A smiling woman wearing a jewelled gecko t-shirt walking in the outdoors.

Vivid Jewelled Gecko T-Shirt | Unique New Zealand Wildlife Tee

May 23, 2024 / / No Comments

Our wildlife art print of this rare and beautiful native lizard is so animated it looks likes it’s going to scamper right off the shirt! In this case a crew neck, mid-weight (185gsm) women’s t-shirt. 

New Zealand is ground zero for geckos, with more native lizards found on these islands from north to south than in any other temperate place in the world, they thrive in forests, dunes, grasslands, rocky alpine areas, even under the odd stack of corrugated iron roofing. The Jewelled gecko is a species found only on the South Island of New Zealand, particularly the southeastern regions of Canterbury and Otago from Banks Peninsula southwards.

This design pairs best with white, kelly green, forest green, and black for maximum contrast.

Level up your black t-shirt with our vivid jewelled gecko print. The intricate details are printed directly onto the fabric, while the black in the print is knocked-out, this allows the colours of the print to pop more against black of the shirt.

The Jewelled Gecko design is available from our online stores, our local store that supplies our New Brighton Seaside Market stall, Saturdays 10 a.m.–2 p.m., and from our two retail outlets in New Brighton Mall; Brighton Gallery and The Creatives Edit.

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A smiling boy wearing an orange Surface Active Iconic Kiwi t-shirt beside New Brighton Pier.

Kiwi T-shirt: Unique New Zealand Native Bird Design for Kids

May 19, 2024 / / No Comments

Our eye-catching kiwi design features a bold, two-colour roundel illustration on the front showcasing the most famous New Zealand native bird on a crew neck, mid-weight (185gsm) kids’ t-shirt. A playful mini kiwi icon graces the back for a touch of whimsy. This design pairs best with white, pastels, lights, and brights for maximum contrast. Can be customised with the large art printed on the back and the mini kiwi badge on the front left chest at no extra charge.

Shop Across our Stores

Shop for this flightless bird design across our Surface Active stores:

  • by ordering here to have it locally printed and DTF heat pressed right here in New Brighton.
  • Price: $30 plus shipping via Courier Post. Shipping starts at $8 (varies by quantity).
  • International customers will be charged the actual shipping cost based on the weight and the destination of their order.
  • As a guide a Large Surface Active 185 gsm t-shirt weighs 130–150 grams.

Or you can shop at either:

Front and back view of happy twin girls wearing red and blue Surface Active Kiwi t-shirts at a park.
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A man with a serious expression wears a white t-shirt with four playful leaping dolphins printed on it, standing beside New Brighton Pier.

Dolphins Leaping T-Shirt: Kaikoura Wildlife Art

May 16, 2024 / / No Comments

Channel your inner Jacques Cousteau with this t-shirt featuring four playful common dolphins leaping out of the ocean as they pass along the Kaikoura coast. A perfect conversation starter for any nature enthusiast.

Our Common Dolphins Leaping T-Shirt—Kaikoura Wildlife Art Printed by the Artist

Having had the magical experience of a free-range childhood in Titahi Bay, encountering pods of common dolphins in Kaikoura during our summer holidays at Goose Bay and when snorkelling for Paua with friends near Barneys Rock, enjoying the spectacle of seeing them traveling in large groups parallel to SH1 near Oaro, playfully leaping out of the water, and, as a child being enchanted by their surfing and breaching alongside boats in the waters of the Hauraki Gulf I was seeking a way to express my sense of how dolphins symbolise how wonderful and beautiful New Zealand is.

Prices For Shirts Printed in New Brighton:

Order here to have your dolphins leaping shirt locally printed in Christchurch and DTF heat-pressed right here by the designer, Shaun Waugh, in New Brighton, or shop online at our NZ based and international DTG printing partners. (Use code: “PERFEC” for 5% off your international store purchase.) You can visit Shaun at the Surface Active stall Saturdays 10:00–2:00 at New Brighton Seaside Market, or shop at one of our two retail outlets in New Brighton Mall, Brighton Gallery and The Creatives Edit.

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Two smiling women modelling both sides of the Surface Active Adelie penguins, Antarctica t-shirt on New Brighton beach in New Zealand, alongside the New Brighton pier.

Simple Adelie Penguins Two-Sided T-shirt Design Brings a Smile in the Mind

May 15, 2024 / / No Comments

Show off your love for these tuxedoed Antarctic cuties with this fun t-shirt. Featuring a colony of Adelie penguins in a comical waddle on the front, and their speedy escape from a leopard seal that suddenly hauled up on the edge of the sea ice on in front of them on the back, this shirt is sure to turn heads.

Because the colours of snow and ice is white and the penguins are in Antarctica waddling across that surface, the only colour for the shirt is white, with the two colour black and blue print creating a 3D effect. Clever shading with cool sky blue and perspective tricks the viewer into thinking that the Adelie penguin group is really waddling towards you on the front and dashing away on the back. The Adelie penguin design is also available on white longsleeve tees.

Prices For Shirts Printed by the Artist in New Brighton:

By ordering here to have it locally printed in Christchurch and DTF heat-pressed right here by the designer, Shaun Waugh, in New Brighton, or shop online at our NZ based and international DTG printing partners. (Use code: “PERFEC” for 5% off your international store purchase.)

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A rust orange Surface Active t-shirt with two colourful pixel painted weta on the front of the shirt, one on the sleeve and one on the back.

Pixel-Painted 3D Bluff Weta T-Shirt | Shop now for Yours to be Printed in New Brighton

May 14, 2024 / / No Comments

This eye-catching Surface Active t-shirt features four three dimensional pixel-painted Bluff weta scattered around the garment. A unique way to show your love for these giant New Zealand insect dinosaurs. Shop now by using the order form here, for your shirt to be printed in New Brighton by the graphic designer.

The Bluff weta shirt is also available from our stall at New Brighton Seaside Market, Brighton Gallery, and The Creatives Edit.. Hat-tip also to our new print provider Merch Kings who are doing a fantastic job of reproducing our work for us.

Calling all weta enthusiasts! This fun t-shirt showcases four three-dimensional pixel painted depictions of the mighty Bluff weta—Deinacrida elegans. Available in a variety of sizes and colours, this is the perfect way to celebrate New Zealand’s unique wildlife.
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Ben, a regular customer at the New Brighton Seaside Market, wearing a grey marle t-shirt with an all-over Bluff weta print, showcasing Shaun Waugh’s Surface Active New Zealand Nature T-shirt stall in Brighton Mall on Saturday mornings.

Shop Bluff Weta All-Over: Lifelike New Zealand Nature T-Shirt Design

May 13, 2024 / / No Comments

Don’t say “ooh!”, say “aah!!” for this is one of the best-looking wetas you’ll see. The recently rediscovered Bluff weta can be found in scree and on rocky bluffs at Kaikoura, Mt Somers in mid-Canterbury and all over this artful t-shirt. These ancient insects endemic the Kaikoura ranges and Mt Somers, are insect dinosaurs that you can wear with pride on this unique pixel painted weta t-shirt.

The all-over design features four lively life-size pixel painted portraits of the Bluff weta, once thought lost to history, that roams free in the scree and rocky bluffs of the Kaikouras and Mt Somers in mid-Canterbury. The reference for the pixel paintings are a pair of lively photographs by renowned New Zealand wildlife photographer, Rod Morris, which inspired the idea of having the weta all-over a rock colour and textured t-shirt. The grey marle fabric of the shirt is the rocky texture of a mountain bluff for a comfortable fit. The design is also available on garments in a range of colours for women and kids.

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A black Surface Active t-shirt with illustration of a 1961 Ford MkII Zephyr re-imagined as NASA’s space shuttle being worn by a man in sunglasses at New Brighton beach, beside the Pier.

This Kiwi Space Shuttle tee is a triumph of Kiwi ingenuity. 

May 9, 2024 / / No Comments

For the Kiwi who dares to dream big, this Kiwi Space Shuttle tee is a must-have. This black Surface Active tee showcases the beloved Kiwi icon of a classic MkII Zephyr transformed into a NASA spaceship, manned by three Kiwis soaring through space, bound for a drive on the moon.

The clever design incorporates the rocket science of the black fabric of the shirt as deep space for a comfortable fit. The design is also available on garments for women and kids.

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Black and white image of a Surface Active tuatara portrait printed on a black t-shirt, the tuatara is a lizard native to New Zealand.

Tuatara Portrait T-shirt: A Living Fossil on Two Sides

May 3, 2024 / / No Comments

This unique two-sided t-shirt design explores the fascinating world of the Tuatara. The front features Shaun Waugh’s original pen-and-ink portrait of an 80 year old Henry, the revered tuatara residing at Invercargill’s Southland museum who is now over 120-years-old. The intricate details capture the reptilian skin texture, while the Southern Cross constellation hints at Henry’s age and connection to the ancient Southern Hemisphere. In the background is a glimpse of Stephens Island, a sanctuary for these “living fossils” extinct on the mainland for over a century.

Optional Back Design: For a complete story, choose to include a complementary map on the back. This map pinpoints Stephens Island and showcases fossil ammonites from Farewell Spit, Tasman Bay, further emphasising the Tuatara’s being a “living fossil” link to New Zealand’s prehistoric past as part of the supercontinent Gondwana, along with Antarctica and Australia, 85 million years ago.

Celebrate New Zealand’s unique wildlife and geological heritage. Get your Tuatara t-shirt today!

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Native Animal Lovers Rejoice!

December 6, 2022 / / No Comments

You can order your very own New Zealand nature t-shirts from our brand new exhibition at Brighton Gallery, open until January 8th. All works, t-shirts & original prints, are designed & printed in New Brighton. To order contact: www.surfaceactive.digitees.co.nz/contact

Looking for the perfect way to show your love for your favourite native animal? Order your kiwi t-shirt today. T-shirts are available in a variety of colours and styles for adults and kids, making it easy to find the right one for you.
Five Surface Active art prints on a sunlit gallery wall.

The New Zealand wildlife art prints of Surface Active

December 30, 2021 / / No Comments

Since Chrissie and I were a kids we have been enthusiasts of the natural world and as design pARTners since 1985 our New Zealand nature wildlife art designs are an expression of this.

I finished four years of study in Graphic Design at Auckland Technical Institute in 1983. After a five year career as an advertising art director in Auckland, Christchurch, Hong Kong and Reykjavik I was equipped through illustration, graphic design, drawing and painting to achieve our aim of creating a variety of stimulating visual images that originate from the experiences and knowledge of the natural world that Chrissie and I bring to our collaborations. We create wildlife art of native birds, reptiles, mammals, insects, trees, plants and landscapes at locations all over New Zealand that I photograph, and we research the image libraries of renowned New Zealand wildlife photographers in search of reference for iconic imagery.


The Surface Active New Zealand Nature T-shirt Company range of t-shirt designs has been developed since the year 1986 when we first started screenprinting on the kitchen table in our flat, with frequent updates of new designs between 1988 to the present. We display our latest limited edition wildlife art prints using specialist room mock-up software. Please revisit every few weeks, I’m sure there will be some fresh images for you to look at. As full-time professionals 1988–2003 Chrissie and I designed over 100 original wildlife art designs with New Zealand, Antarctica and African “big five” megafauna themes. Since 2003 we have continued creating new designs and during lockdown 2020 and 2021 we created a new design every few weeks.

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Photo of a young man with a cup of coffee engaged in art print production with a red-billed gull, New Brighton pier sunrise composite illustration on the computer monitor of his iMac alonside a matching large format framed poster of the same print sitting on his desk. The headline is on the dark navy blue background of the wall and reads: “Let's celebrate our passion for New Zealand… on your wall. Surface Active wildlife art prints. Canvas & specialty papers available.”

Surface Active Wildlife Art Gallery Prints

December 10, 2021 / / No Comments

Surface Active design pARTners Chrissie Terpstra and Shaun Waugh welcome orders to reproduce fine art prints from our collection of wildlife artworks, linked here. We provide archival/fine art quality reproduction prints of our works—perfect for your walls or as a gift.

Our offering of limited edition wildlife art prints celebrating New Zealand nature is founded on two strong foundations:

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Three friends in Surface Active t-shirts with designs of Adelie penguins, Paua shell, and a red-billed gull at dawn, posing for a selfie at New Brighton Pier.

Surface Active—New Zealand Nature T-shirt Company stores

November 16, 2021 / / 2 Comments

November 2021
Dear Surface Dweller,

We’re excited to announce our two online retail stores, the Surface Active global store and the brand new New Zealand-based store! To celebrate this significant stage in the development of our clothing brand we are rewarding our customers with a discount offer.

🛍 NZ-based store
🛍 Global store: Use code: “PERFEC” for 5% off your purchase, storewide.

Global store links: Adelie penguins, Jewelled gecko, and Kiwi iconic, light colour variant and the Treefern t-shirt, all-over printed.
NZ-based store links: Adelie penguins, Jewelled gecko, and Dolphins leaping, Kaikoura.

Actively yours,

Shaun Waugh (boss),

Chrissie Terpstra (bossier)

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