Throwback Thursday: Hypercolor T-Shirts

Because who wouldn't want a shirt that changes color when your body heats up?

Hypercolor shirts first appeared in 1991, an idea brought to life by Generra Sportswear Company. Generra made an entire line of clothing using the technology, but it was the shirts that became their breadwinner.

The material used contained a thermochromic, or temperature sensitive, pigment that changed between two colors. Typically the "heated" color was a lighter version or part of the same color family as the base color.

The shirts were extremely temperamental and could only be washed in a certain manner. Use an iron, bleach, the dryer or frankly too hot of water and your hypercolor was hyper-gone.

Recently companies have been trying to revive the color-changing line. Del Sol has created a line of products that change color in the sunlight using a photochromic dye that reacts to light. However, the one that is most true to hypercolor form is Global Technacolour. This company uses the same original technology as Generra that incorporates heat instead of light.

So long live the awkward, blotchy, sweat-like hypercolor shirts!