The only thing we like more than this clothing item is when it expresses some small essence of who we are as individuals.
Sometimes it's an phrase. Sometimes it's a political stance. It can be a sports team, a school, a concert, or just "I <3 New York."
Now, locals can announce to the world in their choice of clothing which is their favorite, former Fort Lauderdale hotspot.
Did you once spend time at the Copa? Are you an alumni of Art Stock's Playpen South on Oakland Park? Long Lost Vintage Wear's got a shirt for you.
Fort Lauderdale is home to plenty of bars that are dead and gone. Why'd they pick these?
"Your question as to 'why these bars' is a good one," says Markham McGill of Long Lost Vintage Wear, the company in Key West that created these cottony bits of hometown nostalgia.
"Basically, we research the spots that have a really passionate following first and foremost. Identifying the places that really were better back then. So we talk to people -- listen, rather -- and get a feel from the folks who were there 'back in the day' to guide us in the right direction. The places with real spirit and legend behind them do best, and those are the places we look to recreate. The idea is to be as authentic as possible."
McGill is a Florida native himself, though not exactly a Fort Lauderdale local -- close enough though.
"I'm from Key West, but my family has been in Florida for five -- now six with my two kids -- generations. I've had wacky and weird relatives in cities all over South Florida, so I feel a connection to the entire area, even though I'm from "down here" as we say in Key West. When I was in high school, a bunch of us drove up to go to the Button on the beach, but I was just an out-of-towner. I also went to the Copa a couple times! Crazy."
McGill runs Long Lost Vintage Wear out of his screen print shop in Key West. In addition to Ft. Lauderdale, they have collections for Miami Beach, Cape Cod, Boca Grande, New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Ann Arbor, Austin, Hawaii, and Key West (of course).
To check out the tees online visit Long Lost Vintage Wear at longlosttees.com. Locally, you can find the shirts at the Pride Factory, 850 NE 13th St. in Fort Lauderdale. Call 954-463-6600, or visit pridefactory.myshopify.com.
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