Mon 14 May 2007
If you’ve talked to me for more than a minute there are a few things you learn that I always talk about. One of them was my first real job. I worked at Sports Connection in Cincinnati, designing and printing uniforms and shirts for the local schools and sports teams. There I developed an obsessive eye for fonts, color schemes (despite being color-deficient), uniforms and logos.
I will walk past Buffalo Wild Wings and immediately think “Chilada.” I will see any sort of investment firm/golf outing flyer and think “Bank Gothic.” Just because it says “Bank” doesn’t require you accountants to use it. When J and I were looking at sample wedding programs (or brochures, as I keep calling them [like we’re trying to sell the crowd on this marriage {”Could I interest you in something in J and Zach?”}[how’s that for nested parentheses?]]), we saw one created completely in Harlow. It was like they sat down to their computer and decided they wanted something wedding-y, like a script of some sort. The first one that came up was Harlow and they said, “Golly, ain’t that fancy like?” The bride’s full first name was Brandi.
Once at a friend’s* Super Bowl Party, he “linked” me to Uniwatch. It is a blog devoted to uniforms but on a more repetitive and obsessive scale than my obsession. I read it daily on my reader. I may be an RSS subscriber but I am certainly not a subscriber to its preachings. The author (occasional ESPN.com Page 2 author Paul Lukas) is oftentimes crabby about his ideas on uniforms and I think discourages a lot of innovation or thinking outside the box. Steadfast rules like “No purple…ever!” and encouraging “stripes for stripes’ sake” is pretty lame. Sometimes though there are some interesting factoids thrown around and great links to in depth history of some uniforms. (Not today. Today he is bitching about the pink used in celebration of Mother’s Day and for awareness of breast cancer. He never grasps the idea of using “ugly” for a purpose. Would you have been made “aware” if it was honored by properly wearing your stirrups with the higher part in the back? I think only Paul would have)
One of the sites referenced in Uniwatch is SportsLogo.net. This site has a huge collection of the history of major teams’ logos. Go to the site and look at your favorite team and reminisce about logos passed (is it “past” or “passed” in this case?) When I moved to Cincinnati from WV, this was the Reds’ logo. Along with thinking it was hideous, I never understood what Mr. Red was doing. It looked to me like he had just finished pitching with his left hand. But then why was his right foot forward and why was his left hand closed tightly already? Did he take a running throw? According to the site, he’s “running.” Is he rounding a base using his closed fist to grasp the base as he turns? Or is Mr. Red actually related to the Suns Gorilla?
So now I’m hoping when I punch you in the face you know it’s because you are wearing a full-size circle shaped logo on your T-shirt or when I hug you it is because you are accenting your navy shirt with a nice orange trim or undershirt.
* This past weekend I happened to catch a girls’ soccer game coached by “friend” against a school that rhymes with Colon. Despite a loss I did get to note that the team is outfitted in a very popular Admiral model. They were big sellers at the Sports Connection because they were really sharp looking in blue and white on a budget. I wonder if Coach Friend picked them himself or if that was an AD decision.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:09 am
Yes, the girls are in the royal/white Admiral “Arsenal” model, designed after the popular, Nike-made kits that Arsenal wore during their long undefeated streak two years back. Here’s a link to our uniforms.
We only have one set of shorts, blue w/ white stripe that we wear with the blue/white and white/blue tops. The shorts are actually different from what you see in the pic. In the pic, the white strip goes up to the waist and loops over the butt. Our shorts just stripe up to the waist. I think its because the womens’ model is shorter.
Admiral is a popular brand for schools on a budget. Other schools in our conference with affluenter booster clubs buy Adidas and Nike unis for their teams. I did pick out the uniforms, I thought they were cool yet classic and they wouldn’t look out of style for quite a while.
As for Uniwatch, I turned you on to it at Rangie’s Xmas party, IIRC. Yes, he has some questionable rules. He hates purple always, but never hated on the Vikings until they changed to their hideously designed (not colored) new unis.
I, myself (me), don’t like black on a uni if black ain’t a team color. Northern Iowa, NY Mets and Detroit Lions come to mind. They think it makes ‘em look tougher. Ever since the Atlanta Falcons switched to black in the early ’90s becoming the “New Raiders,” teams have been finding ways to wear more black, like it makes ‘em tougher. Don’t like that.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:10 am
link to uniforms
http://www.teamsalescarolina.com/admiral/arsenaljs04.jpg
May 15th, 2007 at 9:14 am
I’ve looked into it. We actually have Verona unis, not Arsenal unis. Verona is the women’s version of the Arsenal. Because they need different names. Having Arsenal (men’s) and Arsenal (women’s) would just be stupid.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:49 am
I think at Rangie’s Xmas we looked up the lyrics to the Chris Walken’s 12 Days of Christmas. (I remember every moment I’ve used a Mac) I think it was at your Super Bowl Party because I remember you making fun of me for assuming you had dialup because I turned around and waited for the page to load.
As for teams wearing black, I struggled with that at the SC. My high school’s colors were maroon, gold and white. There was a rule that the AD would not pay for anything that was not in these colors. So I made sure to always be careful when designing in those colors. Then one year I was given the go ahead to use black as trim for a baseball cap. I was very excited because black could really bring out the gold on a maroon cap. I had the most badass script T and S (for Spartans) all intertwining. We were going to custom embroider them and everything and I was totally going to get one for myself. After working on it and going through the approval process, the coach came back with a “No” on the black trim and instead did the block T (font: Benguiat) like usual.
When I did quiz bowl uniforms (bowling shirts) I threw in black undershirts for Varsity. I thought about how they weren’t school colors but that was trumped by the thought that this way quizbowlers would for the first time wear a damned undershirt with a button-up shirt.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:44 pm
You’re right about the Chris Walken thing. I suppose you’re right about it being my super bowl party, I just can’t see it in my head. I do remember showing it to you, though.