RARE SURF - "Original Shapers Tees"

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RARE SURF - "Original Shapers Tees"

RARE SURF - Preserving surf art and stories from yesteryear.

We screen-print each Shapers Tee by hand in limited batches from our workshop in Bundjalung Country.

08/06/2025

Darren Handley Shapers Tee - Hand printed in a limited batch of 20 from our workshop in the backwaters of Chinderah, Northern NSW.

Featured Artwork .

“Back in the ’90s, everything was raw—skulls were everywhere, and life felt footloose and fancy free” Darren

All our tees are unisex and pre washed in heavy weight 100% 203gm cotton that is built to last.

We print each garment using waterbased inks. This tee is designed to be your new old faithful.

Link to purchase in bio or drop past the farm and cop one direct.

04/06/2025

Darren on his first Skull logo:
“Back in the ’90s, everything was raw—skulls were everywhere, and life felt footloose and fancy-free. I had two skull logos during that time. The first one, with the star on the skull, was really my first proper logo. I was riding for Pipedream back then, and when I left to go out on my own, I kept that logo on my boards. It became one of those iconic marks for a while.
I tend to run with a logo for about seven years before I change it. Around the same time, while I was finishing up with Headworx, there was an artist working there—he’s a tattoo artist now—who created another skull logo for me. I liked both, and for a while, I’d just put them both on the boards.
But the one with the star really stuck. That’s the one everyone connected with, so we kept that one going.
It was a great time in my life. Eventually, we transitioned into a new logo—just “DHD” with a small skull. And over time, we phased out the skulls completely. People moved on from that style, and so did we.”

11/02/2025

ROAR by name RAW by nature.

Simon has had a remarkable career that spanned from the late 1960s to the 2000s. His journey in the surf industry began at the age of 13 when he started working at George Rice’s surfboard factory, fixing dings under the mentorship of Rip Curl founder Doug “Claw” Warbrick. This formative experience with surfboard craftsmanship at the dawn of the industry, ignited a lifelong journey with surfing and art as duel inspirations.

Simon's graphic language was deliberately Victorian in style, responding to the harsh, unforgiving elements of the southern coast. His bold, dynamic compositions echoed the raw energy of the place and time, celebrating both the free spirit of surfing and the emerging creativity of the era. His belief that the act of surfing is a form of art, became central to his work, influencing both his process and collaborations throughout his career.

In the early 1990s, Simon was the architect behind ROAR, a surf co-op that brought together influential figures in surfboard shaping and design. The Roar collective included shaper’s Wayne Lynch, up-and-coming shaper Greg Brown, and a young Mark Phipps, who was beginning his shaping apprenticeship.

Working under the guidance of Peter Ashley, a master craftsman who owned the factory where Roar took shape, the team also included craftsman Alan Rousel, Jason Alcroft, and the next-generation resin lords “Cuzzo” and “AK.” The Roar group merged artistry and craftsmanship in a disruptive way and came to life under the tooth framed shark logo, symbolizing the collective.

ROAR by name RAW by nature, Simon’s graphic designs, paired with the work of the shapers, became a potent combination. Each shaper had their own distinct artistic representation, all housed in the tooth framed graphic language.

All things must pass, and when ROAR was dissolved, Greg’s heart graphic was a good candidate to re-purpose for another project, evolving into the surfboard label GASH.

Simon’s artistic contributions extend far beyond Roar, and much of his work helped define the visual culture of surfing through it’s evolution. Simon’s body of work continues to inspire today.

11/12/2024

We’ve already sold out of the latest run of Nat Young Naked Lady tees on the Rare website, but we just shipped a small batch down to and will look to do a fresh print run in the new year.

Hear it from about the art, and if you know more, please comment!
“Nat would be the best to talk to re the original design. The final version is my art including line work and colour separations, and a bit of a touch-up with my slight modifications. Included in the art are the initials LG and my SE… Mid seventies Nat was fully into the country lifestyle which is reflected in that decal. I was getting a bit experimental with a water colour look with this one 😊”

A classic, only currently available at Wild Things. Printed by hand at in the backwaters of Chinderah.

04/12/2024

Stoked to partner with as our first wholesale stockist.

Located at the Induzzo in Byron, stocking alternative surfboards, art, and unique surf labels.

Drop in and check out the store next time you’re floating around Byron, or head along to one of their community events and get involved!

26/11/2024

RARE humans- The next generation of shapers, laminators, and artists. Our second up, we had Avalon Starick () from Sisters Beach Tassy come by the Rare Workshop to have a yarn. Check it out below:

Name and where your from?
My name is Avalon Starick and I’m from Sisters Beach on the north west coast of Tasmania.

Where did you learn to surf?
My older brother first taught me how to surf out the front of our house in Sisters Beach but it wasn’t until I travelled up the east coast of Australia in my van when I was 18 that I really got hooked on surfing. The water was warmer, the waves were friendlier and there were more girls surfing.

What got you into surfboard design?
A combination of becoming pretty obsessed with surfing myself and getting a job making coffee in the Album surfboard showroom. I was surrounded by beautiful shapes and designs and I was making coffees for a bunch of board builders down Ourimbah road in Tweed Heads. I quickly became interested in the building and designing of surfboards.

Who inspires you in the industry? Young and old?
I am definitely inspired by many people for many reasons within the industry, from board design, construction and materials, a business perspective and history. I draw a lot of inspiration from Matt Parker for board design and aesthetic, Mark Richard’s for history and twin fins and Gary McNeil for use of sustainable materials.

Do you have a mentor?
I don’t have a mentor as such but I have worked very closely with Gavin Upson and Mitch Surman throughout my time shaping who have guided and helped me immensely.

Where do you see surfboard manufacturing in 20 years from now?
Part of me thinks we will continue to progress with board design, materials and technology to create new and unique feelings, more customised boards to surfers, and environmentally friendly options. However I also think majority of the surf industry appreciates traditional methods which will cause a push back to advancing with technology and out of the box ideas. I am excited to see what the split will be like with more open mindedness and progression vs the continuous use of traditional methods.

15/11/2024

Airbrush Mushroom Cloud Single Fin and 1964 XM Ford Falcon Deluxe will be shown at ’s “In Your Imagination” show tonight with a host of other artists, makers and creators. We heard there’s only a couple tickets left! Get em while they’re hot and we will see ya there ✌️

12/11/2024

- Mitchell Ray on the early ‘Surf Hut Graphic’
“In the early days of Outer Island surfboards
I used to hand draw and paint individual stickers for each board.
This design incorporates a Batak house from North Sumatra, whimsically sitting on an island with a perfect wave peeling off …
It went through many variations and incarnations through the hand drawing and painting process.”

From inspiration to brush to board! 👌swipe through to some visuals of the inspiration, the graphic itself and Mitchell painting recently.

08/11/2024

There’s no mystery that Mitchell went right to the edge of the outer when researching and defining his ‘eye’ graphic for Outerisland surfboards (). Hear it from the man himself:

‘The Eye of the Rose
Inspired by punk rock and tattoo art ,
I created the artwork for the eye of the Rose somewhere in the early 90s. It’s hand drawn and painted before the advent of computer graphics.

However, there’s more than meets the eye to this piece of art (if you will excuse the pun!)

The rose has long been held by the ancient schools of mystery as the symbol of expanding consciousness, the blossoming of our hearts, the unfolding of higher consciousness.

In the context of this art, the Spirit Eye represents the quest for knowledge, truth and the meaning of life.

It’s much more than just a logo’
👁️

Fresh print on the Rare web store at the link below.

https://rare.surf/

06/11/2024

Mike Davis Designs four colour process CMYK print, hand printed in Chinderah, and a couple ads and boards!

The original art was inspired by the forgotten island of santosha poster from an early issue of Surfer Magazine, and was entrusted by Mike and Jim the printer to create the colourful story logo. A great lol. With the four colour process print.

Tees are on the store.

https://rare.surf/products/mike-davis-s-s-tee

Address

Chinderah, NSW

Telephone

+61455335325

Website

http://www.rare.surf/

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