Sports Bra Review #1 (Collabo w/ Girl.Fit.Boss)

First let me admit - I am a horrible blogger.  Hopefully now that we're FINALLY settling into the new house I can carve out time once a week to put some content together for you guys.  Thank you if you do read these!

Ok, moving on....

I've been asked a few times about some of my athletic wear.  Form meeting function.  I will never understand women I see who work out in regular bras.....there's can't be enough support going on in that $25 bra from Kohl's!

So, I wanted to give you, my readers, a full scope.  I know not every woman has my build, so my opinion might not be the best if you have a different build.  That's why I reached out to a woman who not only has a different build, but also helps people motivate and drive themselves to achieve their weight loss goals.  Jessica over at Girl.Fit.Boss and I have known each other since college and I trust her opinion in all things fitness.  And from what she has to say about sports bras, it looks like women of all shapes really all want the same thing....SUPPORT!

I'm going to break this topic into two blog posts....one from Jesi's persective and one from mine.  Here's what she has to say(pictures might not be exact style, but as close as I could find online):
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I'm going to throw it out there:  I'm a cheap ass when it comes to sports bras.  I don't want to wait or postpone my workouts because I don't have a clean sports bra to wear (and with the amount of sweat I generate, wearing one from the day before is just NASTY) or because I need to save up for a new one.  So what's a girl to do?  Head to Target!  These bras are holding me over as I save money and replace them one by one with higher quality, longer lasting bras (that of course, are more expensive).  

A word about my boobs:  I have none.  Well, almost none.  I wear a 34A.  I used to be a 36B for the longest time, then I started focusing on my health and fitness and unfortunately, the boobs are the first things to go!  *insert funeral march here*  A small price to pay for a healthy body!

So here's what I love (and sometimes hate) about my favorite bras:

1.  C9 Champion® Women's High Support Sports Bra

     For a sports bra on the cheaper side of the spectrum, this is my go-to!  It's a pull over your head kind of bra with no clasps or ability to adjust the straps, but it fits perfectly snug without cutting off circulation.  It has molded cups, which I really like in all my bras.  I do a lot of high-impact exercise, like running and plyometric cardio, so this one is perfect for keeping the girls in place and minimizing bouncing.  When I workout, I want to make sure I'm not putting any unnecessary strain on the ligaments and soft tissue that hold my breasts up, so I may look even more flat chested than I already am with this bra, but at least I know I won't have to tuck my boobs into my belt when I'm 70.

2. C9 Champion® Women's Power Core Racer Sports Bra

     This is a good bra too for being on the cheaper side of the spectrum, but I probably won't be purchasing anymore of these.  These are also bras designed for high-impact exercise and pull over your head with no strap adjustments.  The downside of this bra are the removable cups.  I didn't look closely enough when I purchased all 4 of them at once to realize that they had removable cups, else I wouldn't have gotten them.  The cups come out in the wash or get all folded up inside the lining so I'm constantly having to put them back in and/or flatten them out.  When you're wearing the bra though, it's perfect!  The cups don't move around and it gives exactly the kind of support I need.  A plus is that this bra doesn't flatten my chest as much, but I still feel fully supported.

3.  Moving Comfort Fiona Bra

     This bra is my first REALLY NICE bra.  It's not cheap, but it's also not outlandishly expensive.  I bought it specifically for running and while I wear it for all forms of exercise, it's the only one I wear for a race!  The ONLY downside to this bra is that it doesn't have any padding or cups, but I'm willing to live without for the awesomeness that this bra brings.  The adjustable straps use velcro instead of metal adjusters, so it's nothing but soft comfort.  It has a clasp in the back to adjust as well, instead of having to pull it over your head and squeeze it over the girls.  It doesn't flatten me out, but it's snug enough to provide support for a high impact workout.  This bra has a higher neckline, so even when I was wearing it as a 36B, I didn't have any issue with a "boob muffin top" (you know what I'm talking about!).  When it's time to replace one of my cheaper bras, I will definitely be getting another one of these!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I hope you all got some great info from Jesi!  I'll try to put my review out in a few days!

I've got a bunch of stuff swirling around in my head to get out to you guys (product reviews, fall capsule wardrobe planning, house progress!) but I just have to put it all down in a schedule :(

See you all later, back here in my closet!

Stitch Fix #3

Little blogging gets done when you're trying to move.  Hopefully once I feel settled, I'll get back into a more regular content update, I've got a few posts filling up my potential list :)

But, onto a happy day!  I got my latest Stitch Fix on Saturday, and.....I had mixed feelings.  With the move I've started this new found purge of all things unnecessary, which makes it hard to justify buying MORE things to wear...more on that as I talk about what was in this month's box.

I got 3 tops, a skirt, and because I requested more accessories, a purse.  With the hectic nature of a move and now having a toddler to look after, I didn't get to do as much styling on the items as I wanted.  Let's break it down:

This blue and white striped top had a really fun back detail, which I would have been all over if the whole thing had a little more structure.  I've come to know I like things to accentuate my curves, but not be overly risque.

Next, I got another skirt since my stylist liked how much I played up the last one.  But that's the problem, I'm not the person that needs multiple printed skirts in the same color palette.  Although, this skirt is a nice breezy fabric that has a little flip in it as you walk down stairs or twirl around.  If I didn't already have something that I felt covered this category, I'd be more interested.

This next top was a hard one to let go.  It's hard to tell in the photo, but it's a cream V-neck blouse with black like 'lightening bolts' all over it.  It was far and away my mother's favorite, but again, I already have 3 cream blouses and I'd just gotten rid of two others.  But, it did give me a reason to break out my black circle skirt for this styling.  I forget how much I love it, mainly because it's a little to short to wear to work (without tights).

Finally onto the piece I kept, this turquoise tank with white embroidery.  I like it's fit and color and I could see it easily transitioning from casual to work wear (with a blazer).  The only thing about this one was there was a smudge on the embroidery, so I'm looking at how to return it and get an exchange.  The purse was a nice mix up, but the style was too Boho for me.  I like more structure, which I told my stylist in this month's review. 

All in all, not a great box, but not bad.  I'm thinking I am going to re-adjust my price points as the fall comes around because I think I'll get more lux pieces that might call to me more.  If you're interested in seeing what I got in my other fixes click here or here

Stitch Fix #2!

It finally arrived!!  The con about doing every other month on Stitch Fix is that you have to wait!  I feel like I should make a disclaimer that the link above is affiliated and if you sign up and receive a fix, I'll get a $25 credit....just being transparent!

This month my stylist used a combination of my feedback and what I had recently been pinning to give me a little of everything!  Let's dive in!

I got this color blocked dress, which I love the graphic nature.  It also just happened to match some spring shoes I bought from Target two years ago!  However, this will be going back.  Mainly due to the fact that I have more dresses than I need and the price was a little high for me.  Below I styled is for a casual weekend, but it's also easily dressed for work.

Next item I got was this great flared, textured skirt.  I'd been pinning a lot of graphic full skirts recently, and while this isn't a duplicate, it gets me in the general area.  I'm keeping it mainly because I love the pattern and I don't own a skirt this cut yet.  Paired with a button down and heels for work, this is also great for weekends thrown with a basic cotton t-shirt and a jean jacket.

I ended up styling the final three pieces together, since they were a blazer, jeans and a blouse.  Since I loved the cut, fabric and fit of the blazer I got in my last fix, but not the color...they sent it to me in black!  I'd been meaning to update my black blazer anyway, so this is a keeper!  It's an investment piece, so I had to come up with some money....so I pulled items I hadn't worn in several seasons and got $98 for them...paying for 60+% of this blazer.  I also got the checked blouse, which has great shoulder lace detail and dark skinny denim.  I was too in love with the blouse to pass it up, plus at $34 it was the best deal in the whole fix.  I'm passing on the denim, since I already have dark skinnies.  However, this fabric felt like wearing pajama pants and had great stretch!

So that's my fix!  Three out of five pieces kept!  Have you gotten a fix yet?  Tell me about it!