It's been a great nearly 4 years - thanks to everyone for their support! Time for us to move on... will be closing up shop & the current 'phase' of thehinitiative this weekend.

We've just created a new section for charities and other non-profit groups with some info on fundraising using t-shirts or getting t-shirts for yourselves!
We've finally figured it must be useful information to share as we've received lots of emails asking for help/ideas etc in this area. Let us know what you think, and if there's anything else you need to know and we'll pop it up there to share too! : )
Click here to head over to the T-shirt Information & Help for Charities now and please feel free to pass this on to others who need it : )

It's been too long since our last post and we had to talk about a new discovery: Fair trade toddler and infants shoes that look great! Skeanie shoes are Australian designed leather shoes, and Skeanie are a preferred provider of the Australian Podiatry Association (NSW). So, these shoes are fair, look great and are good for baby and toddler feet. They ship internationally too so don't worry about missing out!

Our favourites are the Deck Shoes in Chocolate for boys and the Loafers in Luxurious Cream for girls, both pictured below.

...the shop will be closed for the holiday season after this...so get your Christmas orders in early! : )

We've reduced some more of our end of line sale items to $10 and $15!

Note that these no longer contribute towards the charities as either our agreements with them have expired and/or these low prices don't even cover the cost of making the t-shirts.

But the good thing is that you get to walk away with a real bargain : )

Check out the online shop to see what's available....

After many years of Glassons selling the Breast Cancer Research Trust charity t-shirts for the girls, their "brother" company Hallensteins is finally getting really into it.
I just got an email from Hallensteins promoting / announcing their ProDesign t-shirt collection in support of the Make-A-Wish Foundation. A really wide range of t-shirt designs and artists!! Great stuff! And all $40 each with $10 going to the Make-A-Wish Foundation ...pretty good for snazzy looking tees. My fave's the Richardson tee : )

I'm wondering what you, the all important customer, thinks: are charity t-shirts in bountiful supply now every which way you turn??

Now that the huge clothing companies have covered both bases, with access to such awesome design talent. ....maybe it's fine time thehinitiative moved on!! : )

Andrew Harbott, one of our designers from the Mental Health Foundation 2008 collection (the Normal is Over-rated horse/unicorn design), has made it into the ranks of NZ's top tee designer!!

Andrew will have his winning design created into a t-shirt, which will be sold throughout Hallensteins stores nationwide. His t-shirt will be part of an impressive collection of designs by some of New Zealand’s leading graphic designers and artists, such as Otis Frizzell, Stephen Richardson, Shine, Inhouse, Federation and the Bro’ Town illustrators who have collaborated with Scribe.

In-store and online from mid-November, $10 from every t-shirt sold will be donated to Make-A-Wish NZ, with each dollar going directly towards making wishes come true for children with life threatening illnesses.

Awesome work Andrew!! : )

Women die needlessly during pregnancy or childbirth everyday in the Pacific. At the global level, every minute another woman dies during pregnancy or childbirth. That is VERY scary (talking as a mum, my labour/birth was already hard enough here in New Zealand)....and to think that it is a preventable tragedy!

On 22nd October 2009, Family Planning International will proudly present 'Safe and Sound', a music concert in support of maternal and related sexual and reproductive health in the Pacific.

A selection of New Zealand female artists will perform at the San Francisco Bathhouse in Wellington. They include Lisa Tomlins, Jess Chambers, Iva Lamkum, Tessa Rain, Bella Kalolo and DJ Ayesha.

Buy your ticket now from Under the Radar or Real Groovy in support of maternal health in the Pacific. Note that this event is R18.

Reading KR Connect: Change the World? Why Not gave me an encouraging oomph. I could especially relate to this part:

If you want to know what the road looks like, here's an idea. In trying to pursue your dreams, you will fail. A lot. And it will hurt. A lot. But you will get back up. And that will feel good.

To say you will have the boundaries of what is courageous for you pushed will be an understatement. Sometimes you won't find the courage, and that too, will hurt. Sometimes, a lot.

But with each challenge, you will grow stronger. And you will learn, as I am learning, that the reward of living life in a world where everything remains forever possible is a reward far greater than any material prize could ever be.

So now I must live up to the seed I have sown, and the very idea of trying to do that terrifies me. The 99 percent is already telling me I'll fail and stuff it all up. However, in reality, that just means I have another opportunity to prove those voices wrong.

So, my question to you is this;

Are you ready to Change the World?

Because you are only one choice away.

On the more cynical side, even with all the positive speak, one blogger put it well: "your actions will speak louder."

A lot of the times, it feels like thehinitiative (or I!) haven't made a bittiest difference to anyone anywhere. There are so many other clothing labels & businesses doing more, faring better, going farther - it's so easy to compare! So, it's when I get feedback like below, that really helps keep thehinitiative & I going. It's feedback from a long time ago but something to be held on to : )

Thanks so much for the t-shirts-they are so cool!! We love them. I am a teacher and my students have been asking about them-so we have had a great discussion about the reasons for movember, mental health and children in crisis.
As a result my students have brought in money amounting to $40 which we are going to spend on the oxfam website buying gifts that keep on giving.
Just wanted to let you know what differences wearing the very cooly designed tshirts-has made!!

- from a teacher of 12-13 year olds in South Auckland, December 2008.

I have to admit, I was a bit cynical about this at first glance - Eat so they can?

But upon reading more into it, it's really all about friends/community, and using something as simple as a home cooked meal & inviting others around to help collect funds for a worthy cause.

You could host a brunch, a lunch, a dinner, a cocktail party, a bbq - and your guests will just need to contribute e.g. $10 donation towards it.

Donations go to the Global Volunteer Network Foundation Global Children's Fund set up especially to aid children living in poverty.

It's meant to all happen this weekend - so anyone up for an impromptu meal with friends? : )

In response to Seth Godin's the problem with non(-profits) , Jeff of the Donor Power blog mentioned something that was close to home:

Our #1 problem is hatred of fundraising and donors. Hardly any nonprofit was founded in order to raise funds. But most depend on fundraising to exist. This seems to fuel a sort of resentment of the craft and of donors that blocks effective, donor-focused communication. Organizations with this problem yearn for "better" donors that don't need the "demeaning" tactics of effective fundraising. They spend needless millions on this failed alchemy experiment. (Read the full blog post: Seth zeros in on our third-worst problem )

I wonder if fundraising can feel like a dreaded chore. Something that has to be done to keep things in good order, but frankly, you'd rather spend your time doing something else? Is it a hassle to hunt down something to fundraise with that will work for you or the organisation, having to find funds to pay upfront for it (if it's product related?), then trying to sell it and/or convince others to get it.

A quick look at the typical fundraising product scene came up with:

• The usual suspect - chocolate. Cadbury chocolates, or for those with more discerning taste buds, Trade Aid fair trade organic chocolate bars.
• Labels of all sorts for the kids from Stuck on You. What a simple yet useful product - the business was smart to get into this!!
• Gingerbread men, with special packs for decorating gingerbread men your own way : ) Edible fun
• Pre-popped or microwave popcorn (non GMO) & candyfloss from Dr Bugs
• Tea towels (printed with your own designs too?)

Note: This is just a list of things found, not a list of recommendations : )

....but what other fundraising ideas are out there? Product or non-product related?

What works better for the organisation that's trying to raise funds? (so that it's not so dreary)

Or (more importantly?), what works better for the people/supporters who are buying / donating towards it?

The latest range of limited edition Mental Health Foundation t-shirts have been released as part of Mental Health Awareness Week 2009!

This year thehinitiative was only involved in the design stage, providing designers with a brief and then passing it onto the Mental Health Foundation for them to take further. Due to the economic recession & its financial impact on thehinitiative, we had been (sadly) unable to run any further t-shirt campaigns or produce new collections for our charities.

So....haven't the Mental Health Foundation done an awesome job with the t-shirt collection?! : )

Design credit goes to the lovely Mari Pettersson and the designs relate well to the Mental Health Awareness Week theme, Winning Ways to Wellbeing.

The full collection is now available from the Mental Health Foundation's online shop with t-shirts selling for $45 each. Every sale raises money for the Mental Health Foundation. T-shirts from previous years' collections are also available for purchase from the Mental Health Foundation's online shop (note: they are no longer available from thehinitiative's online shop).

Hey all, the office & shop will be closed on Wednesday 23rd September until Sunday 4th October. Orders will only be processed from Monday 5th October.

A first for Island Bay, Wellington!

Craft Village, Saturday 8th August, 10am-4pm every 2nd Saturday of each month. It'll be held at 88 The Parade, Presbyterian Church, Island Bay -

Local and greater Wellington region crafters & businesses will be coming together to display a colourful variety of handmade goodies and such.

There will be giveaways, spot prizes and a bustling atmosphere of creativity for all to enjoy!

Wooo! Some progress on the design front...

Thanks to everyone who submitted designs for the 2009 Mental Health Foundation (MHF) t-shirt collection! : )

The following designers have made it onto the MHF's shortlist with their designs (in alphabetical order of the first name):

Cara - What you give is what you get
Damen - Aroha Script, Aroha Angle, Aroha Mirror
Jinha - Open your mind
Mari - Heart & shoulder, _LEAN_ON_ME_, and SMILE®
Michelle - Reach out #2
Vomle - Kind words are a piece of cake

The final designs for the t-shirt collection are currently being chosen from the shortlist and Mental Health Foundation will contact designers directly by 24 July 2009. So, designers, keep your eyes peeled on your email inbox.

By the way, if you submitted a design and want to know why it wasn't shortlisted by the charity, feel free to contact us and we'll provide as much info as we can.

To everyone else: We would love to post all the designs up - but you'll just have to wait and see what comes out from MHF in October 2009! : )

This is such an awesome idea!!!!!!! "It's a sobering fact that a full 40 percent of the world's population (some 2.6 billion people) lack regular access to a toilet. Add to that the fact that one child dies every 15 seconds from water contamination, and it's not hard to see the motivation behind the Peepoo bag."

Read more here...Single-use toilet bag turns human waste into fertilizer - Springwise

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This is probably well known by most, but Oxfam have an online bookstore, Good Books, where "all profits go to Oxfam to help fight its global battle against poverty and social injustice."
There is NO extra cost to the customer as they don't mark up their books to cover this contribution. According to them, "our prices remain among the lowest you will find; delivery worldwide is completely free, and with over two million titles in stock our range is one of the largest you will find."

And when I read updates like this one about a child trying to express the horrors they've seen/experienced in Darfur, it really makes the heart go out to them as well as wanting to help those e.g. Oxfam who can help them.

So, if you're about to buy a book, how about checking to see if it's available at Good Books first? : )
Every cent, every dollar counts and has a far bigger trickle down effect.

Buy a Magic Beans discount card, that helps you save and yet supports mental health!

Cards cost just $19.95, are valid until 31 July 2010, and $5 from each card sold goes to the Mental Health Foundation to help finance their work to help improve the mental health of individuals and communities in New Zealand.

The cards will help you save your family a fortune! The Magic Beans card opens up a world of savings for your growing family. It's the one discount card every expectant parent or parent of 0 to 5-year-olds needs in their wallet.

For just $19.95, you get a year's worth of giant deals and super-savings on everything your children could possibly need, like:

• FREE OHBaby! magazine
• 20% off entry to Butterfly Creek
• 50% off maternity bras from EGG Newmarket
• 20% off Trunki luggage, gr8x, Lola and Ben, Peanut Shell slings from 3 Wise Monkeys.co.nz
• 25% off eczema or sensitive skin products
• 25% off kid's clothing
• 15% off Natures Sway Baby Hammocks & Slings

Check out the list of all the retailers and their deals - you'll see how quickly your card pays for itself!

Magic Beans Cards make great baby shower gifts or a novel - and practical - present for anyone with a baby or young child.

The other great news is you can start using your card as soon as you receive it.

You can purchase your cards from the Mental Health Foundation online shop for $19.95.

We like people who are like Robin Hood : )

Happy as Larry is a project about getting lots of stuff for free and giving it away ... like Robin Hood, but with whiskers.

It's a word of mouth experiment in random acts of giving.

Check it out at www.happyaslarry.co.nz