Microspotting tshirts (want one?)

Posted Nov 16 2009 4:01 AM by the JobsBloggers

Dana Badeen IS the empire Like anyone who works in marketing, I have a lot of crappy swag tshirts. These shirts are almost all poorly fitting (too big!), poorly designed (massive logo!), and of poor quality.

So when it came time to make some Microspotting tshirts, I was insistent: I would only make swag if it was something I would actually wear. Swag that fit, swag that felt good, swag that looked good, and bonus points for making me laugh.

Enter the Microspotting tshirts.

My job gives me special feelings

First I wanted a good material, so these are Onno shirts made of an organic cotton/bamboo blend. If you don’t know bamboo fabric, it’s awesome – it drapes way better than cotton, and so insanely soft that I worried these shirts might turn wearers into walking HR violations, victimized by unwelcome hugs from coworkers.

I also made a point of getting the shirts in a full range of sizes for both the guys and the girls. Too many promo tees only come in Men's L and XL! Seriously: how many branded nightshirts does a woman need?

As for the design, I came up with three styles, two of which you can see above.

  • I am the empire
  • My job gives me special feelings
  • I got microspotted

The "microspotted" design is exclusively available for people who I profile on the site, but I'm doing a promotion to give away a few of the other two styles to bloggers. (The caveat: you need to be a Microsoft employee. Blogging doesn't need to be part of your job, but you need to work for the Empire to say "I am the empire."

If you are the empire and you're a blogger, I want you to have one of these shirts.
Just follow the instructions here.

Gretchen IS the empire

68 Comments

  • Bree said:

    [hey Ariel -- when do we get our free schwag??? :)

  • Ajay Bhat said:

    [<a href="http://ajayvb.blogspot.com/2008/07/see-microspot.html" rel="nofollow"> Here ya go </a>.

    Men's M - I am the Empire. If it's still available :)

  • Aaron said:

    [I posted about Microspotting on Twitter: <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/screwdriver">http://twitter.com/screwdriver</a>

    Does that get me an XL "I am Empire" shirt? :) Thx.

  • Adam Kinney said:

    [A post in hopes of obtaining an XL "I am the empire" shirt:)

    <a href="http://adamkinney.com/blog/351/default.aspx" rel="nofollow">Scoble's Backpack and Microspotting </a>

  • Keith Johnson said:

    [Hello: Well, I am not a Microsoft employee, but do work for a software company that is 100% Microsoft...is that good enough for me to get a t-shirt? Thanks/Cheers, Keith J.

    BTW...cool blog!!

  • William Reading said:

    [I totally want an "I am the empire shirt" in XL.

    Blog link is <a href="http://www.anatifero.us/weblog/2008/07/30/shameless-promotion-post/" rel="nofollow">Shameless Promotion</a> and my alias is t-willre. It would be totally awesome if you could send me one before my internship ends next Friday.

  • Marius said:

    [<a href="http://www.marius.org/2008/07/31/blog_post_for_a_t-shirt_sure_.php" rel="nofollow">Posted.</a> And subscribed to Microspotting. :)

  • Chris Slemp said:

    [Love it. A friend of mine had one and I forgot to ask where he got it. Now I know... would love an "empire" one.

    <a target="_blank" href="http://blogs.msdn.com/cslemp/archive/2008/06/30/microspotting-a-view-into-just-how-geeky-we-really-are.aspx">blogs.msdn.com/.../microspotting-a</a>

  • Kris Hoet said:

    [Great stuff Ariel, looking forward to the 'I am the empire' shirt ;) <a target="_blank" href="http://crossthebreeze.com/2008/07/01/microspotting/">crossthebreeze.com/.../microspotting</a>

    - Kris

  • musc@> $daniele.rant | Out-Blog said:

    [[...] have been talking to Ariel last month, asking for a Microspotting T-Shirt since I had mentioned her earlier on my [...]

  • Dmitry said:

    [Here is my story about Microspotting at

    http://dmee.livejournal.com/38770.html. And I'd love to get a picture wearing "I am the empire" M-size tee :-)

  • Kevin said:

    [http://kevin.is-a-geek.net/2008/8/1/i-am-the-empire

    hook it up!

  • Mauli said:

    [I'll happily post a picture of myself wearing a women's tshirt - I'm either M or L.

  • ruchir said:

    [-Write a post on your blog about Microspotting

    -Leave a comment here with a link to your blog post

    -Agree to post a photo of you wearing the shirt after you get it

    Are those conditions OR'd or AND'ed?

    I'm sorry but the blog says its a geek-positive space.

  • Ariel said:

    [These conditions are AND, not OR. :)

  • Robert Firth said:

    [I love Microsoft tshirts! I've got a few cool ones that I wear all the time. Too bad I'm not a regular MS employee. I'm a Microsoft Student Partner, but that program seems to be contracted out to Volt Information Sciences.

    One day!

  • Matt said:

    [I finally got some time to set up my blog (MS-internal) and post a bunch of content I had been saving. Here's my post on Microspotting (and other books/blogs about Microsoft): <a target="_blank" href="http://msblogs/mattburr/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?ID=14">msblogs/.../Post.aspx</a>

    Love your blog!

  • George Perantatos said:

    [I'd love to send post a pic of me wearing a size men's medium "I am the Empire" shirt on my blog. :)

    <a target="_blank" href="http://zorba.members.winisp.net/2008/06/microspotting-shows-microsofties-have.html">zorba.members.winisp.net/.../microspotting-s</a>

  • KC Procter said:

    [Hey Ariel! Microspotting rocks!

    Can I have a <a href="http://docprocter.wordpress.com/2008/06/19/life-continued-education/" rel="nofollow">job</a> like yours?

  • Joe Friend said:

    [Don't have much traffic on my site yet, but posted anyway.

    <a target="_blank" href="http://onlyloserswin.tumblr.com/post/39056389/microspotting-oh-the-humanity">onlyloserswin.tumblr.com/.../microspotting-o</a>

  • Kevin Schofield said:

    [<a href="http://kschofield.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!4C58DDFAA6673C69!3018.entry" rel="nofollow">http://kschofield.spaces.live.com</a>

    Great blog, Ariel!

  • Simon Donovan said:

    [What if I wear an "I am the Empire" shirt at my next kids music concert? That would go over well! Maybe you can make a shirt: "The Shakey Milks are the Empire!"

    <a target="_blank" href="http://www.simondonovan.com">http://www.simondonovan.com</a>

  • BenM said:

    [Thanks for the t-shirt! Here's a shot of me wearing it:

    <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/ben/archive/2008/06/24/i-am-the-empire.aspx" rel="nofollow">http://blogs.msdn.com/ben/archive/2008/06/24/i-am-the-empire.aspx</a>

  • Donna Conner said:

    [Ariel--Don't have a blog... but would a tour of the EBC where I work suffice? We do Executive Events and and host deep detailed briefings for the coolest geeks in the world; it's a neat place with lots of behind the scenes geekdom!

    Pretty please (and XL pls.!)

  • Patrick Y said:

    [Hi Ariel! Nice web site you have!

  • margot80 said:

    [this is my post:

    <a target="_blank" href="http://margotelupin.splinder.com/post/17587374">margotelupin.splinder.com/.../17587374</a>

  • KC Procter said:

    [thanks for the awesome t-shirt.

    <a href="http://docprocter.wordpress.com/2008/06/26/microspotting/" rel="nofollow">I am the empire.</a>

  • KC Lemson said:

    [Well I have to add to the KC factor, there are only a few of us at the company, we really should band together and form a DAC... and I love tshirts that are actually made for women, vs most of the old cruddy ones I keep in a drawer. Women's small, please. Either style is fine.

    <a href="http://blogs.technet.com/kclemson/archive/2008/06/26/enjoying-microspotting.aspx" rel="nofollow">http://blogs.technet.com/kclemson/archive/2008/06/26/enjoying-microspotting.aspx</a>

  • Meg said:

    [Finally, someone realized that gigantic tees end up as sleeping shirts! YAY! (I wish I were eligible for one)

  • Jordan said:

    [Hey, if you're still doing this, I'd love a "I am the empire" in a M or L (whichever you have more of) :-)

    Also, I'm glad to see you on FriendFeed. Just now thought to look!

    (<a href="http://jordan.hofker.org/post/43935758/microspotting" rel="nofollow">Link</a>)

  • Nate Henderson said:

    [<a href="http://twitter.com/natehenderson/statuses/871627767" rel="nofollow">Twitter counts, right?</a>

  • Scott Hanselman said:

    [It'd be cool to have two other variations, one that says "Paid Microsoft Shill" and "Unpaid Microsoft Shill," for MVPs. I've got folks on Twitter already lined up to buy the latter. :)

  • Randy Holloway said:

    [I really do enjoy Microspotting. It is nice to see some of the people and personalities behind our products. It is also great as a field employee to get a better sense of the culture and diversity between our field organization and the various business groups and teams in Redmond. Keep up the great work. (And yes, I'll post a picture of me in the shirt on my blog)

    <a target="_blank" href="http://randyh.wordpress.com/2008/06/19/i-am-the-empire-well-sorta/">randyh.wordpress.com/.../i-am-the-empire</a>

  • Clint Rutkas said:

    [My job too gives me special feelings.

    <a target="_blank" href="http://www.betterthaneveryone.com/archive/2008/06/20/almost-1-year-rocking-the-empire.aspx">www.betterthaneveryone.com/.../almost-1-year-r</a>

    men's m "I am the empire" please

  • gattasorniona said:

    [very good idea. post written and published.

    <a target="_blank" href="http://gattasorniona.tumblr.com/post/39150494/questo-un-esperimento-serio-cavolo-vediamo-se">gattasorniona.tumblr.com/.../questo-un-esper</a>

    ciao!

    gattas

  • Dave Quick said:

    [I'm likely too boring as well. I went and took a hiatus from blogging for a long while. But I've just started back up again. I'm more likely to focus on photography, exotic cars, and alternative energy cars (pure electric vehicles and bio-fuels) than software.

    <a target="_blank" href="http://davequick.com/2008/06/19/i-am-the-empire/">davequick.com/.../i-am-the-empire</a> links to you.

    -Dave

    WIndows Live Cloud Storage/Live Mesh

  • catepol said:

    [here is my post

    <a target="_blank" href="http://www.catepol.net/2008/06/19/im-the-empire/">www.catepol.net/.../im-the-empire</a>

  • Luke Foust said:

    [I would be proud to declare I am part of the Empire and post a photo to prove it.

    <a target="_blank" href="http://blog.spontaneouspublicity.com/post/2008/06/Paparazzi-For-Nerds.aspx">blog.spontaneouspublicity.com/.../Paparazzi-For-N</a>

  • Stacie said:

    [Must...have...shirt...

    <a target="_blank" href="http://wyldflamingo.spaces.live.com/default.aspx">wyldflamingo.spaces.live.com/.../default.aspx</a>

  • Dylan Salisbury said:

    [Identical posts on <a href="http://blog.dylansalisbury.com/2008/06/19/exclusive-is-better-than-free/" rel="nofollow">the Internet</a> and <a href="http://my/sites/dylans/Blog/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?ID=4" rel="nofollow">the Corpnet</a>... including an invitation to visit us at the Tellme campus!

  • jeremiah andrick said:

    [Ok... Saw this on twitter. Had to give you a nod.

    Cheers.

  • Doug Perkes said:

    [I think I'm too boring to be profiled on Microspotting, but at least I could wear a nice XL shirt!

    <a href="http://www.azsharepointpros.com/ShareAndEnjoy/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?ID=9" rel="nofollow">http://www.azsharepointpros.com/ShareAndEnjoy/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?ID=9</a>

  • timheuer said:

    [mad props to the microspotter!

    <a target="_blank" href="http://timheuer.com/blog/archive/2008/06/18/microspotting-profiles-on-microsoft.aspx">timheuer.com/.../microspotting-p</a>

  • Joakim said:

    [You guys rock. I could easily see myself in a "I am the empire" t-shirt (L) and would provide photo coverage of the event.

    Take a Swedish lesson and head over to:

    <a target="_blank" href="http://blogs.msdn.com/joakiml/archive/2008/06/19/i-ll-do-anything-for-a-t-shirt.aspx">blogs.msdn.com/.../i-ll-do-anythin</a>

    And good luch with the intra office mail package... ;)

  • Bree said:

    [I can't decide which shirt fits me more! I'm letting my readers decide....

    <a target="_blank" href="http://www.projectsubmarine.net/2008/06/microspotting.html">www.projectsubmarine.net/.../microspotting.h</a>

  • ddvelin said:

    [<a href="http://ddvelin.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!E348824EDFA64387!2622.entry" rel="nofollow">Ask and ye shall receive</a>

    ddv

  • shrutishah said:

    [I love Microspotting!

    <a target="_blank" href="http://shrutes.blogspot.com/2008/06/diversity.html">shrutes.blogspot.com/.../diversity.html</a>

  • Ben Martens said:

    [Love your site. I posted about it on my MSDN blog:

    <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/ben/archive/2008/06/18/microspotting.aspx" rel="nofollow">http://blogs.msdn.com/ben/archive/2008/06/18/microspotting.aspx</a>

    I'd happily post a picture of myself wearing an "I <i>am</i> the empire" XL shirt!

  • Ariel said:

    [Bree: In most cases, shirts were sent out via intraoffice mail last week. (A couple sizes are on backorder.) I'm never sure how long I/O takes to non-Redmond locations ... if you don't have it in a week, lemme know!

  • Krassi Hristova said:

    [Hi Ariel,

    I maintain a blog on Facebook, and here's a link to my <a href="http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=23287637457&id=22014209&index=0" rel="nofollow">Microspotting: Because I want to be the Empire, too...</a> blog entry.

    I'd love to get one of those "I am the empire" shirts in a women's Small. My alias is t-krhris. My internship ends on Sept 5th and it would be awesome to be able to receive the shirt by then.

  • Arpit Mehta said:

    ['I am the empire'

    You made me start the page

    www.arpitm.com

    Nothing there yet except you know what. But soon there will be something there.

  • Benjamin Gay said:

    [<a href="http://blog.imbengay.com/2008/06/microspotting.htm" title="Well better late than never!" I certainly hope you have an XL to send my way :-)

  • ShiSh said:

    [Great site ... I love the concept :) I blogged about it on <a target="_blank" href="http://blogs.msdn.com/shishirs/archive/2008/07/25/its-all-about-people.aspx">blogs.msdn.com/.../its-all-about-p</a>

  • Chris Hollander said:

    [I am the empire. :)

    http://objective.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!3A09DD37A6E760B4!3170.entry

  • Erwien said:

    [It is a nice blog, well done!

    Man's size medium, either "My job gives me special feelings", or "I am the empire". :)

    <a target="_blank" href="http://blogs.msdn.com/helloworld/archive/2008/07/25/paparazzi-for-the-computer-literate.aspx">blogs.msdn.com/.../paparazzi-for-t</a>

  • Ariel said:

    [Keith, unfortunately since I'm sending shirts via Intraoffice mail, they can only go to Microsoft employees at this time. :)

  • R.A. Williamson said:

    [Holy snappin' crap!

    I <em>work</em> with <a href="http://actionscribe.wordpress.com/2008/08/10/on-working-with-a-technical-director-of-farts-and-explosions/" rel="nofollow">Mr. Technical Director of Farts and Explosions</a>. Crazy little world, eh?

    And yes ... of course I would be tickled pink if I could proudly proclaim that, "I am the Empire" while riding the SLUT to and from work. XL would be fabulous. :)

  • Wes Alvaro said:

    [This is the greatest marketing idea, EVER. I just hope that I can get one of these sweet t-shirts before I head out of Redmond next week!

  • Nancy said:

    [Love the "I am the empire" shirt! Love the stories.

    <a target="_blank" href="http://blogs.msdn.com/inside_office_online/archive/2008/07/24/what-s-it-really-like-to-work-at-microsoft.aspx">blogs.msdn.com/.../what-s-it-reall</a>

  • Frank Arrigo said:

    [hi there

    i did a post about microspotting back in May

    <a target="_blank" href="http://blogs.msdn.com/frankarr/archive/2008/05/12/microspotting-like-the-paparazzi-but-for-geeks.aspx">blogs.msdn.com/.../microspotting-l</a>

    any tshirts left?

    i have some other spiffy work shirts;)

    <a target="_blank" href="http://blogs.msdn.com/frankarr/archive/2007/12/05/my-work-shirts.aspx">blogs.msdn.com/.../my-work-shirts.</a> & im wearing my 31337 today!

  • cbuck said:

    [hey Ariel, hopefully I am not too late to participate in the swag giveaway. I maintain the <a href="http://www.bluebadgemojo.com" rel="nofollow">BlueBadgeMojo</a> blog where I attempt to capture anything and everything irrelevant about life at Microsoft, and have created a Microspotting entry <a href="http://buckleyplanet.typepad.com/cafetour/2008/08/microspotting.html" rel="nofollow">here</a>.

Comments have been disabled for this content.