Order a soda in Michigan, and you're most likely considered an outsider. Do the same in New York, and no one will flinch. According to Bert Vaux, a linguistics professor at Harvard University, "many Americans are overly passionate about how they refer to the popular beverage family". It may not make sense, it may not be logical, but we don't care. It's called pop. Not soda.

We weren't planning on releasing these babies just yet, but a preview on our TMS Facebook page changed our mind.  So, here they are: Men's It's Pop Not Soda vintage t-shirt and Women's It's Pop Not Soda vintage t-shirt.  Enjoy. :)

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

For about a year now, we've been giving away a free TMS vintage t-shirt to one lucky fan over at our Facebook page.  Each Friday, Mr. Mitten leaves a post inviting fans to join the drawing by leaving a comment.  Everyone on the page that joins in on the fun by 12PM EST is entered into the weekly drawing for a chance to win a free TMS shirt of their choosing.

We think at this point we've given away over 60 free t-shirts, and a few random goodies along the way as well.  We love to give back to the fans that help make TMS a fun-loving brand and keep us in business doing what we rarely consider to be work.

You can access our FB page here.  Become a fan and get LUCKY!

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

The Hundreds is a clothing brand based out of L.A.  They started several years ago, sometime around 2003, I think.  The guy who had a hand in launching it was originally in law school, and dropped out (maybe he finished?  Can't remember) to start the brand.  They've got a mostly urban / streetwear feel, which isn't our bag, but we appreciate their design nonetheless.  Perhaps what's most impressive is that they're running an online store, several retail locations, AND a magazine. They generate so much content we literally can't keep up with all of it.  And readers dig it: they get over 1 million unique visitors to their website per month.

Anyway, enough with the introductions.  We were snooping around their store and happened upon their stickers.  Their main logo is a little guy called Adam Bomb, which we love.  But what really caught our eye was a variation of it on a beach.  At first glance we nearly missed it, but what they did with their original Adam logo is incredibly clever:

1.  A palm tree bends in a perfect arc to shape the top hemisphere of the original bomb.

2.  Two surfboards stuck upright in the sand serve as the original eyes.

3.  The palm tree leaves replace the explosion blast from the original bomb.

Truly impressive.  Things like that really inspire us to keep getting better.  What inspires YOU?

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

On Saturday, in preparation for Father's Day, we stocked the fridge with a few beers.  At the grocery store a bit earlier, we were reminded of how we go through the same beer purchasing routine nearly every time: 

Step 1: Walk up and down the aisle to inspect all of the available brews, as if to wait for one of them to scream "PICK ME!"

Step 2: Choose a variety of 6 packs.  These have to be local and seasonal.

Step 3: Round out the rest of the purchase with run of the mill domestic brews, usually Bud Light.

Clearly, we follow the classic two pronged approach of "start with your favorite beers and if you're still thirsty afterwards, drink something cheap and boring".  On this particular weekend, the local brews that made the cut were Arbor Brewing Company's Blonde Ale, Arcadia Ale's Whitsun Ale, and a perennial summer favorite, Bell's Oberon Ale.

We feel lucky to be in a state where we can Drink Local with pride.  What are your Michigan favorites?

Pictured: Our TMS Drink Local vintage shirt.  One of our all-time faves.  Sometimes people miss that the mug is the lower peninsula and the foam is the U.P.  Silly people! :)

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMIttenState.com

Local TV show, The One Seven, just had us on to talk a little about TMS' history and what we're up to these days.  Despite appearances and the fact that we've done a few interviews before this one, we were actually pretty nervous.  Maybe it was because we spent a little while in the studio, waiting for our turn.  Darn you, anticipation!  A big thank you to the staff at Fox 17, and to hosts Michelle DeSelms and Tim Doty.  And to Pure Michigan, they had a great segment just before us and we might do some collaboration in the future.

Anyway, upon review we weren't as bad as we thought.  We have a greater appreciation for the Mark Zuckerberg sweat-a-palooza interview now.

And we still remain doofuses.  

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

Pictured: Staircase leading from the beach up to the lake house.  What a hike!  But so worth it.

After working nearly every day since... well, since... January(?), The Mitten State team took a well deserved night off at a beach house on Lake Michigan.  Even the cooler temperature and on-again off-again rain didn't hamper our spirits.  There's just something fantastic about being near the water.  Ironically, none of us wore our Love Lake Michigan vintage shirts.  Definitely an oversight on our part.  But we didn't forget the beer, brats, and hamburgers.  

Here are a few more photos of our mini-vacation:

Exhibit A - The cable car.  If you couldn't make the trek up the stairs, it was nice to have an alternative.

Exhibit B - The cable car controls.  Unfortunately, we were not allowed to use them.  Darn it all!

Exhibit C - The view from the house.  Grey skies that day, but who cares when you're staring at such a beautiful spot!

Exhibit D - The buried picnic table.  The beach has apparently really been washed up by Lake Michigan in recent years.  There are benches buried in there, too.

Exhibit E - The view from the beach.  Thanks for the memories, Lake Michigan!

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

It was on October 14, 1960 that President Kennedy gave a speech to 10,000 cheering students, inspiring the start of the Peace Corps. During the 1960s and 1970s, Ann Arbor continued to be a hub of student activism, a reputation that still stands today. Super soft print on a vintage t-shirt blend of 50/25/25 (cotton/poly/rayon). This Michigan shirt was designed and printed locally. Made in the USA.

Click here for the Men's Ann Arbor vintage shirt and the Women's Ann Arbor vintage shirt.

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

The Mt. Pleasant shirts are now available at TMS.  Click here for the Men's Mt Pleasant Vintage T-Shirt and here for the Women's Mt Pleasant Vintage T-Shirt.

Get 'em while they're hot and fresh. :)

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMitttenState.com

One of our favorites: The Say Yes To Michigan! vintage shirt.  It's printed on a heather navy tri-blend, which makes it super soft and light.  Cause that's how we roll here at TMS.  We also love the Sufjan Stevens song by the same name, from his album, "Michigan: The Great Lake State".

Still, I often think of going back
To the farms, to the farms
Golden arms, golden arms
To remind me if the lakes took the place of the sea

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

Wow, it's been hot lately in The Mitten State.  Like, 95 and humid hot.  There's a cool down coming, which sounded great until we thought about it--  we actually love the heat and sun and we say, bring on the Dog Days of Summer!  Even as I type this, the office windows are revealing a cloudy sky and winds are picking up.  Hopefully it heats back up soon.  Cause vintage t-shirt weather is where it's at for us!

Any way, to the point: we work pretty hard at TMS.  As you can see by the photo above, sometimes we stray from our fanatical compulsions to keep organized and streamlined.  It may not look too messy to some, but if you were to spend any amount of time at the TMS office, you'd know that messy desks mean we're getting hammered on the workload front.  In fact, we're getting busy enough that we got our first intern (OHHH YEAAAAH!!).  So if you've sent us an email and didn't hear back from us right away: we apologize.  We're going through our inboxes as quickly as we can, and we'll answer everyone's questions. :)

And now for a little test:  we're wondering how many people actually read our blog.  We know some do when we post a link on our TMS Facebook page, but other than that... we're thinking our overall traffic doesn't support a large blog audience.  So...  If you've read this far you're about to be rewarded.  Leave a comment at the bottom of this post (be sure to click on the post title to access the individual post) and the first, oh... 3 people to respond will receive a free Mitten Decal. :)  After posting, shoot us an email at info@TheMittenState.com to collect!

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

We love design here at TMS.  In fact, it's an obsession.  And although we've carved our own niche in terms of what makes The Mitten State unique in our minds, we always love finding new, creative inspiration from other areas.  Here are three websites that we love, and always deliver when we're in search of some cool new products:

1.  Svpply.com

This is a website that pools together products that people find on the Internet.  In their own words, "Svpply is a growing collection of 550,000 products, hand selected by our community".  The way it works is you join their community (free) and then any time you happen upon a great product anywhere online, you click on a link in your browser toolbar that automatically adds it to your Svpply account.

Why We Love It:  Ever find something online by accident that you just have to have?  We do all the time.  We're also quick to forget where we found it.  This site lets you save those products, share them on the site with a photo, and access it any time down the road by just logging in to your free account.  You can find price ranges from $1 to over $5,000, but what really sets this site apart is the quality of stylish and trendy products being shared. You can follow other members' growing lists (as well as The Editor's Picks and Gift Guides), which makes finding great stuff even easier.  You can even spot a couple TMS products being shared here. :)

2.  Pinterest.com

Similar to Svpply, but less commercial.  On this site, the premise is the same: share cool stuff you've found with others.  But the main difference here is that you can share things that you might not find online-- some of the coolest things are simply photos someone took while passing by in the street.  In their own words, "Pinterest is a place to catalog the things you love".

Why We Love It:  We're big fans of the grass roots, urban feel of this site.  Whereas Svpply is centered on brands and niche products, this site lets your imagination run wild.  Where else can you find quick words of wisdom like this one?  Probably a bit more female-centric than Svpply as well. And what do you know?  A few TMS shirts have snuck their way in. :)

3.  Uncrate.com

This site shares products with you in a blog format: every day, they post 2-5 awesome products. They call themselves a "web magazine for guys", and they do a phenomal job digging up cool finds, ranging from books to supercars. The site is clearly guy-centric, but we also realized it makes for a great gift guide for anyone looking for shopping ideas.

Why We Love It:  It makes for an incredibly easy 5 minute break from the monotony of a work day.  Since there is no community involvement, it's all layed out for you in an editorial style.  And while we definitely appreciate the social aspect of the other two sites, there is something to be said for being served (and served well).  

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

It's officially official: TMS is starting to grow up as a company.  From a bedroom office less than 2 years ago, through 4 website revisions, and countless mistakes along the way, we're finally starting to feel less like an operation held together with paper clips and duct tape, and slighltly more like an actual business.  Don't get us wrong, though: we still vividly remember one of us sleeping in the room next door to our original home office, waking up just in time to saunter a few steps over to the desk and start working away on a dream.  Even though we've moved on from those beginnings, we're still certainly a family-and-friends-run operation.  When you call our office, you're more than likely to talk to one of the co-founders.  And we like it that way.

For quite some time now, we've been wanting to incorporate our own private label.  Something unique to Michigan, for Michigan, and by Michigan.  Starting this week, we're excited to announce that our vintage t-shirts will be labeled just for us Michiganders.  Official TMS shirts will feature a label with the Mitten logo on the front, and sizing and washing instructions on the back.  There will be a little bit of a transition, as we produce new labeled shirts alongside existing inventory. 

We want to thank everyone for their continued support and loyalty, and we hope to continue serving up what we love best: quality Michigan apparel and goodies, with a vintage twist.  We think you'll like what we have up our sleeves this summer. ;)

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

Grand Rapids made the news again, this time on ABC World News with Diane Sawyer!  They named GR their "Person of The Week", citing the city's tremendous sense of community.  So a big congrats to the city of Grand Rapids, to everyone that was involved, and to Michigan!  We're proud to be from this great state.  

As an added bonus, they flashed our TMS shirts. :)

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

As a local company, we love to stay connected to our Michigan community.  For a little while now, we've been having a little fun every Friday at The Mitten State Facebook page.  We call it our TMS Weekly Giveaway.  One lucky Michigander wins a vintage Michigan t-shirt of their choosing, designed by The Mitten State right here in our home state, each week at noon.

How does it work?  Simple:

1.  Go to The Mitten State FB Page.

2.  Become part of the TMS family by clicking "Like" at the top of the page.

3.  Respond to the Friday posts to be included in each week's drawing.

4.  Perform a rain dance, clutch your lucky rabbit foot, or throw salt over your shoulder to increase your chances of being the TMS Winner at 12PM EST.*

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com

*(This might not increase your chances of winning, but who are we to argue with the cosmos?)

After a lil' bit of a wait, the East Lansing vintage shirts are now available at the store.  Just in time for summer.  As the Kool-Aid Man would say, "OHHHH YEAAHHHH!!!".  Click the links below:

Men's East Lansing vintage shirt  and Women's East Lansing vintage shirt

Love,

The Mitten State

info@TheMittenState.com