We introduced the Mister Freedom® STANLEY T-Shirt in 2015, initially released in 7 classic original colors, white, black, red, royal blue, jungle green, and gold. An aqua blue version followed in 2020.
A very limited collector’s edition indigo tie-dye batch also made a brief appearance that strange year, the result of a slow and tedious backyard project undertaken during the cooped-up months of the plague to quell cabin fever.
We also patiently process a few naturally-faded “Sunshine” shirts (organically bleached-out by exposure to the elements for an extended period of time), but those are mostly available in-store only.
For our SS2025 Hi-Desert escapade (to be released in the coming Spring!), we thought of adding a new color palette to the STANLEY family. We dug in the stash of vintage T-Shirts of the MF® archives, selected a “pastel” grouping of four color references complementing each other perfectly. The hardest part was yet to come: naming the new candidates. Desert Sand, Sky Blue, Coral Pink, and Seafoam Green it would be.
On a production note, not everyone may realize that actually getting our STANLEYs made is no simple task. For a “simple” finished T-Shirt to eventually land at Mister Freedom® HQ, the reality involves a complicated chain of events, many challenging manufacturing levels, and the hard work and expertise of many. If our easy-to-navigate webstore makes it a click away for the end customer, the journey to get each shirt produced — and in the USA for good measure — is a wild ride.
From growing the cotton to harvesting the crop domestically at farm level — granted the weather and boll weevils cooperated that year —, to spinning the fiber into yarns at the mill, to producing the tubular knit fabric in a complex process requiring industrial circular knitting machines (different size = different machine) and skilled operators, to garment-dyeing (locally in LA) hoping the reactive dye — a dyestuff popularized in the 1950s — will produce a consistent color (on inconsistent yarns sourced from various cotton farms), to all kinds of unforeseen challenges in between that necessitate a string of pre-production prototypes to limit snafus, it is always with great excitement and relief that our team welcomes a restock of any of our knit shirts (STANLEYs, SKIVVIEs, HENLEYs, CREW CHIEFs etc) at HQ!
Considering all the above variables and Murphy’s Law, it is no surprise that some production batches will vary slightly through the years, be it in the cotton staple length, slub of the jersey knit, dye colorfastness, depth of color, fabric feel, mechanical stretch, perception of fit, etc…
Even with the exact same original specs, variations in production will happen, out of anyone’s control.
Our very popular B-Stock STANLEYS are a good example of that Law applied to garment manufacturing, a reminder of the constant need for a small company to hustle, to improvise-adapt-overcome, and master turning lemons into lemonade.
On that note, as we processed the latest batch of SS2025 STANLEYs back for the dye house for QC, we noticed a few irregularities in dye distribution on some pieces. For whatever obscure reason, a few unicorns feature slightly contrasting panels (lighter body with darker sleeves, or darker body with lighter neck band etc.) Also noticeable on the side on those few T-Shirts is a darker dye streak (slanted line), that shows how much the raw cotton tubular knit fabric twists during the wash/dry process. Similar to the “twisted leg” of premium denim jeans, when the fabric torques after the initial rinse, and the selvedge outseam ends up on the shin bone.
I personally think those “Two-Toners” STANLEYS look killer, carrying the vibe of vintage “Ringer” tees with heather jersey knit bodies, and regret that not all of this batch was like that! Unfortunately, no size Small unicorn for me, as the fluke is mostly limited to size Large, and to the Sky Blue color. Go figure.
For the lucky few, those “irregulars” will be available as B-Stock.
Side remark on this new palette, these are ‘straight up’ colors, in the sense that we do not over-process with a ‘vintage wash’ to artificially age our T-Shirts. Contrary to the dictate of the garment distressing industry — who would love to convince consumers that one look one’s best in factory-ripped jeans and shirts —, we strongly believe at Mister Freedom® in “letting the wearers put in the years”, and that a new garment should only be offered with 100% of its longevity potential, and not pre-distressed, just to fall apart after a couple of months of wear.
And, you don’t buy soul with an extra hole. Simply wearing the clothes will get you to that ‘vintage look’, naturally and without harmful chemicals. If you are reading this, you obviously already know that.
Our STANLEY colors are guaranteed to fade to attractive hues with repeat wash/wear cycles and sun exposure.
The MF® STANLEY T-Shirt is designed in California by Mister Freedom® and manufactured in the USA.
