Design Your Own Ethical T-shirt in 2008

It is not just artists and celebrities who have the opportunity to guest design T-shirts, all of us can design our own ethically-produced T-shirts in 2008 and you do not need an ounce of training, just inspiration.

Ali Hewson and Bono launched the clothing label Edun in 2005 to promote sustainable employment for textile workers in Sub-saharan Africa. In 2007 a sister label was set-up, Edun Live, to provide blank canvas T-shirts for the music and entertainment industries. There is a minimum order of 84 per customer but a recent collaboration with US-based customising specialists Zazzle, has seen almost 300 folk so far design their own Edun Live T-shirts which you can purhase individually (priced from $25). Last month rapper Ludacris who runs Disturbing Tha Peace (DPT) record label, created a series of promotional merchadise on Edun Live shirts which are now available to buy. Zazzle makes it possible for anyone to contribute and sell their own designs and all those printed on Edun Live T-shirts result in money going to the project which supports a very fine 'grower to sewer'policy, ensuring that every aspect of the supply chain takes place in sub-Saharan Africa.

Here on fuk.co.uk, we have teamed up with the leading UK manufacturers of bamboo, BAM, to create an T-shirt competition for our blindingly busy online community. You can join in, submit your own designs for viewing and a voting system will be in place shortly to determine which design will be the first Threads T-shirt to into production. Bamboo is one of the most sustainable crops and is set to be used increasingly in the production of eco-friendly clothing from the catwalk to the high street.

Words: Marian Buckley

Submit your Threads T-shirt design here http://www.fuk.co.uk/threads/threads_design_a_t_shirt_competition

Visit Zazzle.com for Edun Live customised T-shirts
Visit www.edun-live.com to buy in bulk.

For Bamboo T-shirts see www.bambooclothing.co.uk