This probably isn’t the first time you’ve seen a review for Boomslank‘s otaku-catnip t-shirt line.

Boomslank’s marketing tactics would make my SEO expert proud:

1) Pick a nonsense name that nobody else has and trademark it.
2) Send free t-shirts for review to every anime blogger you can find.

Now, any Google search for “Boomslank” leads to nothing but happy bloggers and their positive reviews, because everyone loves free stuff.

Obviously, I’m not exception. Let this be my statement of transparency: I’m reviewing this company in exchange for a free t-shirt. But before I agreed to that deal, I made sure to do my homework. I wouldn’t be recommending a shirt from a company I couldn’t get behind.

Boomslank is an independent “anime clothing line” out of Raleigh, North Carolina. It’s run by three brothers, the youngest of whom designs the shirt graphics. While the designs are anime inspired, each one is original. The one thing I couldn’t figure out was why Boomslank needed a review from a small time blogger like me—they have 30,000 Facebook fans.

The thing I liked most about Boomslank was its women-friendly designs. Not just the fact that it carries women’s sizes, something my feminist t-shirt article concluded that any geek company or convention can do easily. These shirts go above and beyond because their graphics are neither obscured by nor designed to highlight a woman’s chest.

I picked the Pisces design, currently the shop’s fourth best-seller. I may be curvy, but both the design and cut of the shirt mean my figure doesn’t warp or hide the image very much. In the photo, I still am stretching out the t-shirt to show off the design as much as possible.

As you can see, the cherry blossoms have reached their peak here in the DC area. John took these photos of me after the rain, and the wind must have shaken the blossoms right off the trees. It’s too early for this pond to be filled for the summer, but it’s already filled with petals.