t read up on Grace, please check out the Boggs Center.) I saw her speak last month and was looking forward to framing the poster to remind me of it but there were none left when I jumped online that night. The t-shirt, however, is still available.

Vintage posters can be expensive to frame and often don’t come in smaller sizes for tight spaces. T-shirts can be framed using the same 12 x 12 black record frames you’ve seen at Walgreen’s forever. They can be spray painted! And of course, you can find cool t-shirts for less than .50 cents at any thrift store. Wash and frame! If you don’t have access to a thrift store, check out these frameable t-shirts. I’m ordering my “Leaders We’ve Been Waiting For” t-shirt tonight.

All t-shirts available at PalmerCash.