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Seashells of the Gulf Coast - Men’s Floridian Shirt
Seashells of the Gulf Coast - Men’s Floridian Shirt
Seashells of the Gulf Coast - Men’s Floridian Shirt
Okihasi

Seashells of the Gulf Coast - Men’s Floridian Shirt

Sale price$79.00
Size:

Take a close look at Okihasi’s Seashells men’s shirt and you’ll find varieties including the shark eye, American auger, coquina clam, tulip shell, calico scallop, sunray venus, Scotch bonnet, Florida cone, kitten’s paw and the coveted junonia, all without breaking a sweat. And should you choose to visit the beach to look for the genuine articles, a cool, lightweight, breathable Okihasi shirt would be a great choice for the outing.      

A barrier island located off Lee County, Florida, is an especially popular spot among seashell collectors. Familiar is the sight of people with a mesh bag in hand bending over to inspect a shell in hopes that it is whole — so familiar, in fact, that the posture has been assigned a name: the Sanibel Stoop. At Sanibel Island, shell seekers stand a decent chance of finding a Scaphella junonia, a specimen highly prized by shellers. Finding one in Northwest Florida is a real longshot, so much so that when a 10-year-old girl found one at St. Andrews State Park in Panama City Beach in 2020, she made the paper. Shelling, like surfing, tends to be best when storms rile seas and carry to the beach shells that don’t often land there. My modest shell collection contains a few stars — a large cowrie, rich brown in color; an elaborate spiny oyster; an immaculate helmet shell; and a stunning murex. The helmet shell I stole from an octopus while diving off Panama City Beach. Technically, speaking seashells are exoskeletons produced by marine mollusks and are composed primarily of calcium carbonate. Of what value are the shells’ countless shapes and colors? Well, maybe we’re just not meant to know. - Steve Bornhoft

Please see below for more about the shirt, care, and sizing.

More on Seashells of the Gulf Coast

Searching for and collecting seashells is a fun hobby for many beachgoers. In biological terms, seashells are the hard, protective exoskeletons produced by marine mollusks, such as snails, clams, and oysters. The shells are primarily made of calcium carbonate and serve to protect the soft-bodied animals from predators, physical damage, and changes in environmental conditions. Seashells grow in layers as the mollusk secretes materials to expand and strengthen the shell over its lifetime. The size, shape, and color of the shells vary widely depending on the species of mollusk and its habitat. The shells on this shirt feature the seashells of the Gulf Coast of Florida. Some examples include Shark Eye, Common American Auger, Coquina Clam, Tulip Shell, Calico Scallop, Sunray Venus, Scotch Bonnet, Florida Cone, Common Nutmeg, Alphabet Cone, Lettered Olive, Kitten’s Paw, Junonia, and many more. Even though starfish and sand dollars are echinoderms and not mollusks, I wanted to include them because they’re fun to find on the beach as well. Both marine mollusks and echinoderms are at heighten risks because of ocean acidification and rising temperatures due to climate change. As always, please make sure to leave as is any seashell, sand dollar, and/or starfish if they are still living.

MATERIAL DETAILS

  1. Light-weight Viscose material made from bamboo - excellent to wear on those hot days.

  2. Machine wash cold  on gentle - Mild detergents - Dry Cleaning Recommended

  3. Line dry

  4. Iron on a medium setting - take caution when ironing

Sizing

Do not use generic sizing (S, M, L, etc). Take exact measurements of your body to get the correct size. See the sizing chart below.

Chest Size

Small - 40-43”

Medium - 43-45”

Large - 45-47”

XL - 47-51”

XXL - 52-55”

XXXL - 56-59”

Length

Small - 28.5-29.5”

Medium - 29.5-31.5”

Large - 31.5-32.5”

XL - 32.5-33.5”

XXL - 33.5”

XXXL - 33.5”

Shoulder

Small - 17-18.25”

Medium - 18-19”

Large - 19-19.75”

XL - 20.75”

XXL - 21.75”

XXXL - 22-22.5”

 
Seashells of the Gulf Coast - Men’s Floridian Shirt
Seashells of the Gulf Coast - Men’s Floridian Shirt Sale price$79.00

Wear Okihasi and DemonstrateYour Love for Florida’s Environment

As a college student, I traveled to a South Africa and worked on a study involving meerkats and Cape ground squirrels. While there, I saw spectacular exotic species — warthogs and snake-eating secretary birds and the exceedingly rare brown hyena.

But it was upon my return to the United States that a small, brown bird enabled me to appreciate the importance of all species to the web of life and taught me that a critically endangered, seemingly inconsequential bug eater can inspire conservation efforts capable of preserving an entire ecosystem.

Birders talk about their “spark bird,” the species that stimulated in them a lifelong fascination with nature. For me, it was that small, brown bird — the Florida grasshopper sparrow, introduced to me by a University of Central Florida professor during a trip to the Kissimmee Prairie Preserve.

I grew up amid prickly pear cacti and gopher tortoises at the tip of the Lake Wales Ridge in Central Florida. My mother was a middle school science teacher. As a kid, my appreciate for nature and wildlife was limited, but my life changed when I changed my college major from psychology to biology.

Some years after graduating, I was part of a team establishing a STEM school in Ashville, North Carolina, when my parents, returning from a trip to Hawaii, presented me with an authentic aloha shirt that featured a marine scene. I wore only solid-colored shirts at the time, and my first reaction was “I’ll never wear this.” But I did, and I was surprised by all the conversations that shirt started, and I bought more of them.

In the midst of the COVID pandemic, I, like many others, thought about starting a business, and Okihasi was born. It combines my fondness for aloha shirts with my love for Florida’s diverse ecosystems.

My shirts, like that aloha shirt that landed in the mountains of western North Carolina, spark conversations — among ecologists, environmentalists, birders and nature enthusiasts of all stripes.

I find that gratifying and hope Okihasi Floridian men’s shirts help inspire people to preserve natural areas, strike a balance between development and conservation and save creatures great and small, including those little brown birds.

Sincerely,

John Mizell

Florida Family-Owned

Located in Panama City Beach, Okihasi is owned and operated by Florida natives who are inspired and guided by their strong passion for Florida’s natural beauty.

Florida Themed Shirts

Okihasi shirts depict Florida’s diverse ecosystems and the tremendous variety of its flora and fauna in an effort to foster appreciation for irreplaceable lifeforms. Designed by a Floridian Biologist, each shirt tells a story of our natural areas.

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SATISFACTION GUARANTEED

At Okihasi, customer happiness is paramount. We are committed to delivering products of premium quality and back them with a 100% satisfaction guarantee.