The "Oregon Stag" shirt at Greg's on Hawthorne. Photo by Daniel Ronan.

PDXppl is a series of profiles of Portlanders and area residents and what they do.

In any city, flashy marketing tends to take off more than in other localities. Take the "I ♥ NY" shirt or any sports team products as prime examples. Here in Oregon, we've come across one such example of a product as a part of a groundswell love for all things Oregon; the curiously designed "Oregon Stag" shirt with the state's boundaries. After a bit of research, I managed to contact the designer of the shirt and ask him a few questions (as you'll see below). Time will only tell the other products of OR love that will (literally) be in store, but I'm excited to see what the artists and dreamers of Portland and Oregon can come up with!

PDXme: Who are you and what do you do?

My name is Chris Stevens, I'm a graphic designer by trade but I make t-shirts for a living. My company's name is Northwest Shirts and I primarily make and print my own designs which I sell in stores and at fairs and festivals around the Northwest.

PDXme: What brings you to printmaking/ shirt making?

Well as I said I'm a graphic designer by trade which in Portland means that I was bartending and catering, whatever I could do to get by. I bought a bunch of equipment off of a friend a few years ago and taught myself how to print. It was something I always wanted to do and apparently I'm pretty good at it because it's five years later and I haven't slung a drink since.

PDXme: Your shirt design bears remarkable resemblance to the University of Oregon's proposed redesign of the Made in Oregon sign, is this just a coincidence? If so, how did you get the idea to make the "Oregon" shirt?

Well, this is a funny story, I'll tell you how the design came around and what's happened with it since. About 5 years ago or so my landlord came to me and wanted me to make some shirts for his friends that own the Florida Room in North Portland. He wanted me to put "Florida" inside of the Oregon stag sign, which I did but afterwards I thought, "why don't I just put Oregon inside of it and sell them?" I've been selling them for many years now, well before the U of O sign controversy. I even have a federal copyright on the image but after consulting with a copyright lawyer he said I wouldnt stand a chance of fighting the city on it, but I could probably stop other t-shirt people from doing it. I just didn't want anybody to shut me down from making them. I sent one to city commissioner Randy Leonard and I found a picture of him holding it up on the Mercury blog. So I don't think I'm in any danger of infringement or anything.

PDXme: Where can people buy this shirt in the Portland area?

You can get it Greg's on Hawthorne at 3707 SE Hawthorne, or if your outside of the city you can get them on my etsy page at: http://www.nwshirts.etsy.com

PDXme: Anything else you like us to know?

I originally started doing this because I hated working for other people, and pretty much working period. The funny thing is this is the hardest job I've ever had. If you want to make money being a craft vendor, my advice is to be adaptable and ready to roll with the punches. Some days are miserable and some days are awesome you've just got to be there for all of them. I thank everyone who's purchased and enjoyed one of my shirts.