2016 favorite activewear/ Lululemon

These were my favorite pieces of the year—the things that I wore over and over and brought me JOY to wear. And I want more of that—clothes that I'm happy to put on in the morning, that are comfortable and make me feel like a million bucks. (And less cheap pieces that make me feel lumpy.) *Most of these aren't available anymore, so I'll link if it still is.

Fitting room. Insta love.

Business class on a plane. 

At the office trying to stay warm

1. Lululemon Down for a Run Vest
My absolute favorite piece of activewear for 2016 was my Down for a Run Vest. Because the Lulu educator old me to, I tried the inkwell vest on and LOVED it. I had no intention of buying it. But it was warm, functional and really well cut. It made me look skinny. But I did not want to pay $138 for it. So I left the store without it, only to go back a few days later and buy it. I had to have it. And I don't regret the purchase at all. I've lived in the vest since I bought it. I wear it every weekend. To work when I can get away with it. It's a great piece of clothing. It's not bulky like other vests. And it has all sorts of pockets, to stash my keys so I don't need to carry a purse. It's GREAT for traveling because it has so many pockets. This was a lifesaver for me. I bought another vest in purple, and I'd buy more if I could find more

Work clothes
This year I tried to wear Lululemon to work as much as I could and I got some great pieces

2. &Go Where-To Dress
I have this dress in black and blue. It is SO COMFORTABLE. I always get compliments when I wear the black one. It's a T-shirt dress I wear to work. When it's cooler I wear it with black tights and a black sweater. I have a boyish figure—no curves, so this style works for me. It's probably not for everyone. The blue one isn't as dressy, so I wear it on weekends.

3. &GO Til Dawn dress
Again I have this in black and a blue print. It's a fit and flare dress which looks AMAZING ON ME. I always gets compliments when I wear it. It's looks so chic. Super dressy for work. I wear the black one with a black blazer. I wear the printed one with a navy blazer and look like a boss. These dresses are well made, they have pockets, and are super comfy. In the summer, I wear these dresses once a week, since I love them so much.

4. City Trek Trouser Ponte
These are trouser pants made of a stretchy material. They're soft and comfortable and completely great for work. My one gripe is they run a little big. The 6 I have stretched out. So I got a pair of 4's in the blue. I wear these to work all the time.

After a race. Too tired to straighten my leg.

5. Lululemon Pace Rival Crop in Hounds Camo Emperor Blue Black
These have been my go-to Saturday running crop. I like the way they feel. They have plenty of pockets. They don't REALLY show sweat. They're just comfortable and I like the colors. I wear black, navy or purple tanks with this. They're also longer than my other crops, which is nice for when it's colder since I don't like to wear tights. Always crops.

I should say the first time I tried the Pace Rival crop on, I tried it on in black and found them sheer. I'd really like another pair of dark Pace Rivals.

6. Sweaty Betty Navasana Reversible 3/4 Yoga Leggings in SunsetInRio Print
I bought these reversible crops for my birthday. I love the colors. I wear these to yoga all the time.

Warehouse sale favorites
I LOVED the Lululemon warehouse sale in Atlanta. It was cool to see so much lulu in one place. The stores are so small. And I spent way too much but got some of my favorite pieces of the year there.

7. Lululemon Race to Place Hat
I picked this blue hat up because it was $4. (I bought a bunch for gifts.) I ended up wearing this hat at least once a week. (I have SO many selfies in this hat!) I hadn't been a hat person until this hat, but I wanted a hat for trail runs (so I don't have to worry about ticks or spiders falling into my hair.) I ended up wearing it on almost all my runs because it keeps sweat from getting in my eyes. It's great for the pool too.  Or just hiding a bad or dirty hair day on a grocery store run. I've since purchased more colors and become a hat person (also great because no one recognizes me when I'm shopping. An introvert's dream! Not having to talk to people I don't want to!)

8. Lululemon Mantra tote bag.
This has become my every day bag.

9. Lululemon Palm Stripe Roll Down Wunder Under Crops
$29. And I wear these once a week to yoga. They're cottony soft and I just like the way they feel.

I took this picture because I had a NEW car
and dirty trail shoes. Haha.

10. Balega run socks.
My favorite socks this year were a pair of Balega Hidden Contour run socks. Can I have five more pair? These are comfortable and have just the right amount of padding and support. They held up well in the wash and I always reached for these when they were clean.

Honorable mention: Athleta longsleeve
Super soft and warm, and I'd buy more if I could find more.


It's probably too early to tell, but I'm loving some recent purchases too

• Lululemon Fast Track Pant
It's sweatpants  that don't look frumpy. They're super comfortable and I've been living in them. GREAT for running errands. I think they are going to be my new weekend pants.

• Sit in Lotus Sweater
Super soft and something that works for work and weekends.

Family road trip. 

• Restless 1/4 zip pullover.
I got this in a  fair isle print in get and have been wear it every weekend.

Lululemon Atlanta Warehouse Sale: Day 3

I headed back to the final day of the Lululemon warehouse sale. The prices had dropped and I wanted know what else I could score. I took my sister. There was a 5-minute line. Not too bad. The sale was loud. And really, really picked over. Maybe a 1/3 of what it had been on Friday. There were noticeably fewer racks and boxes.

Took my sis to the lulu sale. They changed the bags to red bags Saturday.
They weren't giving out the black bags they'd used Friday anymore. 

Bras were marked down to $9 and I really wanted some. I rifled through all the boxes and couldn't find ANY my size. So no sports bras for me.

Also noticeable for the sale.
• There were no bags left. None.
• The accessories section was really depleted. There were no scarves or yoga mats. They did mark the hats down to $4 so I grabbed four (three for gifts). There were hardly any headbands. Only black and tan ones. None of the fun colors from the other day.
• There were almost no shorts left.

Sunday price list

The prices were better for Sunday—but you had to really look for a deal. And I saw items I'd paid more for on Friday—and maybe I should have waited. But the selection was definitely better Friday.

I got some really cool stuff on Sunday, so glad I went (and glad I waited on some of it.)

Sunday buys

• 4 run hats (1 for me, 3 for gifts, $4 each) (Race to pace hat in flashback static)
• Purple towel ($9)
• 2 swim bottoms  ($9 each)
• Skirt, $9 (&go Cityfarer Skirt in dark fuel, currently in WMTM for $89)
• dress shirt, $24 (Day trip blouse) (This had pen marks on it that I didn't notice until after I got it home. They came out with a few minutes of stain remover)
• crops, $29 (Palm Stripe Roll Down Wunder Under Crops)
• Quick change vest, $29
• scuba, $39 (Scuba Hoodie III Flashback Static Tender Violet Black Purple)
• down jacket, $39 (for a $178 jacket!)

I think my favorite from this haul was the skirt (I want to wear it to work immediately) and the hats (so soft!).

Wore this hat to run trails Monday.

The final haul
• Two towels
• Two bikini tops, two bottoms ($9 and $19 each)
• 1 headband
• 1 bag
• 4 hats (3 are gifts)
• 2 shorts (one running, one casual)
• 2 dress pants
• 1 dress shirt
• 1 skirt
• 2 outdoor jackets: one down, one rain
• 4 long sleeve jackets or sweaters (define, scuba, tweed sweater, black half zip)
• 1 pair of crops
• 1 vest
• 1 bodysuit

So after both trips I'm all set for next winter. I got lots of jackets. I definitely got too many long sleeve tops—but I'll wear them. I LOVE the rain jacket.

I could have waited on the towel (-$10), the swim tops ($20 total), the polka dot pants ($20), the bodysuit ($40), which totals $90, which really sucks.  (The bodysuit was on $9 flash sale when I was there Sunday, and I was overcharged $20 on Friday anyway).

I'm super happy with my finds. I got some good pieces I'll be happy to wear.

(And my sister got some Ivivva for my nieces :) Never too early to start them on Lulu).

If I could do it again
• I'd still go first thing Friday. (Going with a friend would have been better, but I couldn't find anyone to come with.) I should have spent another hour looking probably.
• I'd take pictures of the tags
• If I lived closer I would have gone on Saturday, but don't live closer. So I tried to go toward the end of the sale. I think many more things were $9 by the end of the day (If I'd had the patience to hang around for hours.)
• I liked going end of the last day towards the end of the sale. Still some steals to be found.

Now, I'm waiting for the online warehouse sale (which was in August of last year). And wondering in what city the next warehouse sale will be. (I have an airline credit, so I might be crazy enough to fly out if it's someplace cool.)

Lululemon Atlanta Warehouse sale

This morning I got up at 4 a.m. to go to the Lululemon warehouse sale. I am officially crazy!

Line at 6:20 a.m.

Line at 7:40

I went early in part to avoid awful Atlanta traffic—it takes 75 minutes to 2 hours to get to Atlanta from my house so I left good and early. I got in line at the sale at 6:20 a.m. and sat down. There were over 100 people already in line. And it just kept getting worse. Probably 500 people in line by 8 a.m.

I went in with the first wave. And just started grabbing things I wanted to try.

What I wanted to get:
• Bag
• Swim
• Hat
• work clothes
• sweater or coats

I pulled a lot of sweaters and long sleeve shirts. I grabbed some swim. Virtually no yoga pants. I grabbed some trousers. And when my arms got too heavy I hit the dressing rooms.

I was not prepared for the communal fitting room. It was like a high school locker room all over again. People just changing, no stalls. Women were trying on shirts without bras. (Who doesn't wear a bra when going to try on clothes?!) I was surprised with some of the flabby bodies. There were girls hogging the mirrors. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. I did let a lot of pieces go when in the fitting room.

Pro tip: Bring a giant tote bag to put your finds in. Everything is on hangers, so find the hanger bins, ditch the hangers and put your clothes in the bag. You can't bring hangers in to the fitting room or to the cash wrap to check out.

What was in the sale?
A LOT of stuff I recognized from last year's online wearhouse sale. A lot of items from WMTM over the last year. A few foreign pieces, but not much. I'd seen 90% or more of the pieces before.

I spent more than an hour looking around and double checking. I'd say it took me 90 minutes to shop. And most of that was deciding what to keep. (Go to the walls and corners and dump your stuff in a pile and decide what to keep or not.) I did this several times.

In the end, I spent way too much money. Don't tell my husband. I spent $100 more than I thought.

 Mantra tote bag. (Total steal. Lucked out on this one.)

 Tracker shorts in clear mint. (got these on second pass)

Black casual shorts.

Hot pink zip up. Maybe a raspberry define.

Black rain jacket. I love the striped details on the cuffs. This says size 5.
Wonder what country it's from. I've already worn. Love it! 

Black half zip. From earlier this year. Forgot it's name. 

 2 swim tops: hot pink and a black and white reversible top that matches bottoms
 I got last year. Shown with purple towel and bag from the sale. 

Tweed sweater. No one else will have this!

Body suit. I was hoping it was for paddle boarding but I think it's casual wear.
Also they over charged me $20 on this one :( 

Polka dot trousers

black trousers.

My favorites. Tote bag, shorts, rain jacket. 

What I didn't get
• No dresses or skirts for me. They only had that ill fitting dress from last year's warehouse sale and one skirt from current WMTM
• Socks and accessories. I was underwhelmed with the sock, hat and scarf selection.
• Crops and leggings. I just wasn't feeling it.
• I also didn't want to spend $29 on tanks. Get to $19 and we'll talk.
• I tried on two dressy shirts for work, but they didn't fit right and really were too expensive for what they were.
• I was disappointed by the men's stuff. There were two short sleeve shirts in large. Lots of swim and sweaters, but no boxers so my husband didn't get anything :( And I didn't stock up on Christmas gifts either. I wasn't excited about the accessories.

What I didn't get that I'm still thinking about
• Quick change vest
• Scuba in purple
• Scuba in grey
• Run Times legging in stardust

I was out of the sale by 10 a.m. I went home.

I'm kind of hoping for price drops Sunday, because there were things I'd like for cheaper prices. I'd say the prices weren't THAT great. It was nice to have THAT much Lululemon to choose from and to be able to try it on.

Should you go? If you're in Atlanta yes. And I went by myself and was 100% fine. The line was long but bearable. The sale was A LOT but no one was cut throat. No one was even rude. I was never overwhelmed. It was loud, but totally fine.

Fabletics Review: Sheer Crops and Poor Quality

This is my first fabletics order in months.

I've been obsessed with neon lately so I really wanted to order some neon. AND I got a 10% off birthday coupon, so I bought a few things from the March picks. (Ordered at the end of March. I did NOT like a single one of the new April pieces.)

Here are my thoughts.

Salar crop in Wildflower, $44.95

I loved these as soon as I took them out of the bag. I even wore them to my birthday party. So cute. I liked how compressive they were (LOVE THIS.). The print was cute. I love black crops. I love black and white. These had just enough of a print to be fun, but not make my thighs look HUGE (like prints do.) The crops are white on the inside, which means the black is printed on white fabric. I thought the online photo made it look like they had pops of yellow in the middle of the flowers. But it's just a two color crop.

And here's the kicker: Fabletics crops look like CRAP after you wash them. These crops faded a ton with one wash. And got all kinds of pet fur on them from other clothes in the wash. I didn't wear them enough at home for them to get any fur on them, but they came out of the wash super furry.

Here's my worn once crops (see how faded) against
• Worn 50+ times Lululemon crops (left)
• Worn several times Splits50 with a black and white print (right)

All laundered exactly the same: machine cold wash with gentle detergent and line dry.

They look practically grey. They were a slick black brand new.

WTF. I thought since these felt different than my other Fabletics crops they wouldn't have this issue. They were very sporty feeling going in. Coming out of the wash, they looked like I'd worn them for five years. I have 3-year-old crops from Groupon that look better.

After the SECOND time I washed them the black dye faded into the white and there was blue ink on the white flowers around the crotch. WTF. I haven't ever had a crop fade like this. LITERALLY THE WORST CROPS I HAVE EVER PURCHASED.

I called and got store credit. (I had to call and listen to minutes of this guy talking about "pretty" and how quality tested their clothes are. I think NOT for the quality testing. I think this is the first piece in 17 years that I've had bleed in the wash.)

Salar crop in neon yellow, $34.95
These crops are sheer. I was sure they'd be. But the tag popped off while I was trying them on so I guess I'm keeping them.

The color is great. I really like it. It's almost obnoxiously neon. But they're so sheer you can read the size tag through the crops. Even nude underwear show through. Wear a long shirt with this. These are by far the sheerest pants I own. But for $35 not that big of a loss.

Mosa tank in neon yellow, $24.95

I wore this running the other day. The color is great. It has a half layer of mesh in the back under the visible layer. It wasn't too heavy and it was soft. I wasn't sure what it did. Was it supposed to help with sweat and back breakouts?

And my tank wasn't too soaked through after at 3.5 mile trail run.

I ordered an XS, which fit well.  (I'm a 6 in a Lululemon Cool Racerback, small in Nike or Under Armour) but I do like my tanks more fitted. (I've got an athletic build, small chest and hips, and my waist does no cinch in like some girls.)

Malindi bra in neon yellow ($19.95)

This is a cute sports bra. Nothing to write home about. It matches the crops. It bra cups. I'd recommend this one of low impact activities. The description says medium impact, but I wouldn't run in it. (Ordered size small, fits like a small in other brands, small in Lululemon.)

Overall:
1) I usually return 90% of my order. I'm only returning the faded crops for this one. I might have tried to return the sheer yellow crops but apparently I need to keep them.

2) This is why I buy Lululemon. The crops wouldn't fade. And if they did, returns would be easy peasy. I had to have an awkward conversation with someone in India. I did not understand what they were saying.

Still not a fan of Fabletics. I just keep the membership in case there's something I want. (And I have points towards free crap in their rewards program. Still mad that it went from a free outfit as their reward to their clearance crap that no one wants.) And now I have store credit. I could have pushed for a return, but I didn't feel like being that horrible. (Though I should get a refund for craps that poor quality.)

UPDATE
I returned the crops that bled—three weeks later I get an email admitting there was an issue with those crops and sending me a $10 credit.