ATshirtBlog.com

While there are many different adaptations of Milton Glaser’s “I Love NY” logo — modified to express different ideas or refer to different locations — few, if any, have come as close to topping it as this I Hella Love SF T-shirt by 4fifteen Clothing. The reason is obvious: emphasis. Variations of the logo that include any image other than a heart (like this I Bike SF T-shirt or this I Yeti SF T-shirt — both of which are brilliant) can’t really be compared fairly because they are saying something else. Then you have variations that are still about loving NY but in a different context (like this I Can’t Afford to Love NY T-shirt or this recently posted Gestalt I Love NY T-shirt — also equally brilliant)…but these are, of course, NY-specific. All that is left are “I [heart]…” tees that cite locations other than NY, leaving much to be desired. This might have fallen into that category were it not for one little word: “Hella.” This emphatic gem is a SF Bay Area phenomenon and is indigenous to northern California. The word is grating to some but serves as an excellent indicator of a Bay Area native or transplant…which means it’s a welcome turn of phrase to most in the area, including yours truly. I Hella Love SF.
Update: Coincidentally, Milton Glaser celebrated his 80th birthday the day of this post…June 26, 2009. Happy Birthday, Milton!