lululemonexpert, Author at lululemon expert

What I’m loving Right Now

Hello everyone,

This is a series I used to do, and sometimes still do sporadically, and since I’ve noticed a few items I’d like to feature, I figured I’ll make mention of my faves right now. As of writing this, all items I discuss are available online.

1. Define Jacket in Diamond Jacquard Berry Rumble Jeweled Magenta

As I mentioned in a previous post, I would love to see a true red Define jacket, but this is close enough. Gorgeous, thick fabric for comfortable Fall or Winter wear.

2. Swiftly Tech Short Sleeve Crew in Heathered Ultra Violet

Heathered Ultra Violet is probably my third favorite color. Side note: I can’t believe I have a favorite color list in my head that goes past one. For the curious, my fourth favorite color is Pigment Blue. (First: Bordeaux Drama, Second: Paris Pink, but I’ve mentioned these two before)

Anyways, there’s not much I can say about Switflys that hasn’t been said before. They’re great for working out in. They’re just comfortable, and this happens to be a great color. All Swiftlys rarely make it to WMTM, and if they do, they’re often marked down by only $9, so, if you’re liking one, I would just buy it at regular price.

3. Align Pants in Raspberry

Ah, Align pants. These are just so comfy you never want to take them off! I first talked about these when they came out, and I remember saying that I would wait for them to come out in colors and prints, since I already have enough pairs of black leggings with colored waistbands. Well, here they are!

4. Pace Rival Crop in Space Dye Twist Naval Blue Peacock Blue/Peacock Blue

I have to admit, that I don’t think that Pace Rival crops look the best on me. I tried them on in-store one time and didn’t love them. However, I might be willing to give them another try for this color combo.

5. Vent It Out Crop in Ultra Violet Multi/ Naval Blue

I know I’ve mentioned these before somewhere on my blog, but since they’re still available in sizes 4 – 10, I figured that they deserved a second shout out. These are great. Comfortable and don’t move around. The venting is well-placed. They’re more of a Spring crop, but I would give them 5 stars and can’t more highly recommend them.

What is standing out to you right now? Let me know in the comments below!

Lululemon OOTD #84

Hello Again!

Keeping up with this Pleat To Street OOTD series as a continuation of adoration as expressed in this review.

This Pleat To Street Skirt is featured here in Bordeaux Drama. MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE Lululemon Color. I wish I could say my favorite color is Paris Pink, but I just get more wear out of my Bordeaux Drama items. Shown with a matching Rest Less Pullover. PS: These flats are from Old Navy and are fabulous for the price.

Lululemon OOTD #83

Hello everyone!

I’m still trying to keep the trend I started after posting my review of the Pleat To Street skirt by posting Pleat To Street skirt OOTDs. I love these things.

This is one of those tops I got at Macy’s. They’re super cute and they all have positive messages on them. This Pleat To Street skirt is in the color floral backdrop black multi/black.
And Here are my nails, just because. LOL

Sephora by OPI: Iris I Was Thinner

With Sephora by OPI: Sugar Plum Fairies Gone Wild glitter top coat

Thanks for stopping by!

Blogging Goals- Updated

So, I was chatting with a friend a few days ago, and he does ‘computer stuff,’ a line of employment I wish I understood better, and he suggested I use WordPress plugins to share my posts automatically with audiences on other platforms like Facebook and Twitter. I figure that these are things I should probably already be doing, frankly, but I just haven’t taken the time. Well, I guess that changes today.

In my “Last Post of the Year,” published yesterday, I posted some preliminary goals, and I quote: “writing more individual item posts, writing an update post to my post(s) about Victoria’s Secret and La Senza, continuing to always provide updates on my New Year’s Resolutions, and to continue to post OOTDs.”

I’m going to add my friend’s idea of using Twitter and Facebook to (hopefully) reach a wider audience, or at least help make it easier for people who already enjoy my blog to read it. In addition, last year, even though I didn’t really post to Facebook, the largest number of referrals actually came from Facebook. This must mean that people are sharing my posts on Facebook. Wow. Very flattering. Thanks to everyone who shares my posts!

Anyways, I hope you come follow me on your social platform of choice.

Here’s my Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Lululemon-Expert-433146846785961/

Here’s my Twitter: https://twitter.com/lululemonexpert

There are also new widgets on the sidebar for you to click! Yay! Thanks for following me! Cheers to the future!

My New Year’s Resolution 2016

Day 1

It’s that time of year again. You know, the beginning. The first of January. The day of many New Year’s resolutions. I wish I could be unique and less susceptible to all the advertising telling me that everyone else is resolving to be better and that I should be doing something too! But I thought to myself, why not? Why not resolve to make myself better? Why not try, try, try again? This blog can be a great place to talk about my journey, vent and can provide me with accountability.

I saw this post on MyFitnessPal, and thought to myself, why yes, I would like to lose weight next month! Thanks, MFP! You know, even considering my review on their premium service, sometimes their advice is pretty good! Although, this advice is part of their freemium platform, so I have yet to find any value, personally, from their premium platform.

Two years ago, I made a resolution to pay better attention to my skin care regime. I have been keeping it and even started getting Skin Medica Vitalize Peels! I just had my second one, and I am writing a review post on them, which I will post once I complete the series sometime in March. Overall, my skin is MUCH better than it was when I first moved South and I’m no longer experiencing the types of issues I had been.

This year, I’d like to resolve to lose the weight I gained after I got married. My specific goal will be to lose 15 pounds. I will reassess how I feel then- IF I get there. I really can’t expect any miracles. Losing weight is very hard work- but I’m going to give it a shot! I would also really like to get in the habit of drinking more water. Does anyone else just not like the taste?

That’s all for this first post, I’ll keep records and let you know how my progress is going a week from now.

Look at this fun meme I made:

Are YOU resolving to get in shape this year? I would really love to follow other bloggers who are trying to better their health. Do you follow someone who is? Can you leave a link to their blog below? I look forward to hearing from all of you about what your resolutions are- if you have any. 🙂

Thanks, as always, for being here!

Thank YOU for being here and My Last Post of the Year

Hello everyone, at the end of every year, I try to think about this blog in terms of my readers, and how I can improve this blog in the new year. I really love blogging. I think it’s fun. I love to write- it’s my passion… Well, one of them- I’m a bit of a generalist.

Last year, I wrote this post, and started my Lululemon OOTD Challenge- I made it to outfit 50, and then I just felt like they were getting somewhat repetitive, so I stopped. I still do plenty of OOTD posts, but they’re more sporadic.

This year, I want to, as always, say thank you to my readers- especially those of you who “like” or comment on my posts. Your opinions are extremely valuable and they help me decide on what I should be writing. WordPress is great, and they tell you to pay attention to your analytics to see what your audience is looking for. But what guides me the most are the interactions I have with people who read my posts and ask questions.

There have been quite a few times when someone has asked me a question (in the comments) or left me a comment and that has resulted in a post as a result of that question or comment. In the linked example, @AddictedToInk asked me to clarify what I meant by Paying as Gift or Goods on PayPal. I had started to respond to her in the comments, but the reply was forever long and I ended up creating this post instead.

In a more recent example, Michele told me that she finds single item reviews like this one (about the Pleat To Street) most helpful since she does her Lulu shopping online. So, I wrote another individual item post (about the Base Runners). I intend to continue to write individual piece items and give fit reviews as I do think that they help people decide where to spend their hard-earned cash.

The year before that, I wrote this post as my final post of the year. In that post I talked about my top 5 items of the year. I think I’ll do that again! It’s just too fun to look back and see that I still use all my old favorites and continue to enjoy them.

My top 5 this year, in no specific order are:

Stress Less Hoodie in Bordeaux Drama, Vent It Out crop in Space Dye Twist Ultra Violet Multi/Naval Blue, Pigment Wave Speed Shorts, Retreat Dress in Heathered Black Cherry, and Moody Mirage Define Jacket.

The Stress Less hoodies are so comfy & slouchy, plus Bordeaux Drama is one of my favorite colors. The Pigment Wave craze was inescapable, and its similarity to Unicorn Tears drew me in. I was happy with these Speed shorts and the pattern distribution when I received them. So fancy! I am really enjoying the Vent it Out crops. The stripes line up, which is nice, but they also function well and never ride up or fall down when I work out in them. For casual wear, my Retreat Dress has served me well. I wore it several times during the summer- practically lived in it- and the Light Luon fabric is perfect for the hottest days. As for the Moody Mirage Define jacket, I absolutely LOVE Define jackets, and was so sad when they discontinued them and so happy when they brought them back! They haven’t come out with too many pretty colors since they were re-released. I liked the cranberry colored one, but it had the snake print on it, so I didn’t pick it up. This is actually the only Define jacket I’ve purchased since they re-released them. I’d love to see a bright green or purple, but what’s come out so far has either been too similar to items I already own, or has been in neutrals.

It was SUPER hard to choose just 5 items, but all of these are unique and I feel that they merit “favorite” status. I also considered choosing Fuel Green Base Runners and my Ultra Violet Pleat To Street skirt, but I’ve written individual articles on both of these (linked) and thought they had had enough of the spot light 🙂

WordPress also suggests that you make “blogging goals” for the following year. So, I guess my blogging goals for next year will be writing more individual item posts, writing an update post to my post(s) about Victoria’s Secret and La Senza, continuing to always provide updates on my New Year’s Resolutions, and to continue to post OOTDs.

I hope y’all can give me some more ideas on what you’d like to see and what I should be writing about. I’d be so happy to hear from you! What do you think of this blog? How could it be better?

I really can’t thank you all enough for reading.

Lululemon OOTD #82

Hello everyone! Here’s another of my Pleat To Street skirts! I’m doing this OOTD series featuring them “en hommage” to my review post of them that I wrote just in case you saw them on mark down or on eBay and needed to see if they’re something you’d be interested in.

Race Your Pace 1/2 Zip in Coco Pique/ Black, Pleat to Street Skirt in Watermark Slate/ Black

Base Runners, a review of fit, fabric content and function

Hello everyone,

A few of days ago I wrote a post about one of my favorite types of Lululemon Skirts, the Pleat to Street. A reader commented saying that she enjoyed posts about individual items (Thanks, Michele!), so I recalled a post that I had intended to write about Base Runners, and searched to see if I had written a draft at all, and unfortunately, although I had taken some photos of my Base Runners, I had yet to actually write this post. So, here it is, enjoy!

Base Runners

My opinion on Base Runners is as positive as my opinion on other items that I own & enjoy, however, this post will also encompass the opinions of the reviewers on Lululemon.com. My goal is to provide answers, to those purchasing these now or on eBay in a few months when they’re no longer on the Lululemon website.

I really love my Base Runners. They really are fabulous for wearing over shorts, or just for winter warmth in general. I’ve worn them during harsh Canadian winters and mild American winters alike. They’re comfy, cozy, soft and as described by Lululemon, have a “relaxed sensation.” I appreciate the little bit of reflectivity at the cuff as well as the deep pockets.

Quality Issues-

A reviewer has said that the waistband is rolling on her pair. I have not experienced this issue, but have heard that some people are/ do. This is something that I would concern myself with when making a purchase decision.

A few reviewers have complained about pilling. I haven’t experienced excessive pilling on any of my Base Runners- even the ones that are 3 years old. There are a few here or there, and there’s certainly some wear on them, but I take responsibility for that. The reason I feel that I have been able to keep my Lulus in the best possible condition is because I follow my own advice with regards to caring for them.

Some reviewers have complained that the newest versions are not holding up as well as the older versions. To be honest, I disagree, but in the interest of transparency, I will always do my best to talk about what the opinion is in aggregate- not just my own opinion. The reason I don’t believe that this is true is because the fabric content has largely remained the same, and admittedly anecdotally, I haven’t experienced increased pilling in my newest Base Runners as opposed to pairs I’ve owned from previous seasons.

Speaking of fabric content- I took photos of the fabric content of my Base Runners from previous seasons and from this season. As you can see, the fabric content has largely remained the same, with the exception of Elastane replacing the Spandex, which in my understanding is a very similar fabric.

Previous Season’s Base Runners, in order of their tags as pictured above.

This season’s Base Runners in order of their tag’s appearance above.

Fit- I recommend sizing down, but if you’re a curvy girl like me, you might be more comfortable in your TTS. I wear these in my TTS- and frankly, I would be comfortable even if they were very loose on me (if, I lost weight or purchased a larger size) because they look like they can also be worn that way. So, if you’re checking these out on eBay, and they’re a size smaller, or your TTS, you’re in luck either way, as IMO, they’ll probably fit you just fine- although one will provide a slightly different (tighter or looser) look. Also: especially if you intend to wear these over shorts, you can go TTS (Or maybe even size up!). I wouldn’t want you to give up on a good deal on eBay if you spot a pair either a size up or a size down. Honestly, I’d probably give them a shot!

I hope this has been helpful! Thanks for stopping by!