October 2013 - lululemon expert

Lululemon Bang Buster Family

I’m a head band addict. I wear one every single day. They’re great for hiding extension micro-rings or other connection spots (like clips or where it glues on), or if you have “baby hairs” in the front from straightening or otherwise damaging your hair, they’re great at hiding those flaws too! But they’re not just great for hiding flaws, I appreciate how well they keep my bangs back during exercise, and they have a stretchy part in the back, so they fit my head well. They never slip. I own quite a few “Slipless” head bands, and even they slip sometimes. I like the the little metal logo in the back too. It’s discrete, yet the quality is there, since it is metal.

Essentially, these are the perfect headband. They are currently made “reversible” and cost $18. They used to be $14 and have circle mesh on the reverse side. I like the circle mesh, but I think I prefer the reversible ones. The only time I don’t like the reversible ones is when they are “reversible” to the same color. My Spry Blue one (6th from the left) is “reversible” to Spry Blue.

From Left to Right: Plum, Raspberry Glo Hyperstripe/ Plum; Inkwell Paisley/ Inkwell; Raspberry Glo/ Black; Ziggy Wee Angel Wing/ White; Raspberry Glo Groovy Stripe/ White; Spry Blue/ Spry Blue, Beaming Blue Laceoflage; Spring Has Sprung; Pink Shell; Beach Blanket Blue/ Aquamarine; Hyperstripe Blue Moon; Blue Moon. Finally, at the bottom is Pinkelcious/ Pinkelicious Fangipani

Another pic, just because.

Since this blog is primarily about buying & selling Lulu, I will mention that most of the headbands retain their value well. You can usually get back what you paid, particularly with Bang Busters & other popular models of headbands, like the Slipless. I see Bang Busters mostly selling for around retail, maybe a little less, on eBay. I don’t know if it’s a perceived value thing, or if it’s just such a small item that people don’t think twice about spending $20. I’ve only ever seen Blurred Blossom Bang Busters sell for well above retail in the after market.

I suggest buying these in-store or online at full price. I’ve never seen them on Mark Down, or heard about them making it to the outlets. If you’ve seen them at the outlets, please correct me. They usually sell out online after a few days, once they’ve been uploaded (depending on the colorway), from what I can tell. They are pretty amazing, if you get a chance, you should try them out!

UPDATE: 29th of June, 2014

So, it’s been about 9 months and I STILL LOVE this headband. They’re still the only ones I buy and I wear them constantly. I just wanted to give an update, since it has been a while. I have only seen these on markdown once since writing this post. So, I still think it’s a good idea to buy them full price if you want them. However, since I last wrote, I think Lululemon has recognized their popularity, so most of the time if you don’t buy them on upload night, you can wait a few days (or even weeks!) if you want to or need to before getting them. Whereas before they would sell out in one night, I often see them available for two weeks or more. So, I’m glad Lululemon has increased production based on demand.

I also thought it would be fun to do a collection update photo!

These are the ones I've added over the past 9 months. — These are the ones I’ve added over the past 9 months.

From Left to Right: Not So Petit Fleur/ Antidote, Deep Zinfandel/ Bleached Coral, Pretty Pink Salom Stripe/ Pretty Pink, Brisk Bloom Black White/ Black, Paris Perfection, Pop Petal Multi, Assorted Stripe Surge/Surge, Heathered Lavender Dusk/ White, Wamo Camo Barely Pink / Slate,

And here they are all together!

Here's my collection right now. — Here’s my collection right now.

I really love this photo for two reasons. First of all: Look at all those awesome Bang Busters! Nearly a 5-Star rating on Lululemon.com and over 150 reviews! And Second: I think this is a great way to compare some of these colors! See how similar Raspberry Glo is to Paris Perfection!?

What do you think!? Love ’em or hate ’em I’d be happy to know your opinion!

Midnight Iris Marked Down in-store & online

Just a quickie post on the latest items to hit the in-store/ online markdown rack at Lululemon. When the color ‘Midnight Iris’ first came out, I was pretty much disinterested because I already had some items in the color ‘Spring Has Sprung,’ but, since everything in the color ‘Midnight Iris’ has gone to Mark Down/ Loot/ We Made Too Much, I find myself unable to resist having at least a few items in this colorway for myself. I can never turn down a good deal!

For reference, here’s a photo of Midnight Iris next to Spring has Sprung!

Left: Midnight Iris Right: Spring Has Sprung — Left: Midnight Iris
Right: Spring Has Sprung

So, I bought a Flow Y bra for $29, a CRB for $29 and an NLT for $39. I got both the Flow Y & CRB at a 30.95% discount and the NLT at a 39.06% discount. [(X-Y)/X]

(Not sure what a CRB or NLT is? Check out my previous post about Lululemon Slang here.)

Caution: I think the main reason the colorway went on sale is because it’s mostly Polyester. (The CRB itself is 94% Polyester, but it’s pretty, so… I figure, why not?)

Note: I wouldn’t try my first Forme Jacket in this color if I were you. Even considering the discount, the inside is gray, and it’s just not very attractive. You can also see in the photos online that when you flip the cuffs over it’s gray as well. Not to mention that the discount is only 17%.

UPDATE!

This morning Lululemon put more things in Midnight Iris on “We Made Too Much.” I ordered a Pace Setter Skirt in that pattern. Did you buy anything on markdown?

UPDATE: Wore the CRB, super poly-feeling, but still pretty snazzy lookin’! I LOVE the NLT in this print & can’t wait to wear it again!

My Nails Now

My Halloween nails were getting chippy chippy chippy! So, I took all of that off & re-did my nails. They look like this now:

The first photo shows my nails against a Power Purple Catch Me tank & Ziggy Wee September Plum Wunder unders by Lululemon. The second photo shows more clearly the two colors I used on my nails.

This time I used Sephora’s Strengthener as a base coat. The darker color on my nails is called “Just a Little Dangerous,”and the lighter color (the furthest from the nail bed) is called “I Don’t Bite.” I put ‘Just a Little Dangerous’ on my whole nail first, then put ‘I Don’t Bite’ on top and tried to eye-ball a straight line across the tops to create some sort of “french tip” like design, only using purple. As a top coat I used the same as last time, Sephora’s Mirror Shine Top Coat.

I love Sephora’s nail polishes. I had to do two coats of ‘Just a Little Dangerous’, but ‘I Don’t Bite’ went on thick enough to only require one coat.

I hope y’all get a chance to take advantage of the 3 for $10 deal on Sephora polishes. They’re worth it! What are your favorite brands of polish?

UPDATE!

I decided that red nails would go best with my Halloween costume, and even though my nail polish posts seem to be popular, I decided to update here, rather than write a new post, since the technique I used to create the look is the same. I started with my usual Bamboo Nail Strengthening Base Coat, then I used “Kept ’em Guessing for 30 years,” seen below.

Kept 'em Guessing for 30 Years Nail Polish by OPI to celebrate Guess' 30th Anniversary — Kept ’em Guessing for 30 Years Nail Polish by OPI to celebrate Guess’ 30th Anniversary

I then applied “What’s Your Poison” polish I got a Sephora just to the tips. I checked, and it is unfortunately no longer available, so I have a picture for you below.

It’s a delicious sparkly red. I’m going to be sad when I run out of this one. It goes on thick and lasts a while on my nails. That’s impressive.

Then, I followed with my usual top coat, the Mirror Shine by Sephora. I would totally wear this look again.

Finished Look: Kept 'em Guessing for 30 Years with What's Your Poison tips. — Finished Look: Kept ’em Guessing for 30 Years with What’s Your Poison tips.

My First (Mini!) Shopping Haul

I went shopping with a friend yesterday, and I have yet to experiment with YouTube videos, but there’s no reason I can’t share my MINI haul with y’all! So, just for fun here are some products I got!

My friend & I went to the *big* mall in our town & ventured into Sephora! I love all things cute & when I saw a Beauty Haul on YouTube featuring a Hello Kitty Brush Set, I decided to see if they had one. There were none on the sales floor, but I asked if the associate would check in the back for me,— my friend and I both ended up getting these adorable Hello Kitty brush sets! The head opens up & reveals a 5-piece mini brush set.

There are 5 brushes, they all say “Hello Kitty” on them and are each labelled: lip, shader, angled eyeliner, eyeshadow, face. They’re really soft. AND the inside holder pulls out for easy cleaning! The best part is that these were on sale, so I got this set for $13! I also took home two sets of Sephora brand eyelashes, one in Flutter and the other in Mysterious, both on sale for $3. I’ve never tried Mysterious, but I’ve been using “Flutter” for a long time and they are perfect for when you don’t want people to know you’re wearing falsies, but still want to add some length and thickness. Also pictured above are some nail stickers I picked up. Hello Kitty nails are in my future!

We also went to Target, where I scoured the clearance area for deals.

As you can see in the photo, I think I did pretty well. LOL. I’m sure you’re all preparing for Halloween, like me & I got a “Beware” sign that I’ll probably put behind a tray of cookies for a dollar. I figure, for a buck, how can you go wrong? So I got a few other dollar items including a two-pack of Puffs, the “Swanky Hankies” with leaves on them, a mini Dove deodorant for my gym bag, and a travel baby powder, great for stinky feet… which I may or may not get sometimes…

Moving on! I loved the packaging of the EOS Lip Balm, so I had to buy some. It’s so cute, and if you don’t have some, it’s very reasonably priced at $3.29 & smells pretty. I bought the Strawberry Sorbet because it was the pinkest pink one I could find. I also ended up buying a bunch of dental supplies including a mini pack of flossers for my purse, a new Spin Brush (mine fell in the toilet… *shakes head* *face palm*), and TWO Hello Kitty travel kits. Definitely a future purse/ gym bag addition in the future. I also picked up some Hello Kitty body spray for $4- it smells like candy!

I needed a new miniature purse brush without the little balls at the end because I just put my extensions (micro-ring) back in & those brushes will catch and pull my hair. So, I found a Boar Hair brush on clearance for $2.08. It will serve its purpose. I also spied some hair ties for $2.71, which I thought was a good deal, plus I needed more black ones. I don’t know what happens to my hair ties, but I think quantum physics could explain it. Perhaps they escape through a worm hole into another dimension, or maybe they’re all just under my bed somewhere. Either way, I really needed some more.

Finally, I’ve recently become obsessed with false lashes. They just really open up my eyes and complete every look, so I watched a few haul videos and product reviews and found the Ardell twin pack in Natural & some flamboyant Katy Perry lashes and picked those up. Also, upon recommendation, I grabbed some Duo Lash Glue. It’s a darker color, almost a brown/ black, so it won’t leave any ‘clues’ on your lash line. That way no one will see the glue or be able to tell (potentially) that you’re wearing false lashes!

I am most looking forward to trying out the DUO lash glue to see if there is any difference and to see if it makes my false lashes less noticeable/ obvious. I also want to see if its easier to apply than the glue that’s included with most other brands of lashes & if the color makes it harder to know where the glue is being applied on the lash. I will update with a review, once I try it out!

UPDATE!:

I tried out the DUO lash glue. It comes out a little runny, so *squeeze gently.* Plus side: you don’t need very much at all. It goes on a dark grey/brown color, and it isn’t hard to tell where you’ve applied it vs where you have yet to apply it. In my opinion, it’s not that much better than white glue, just because mine typically doesn’t show, but if you tend to use a lot of glue and it shows, this might be a good product for you. I found that my lashes went on easily, and stayed on all day. Then later, they were easy to remove.

Bottom Line: I will probably not repurchase this product because, in my opinion, it doesn’t work better than the glue that normally comes with my lashes. Sephora lash glue works just as well. However, if I typically bought bulk lashes in multi-packs (if you know where to find bulk (10 or more pairs) packs of Ardell lashes, please leave a link in the comments below), I would probably buy this.

I hope this review has been helpful 🙂 If there are other lash products you would like me to review, please let me know 🙂

Lululemon Define Jacket VS. Forme Jacket

I have been getting hits on my blog based on search criteria like “Forme Jacket Review,” and this leaves me with two impressions. First, I feel badly, because I know that the person who entered that search criteria did not find what they were looking for. Second, this informs me that there is an audience out there looking for reviews. Many Lululemon addicts know that you can find pretty honest reviews on each individual products’ page. For example, I am about to review (contrast & compare) two Lululemon jackets, one being the Forme, the other being the Define Jacket. Lululemon does not currently produce the Define jacket, but the Forme Jacket can be found by clicking the link & that’s where you’ll find reviews as well!

I will admit: I don’t love the Forme jacket. I don’t own one, and I’ve only ever tried one on once. The shoulders didn’t fit me right, too high & loose. But, I’m going to try to best to compare the two using reviews for the website for the Forme & my personal experiences with the Define jacket. I love Define jackets. I own (Black/ Ikat and Beachy Floral Porcelain Blue). I used to own a few others, but I have since traded or sold them in exchange for other unicorns.

They’re certainly very similar. They bother have zipper garages & thumbholes; they’re both fitted and somewhat stretchy.

According to the reviews I read on the Lululemon website, the Forme Jacket has thinner fabric than the Define. Some people who like the Forme jacket said that they used the Forme when it was warmer out, and that they found the Define was better suited for cooler mornings. Others said the thinner fabric made the Forme feel cheap. The main complaint was about the sleeves being too long and the shoulders being boxy. However, recently, Lululemon has created the Forme Jacket *Cuffins, where the reviews confirm that these problems have been taken care of. Apparently, the shoulders are no longer boxy & the sleeves have been shortened by 1.5 inches. The Forme Jacket *Cuffins, has had the cuffins added as well as a hair tie zipper pull, like the Define jackets have. There were mixed reviews regarding the underarm mesh, and it has been removed in the new version of the Forme jacket. People who prefer the Forme over the Define say that the reason they like it is because it doesn’t have the vent in the back. I liked the vent at the back of the Define, I thought it was a cute detail, but others think the extra fabric distorts the shape of the back.

I hope you have found this helpful. You can still find used and NWT Define jackets on eBay, and of course, the Forme jacket and the Forme Jacket *Cuffins are currently still available on Lululemon’s website.

UPDATE:

Considering the popularity of the new Pique, BLDO Forme Jacket, I figured I’ll give it a try. It was sold out online very quickly, although they did do a re-stock of the website in the morning. I received it in the mail and while the fabric is gorgeous, and it fit well in the torso area through the hips, it was too big in the shoulders and I feel that the reviews of the Forme were correct overall. It is certainly not as well fitting as the Define, in my opinion. So, it did go back to the store. The Pique fabric however, is amazing, I just wish I could live in that! I hope this is helpful.

UPDATE Nov 20/ 2014:

Lululemon, much to my great surprise, re-released the Define Jackets! I talk about the fit and fabric content in my new post!

Beauty (New Category)

I love Lululemon, but more than Lulu, I love to write. So, when I feel like writing, I’m gonna write. I also love beauty & beauty products and all things pretty. So, I’m going to start a series of new beauty-related posts, within this blog, but under a new category.

I found myself with some extra time, so I did a trial run for my halloween nails. (There’s just no way my nails will last two weeks.) As a base coat I used Sally Hansen Green Tea + Bamboo Nail Strengthener. I’ve been using this one for years. It’s my go-to. I don’t know if it works for growing my nails, but it goes on great and works well as a base coat.

Last month in my IPSY bag (which was fantastic), I got a “nailtini” nail polish by “Tini Beauty,” a makeup company that draws its inspiration from cocktails. The name of the colour is Mai Tai, which is a coral/ orange, but closer to orange/ orange. That makes it great for Halloween! I love the company’s concept! They have a guide on how to mix nailtini ‘cocktails.’ I wasn’t really impressed by the application of the polish, I felt like it went on a little unevenly, but it dried quickly. It has been two days since I applied it and it is chipping, but this doesn’t surprise me. I tend to be a little hard on my nails.

Here are a couple of pictures of my nails.

Mai Tai Nailtini Orange on Porcelain Blue DSJ

So, as you can see, it’s a pretty close match to Lululemon’s Light Flare color. I think these will work as Halloween nails 🙂 As a top coat, I used Sephora’s Top Coat: Mirror Shine. I like it a lot, and the extra-wide brush makes it easy to apply. I got the stickers at Sally Beauty Supply. They’re by Cina Nail Creations & they’re called “Haunted Nights.”

Do you have a favorite Orange Nail colour? Or a favorite brand? Why? I don’t think I would have purchased this Nailtini color on my own, just because of the way it applies. I can rock orange though, so if you have any recommendations, please leave them in the comments below 🙂

The New Shopping Tote being offered by Lululemon

I’ve seen a couple of blogs address the new shopping tote offered by Lululemon. In my opinion, it’s just another example of Lululemon pushing the envelope, like they always do. I don’t think it goes too far, even though the bag features text created using images of, among other things: tobacco, alcohol, sugary treats, drugs needles, condoms, playing cards, and marijuana cigarettes. Below are two pictures of the bag.

Allow me to transcribe here what is written on the side, because I’m unsure if it is clear from the photo. The front of the bag, obviously says “Brahmacharya.” The side of the bag says the same & offers the following definition: (moderation, non-excess) This yama, or yogic philosophy, teaches us to recognize that moment of “just enough” so we don’t move past it into uncomfortable excess. Maybe it’s pushing away the plate of french fries or using our pent-up energy for a run. By focusing inward, we keep our bodies healthy & energetic. (And hey, there are some things we’re better off avoiding altogether.) Where in your life could you practice moderation?

There is a message here to take into consideration about moderation, however, the only thing I think I may need to moderate is my Lululemon consumption. Do you think they’re trying to tell me something?

Beware of VERO, the eBay Police

When posting your item on eBay, please always take your own pictures. Never use stock photos or anyone else’s photos. If someone sees their photos in your ad they can report your ad and it will be removed. Lululemon participates in eBay’s VERO program, if one of their employees sees your ad, and it features a stock photo, it will be reported. Once the stock photo is reported, Lululemon will have your name & address, as well as other information. eBay states: “When a rights owner files a VeRO claim against a seller, the rights owner may have the option to request a seller’s registered user ID, name, address, phone number, email, and company name. This process is outlined in our Privacy Policy.”

The difference between when the average user reports your photo & when Lululemon reports your photo is that Lululemon participates in the VERO along with many other companies listed here: Vero Participant Companies “About Me” pages. The average user can report your image to eBay for copyright infringement, but when someone registered with VERO does it, they also have the right to request your personal information.

eBay’s VERO policy can be found here.

I also would like to mention that at one point, Lululemon had Facebook shut down one of the most popular selling pages on Facebook. It also froze the accounts of the administrators on that page. The stated reason was copyright infringement. So, the admins had all of the Stock photos removed from the page & coordinated an effort to remove all stock photos from all pages. To this day, no stock photos are permitted on any Facebook selling page. Personally, I think it has helped deter scam artists who sell things they don’t own. (If you have to take your own pictures, how do you post an ad without the item? I suppose it’s possible, but it becomes more difficult.)

I know I haven’t covered the entire breadth of this. I find this subject too dry to elaborate on. However, I thought it was important enough to cover. Some people are new to eBay or new to selling Lululemon and may not be aware of Vero policies. I hope that my small effort to prevent your ad from being reported, removed and your privacy being compromised by Lululemon & eBay will be heeded and I can help everyone have a positive eBay experience.

My Collection of The New Ziggy

Every so often, Lululemon releases a fabric print called “Ziggy Wee.” I completely missed out last time, somehow. So this year, I feel like I must have some form of all Ziggy in my closet. So far, I believe I’ve managed to grab something in every Ziggy color. Here’s a photo I took of my Ziggy family.

Left to right, TOP: Ziggy Wee Angel Wing CRB, Ziggy Wee August Inkwell CRB, Ziggy Wee August Raspberry Glo/ Plum CRB, BOTTOM: Ziggy Wee Plum WUPs, Ziggy Wee October Inkwell WUPs

Since this blog is primarily about selling Lululemon, I have found that the Ziggy print holds its value quite well, and the most popular item to be released in this print in my opinion was the XL (Extra Long) CRB, I never see one sell for less than $50 on eBay. I think that’s pretty good, since they retailed for $48. One of the many reasons I love Lululemon is that it seems you almost always get your money back when you invest. I’ve never seen the Ziggy Wee Caspian Wunder Unders for sale anywhere, but I have seen the Ziggy Wee Flare (released in the same time period, July/Aug 2012) sell for between $70 and up to $130 (for NWTs). My favorite thing about the Ziggy print is the feel of the fabric. It gorgeous, and particularly remarkable in the CRBs. I say that because if you own Herringbone or Pique WUs, the fabric of the Ziggy’s is less impressive than that. Especially those Piques… I could live in those.

Anyways, Here’s one more picture, closer-up, with slightly different lighting.

Buying Second-hand Lululemon

Primarily, this blog is about selling Lululemon, but I want to talk about buying second-hand Lulu clothing because it will help you to empathize with your customers. When buying second-hand Lulu, you have to understand that it is second-hand. It’s not going to be perfect & most of the time the seller will/ should explain any flaws, but sometimes they miss things. This post is about those things. Ideally, you should check for these things before you sell, but they do often get missed.

Pilling & Sueding– The number of items I’ve purchased that have claimed to be in “excellent” or “great” condition that have been horribly pilled and obviously washed numerous times is in-expressible. It’s frustrating, but many sellers over-state and under deliver when it comes to describing the condition of their item. While your version of “excellent” might mean not ripped, torn or stained, my definition of “excellent” includes no pilling or ‘sueding’ of the fabric as well. However, when I buy, I make sure I look very closely at ALL the pictures provided by the seller. And when I sell, I often include up-close photos of the fabric to show condition. Not everyone does this though, so when you buy & you receive something that has more pilling than you thought it would, I recommend at the very least being understanding that sellers are human and may have missed the issue when they were inspecting their item for sale. Please contact the seller if you would like a refund, or partial refund. That’s what I do, and in general, the sellers are very understanding. They’re people like you & me.

Other Flaws- In my opinion, anything that comes to me with rips, holes, tears, or stains that were not disclosed in the listing is unacceptable. These purchases must be remedied with an immediate refund, or negative feedback is in order. Sometimes things are missed. Other times, people purposely leave things out in the hopes that you, upon receiving your item, miss the flaw. Which brings me to my next point: I highly recommend that you thoroughly inspect all items upon arrival and take photos of any flaws you may discover.

Payment- When buying second-hand clothing online, whether on eBay or through the Lululemon Facebook pages (I talk about these in one of my first posts here), please look at all the photos the seller provides for you. The luxury of buying on Facebook is that you can have an open dialogue with the seller that includes photos. If you’re satisfied with the pictures, please always pay as goods, when buying through Paypal and never as gift or EMT (unsure what EMT is, check out my post about Lululemon Slang).

Issues- Once more, if you have an issue with your purchase, please contact the seller. Most sellers on eBay and on Facebook are gracious people. If the seller is uncooperative on eBay, open a PayPal case against them. If they are uncooperative on Facebook, contact the page administrator & open a PayPal case against them (You did pay with PayPal, as goods, right?). If they have wronged you, they will be removed from the page and you will get your money back via PayPal.

Have Fun!- Buying, selling and trading Lululemon should be fun. Don’t let yourself become too immersed in it or too pre-occupied with your ISO list. And if something goes wrong, don’t waste your time worrying about it. Just file your claim & get your money back. Most people are nice, it’s the few who can ruin it for the many, so don’t let them win & stay positive. Enjoy your collection, and have fun being part of the online community!