Las Vegas Weekly

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Angie Morelli, 27, served as a Marine for five years. She repaired CH-53 Echo helicopters in Afghanistan, in Kuwait and in Qatar. Now she lives in Vegas and runs a T-shirt shop.

How’d she get from point A to point B? Well, after Morelli got discharged from the military, she made a decal for her fellow female Marines. Then she started getting requests for more decals. Some requested funny designs; other requests were more serious.

“A lot of Marines boast about their time in the service, but we always honor the fallen Marines we served with. So I made a lot of ‘In Memory Of’ and ‘Remember the Fallen’ designs.”

Business was brisk, so Morelli opened a kiosk. Then she upgraded to a store and expanded her client base. Today, her shop is called Customistic, and you can find it in the Boulevard Mall on Maryland Parkway. But before you visit, have a T-shirt concept or design in mind; as the name suggests, Customistic specializes in custom-designed T-shirts.

“I like to do offensive stuff,” she says. “If somebody is saying something inappropriate and offensive on a shirt, they probably feel pretty passionately about it.”

And as for the T-shirts themselves, Morelli says, “Pro Club brand shirts are really popular right now—some rapper rapped about them—and V-necks are also big right now. Here in Vegas, a lot of guys want Affliction-style T-shirts—T-shirts with designs that wrap around your chest. Makes you look buffer.”

Just remember, guys, no matter how buff you look, don’t pick a fight with Morelli if you’re dissatisfied with your shirt. She’ll take you down.