Hey guys, here’s some artwork to check out. The first one is my attempt to emulate Stephen Gammell, the amazing artist that illustrated the Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark series. I grew up on those books and it’s a shame that publisher Harper Collins decided to remove Gammell’s artwork for the 3oth anniversary edition and replace it with much tamer yet much duller content. Those illustrations by Gammell scared the hell outta me and it was the best thing about the series. Anyhow, the second piece is a sketch I did last week. Have a great weekend everyone and thanks for supporting Fright-Rags.
- TK
It’s really hard to believe that 2011 is over. I could say I have no idea where the time went but I do, it was spent with some of the greatest people I have ever known- my Fright Rags family. When I say family I don’t just mean my amazing boss Ben and co-workers Tim and Jes, I mean all of you too. Every day I get to work and take a look at customer service emails and orders that have come in and I smile at the names that come up because I recognize most of them. I have never in my life worked a job where I felt close to the people I serve, but I think that’s because for me, this isn’t a job. Fright Rags is my career. I’d even go so far as to say it’s my lifestyle. Every day, whether I work or not has something to do with Fright Rags and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
When I first met Ben I don’t think that I could have ever seen what was ahead of us. It’s much like the quote from Steve Jobs about how you can’t connect the dots looking forward, only looking backwards. I was at the Monster Mania convention in August of 2008 in Cherry Hill, NJ. I had been obsessed with horror movies since I was 3 years old but had never really found friends that shared my love til my mid twenties. Luckily these friends were already experts in conventions and via them I got to go to my first. I was overwhelmed with all of the nerdery around me. As we turned the corner to walk to the vendor room I got my first look at Fright Rags. I was blown away by how beautiful the shirts were. I had never seen anything like it. The friend I was with already knew Ben and introduced me. First impressions, not only was Ben a good looking fella, but he was extremely polite and friendly. After a few minutes of chat I found out he lived in Rochester. What were the odds that I traveled over 6 hours away and found someone who lived in the same town as me? The first thing I remember asking Ben was if he would ever consider making a shirt for the film Popcorn (a dream that was realized this past Fall!) and if he needed any help. He politely said “Well not really, but maybe at some point.” In my Kristy brain this translated as “I should probably keep asking him all the time til he relents.” I couldn’t really explain it to myself but in that short meeting I knew that I wanted to be a part of what was going on. I knew this company was the real deal- nerds who wanted to make awesome shirts for other nerds. It wasn’t about money for them, or for me, I just wanted to be a part of something bigger than myself.
Over the next few months I sent Ben relentless texts and MySpace (I know, right?!) messages. He slowly started to hint that maybe he could use help around the office once in a while. The day I went to his house to discuss me working with them was in February of 2009 and it was practically blizzarding out. I walked in to find him with a stack of Friday the 13th shirts, picking out tags with pliers one at a time because the printer had made a mistake. I remember being so impressed that the boss of the company was doing the dirty work. Ben told me that little by little he’d like to have me help him with customer service. I worked a soul-sucking full time job in an office building at the time, and I was grateful to even have a part time job where I was doing something worthwhile. I offered to help Fright Rags at the next convention which was coming up a month later. Ben made it clear that they had enough help for that one but if I wanted to stop by the table I was more than welcome to. I stopped by the table and sort of implanted myself there. It wasn’t about selling the most shirts, I just wanted to show Ben that I had mad customer service skills, but the fact that I sold a ton of shirts didn’t hurt my cause either. When I left on Sunday Ben took me aside to tell me he had been blown away by my attitude and personal skills, and he welcomed me aboard officially. That was that, I was a Fright Rags employee.
The first year I worked 40 hours a week at my full time IwishIdidn’thavetoworkherebutIneedtopaymybills job, and about 20 hours a week at Fright Rags learning the business. I always had to struggle to get weekends off from my dayjob to go to conventions with Fright Rags, but it worked and I was glad. Conventions were a time where I felt like I belonged. Every convention weekend made up for me having to walk back into that dayjob when the funtimes were over. In the Summer of 2010, I was called into the boss’ office at my dayjob. I was being accused of using my time there for Fright Rags. They had found an email I had sent to Ben, and even though it had nothing to do with my job at Fright Rags they were trying to make an example of me. I left that day, job still intact but realizing more and more that I didn’t want to work there anymore. I had realized it before but more and more I knew my heart was completely immersed in Fright Rags and that was all I wanted. I called Ben and told him that I didn’t care if he could only have me on for a few more hours a week than I was, I had to quit my dayjob. After some thought Ben told me he would try me out full time for the Summer and we’d see how things went. I remember how elated I was when I walked into my job the next morning, packed up my desk and walked out. I knew this was what was supposed to happen.
We got through the Summer and Ben said he was keeping me on full time. I don’t think I had ever been so happy in all my life. Not only would I get to work in an office where I didn’t feel like gouging my eyes out every day, but I would get to go to conventions and have a boss who actually cared about me. From the start of our friendship Ben had always been supportive of my desire to be a professional writer and once I started working full time at Fright Rags he pushed me even further. I started writing online thanks to him and insane inspiration from John Squires and his blog Freddy In Space. Within a year I was writing articles in Fangoria and Famous Monsters, to now writing exclusively in print for HorrorHound Magazine, one of my nerd dreams come true!
Through Fright Rags I have had so many good turns of fortune, whether it’s meeting new friends or meeting celebrities I have dreamed of meeting since I was a child. Fright Rags has given me some of the greatest memories I could’ve never imagined I would ever have. What am I trying to say about all of this? I am forever indebted to Ben Scrivens, the man behind Fright Rags for giving me an amazing life. Moreover though I have to thank all of you for supporting Fright Rags and me so much. I really do feel like I have a third family, outside of the one I was born with and the friends who sustain me, and that’s my Fright Rags family, a lot of whom fall into my friends category. Thanks to all of you for always being you- horror nerds, in the end that’s what unites us, isn’t it?
I wanted to end this with giving you a glimpse into my life over the last couple of years through conventions. Granted this is such a small vivisection of my life at shows, but I wanted to include some pics of me meeting some of my favorite celebrities, and more importantly pics with some of you. They aren’t in chronological order, so you can see how often my hair changes, and that I seem to wear the same shirts at conventions! I apologize that I couldn’t include all of my pics with Fright Rags fans, but know that you all mean the world to me.
To quote one of my favorite musicians, Matthew Good, “There is an unseen direction that is both unfelt and unimagined.” You really never know when you meet someone how they might end up being a huge part of your life.
Thank You and Much Love!
Kristy
James Harris, Fright Rags fan and write of Dr. Terror's Blog of Horrors
Absolute highlight of my life, Robert Englund holding the shirt I designed 
Diehard Fright Rags fan with one of the loveliest families ever, Jeff Rego
That funny moment where you're playing Dirty Santa at Monster Mania and the gift you choose has a Fright Rags gift certificate in it wa wa waaaaa
One of the greatest things I have gained because of Fright Rags, my friendship with John Squires and Jennifer Carroll. John writes the blog Freddy In Space and his writing inspired me to make my writing career happen. He and Jen are two amazingly selfless friends. John and I joke that we're brother and sister
Haley Ott, the most amazing kid I have met in a long while. Daughter of the ridiculously talented Chris Ott aka London 1888
Joanna Skrabala, another diehard customer and recent new mother. Congrats Joanna!
Being the biggest Popcorn fan that has ever lived, meeting and becoming friends with Jill Schoelen has been a nerd dream come true.
Richard Braden, another diehard Fright Rags fan!
Talk about sick talent, artist Joel Robinson. We finally got to work with him this year when he made our Leslie Vernon poster!
Our artist in residence, Jeff Zornow with Tom Atkins, a man who I believe needs no introduction.
Defining moment, that time when I met John Landis and he OFFERED to take a pic with our American Werewolf In London shirt
Another nerd moment, meeting Tommy Lee Wallace, director of one of my all time favorites, Stephen King's IT
We had an insane event here in Rochester where we did a double feature of The Monster Squad and Night of the Creeps and Fred Dekker and Tom Atkins came out. Thanks for taking this "BFF" pic, Fred
I'm Thom Mathews biggest fan, something he concedes. I'm actually surprised he isn't afraid of my nerdity. Over the past couple of years we've become friends. This nerd couldn't be happier.
Geek moment, after the end of one Monster Mania convention we got to have drinks with Atkins, Stephen Marshall and Jason Lively
More Fright Rags fans! Meet the Aspinwall Family
Michael Welch, one of the nicest guys I have met in my entire life, and a huge Fright Rags supporter. Plus, winner of most epic beard
Nathan Baesel, star of Behind The Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon. Definitely one of the highlights of 2011 was hanging with him all weekend at Rock N Shock!
It always brightens my day when I run into Maura Branley and Jennifer LoSciuto at a show. Fright Rags fans and bad-ass roller derby girls
Another favorite Fright Rags family, 3/4 of the Duffy family- Meg, Fiona and Damien
My brother from another mother, John Squires when he came to Rochester a few months back
Tom Bryce, who made it clear the weekend this photo was taken that he loves Fright Rags but is sick to death of us making him spend so much money 
Sarah Mae Queen, another Fright Rags fan!
James Duval of May, my favorite horror movie of all time. He loved the shirt, can't say I blame him
Jason Edmiston, the genius behind our Monster Creeps poster and countless other Fright Rags shirts. Stay tuned for more of his work in 2012!
Joe Seely from Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child aka the Phantom Prowler! One of the nicest celebs I have ever had the pleasure of meeting!
Ira Heiden aka the Wizard Master (NOES 3: Dream Warriors), another nerd dream realized!
Last but not least, a family portrait. Thom Mathews and I with our pretend zombie child. An amazing gift from John Squires, a doll by Terry Cruikshank.
Hey, gang, greetings from your Shipping Manager. Here are a couple more drawings for your viewing pleasure. Since I’m a huge fan of Stephen King’s “It”, I often find myself sketching various renditions of Pennywise the clown. The character intrigues me in a way that few other King characters do. The other drawing is a sketch I did on a Taco Bell napkin. Many of my best drawings have their humble beginnings on Taco Bell napkins. I’d like to thank all of our fans for making 2011 a great year for Fright-Rags and I hope all of you have a happy and safe new year. Until next time. TK
Around this time each year I tend to take a moment or two to pause and reflect on the past twelve months. I think about all the good things that have come to pass, and I also think about the mistakes I’ve made, bad decisions, and other experiences that have gotten me to where I am today. One thing that never ceases to amaze me—nor do I take for granted—is the realization that I get to wake up every morning doing something I truly love. Whereas most people dread Mondays and anxiously await Friday afternoons, I leap out of bed each morning with abandon so I can get a start to my day. That isn’t to say that this is easy work…it’s actually the hardest I’ve ever worked in my life. But because I love doing it so much, I just don’t mind the extra hours, missed meals, or the ten gazillion things I have going on at any minute all that much.
So with that, I have to say thank you. Thank you for your support and for allowing me—and each of us at Fright-Rags (Tim, Kristy, and Jes) to be able to do this, day in and day out. Hardly a day goes by where we don’t make some mention about how much our customers mean to us…. And it’s true; I consider our customers like an extended family, and kind of like some cool club that I always wanted to be a part of. We keep that in mind always and talk about how we can continually up the ante and provide even higher levels of service and experience. So from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Thank you also for making 2011 our biggest year yet. I’ll be the first to admit that we took some risks this year. We stretched the limits and released shirts out of the ordinary—even for us. Some of you loved what we did, and responded in a very positive way. Some of you were disappointed (dare I say downright hated) with many of the shirts we released this year and have asked us what the hell we’re thinking. I can see both sides and I understand that even within our small, tight-knit horror community there are various segments of fans who only like certain things. I will admit that some of what we put out this year was a departure for us, but our intent has always remained the same—to put out kick-ass horror shirts.
Hell, that’s how this entire company began over eight years ago. The first shirt I ever designed was WWJD? (What Would Jason Do?) and it was conceived with one sole purpose in mind—to do something different. And that is what I’ve strived to do ever since. There are plenty of other sites that put out what I consider to be “typical” horror shirts. They are a dime-a-dozen, and many of these places even have lower prices than us. That’s totally cool with me and I think it’s great that other people are out there doing it. But we’re not trying to compete with them. Our aim is to push the envelope and challenge conventions with what we do. To get out of our own comfort zone of just designing another shirt and instead try to innovate and take our work to another level. Yes, that means taking risks with some of our designs. And like any risk, some things will fail. My hope though, is that—more often than not—we will strike a chord and offer something truly unique for you to add to your wardrobe and to make your friends say “Where’d you get that shirt? It’s amazing!”
That said, I am truly looking forward to resurrecting more of the designs from our graveyard to give our new (and old) customers a chance to grab some classic designs. The best part is that we’re only bringing back what YOU want, which allows us to use our time, energy, and money in the best way possible. It will also allow us the chance to focus on many new designs that we will be releasing on a regular basis. I can tell you that we’ve got some great things lined up for 2012. We’ll be releasing new designs more often, reprinting the top voted designs from the graveyard regularly, and we’ve also got quite a few limited editions lined up as well. As if that weren’t enough, we are getting closer and closer to announcing our brand new website, which will be home to our vintage shirt line. I expect to make an announcement in the next month or two with more details, but I can tell you that we are planning more than just our old line up of vintage shirts. There will also be many more designs available, some of which we’ve tested out on Fright-Rags already this year that will transition to the new site.
So if you’re brand new to our company, or an old friend who has shopped with us for years, I hope you will tune in to see what we’ve got cookin’ in 2012 and maybe pick-up some shirts along the way. Thank you again for another amazing year, and stay tuned…we have such sites to show you…
Ben
Alright, gang, I’ll keep this short because I still have presents to wrap. . .lol. Have a very Merry Christmas and I’ll see you in the new year. As always, thanks for checking out my artwork and thanks for supporting Fright-Rags. TK
I started Fright-Rags back in 2003 with just three basic t-shirt designs that I created myself. From that first small batch of three designs, the company started to grow and in the years that followed we’ve released over 200 shirts featuring original horror artwork. Each one an expression of our love for the genre and throughout all the various artistic styles we’ve showcased, our intention has always remained constant; to create kick-ass horror shirts. I’m extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished, and we have big plans on how we will continue our journey in offering the highest quality horror apparel.
However, with releasing so many shirts over that period of time, it is inevitable that some designs fade away. After all, it is impossible to keep all sizes of all the shirts in stock at all times. So, over time designs die off as we continually pump out new stuff. But even as each design sells out, we still face the all important decision: do we reprint it, or not?
REPRINTS ARE DEAD…LONG LIVE REPRINTS!
Up until now, the decision to reprint a design was based on several factors; how well it sold, how many we have left, how long has it been available, etc. Sometimes it pays off and a reprinted design can see new life on the site when we restock it. Other times, well, the shirts gather dust on the shelves and we wonder if anyone got the memo that it’s back in stock. Quite frankly, it’s a guessing game. So in order to keep putting out new shirts,we are going to stop reprinting designs as they sell out.
Yes, you read that correctly.
From now on, every new shirt we release will get one print run. If you like it, grab it before your size is gone because once sizes sell out, they will remain sold out. When all the shirts are gone, the design will be considered dead, and out of print.
But wait, this is a horror shirt site…can’t designs come back from the dead???
Yup, they sure can…keep reading.
ENTER….THE GRAVEYARD!
When designs are sold out and considered dead, we will put them in our graveyard. The Fright-Rags Graveyard is a place where all of our out of print designs can rest in peace. There you will also find many of our older designs dating as far back as 2003, when I first started Fright-Rags. There are designs that some of our oldest customers may have never seen, or for our new customers, a look into our history and all the designs we’ve put out in the past.
But what if you could do more than look at the dead designs and pay your respects? What if you had the power to bring them back to life?
ONLY YOU CAN RESURRECT THE DEAD
The graveyard isn’t just a final resting ground for you to pay your respects to designs that have come and gone. It is also a place where you can vote on what design(s) you want us to raise from the dead and bring back to life! All you need to do is click on any design you like, enter your email address, and your vote will be counted. Every other month, we will choose the designs with the most votes and reprint them. If a design you voted on has been chosen for a reprint, we will notify you via email letting you know it’s coming back.
THE GRAVEYARD LAUNCHES TUESDAY, DECEMBER 20! MAKE SURE TO CAST YOUR VOTES FOR THE SHIRTS YOU WISH TO BRING BACK – THE FIRST ROUND OF REPRINTS WILL BE DECIDED ON JANUARY 3!
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I’ve posted some information below to help answer any questions you might have about the graveyard and how we’re doing our reprints now. But if you have any other questions, please feel free to contact me at ben@fright-rags.com
WHAT DESIGNS WILL BE IN THE GRAVEYARD WHEN IT LAUNCHES?
The graveyard will hold many of our old designs, but not all of them. There are exceptions that prevent us from including every single design we’ve ever released. For instance, no limited edition shirt wll be included in the graveyard as we do not reprint those. Other factors include expired licenses, so some designs might be omitted because we are unable to legally reprint them. That said, we will be opening the graveyard with over 80 designs, so there will be more than enough to start voting on.
HOW OFTEN WILL YOU ADD NEW SHIRTS TO THE GRAVEYARD?
Well, the easy answer is, when they sell out. In order to keep pumping out new stuff, we have to let shirts sell out without reprinting them all the time. So once we release a design, we will continue to sell it until all the shirts have sold out. At that point, it will be moved into the graveyard. Some designs might take months to sell out, or weeks, or even days. The best advice I can give you is, if you like the shirt grab it before it’s gone because it might never come back. There is never a guarantee that a dead design will come back to life as it is solely based on demand.
WILL YOU EVER REPRINT A DESIGN BEFORE IT GOES TO THE GRAVEYARD?
The short answer is no. However, there have been a few rare instances where a shirt takes us by surprise and sells out in hours so we’ve ordered more right away to meet the demand. In those instances where demand clearly exceeds supply on the initial release, we will do our best to restock sooner than later. For the vast majority of shirts, one run is all they will get initially and will have to get voted back for a reprint once they sell out.
DOES THIS MEAN ALL YOUR SHIRTS WILL BE “LIMITED” IN SOME WAY?
Yes, I suppose you could say the shirts will take on a bit more of a “limited” quality to them due to the uncertainty of when (or if) a design will ever come back it has sold out. So you’re better off buying the shirt you like when you see it because there is no guarantee that it will be reprinted. However, this isn’t much different than what we have been doing for awhile. Many of the shirts we’ve put out over the last year or so have only seen one or two prints. And if you have been following us for awhile, you will have noticed that we have not brought back many designs lately. The main thing that is changing is that all reprints will be decided by YOU. So if a design does sell out, at least you have a chance to vote for it to come back. After all, if we’re going to reprint a design I’d much rather print what you want rather than take a stab as what we think should come back.
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- Uncle Creepy
Hey, gang, here’s some more artwork for your viewing pleasure. For years now I’ve been working on becoming proficient with watercolor paints with varying degrees of success. . .lol. This is one of my more successful attempts. The other piece is a pen and ink rendition of the beloved Uncle Creepy. Don’t forget to take part in the Fright-Rags Last Minute Holiday Sale going on this weekend. 30% off Hoodies and Girl shirts, get ‘em while you can, they’re going fast. Just a reminder, if you want your order to arrive in time for Christmas, be sure to place your order by tomorrow. This applies to US customers only, we cannot guarantee holiday delivery for International orders. Have a greet weekend, gang. – TK
Greetings from your Shipping Manager. I hope you guys are having a great holiday, I’m almost done with my Christmas shopping and I couldn’t be happier. I’d like to say thanks to everyone who purchased our newest Re-Animuppet release last week, I still can’t believe how fast they went. Keep an eye on your inbox next week for a shipping confirmation as I will be shipping the rest of the orders so that you guys can get them in time for Christmas. Hopefully, this will add to your Ghoul-tide cheer. For my drawings this week I went into my vault and pulled out a portrait of Stephen King that I did a few years back. Being a huge fan of King’s work, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to draw a portrait of him. One of these days I’ll get around to doing portraits of Lovecraft and Poe. The other one was a drawing I did about a month ago. If you like my artwork, feel free to check out my store over at Zazzle where you can get my art on t-shirts, mousepads, stickers, etc. Here’s the link: http://www.zazzle.com/kilmerkid Thanks for checking out my work and, as always, thanks for your support of Fright-Rags. – TK
Greetings from your shipping manager. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Here are a couple more sketches for your viewing pleasure, one of them a tribute to legendary horror artist Bernie Wrightson. I recently picked up a collection of his work from his time at Creepy magazine, what an amazing talent. The intricacy of his linework and shading never ceases to blow me away. Keep an eye out next week for our Re-Animuppet release as well as some old favorites. Have a great weekend and, as always, thank you for your support of Fright-Rags. – TK
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