UNSUPERVISED x Yana Michelle
A completely unserious merch concept I designed very seriously
I had no business designing merch for a podcast I don’t work for, but here we are.
Unsupervised didn’t have merch, the fans wanted merch, and my brain said “bet.”
So I built an entire micro-shop, designed a whole collection, printed physical samples, and ended up handing them straight to Syd and TP like a chaotic little agency of one. And they reposted it.
How This All Started
One day I was watching Unsupervised on YouTube, minding my business, and my inner designer whispered, “Why don’t they have merch?”
So I dropped a comment.
Apparently the internet agreed.
That one comment turned into actual engagement, which turned into actual ideas, which turned into an entire secret merch shop I built out… for fun… because my head was in the clouds and told me to run with it.
Finding the Gap: No Merch, Big Demand
I didn’t want to create basic “logo on a shirt” merch. That’s boring.
I wanted nostalgia, jokes, inside references, and a little bit of scrapbook messiness. Something that felt like the show.
So I pulled inspiration from:
• 90s textures
• VHS tapes
• Fortune cookies
• Pagers
• Collage energy
• Doodles and ripped paper
• Inside jokes and unserious statements
Design Direction: Nostalgia Meets Chaos
The Unsupervised brand is chaotic, funny, offbeat, and full of personality. Their fans? Even more chaotic.
But their merch store?
Nonexistent.
This was a perfect little UX problem disguised as a joke.
My takeaway:
If a community is literally begging for something and you’re a designer with a Cricut and too much initiative, you make it happen.
This direction let the merch feel lived-in, slightly messy, and very “Syd just said something outrageous again.”
Building the Secret Merch Shop
Because this wasn’t official and I was not trying to get sued, I built a QR-only hidden shop.
You can’t find it anywhere except through the QR code on the physical tag or the secret link.
The shop design features:
• A fake “Welcome to the Secret Episode” intro
• Scrapbook textures
• Playful microcopy
• Clear disclaimers
• A product grid full of mockups
• That “you saw nothing” energy
Product Collection: Concepts Brought to Life
The first collection included:
• The VHS Tape Tees
• The Fortune Cookie Hoodies
• The Unsupervised Pager Crewneck
• The Paper Plane Crewneck
• The Doodle Tote Bags
• The Doodle Hoodies
• A “Don’t Tell Me What to Do” Tees and Tote Bags
This sounds like a lot because it was.
The Packaging + Delivery Moment
If I was gonna shoot my shot, it was gonna be cute.
I printed a branded card, created a QR tag, sealed everything up nicely, and made a whole sticker sheet just because I could.
I wanted the hand-off to feel like they were getting a real collab kit, not “some girl in Dallas made this on her couch.”
The Pop-Up: Meeting Syd + TP
I finally got to hand everything over at their Dallas event.
I was nervous smiling like somebody meeting Beyoncé, but it still gave.
They were kind, funny, and exactly as chaotic as the brand suggests.
And then…
They reposted it to their official Unsupervised story.
When your “this is probably silly but let me do it anyway” idea gets reposted by the actual people, that’s a win in my book.
Results
• Top comment on their YouTube episode
• Physical prototypes delivered directly to talent
• Reposted on the official Unsupervised IG story
• Positive in-person feedback
• Validated fan demand for merch
• Demonstrated end-to-end capability: concept → UX → branding → product design → packaging
• And honestly, the most fun I’ve had on a “fake” project
Reflection
This project reminded me that design doesn’t always have to start with a brief. Sometimes it starts with an idea that won’t leave you alone.
I love building things that feel playful, unexpected, and community-driven. And if the Unsupervised team ever wants to bring this to life for real, I’d love to be part of it.
Until then…
You saw nothing.