In the vast realm of our minds, thoughts come and go whether nostalgic, intrusive or downright hilarious. While they may seem insignificant, they’re more common than you think. It’s these miniscule thoughts that pop into our head from time to time that give us a reminder of our past and present.
Meet Kyle, the genius behind the provocative, eye-catching designs of Vestigial. By definition, “vestigial” is a remnant of something greater. When it comes to his designs, Kyle likes to think of Vestigial as a way to express a single emotion that had passed by and a way to learn about your past and present.
“I honestly just did it because I feel better when I materialize my feelings into clothes.”
“The healthiest outcome from a bad experience is to feel that same emotion to a certain degree, but not as bigger as it was before. This way, you have already gone past it.” he explains as he dives deeper into the inspiration behind creating these designs.
Remnant of a Dream Come True
Back in 2013, when banging on our chests and box logos on hoodies defined streetwear, Kyle wasn’t a stranger to being immersed in the culture. It was from this passion and interest for the culture that led Kyle to sell his own G-Shock watch to gain funding to produce his first original set of tees.
“There was no way I could afford those. So I thought of making clothes for myself.”
Fast forward to 2016, Vestigial grew and along with the brand, Kyle himself. It was during this time where he found the worst parts of himself and showed it to the world. Described as condescending, the designs back then as he described “tried so hard to be cold and better than anyone else. It had no emotion and just a facade to look all hard.”
It was in 2021 when Kyle started articulating his designs in a way that his inner thoughts and self truly desired. “It’s as if Vestigial was a real person now, with human feelings. It slowly became true to what I feel.” He described the progress that his heartfelt designs had moved on to as an archive of past emotions, sorrows, and past affirmations that slowly and surely became a reality.
“I am thankful that Vestigial has helped my mental for most of my life. And that people do relate to it”
Oh yeah, It’s All Coming Together
Adding on to his inspirations, Kyle talks about his early days of using the family computer that ran on Windows XP and booting up his favorite video games. He owes a lot of how he grew up through his love for video games teaching him how to read, new words, and more importantly, the fact that all problems would eventually be solved once you finish the story. Kyle feels heavily nostalgic when it comes to “y2k elements” such as Windows XP, seen in one of his collections. “The early 2000s gave us “false hope” for the future. It was a serene & pure outlook at that time. That is why I love to use nostalgic elements, so that we could remember how it felt. Now we are all just overworked and delusional for a better future.”
“I like to think of life as a video game in itself, that it will all be resolved when you finish the story.”
When it comes to planning the collections for each drop, Kyle let’s the current state of his mind take over. Mostly, he would create a whole collection based on what he feels overnight or in a short span of days. He prices each drop based on how willing he is to cop a piece from a consumer’s perspective. Vestigial collections drop 200-300 tees per month but Kyle went for a new approach for his recent drop going up to 400 pieces in quantity with the mindset of an upgrade in their blanks down the line.
Imagination to Creation
From the design and the words, all the way down to the ink laid onto the fabric. Each tee produced and sold by Vestigial is printed by Kyle himself.
“Printing each tee by my own hands is something special. It is an intimacy that no one can ever take from me.”
The process of silk screening entices Kyle because of the fact that it can be done very well, yet still be imperfect, but also done manually by humans themselves making the process more heartfelt and intimate.
A Man for The People
Vestigial has one of the most supportive communities when it comes to resonating with Kyle’s vision and sentiments that he expresses through each tee produced for the collections that he drops.
“I believe that as long as I just materialize my emotions & experiences in the purest way possible, I won’t have to worry about people relating to the brand’s spirit.”
When it comes to the community’s sentiments, he doesn’t turn a blind eye to what his community has to say and values the suggestions of the community. One instance was back in 2019 when he decided to bring back the original fitting of the neckline from 2014-2017 on the tees. Though the value for feedback is seen with a high regard, Kyle decides to take each form of advice with a grain of salt. With regards to his designs, some members of the community had found the statements triggering.
“I do mean well, And do hope to articulate better. But it is inevitable for me to just go and say what I have to say, I do not wish to sugarcoat the brand’s words to make it more digestible to people.”
What Kyle tries to achieve through each statement on his tees entails helping people see these depressing statements in a much more hopeful light. He attributes this point of view to what he has been experiencing in life as he and the brand had evolved, Kyle is now happier and more hopeful for what’s in store.
As for what he can contribute to his loyal community other than his graphic tees, Kyle is passionate about wanting to educate them about the process of silk screening with the hopes of being able to provide a workshop for them and potentially selling printing kits with Vestigial blanks in the future.
From selling his G-Shock back in highschool to support his passion for street culture, all the way to gaining a loyal community and now having his own production line, Kyle and Vestigial’s story perfectly encapsulates where your passion and expressing your sentiments can take you. Through Vesitigial’s flourishing potential and constant growth, Kyle is happy with what the brand has achieved from a dream of having his own clothing. Though Kyle is ecstatic about where has been able to bring that dream, his thirst for bigger things in and out of the brand remains constant as he aims to break through and carries on regardless of the ups and downs that come along the way.
“I have to carry on regardless, if I want to break through. Because I am happy now, But far from contented. I want bigger things. I will take my time though and shape the brand as I shape myself. “
Be part of Vestigial’s journey and watch out for their surprise drops by following on their Facebook and Instagram pages.
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