Hello, and welcome to SpeRaToBo! This is Kiki and Koko taking turns at the computer again, and hopefully, we’ll come up with something fun. Today, we’ve decided to do something a little different, share a bit of what we enjoy. Fashion! We are the goon squad and we’re coming to town, beep beep! So, buckle up and prepare yourself for our first feature!  

This design comes to us from Indigo East on Redbubble. You might recognise it as one of the stickers on the guitar in one of our music videos. The design is aptly titled Everything’s gonna BEE OK! By Indigo East. It features the most chill and chipper bee that I ever did see. They’re strutting like a champ with their adorable turquoise Beatle boots (Let it BEE?) and 1920s era cartoon gloves, their hand giving the OK sign, the wind in their antennae—You just know that everything is going great for him.  

The groovy vibes from this shirt also ripple through the design with 70s styled hand-drawn typography and just a generally bouncy retro colour scheme about everything. A great nod to vintage colour schemes whilst still looking fresh. Though it doesn’t just have an overlay of a distressed vintage tee shirt, the actual design was created with the distressed pieces cut out, so to speak, so you’ll see the fabric of the shirt through those parts of the design just as a proper distressed garment without the wear and tear.  

Pair it with anything as it comes in a wide variety of colours. For this, maybe brown trousers or a brown skirt. Play off of the colours to make a retro look with some torn jeans. The possibilities are endless.

But, we’re not just here to tell you about a shirt we like, we have the artist with us, right now! That’s right, we have Indigo East with us via ham radio.  

[Kiki] Welcome, and thank you for joining us!  

[Indigo] Thank you for having me.  

[Koko] Have you ever been interviewed like this before? 

[Indigo] Well, I guess I’ve been interviewed for newspapers and interviewed by places like Design by Humans or featured on Redbubble, but I’ve never been interviewed like this.  

[Kiki] We just wanted to ask you a few questions, like what’s a newspaper? 

[Indigo] Haha, they’re still around. I still fancy them—Usually online, though, unless it’s one of those coupon ones… Saving trees and all that. 

[Koko] So, where did you get the idea for this design? 

[Indigo] Oh, oddly enough, this was one of those designs that just sort of popped into my head, text and all. A lot of the times, I’ll go through a lot of changes with these sorts of simpler designs, but this one stayed the same through and through. I just sort of wanted something with a happy flair about it—something distressed and retro and… just generally positive. But, with some dajare* thrown in there, since apparently that’s my pinnacle of comedy.  

[ダジャレ (dajare) is roughly translated as ‘pun’ or ‘word play’] 

[Kiki] How do you usually draw designs like this?  

[Indigo] Well, actually, it’s a bit of an ancient secret for anything like this. But, I did, as a matter of fact, post a private exclusive video for Patrons on Indigo East on Patreon – shameless promo, I know, but if not, nobody knows, and no one will know what there is to see.

[Koko] Right, if you don’t say it, who will?  

[Indigo] I know, right. But, honestly, I’m just appreciative of anyone who supports by purchasing the designs. I mean, it’s just wild to think that there are thousands of people just walking around with something I drew on their shirt or their jacket or on a sticker. And, obviously, it helps me to be able to make more

art, as well. It’s really for everyone else. If it was just me, it wouldn’t matter. I just really like being able to create things other people can enjoy.  

[Kiki] Well, a lot of people are glad you do. Thank you so much for joining us! 

[Indigo] Any time! お会いできてよかったです。

Overall, we chose Everything’s gonna BEE OK! because it has such a positive attitude about it all. Of course, everything doesn’t have to be sunshine and lollipops through and through, but it’s nice to have a positive message to look at and for others to see throughout the day. Maybe they’re going through a rough time, and sure, while a simple tee shirt design can’t erase life’s problems, having a positive attitude can be half of the battle. I mean, look at this bee! His entire species is dying out, but he’s strutting along, probably having a good ole time. And, sometimes, you just have to walk through it all with a grin on your face and a spring in your step. Everything might not be okay right now… but it will bee.