We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tommy Basco a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Tommy, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

Part of being an artist is being able to build a brand around yourself which includes creating merchandise your following wants to purchase and represent you by. Throughout my career it has been hit or miss on translating my idea into fruition. I’ve worked with several different printing companies, and although the products always turn out great, it isn’t 110% my vision. There has been something missing. Being a paper and pen kind of guy, there is something about the digitizing process that has changed the outcome. I wanted to keep my screen prints as organic, bold, and large as possible.

With the shutdown of 2020 that happened, I had a lot of time to think about what I wanted to create. I started watching countless videos on screen print set-ups, researching equipment on marketplace, realizing the set-up was something I might be able to build with existing materials I had laying around the shed and garage. I started to build my own press along with screens out of unused canvas’ we had in the art cabinet. My next hurdle to jump was getting my art onto these screens and keeping it organic. I decided to hand paint my screens which took some trial and error as the different paint consistencies were different than my norm. With some patience and persistence, the screens were complete. I was still unsure about where I was going to go with everything, so I started printing on clothing I was retiring from my closet. Anything from band and tattooer shirts, polos, and even stained up classic white tees. The second layer prints looked so cool once I figured out how to cure them onto the shirts without burning big holes in them.

Once I knew the prints were cured and would survive wash and wear, I started listing them on my Instagram for sale in small batches. The shirts gained a lot of attention, and the response was so reassuring that I decided to take the leap and start turning this into a full-time gig. I sold through all of our retired clothing and had to start sourcing my shirts by thrifting and receiving clothing donations from friends. While we were starting a clothing brand, we realized we were helping a huge environmental issue. With the United States DOUBLING its textile waste over the last 20 years, we like to believe we are entering the fashion industry while helping the environment. Doing our best not to condone to the 17 million tons of textile waste every year in the U.S, alone. Giving forgotten and retired clothing a refreshed look and shot at life. People enjoy their one-off article of clothing that will never be duplicated or created in a unhealthy mass production setting.

Tommy, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Growing up in Benton, Arkansas, with artistic vibes from my uncles and grandma, my passion for art runs deep. My Uncle Ted rocked Ed Roth-inspired illustrations, while Uncle Sonny crafted detailed WWII-themed artwork—both shaping my love for creativity. Before finding my groove in a tattoo shop, I worked a bunch of hands-on jobs. Now I use that knowledge to take on everything from wood cutouts and sign painting to welding, screen-printing, upcycling, and even building custom motorcycles. My home and studio are packed with my art and pieces from fellow artists which is really helpful to keep me inspired for my next project.

My main focus is my screen-printing business. There are two sections to it: Tombasco Brand and Von Basco. The TomBasco side is the thrifted screen-printed clothing which never goes through a digitizing or duplicate process. Printed with water-based ink on my hand-built press with hand painted screens. All shirts are washed then organized into piles I’ve dedicated to acid wash or keep original. From there I organize the piles dedicated to each screen. I inspect each article of clothing and decide which image would be best for that individual piece. The reason could be sizing compatibility, humor, or gut feeling. They are never just tossed into random piles. After I print at least 1 image logo and our two different brand logos they go through our inventory process. I cut cardstock paper into squares that are then stamped with our logo, inventory number, and price information. We then cut hemp rope and tie knots to attach the tags with safety pins. It keeps the handmade process going all the way through to the end.

The Von Basco side is 50’s, 60’s & 70’s hot rod weird-o art inspired by the grungy greaser lifestyle and Ed Roth. All of this art is still made by hand. I sketch all my ideas onto paper that are then turned into Sharpie drawings. I then digitize these images to burn them onto screens. With this digitizing process, I am able to separate my art into different layers to add in more colors or detail into my prints. These are all printed on new shirts in small batches on our Riley Hopkins press with plastisol ink. I focus on making these available in black prints on white tees or white prints on black tees. The art on the shirts is also available as prints you can hang on your wall.

There is really something for everyone who enjoys my style of art. Whether it is the more traditional and upcycled side full of comfy clothes or the grungy greaser lowbrow art that catches your attention. You can wear my art as a statement piece or bring a piece of art home to hang up on your wall. I’ve got you covered! I enjoy continuing to challenge my art knowledge by constantly working on new art in new mediums and levels of detail. I hope you check out my website or social media to see what project I am currently working on!

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

I have found that when I can get my products in front of the human eye, people really understand what I am doing. They can see how organic everything is and the many layers that go into each creation. I have worked different pop-up events and in person weekend shopping markets. I also have a couple different set ups for our vehicles that allows up to take a limited quantity of inventory to businesses, where they can come out to their parking lot for a quick in person shopping experience. I have a great response with this approach at tattoo shops, salons, and bars. I am still working on how to communicate that same message over the internet and streamlining parking lot visits.

Have you ever had to pivot?

As an artist, my life is constantly pivoting. I am always learning new things and challenging myself to find my next project to dive into. I have moved a handful of times, and each move has brought me a new sector of my journey I didn’t necessarily see coming. It keeps things exciting but can also be a rollercoaster at times. I appreciate the freedom that comes along with the journey and am always looking forward to what’s next.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.tombascobrand.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tombascobrand
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tombascobrand
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/tombascobrand
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/tombascobrand