An important aspect of each sky art creation is how we form the color of the image. Generally this is done with special t-shirts purchased by parents for their student. This is NOT mandatory however, as wonderful designs can be created simply by asking classes to wear certain colors on the day of the event. T-shirts are encouraged though and most schools find a way to do this, for they do such a good job in creating community and provide students with a long lasting way to tell the story and remember the teachings of this adventure.  They love to point out on their shirt just where in the image they were standing and what it all was about. These shirts, with the planned design upon them, have a history of becoming a child's favorite and are a great way to further school spirit and cohesiveness.

     Art For the Sky is dedicated to no harmful impact upon the planet and thus, the T-shirts we use are probably different than any you have ever purchased. We feature state of the art, Earth friendly shirts (organic cotton, no sweat shops, no plastics) with the chosen design upon them, for $10.50 each.   The shirts are produced in a unique process, called Rehance, which makes them the softest, longest lasting, most Earth-friendly T-shirts on the planet guaranteed! The motto of the company that supplies Art For the Sky shirts is "change the world one t-shirt at a time!" Civic groups like the Rotary or Lion's Club have often subsidized or covered the entire costs of the t-shirts, especially in low income school regions. A call from the principal to propose this possibility is powerful and pays off more often than not.

     Built in to the t-shirt price is a 4x6 "sky card" for each shirt order . . . a special photograph framed with words that summarize the lessons learned during the residency (perfect for the frig!). We will NOT do projects with specially ordered shirts that are not organic cotton. Yes . . . cheaper, non-organic shirts can be found, but isn't it time we all step it up an do the right thing for the Earth and Sky!?

     Ordering Shirts: These shirts are pre-shrunk in the dye process and thus run on the smaller side so please keep this in mind when ordering. We STRONGLY suggest NOT doing individual sizes for children as it can be a real headache when they arrive. We suggest the following: Pre-school, youth small. K-1st, youth medium. 2nd-3rd, youth large. 4th-5th, adult small. 6th-7th, adult medium. High School and Teacher sizes should be individually ordered!

See some T-shirt design examples.
Download  sample letter that goes out to parents about the residency and T-shirts

Not convinced about the importance of organic, quality, t-shirts? Please read this brief article below from Grist.

*Outfit to Be Tied*
Inexpensive clothing industry has a big impact on the environment

That $5 T-shirt you're wearing may have been a great find for your wallet, but the impact of such thrifty threads is far-reaching. A globalization-fueled glut of cut-price clothing has inspired many consumers to think of their duds as disposable. It's a phenomenon some are calling "fast fashion" -- the apparel equivalent of fast food. Most fast fashionistas are oblivious to the downsides of the trend, including the energy-intensive, polluting process of creating synthetic fabrics; the fact that cotton fields are heavily water- and pesticide-dependent; the emissions implications of sourcing labor overseas; and the health effects on workers of processes such as blue-jean distressing. The average American throws away more than 68 pounds of clothing a year, and castoffs that aren't tossed often end up in developing countries, where some worry they interfere with local textile economies. So think about keeping that T-shirt around for a while -- after all, you wouldn't want to be clothes-minded.