GOOD
hard at work
- February 3, 2008 • 8:18 pm PST
- + responses
The humble T-shirt has seen its cultural status elevated in recent decades, from the backs of video-game-playing layabouts to the rail-thin frames of hipster royalty. Bearing the imprimatur of the creative class has allowed a further development: T-shirts that make a difference.
 | 1. Project M$425; buyameter.org The high price of this T-shirt goes toward the cost of a water meter-the first step for home water service for poor, rural Alabamians. |
 | 2. Because $28; becauseclothing.com These special-edition shirts depict heroic people in history-From Gandhi to the "unknown rebel" in Tiananmen Square. A percentage of sales is donated to nonprofits. |
 | 3. Re-Shirt re-shirt.net Reinventing the idea of the worn-in T-shirt, re-shirt collects tees with special memories (a shirt worn while making out with a hottie), cleans them, and sells them with an identifying serial number. |
 | 4. StatAttak $25; statattak.com Beautiful infographics reveal compelling statistics about Africa. Twenty percent of sales go toward building an orphanage in Mozambique. |
 | 5. The Quiet Life $25; thequietlife.com A standard-bearer for ironic T-shirt companies, its new Artist Donation Series gives 100 percent of its proceeds to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. |
 | 6. Part of It $28; partofit.org Artists submit designs inspired by their favorite causes; proceeds go to the cause each shirt represents. |
 | 7. Rosa Loves $25; rosaloves.com Through graphics on the front and a story printed inside, T-shirts are sold to raise money for a particular cause. When that goal is reached, the T-shirt design is retired. |
 | 8. Social AtelierFrom $88; socialatelier.com With bold social messages displayed in bold type, a portion of the company's proceeds goes to buy solar ovens for women in refugee camps in Darfur. |
