Every color is equal!

Well, perhaps not, if Pantone has anything to say about it.

Every year Pantone, who are the industry leaders in universal color standards for the design industry, reveal their color of the year .

Last year it was the soothing Turquoise PANTONE 15-5519 with its feeling of “deep compassion and healing” , which saw it take the title.
However, this year Pantone has selected PANTONE 18-2120 , aka: Honeysuckle as the flavour of the year.

Leatrice Eiseman , executive director of the Pantone Institute , had this to say about Honeysuckle, “In times of stress, we need something to lift our spirits. Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going - perfect to ward off the blues.”

Pantone certainly holds this color in high esteem, but where does Honeysuckle get its allure?

Well, Leatrice believes that, “Honeysuckle derives its positive qualities from a powerful bond to its mother color red, the most physical, viscerally alive hue in the spectrum.”

Personally I feel the choice is not one that will satisfy all areas of the fashion industry, but works nicely in the design industry as a whole.
While the urban trends of the past few years have seen pink become a color that can be worn by even the most masculine of individuals , it still has a “girly” association with the male market and will fail to be as popular.

Leatrice Eiseman makes a very good argument on the choice of Honeysuckle though.
She says that, “The intensity of this festive reddish pink allures and engages. In fact, this color, not the sweet fragrance of the flower blossoms for which it was named, is what attracts hummingbirds to nectar. Honeysuckle may also bring a wave of nostalgia for its associated delicious scent reminiscent of the carefree days of spring and summer.”

As you can read there is more to the color than simply being bright, yet soft enough to be used for a variety of media, it also stimulates the brain in a positive, almost nostalgic way.

While I may have not been completely sold by this design in the beginning, I must say that I am eager to try and use Honeysuckle PANTONE 18-2120 in my designs.

What do you think of this new color guys and girls?
Does this transcend the gender boundary?
Can you see this color working in your own wardrobe or in your tee designs perhaps.
Do you think there are any similarities between 2010’s turquoise and Honeysuckle?

D.

The STEPDOG ‘Powered by Music’ competition is well under way and we have already had loads of votes flying through for all your favourites.

Choosing a winner is def going to be one heck of a difficult task for Stepdog.
Honestly there are so many designs that are just jaw droppingly amazing!

Obviously Stepdog knows exactly what they want out of a design, so their opinions may be slightly different to our design community. However I think it will be super interesting to see exactly what floats their proverbial boat :D

Now I would like to mention a few designers here, please forgive me if I left you out, these are just a few of the designs that I PERSONALLY feel fit the Stepdog vibe.

Let’s kick it off with Amy after Dark , by French design guru and mastermind behind our very popular Midnight Summer Dream design, Kharamzero .
This one has already received plenty of positive feedback back from you guys and is high up there on the list of possible winners. This design takes me back to some of the designs that Kharma was doing when he first hit our scene.

Next we have Simon with his New Era design which is inspired by those gig listing posters that we all know so well. Simon has submitted a few really nice pieces, but this is my favourite . Great use of colour and a perfectly distressed style!

The winner of our Entrepreneur competition, Nen101 , is back with her best design yet.
Scouting for a venue… is one of those designs that uses a brilliant balance of colour and negative space to create a visually powerful design that sucks you in like a black hole…I mean that in a good way hahaha .

Vcalahan has been blowing us away for the past few months with his super detailed designs and impressive concepts. He even won not so long ago with his Monty Python inspired design called Killer Rabbit . His latest offering, After Dark , captures your imagination with fantastic colour and an impressive illustration of a lady’s visage. This one is going to be a hard design to top and in my mind I think Stepdog will certainly resonate with it…but we will just have to wait and see :D

Next up we have a winning designer that we have all come to admire at the Springleap HQ. Qimstudio has a knack for animal designs and has produced many of the best we have ever had of this genre.
His Stepdog submission is another example of his design-might and has earned him plenty of fans for this compo. Too cutesy, or juuuust right ….you be the judge!

My last potential winner is undoubtedly Matsanni’s Teaser design.
Not only is it mega intricate and bursting with character, but it also has a superb balance of colour and that all important negative space, which suits the black tee perfectly.
There is no wonder that he walked away with April 1 Open Theme top prize, with his No place for hubris .

Ok, ok so as I mentioned earlier these are my personal top favs. These are not a reflection of the current leader-board , not even close .
There are plenty of other designs which are in contention, so don’t see this as some kinda yard stick LOL.

What I want to know from you is what your favourites are for the Stepdog competition.
Which designs do you think make the perfect Stepdog tee and which haven’t got a clue?

Let’s get a consensus going here!

Peace.

Duncs.

Greetings all ,

Just a few nights ago the Labia in Cape Town came alive with the launch event for the RVCA Artist Network Program (ANP), bringing together multi-talented creatives from throughout the industry to celebrate design and the potential for empowering designers through RVCA’s massive influence.

Our marketing manager Amy Abrahams was able to attend and had a great time schmoozing with some really amazing people who truly are passionate about taking South African design to all new levels of awesomeness.

All those that attended were treated to a thought provoking documentary called Beautiful Losers and a feature on a local Capetonian artist.

I thought I’d ask her a few questions about the event and the documentary:

1. Tell us a bit more about the South African RVCA Artist Network Program (ANP)? What kind of presence did they have at the show?

Well on Tuesday (May 17, 2021) was the first ANP I attended and I have to say it definitely will not be the last. RVCA ANP hosted the premier of the highly acclaimed Beautiful Losers documentary and I found myself totally inspired thereafter.

The presence was buzzing with creativity and passion, you could feel the spirit in the air almost like a burning creative fever readily awaiting the premier! There was a free bar on selected drinks like Sailor Jerry and Boss which is always #winning!

RVCA also took this opportunity to fully brand the event in an unobtrusive way. They gave out free stickers, magazines, lanyards even RVCA on the popcorn packets.

2. Why do you think RVCA has targeted emerging and progressive artists for their ‘creative synergy’?

I think it boils down to providing the platform and support so many creatives need out there. It’s not about monetary gain or who is ‘trending’ it comes right back down to the INDIVIDUAL.

From a branding stand point this is a great way to connect with their target market on a more personal level , more human. It’s great to see brands out there like RVCA making a difference.

3. Do you feel that the featured documentary Beautiful Losers could be related to the South African creative industry, would you say SA is on the same wave-length as the featured artists from the movie?

I would definitely say that Beautiful Losers can be related to the SA creative industry, with that said I think the great thing about it is that its universal. It isn’t something that can be boxed and labelled to be only in certain places. I love the creative movement that is happening in Cape Town and to be honest it was just a matter of time until it came to the foreground.

I thoroughly enjoyed the documentary especially because it showcased all the artists archived footage, it almost transcended me to their time, I felt connected and involved.

4. What kind of individuals attended the launch event? Would you say that it was mainly creatives, or where there a few surprises when it came to demographics?

Well the thing about events like this and was also highlighted in the documentary you really cant label someone as just one thing. Just because someone may be a photographer doesn’t mean thats what they only do. I would say it was an eclectic hub of souls gathering to celebrate the beautification of nature through creative organisms.

5. So, did you see any interesting characters worth mentioning at the event?

Not that I can comment on BUT there was a guy that looks remarkably like Jared Leto hahaha.

Well there we have it. Sounds like this was one awesome event!

I would love to get the opinion of anybody else who was lucky enough to make the event.
What did you think of the documentary, were you inspired to get out there and create something great?

Do you feel RVCA and emerging artists have the right chemistry to create a lasting creative synergy?

Oh and for your viewing pleasure I have embedded the trailer for Beautiful Loser ….you are gonna be so keen to see it after you scope it out!

Love and peace.

D.

…………………

Hi there guys and girls .

Its time for another thrilling Springleap OPEN THEME competition!
NO specific theme , only regular guidelines apply! You know the drill NO OBSCENITY, NO HATE SPEECH…all that jazz.

This is your chance to show us your creativity on your own terms. Don’t be shy – just put it out there! Let the world be your inspiration. We wanna see what lives within your artistic mind.

You can submit up to 5 designs so go wild! The more designs you submit the greater chances you have of winning!

So, get designing peeps. The time is now to show us what you got!
One winner will receive

… 4 printed t-shirts, a cash prize – US$500 (R4000)

Dates to diarise:

Submissions for designs open: 05 May 2021

Submissions for designs close: 31 May 2021

Voting starts: 02 June 2021

Voting ends: 16 June 2021

Winner is announced: 20 June 2021

You could be the next winner on Springleap.com and gain exposure for yourself! You also stand a chance of winning amazing prizes and loads of cash .

Winners will now be chosen using votes as an indicator. The top 10 voted designs will get the golden stamp of approval and go in for review . The final verdict will come down to our esteemed design panel here at Springleap . For those that don’t win, you still stand a chance to have your designs printed! We’ll be keeping all top 10 designs in our re-seller catalogue and who knows we could be printing and selling your designs nationwide!

Everyone WINS!!

In order to get started on your designs download the Springleap t-shirt Submission Kit and get started right away!
Confused or uncertain about anything?

Post your questions about the OPEN theme competition below or click our online support button to the left of our header.

Good Luck and Happy Designing!

The Springleap.com Team

There are so many inspiring South African stories that really make you appreciate what you have in life.

One such story I stumbled across on Between 10 and 5 , is the plight of the Zimbabwean
Robot Artists .

African Cartel has put together a rather amazing short documentary about the world of these talented and super colourful characters.

Chances are you would have seen these guys selling their vibrant artwork at the traffic lights around Cape Town. I usually spot them at the Rhodes and De Waal robots, down the road from Kirstenbosch Gardens .

There is no doubt that these Zimbabwean robot artists have a very hard life. They work hard to create their art and then have to withstand the unpredictable Cape Town weather, just to be able to put a bit of food on the table.

When you hear about the kind of conditions they faced in Zimbabwe, where they couldn’t even afford a pair of shoes, you really have to count your blessings.
Not only do they have to work so hard for such little money, they also have to survive the terrifying xenophobic violence that they face on a daily basis.

Please watch this clip!
I think it will really open your eyes to the reality behind this unique African artwork and the amazing people who create it.

Robot Artists from African Cartel on Vimeo.

The robot artists have a very negative rap and people often give them trouble or just ignore them at the traffic lights.
If you don’t have the money to buy one of their artworks, why not just give them a little something just to help them along. Not all of their art supplies are cheap and readily available!

They are not stealing, begging or making a nuisance of themselves. Just like you and I, they are trying to survive and make something of themselves.

I take my hat off to African Cartel for putting together such an awesome mini-doc .
Send the link to your family and friends.

Check out the 10 and 5 posting .

D.