Our “Giving Knows No Boundaries” shirt – which helps raise funds for the American Red Cross‘ Haitian earthquake relief efforts – is featured in the May 2010 issue of Ladies’ Home Journal, as part of their “Sweet Chari-Tees” article highlighting cause-related T-shirts. Check it out!

Used with permission from Ladies’ Home Journal® magazine. ©Copyright 2010 Meredith Corporation. All rights reserved.

In November, we found a pleasant surprise in our inbox. It was a message sent via our contact form from Bert Jacobs, Chief Executive Optimist of Life is Good. Yes, that Life is Good – the worldwide feel-good apparel company!

Apparently a co-worker turned him onto our site and he wanted to reach out. Here’s what he said:

“I just wanted to say hello and give you praise for your concept. Business and social work are considered different disciplines in most cultures. We have never believed that at LIG. It is clear to see that you don’t believe that either.”

We’ll be honest – at first we thought it might be a hoax or spam. But after a little more correspondence, we realized we were talking to the real thing!

We don’t do what we do for those who are watching – we do it for those who are needing. But sometimes it’s nice to know people are taking notice! It makes everything all the more worthwhile. : )

I love fishing. The floppy hats, nomenclature like doodlesock and hawg and its ability to serve a metaphor for self reliance and independence.

At some point everyone has come across the aphorism ‘Give a person a fish, they eat for a day. Teach a person to fish, they eat for a lifetime.’ Down in West Virginia’s Jefferson & Berkeley Counties, Friends in Action of the Eastern Panhandle is teaching people how to fish. The non-profit pairs low-income families with mentors who serve as role models and provide emotional support; help with budgeting and parenting skills; tutor a child or help a parent acquire a GED or obtain a job; celebrate the good times and help get past the rough spots.

My original thumbnail didn’t actually have the Give/Teach quote. Rather, it was a bunch of fish with a hook hanging there all cryptic. This would’ve pushed the boundaries of our screen printing department, requiring multiple screens and locations unlike any shirt we have produced yet. But it didn’t convey the Give/Teach message very well. Or at all.

Speaking of the Give/Teach quote, traditionally it has been known as “give a Man a fish/teach a man to fish” which left me to wonder about women…wouldn’t they like to learn how to fish? I changed my phrase so that everyone can enjoy fishing.

The next drawing tested the waters with integrating the text with the fish. I started working on refining the drawing with pencil. This helped flesh out the style of the letterforms and fish.

I’m a very raw designer, instead of tight and technical, so I wasn’t concerned with making everything perfect for the final product.  I traced over the pencil with a pen and scanned it. From there I worked on the computer, redrawing it yet again, refining the forms and tweaking the colors. And ta-da, the completed design!

You can land yourself one over here.

This week, our good friend Mark Wyatt, Executive Director at the Iowa Bicycle Coalition, is making his yearly bike ride across Iowa with RAGBRAI. RAGBRAI is an annual event that draws thousands of Iowans who bike from border to border. The event has attracted celebrities such as Lance Armstrong, Sheryl Crow, Tom Arnold and presidential candidates over its 37 year run.

This year, Mark brought a little bit of Greater Than Goods on the tour. He’s selling our “Another Way to Roll” bicycling shirts as well as the exclusive Iowa Bicycle Coalition shirt. Of course, $5 from each shirt sold goes directly to his group.

Help support biking, bike safety and alternative transportation by checking out this line of shirts. And good luck to all the bicyclists on RAGBRAI this year! Keep pedaling!

Food. Clothing. Shelter. Love.

That’s what our partner Orphan World Relief provides to hundreds of orphans across the world.

Most of us may not see firsthand what these children go through. (I know the closest I’ve gotten is seeing Slumdog Millionaire and commercials on TV.) But I also know that even though I may never make it across the world, there are other ways to help.

We’re trying to make it easier for people to get involved in whatever way they can. You can start with our new “Food. Clothing. Shelter. Love.” T-shirt. Not only do you send $5 to an organization that will use it to do good, but you raise awareness for orphan relief every time you wear your shirt.

Plus, check out Orphan World Relief’s other ways to get involved on their website!

P.S. We came across Orphan World Relief thanks to a co-worker who had family involved with this great cause. We’re always looking for other non-profits to serve with our cause apparel - email us your suggestions!