Tag Archives: plus size

Tired Of Online Shopping (or There Aren’t A Ton Of Great Options For Me)

Posted on July 15, 2021 | Comments Off on Tired Of Online Shopping (or There Aren’t A Ton Of Great Options For Me)

Ever since I’ve been an adult, I’ve done some of my shopping online. Sometimes the store I want to order from isn’t near me or the local one doesn’t have something in stock. Sometimes the store is online only. And sometimes it’s just about convenience and I’d rather order online than go to a store. I’ve done this for so many things in my life. I can’t think of much that I use that I haven’t bought online at one point or another.

And I went from doing some of my shopping online to all of my shopping online when the pandemic hit. Anything I needed could be ordered online and delivered to me. I didn’t love doing this, but it felt like the safer thing for me to do. And the few places I did go in person to were limited to grocery stores and drug stores. Nothing interesting or exciting, only places to get things I needed. That doesn’t mean I haven’t bought a lot of fun things over the past year and a half. It’s just that everything else has been purchased online. And I’m really starting to feel over it.

I recently found some new bedding I wanted to get for my room. My comforter has been torn for a bit and I was excited to have something new. I took my time to look at a few different places and did price comparisons and looked at reviews. Even though I knew I could return something, I’d rather not do that so I wanted to pick the right thing the first time. And when I got it, it was nothing like what I thought I got. The color was wrong (I ordered something that was supposed to be green and this was more of a yellow) and the fabric was very thin and not soft at all. If I had bought this in a store in person, I wouldn’t have gotten it because I would have known right away that it was wrong. But online, I had no clue until it arrived.

I know that returning things isn’t a huge deal and it’s actually easier now than it used to be. When returning stuff to Amazon, you don’t need a box or anything. You print out a return slip and take the item and the slip to the UPS store and they handle everything else. So that is nice to do, but I’d prefer to not have to do that at all and have the items be right.

It’s even more frustrating with clothes. I look at the size charts and take my measurements to make sure I’m ordering the right size, but that’s not always enough. The fit of items can vary so much. And sometimes, I do end up ordering multiple sizes so I can test them out and return what doesn’t work. Even if I felt comfortable going into stores, I still have to order so much online. Some stores that sell plus-sized clothing only sell it online and not in their stores. And there are a lot of stores that are only online. So trying things on isn’t an option for me. I’m really trying to find new things for my wardrobe, but so far everything I’ve ordered online this month has been returned. I do try to see if I could do some alterations and make the items work, but that isn’t always easy or cheap. It would be so nice if I could just find things that fit me, but I haven’t had any luck. I haven’t given up yet, but it’s hard to feel excited about getting new things when lately everything I get goes back.

I’m trying to be a bit more adventurous with the stores I shop at. I see things online and seek out where they got them and I have discovered new stores I didn’t know about before. Most of the time, I still have to order online, but at least I’m not just shopping at the same places over and over again. And I know that eventually, I’ll have some luck and some new things that I can wear on the random adventures I have now going out of my house and feel awesome and comfortable.

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Another Rut In My Life (or Time For Some Shopping)

Posted on June 26, 2019 | Comments Off on Another Rut In My Life (or Time For Some Shopping)

I’ve written about being in ruts before on here. I’ve been in ruts with my work life, my social life, my food, and lots of other things. I think being in ruts is part of why time seems to go by so quickly. When it’s tough to tell the difference from one day to the next, you don’t realize how many days go by. But this time, it’s about a different type of rut that I don’t know if I’ve thought about before. But first, a little backstory.

I’ve had a ton of different jobs in my life. Some of them have been random and sporadic and some have been really serious jobs. I would say that overall my jobs are more casual than office jobs, but I’ve had some jobs that were more serious than most. And with all my jobs, there have been different dress codes and standards I had to meet. I’ve had jobs that have had a required uniform. I’ve had jobs that have such a strict dress code that I had to wear pantyhose or tights if I wore a skirt. And I’ve had jobs that have zero dress code and I can wear whatever I want.

Before my current job that allows me to work from home, the last few jobs I had were pretty casual dress. I could wear jeans and t-shirts and be ok. Sometimes I would dress a little nicer, but there were no requirements I had to meet. I usually tried to stick with more comfortable clothing since I was stuck at a desk for so many hours and I didn’t want to be uncomfortable and squirming around when I should have my focus on work. I usually rotated the same few outfits from week to week since I didn’t care what I looked like. I wasn’t trying to impress anyone and I just had to wear clothes that were appropriate.

Now, I work from home and there is zero dress code or standards. I do get dressed out of my PJs to work, but I’m usually in something that I probably wouldn’t wear in public. Most of the time, I’m wearing some form of yoga pants and a tank top or bralette. If I have something I have to go to after work, I’ll wear the outfit I need to wear for that thing. But more often than not, I don’t have much after work and I don’t care at all about what I wear.

Because of my lack of caring about my clothes, I don’t really wear much of what I have in my closet. Obviously, there are some things I have that wouldn’t be worn at work no matter what. But even my casual clothes aren’t being worn that much. I don’t care to wear them and when I have to find something to wear it has become a bit of a struggle. I haven’t done much clothing shopping lately outside of workout clothes so I’m not very inspired by what I do have in my closet. I also have to deal with severe weight fluctuations that make my clothes tough to wear sometimes. For example, right before my period started I went up 15 pounds overnight. I know that is not real weight I gained, but it makes a lot of my clothes not comfortable or ill-fitting.

I don’t believe I need to wear anything fancy for the time I’m working. Most likely, I will keep my usual work uniform of casual clothes because I do want to be comfortable while working. But I want to have a closet that excites me and makes me want to have places to wear things. I want to look into my closet and so happy I have amazing things to wear. So I’ve been slowly doing some clothing reevaluation.

I don’t want to buy a lot of things because I don’t have the need or the money. But I do want to have fun things and new things to enjoy during the summer. Since I’m not looking for serious pieces or things that I need to last a lifetime, I can look at cheaper clothes that might not last for years. There are a bunch of stores that I like that sell clothing that fits what I’m looking for. I’m also looking at buying things off of Amazon since there are lots of clothing options in my size on there and it seems to be affordable even if they are kind of like throwaway clothes. Again, I don’t need to be creating a wardrobe that lasts for years. I just need some new things to make me feel like I have fun things to wear right now.

I don’t know if buying new clothes will inspire me to go out and do more things, but at least I know that if I find pieces I love that I will be more confident when I’m out and about. Right now, I do feel sloppy a lot because I don’t have clothing that makes me feel put together. I don’t have to dress as I did for my fanciest office job, but I do want to feel cute and stylish. And I know I’m not getting that out of the clothes I have right now.

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Lunch And Shopping (or Proof My Work Is Paying Off)

Posted on January 17, 2017 | Comments Off on Lunch And Shopping (or Proof My Work Is Paying Off)

I’ve been trying to keep up with staying social with my friends when I have free time. It is one of the things I’m focusing on this year so I don’t go too long without seeing friends (which can happen pretty easily). I used to see my friend Lindsay all the time because we would go to the same classes at Orangetheory. But since her schedule changed, we have to make more of an effort to see each other. We did run into each other at Orangetheory when she was taking a class after mine, but that’s not really enough time to catch up. So when she asked if I wanted to get some lunch this past weekend, I said yes right away!

We ended up meeting at 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica, which I usually avoid since it’s so touristy. But for a nice Saturday afternoon, it ended up being not too bad. We met up in front of a store and immediately walked to figure out where we wanted to get some lunch. We went to Steak ‘n Shake since it was a place that neither of us had been to before. Sadly, it ended up being a bad choice (we waited over 20 minutes for our burgers to be brought to our table and the food was cold when we did get it), but since the focus of our hangout was catching up and not the food, it was fine.

After eating, Lindsay had some shopping she wanted to do and I’m always happy to join a friend for shopping. I’ve gotten so used to not being able to try things on at the stores that my friends shop at, so I’m just happy to be the person who shares her opinion on the stuff others try on. Lindsay was on the hunt for some shoes and we checked out a couple of stores. She wasn’t able to find what she wanted, but it was fun checking out a bunch of different stores since so many places were having sales.

Toward the end of 3rd Street, there is an Athleta store. I’ve never shopped there before, but I’ve gotten their catalog before and knew that their clothes wouldn’t fit me based on their size guide. They do sell some plus size clothes, but I don’t believe they carry those in the store (so many companies only carry the plus size section on the website). But I do love shopping for workout clothes so I was happy just to see what they had and maybe I would find things that I would want to get when I was able to fit in them.

When we went into the store, someone greeted us immediately and told us that all sale things were discounted even further, and we decided to see what there was since you can’t do much better than sale items being on sale. The sale section was organized by size and I was looking at the XL stuff to see if there was anything that looked big enough to fit me. I found a zip up shirt that looked cute and realized that it might be something perfect to wear when I have liver surgery (I’ve read online that since my stomach will be very sore, it might be tough to lift my arms up to pull shirts on). I decided to try it on over my shirt to see how it fit and it was a little baggy on me.

I found the same shirt in L and tried it on. It was a bit snug, but Lindsay had me try both the XL and L on and she agreed that the L was the way to go. I was so shocked to fit into a L! I know that there is vanity sizing and all that, but Athleta is owned by the same parent company as Old Navy (where I have been getting all my workout stuff) and I’ve been wearing XXL in those. I’ve been wearing those shirts for a while and I started to think that maybe I could fit into smaller clothes than I’ve been wearing.

I looked through the rest of the sale stuff in L (the non-sale stuff is out of my budget for now) and found a cute sweater that I wanted to try on. And I was shocked to see that it fit too! It’s a little tighter than it shows on the model online, but it fits and I feel really cute in it!

I know that I shouldn’t buy stuff just because I like what the size on the table says, but it was pretty amazing to know that I was buying 2 shirts that are not a plus size but just a regular L. I’ve plateaued lately with my weight loss and even though I’m still down quite a bit from even a few months ago, it can feel like I haven’t changed at all in the last year. So getting shirts that prove me otherwise is a really nice thing!

After that shopping stop, it was time for Lindsay and I to each head back to our cars to head home. I’m so glad that she and I were able to get together. Obviously I love getting to catch up with friends, especially friends that I was so used to seeing twice a week before. But I’m also so happy that she convinced me to try on some clothes when I was so sure that there was no way they could fit me. She pushed me out of my comfort zone and it ended up being a great thing for me!

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Bikini Audition (or Finding My Confidence)

Posted on May 6, 2016 | Comments Off on Bikini Audition (or Finding My Confidence)

Last week I got a text from my agents. They typically only text me when I have an audition, so I immediately took a look at my phone to see what audition they had gotten for me! But instead of the text saying I have an audition, it said that I had a potential audition but before they confirmed me for it they wanted to double-check about one thing. They wanted to make sure I was ok being in a bikini. As an actor, you feel like you have to say yes to whatever (unless it’s something not safe like they ask you to ride a horse and you are terrified of horses), so I said yes right away.

The only problem was I didn’t have a bikini.

I have the bathing suit that I wore in Hawaii, but that was a tankini and this audition notice said specifically that the actor must be comfortable in a 2 piece bikini. I had a couple of days before the audition, so I figured I had time to find a bikini top and figure out a way to feel confident in it.

I’ll be honest, shopping for the bikini top sucked. I had to go to multiple stores with no luck. It seems like no place carried bikini tops in my size. I was able to find a ton of skirted one pieces or baggy suits, but nothing fun or cute. And it was too close to order something I could find online. Finally I had to realize that I was going to have to spend a decent amount of money on the top and I figured I could keep the tag inside and return it after the audition.

I eventually found a top that worked at Torrid (and had a coupon to save some money on it). I didn’t hate it too much when I bought it and I was planning on using the bottoms I wore in Hawaii (I didn’t need the matching bottoms).

I spent my weekend preparing for my audition and didn’t really think too much about having to wear the bikini. It was only going to be a minute of my time wearing it so I was trying not to worry about it. I focused on learning my lines and being as ready as possible for the audition.

The day of the audition, I worked my usual work shift (my audition was after work so I didn’t need to ask for time off). But since I didn’t feel like getting dressed for work and then dressed for the audition, I worked in the bikini with some yoga pants. I passed myself in a mirror a couple of times while I was walking between my desk and kitchen, and I have to say that I didn’t feel like I looked that bad. In fact, I was pretty happy with how the bikini looked on me!

Bikini Audition

I liked how I looked so much that I ended up taking the tag out of the top because I knew I had to keep it!

All of the sudden, I was no longer nervous about the bikini part of the audition. My only nerves were the normal audition nerves and I tried to get those out of my system when I was driving to the valley to the studio where the audition was held.

I personally think the audition went great! The casting directors and I made jokes about me stripping down when I was taking off the yoga pants and tank that I wore on top of the bikini. And they loved the bikini so much that they had me turn around so they could check it out (and they commented that they would totally buy that for themselves too). They laughed at the scene I read and I had no confidence issues at all. Who would have thought that being half-naked in front of a camera was the best way to get my nerves to go away?

In the lobby of the casting office, they had a selfie station. I didn’t have time to take a photo before the audition (and we all were focusing on our lines), but a friend who was there auditioning too took a picture with me after we were both done auditioning.

Selfie Station

On the drive home, I just felt so great. I had a weight lifted from my shoulders that I never knew was there. I know that I’ve heard that every body is a bikini body so many times. But I honestly never believed it until this audition. But now I’m excited to figure out when I can wear the bikini this summer. I’ll be going back east for a family reunion and I think there is either a pool or hot tub where we are staying, so I’ll bring it then. And I want to figure out some fun beach adventures to go on in LA too.

All my confidence issues aren’t gone now. I’m sure I’ll still feel a bit insecure when I wear the bikini in public where I’m the only heavy person (it helped that all the ladies at my audition who were auditioning were heavy too). There may be people who make fun or me or laugh and point at me in public. And if that happens that it going to suck and I’m sure I’ll feel down about it.

But for now, I’m just so excited that I’ve found even the smallest amount of confidence and that I’m ready to rock a bikini for the first time as an adult (and possibly the first time ever in my life)!

 

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Posted in Acting, Fun Stuff, Shopping

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Knowing My Limitations (or Going Easy On Myself)

Posted on March 29, 2016 | 1 comment

I’ve struggled a lot with my limitations and how much I can do. This isn’t just workout related (although that is a big part of things), it’s also about scheduling myself and not getting overwhelmed. It’s so easy for me to think that I can do 100 things in a day and then get upset when I only get 10 of them done. There’s so much I feel like I should get done every day and there are days where it’s suddenly 8pm and I feel like I’ve done nothing at all.

I’m like that with my day jobs. I work really hard at getting both of my main day jobs done each day. Many days I can to both at the same time (working one in between the customer calls/chats at the other), but sometimes there’s just no way to make that happen. That’s fine and I know most people can’t work more than one job at a time, but it’s still frustrating when that’s how I imagine my schedule to go that day. I’m working harder and harder at creating backup plans for myself, but I sometimes get upset when I realize that there’s no way to complete both jobs at the time I expected. It’s really childish that is upsetting me, but I guess I’m just so used to having a set schedule and things ending exactly at the time I expected them to. That’s the benefit of having a job with a set schedule instead of one that is on my own time. But the jobs on my own time are the ones with the flexibility I need so those are better for me.

It’s the same thing with clothes and shoes. I really want to be able to wear cute things, but sometimes that can’t happen. Some of it is due to the clothes I want to wear not coming in my size (which is so annoying!) and some of it is how it fits on me. I know that everyone probably has this problem, but I hate when I see something in a catalog or online on someone my size but it doesn’t look right on me. It’s the main reason that I really don’t do online shopping (except for my workout clothes). Or there are tons of cute shoes that I’d love to wear but I can’t because of my hip issues. I’m trying to find cute shoes that are more “comfort” style shoes, and fortunately many companies make super cute comfort shoes. I’ve been struggling with what I will wear to Rayshell’s wedding. I didn’t want to wear the same dress I’ve worn to several weddings and I actually found something online at Target and it fit me perfectly. But now I’m stressed out about what shoes to wear. Sometimes I feel like I just want to collapse and cry when I can’t figure out how to do what I want.

This has been an issue for me for a long time, but lately it’s been getting worse. I’m not exactly sure what brought it on. But I am taking on more projects (day job and acting related) that take up time. And I have more events where I need cute outfits. And I feel like I should be making progress with my fitness because I work so hard and then I have a setback or don’t make progress at all. I’m sure I’m just in a slump right now, but it’s not fun at all.

I’m really trying to figure out better ways to set myself up for success. I’m doing  a lot more planning in my life right now. Planning out my day more specifically than I have in the past allows me to find where I have extra time to get things done that I haven’t been able to complete when I thought I would. And I’m working on closet planning to be able to put together more outfits and see what I have and not focus on what I want to get for a specific event. I think that having more organization in that sense will help me find some peace in what is stressing me out lately. And if it doesn’t bring me peace, hopefully it will allow me to pinpoint exactly what is bringing on the stress and frustration so I can work on that specific issue and not the issue in whole.

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Finally Spinning Again (or It’s Been A Long Time To Be Sick)

Posted on February 10, 2014 | Comments Off on Finally Spinning Again (or It’s Been A Long Time To Be Sick)

That nasty cold that I had right before the end of my job did quite a number on me. I haven’t felt sick in a while, but I’ve been horribly congested. So congested that until a few days ago, I still couldn’t completely breathe through my nose.

And I know that if I can’t breathe through my nose, there’s no way I can do a crazy workout. So I’ve been taking a break from spinning (which sucked).

But finally, at the end of last week, my nose cleared up. So I looked at the schedule at who was teaching over the next few days. Now that I don’t have my job anymore, I can go to classes when I used to work.

And I found out that Heather was teaching on Saturday around noon. And my favorite bike (pretty much the only one I like to ride on) was available. So of course I signed up and got ready for my return to spin.

I wasn’t too nervous because I knew that I wasn’t going to do as well as I did 3 weeks ago before I was sick. But I was going back and that’s what’s important to me. I also made myself get the heavier weights for the arms workout.

The class went pretty well. When Heather saw me in class, she got pretty excited that I was there. And she gave lots of encouragement to me throughout the class (I’m so grateful that she knows how to push me even though I still am unable to do the standing up moves on the bike).

While I did get more tired than usual in class, I finished and worked hard, and I’m proud of myself for not getting frustrated giving up when it got tough for me.

While leaving the studio, I noticed some of the new cute tops that they had for sale. And one top in particular caught my eye.

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I’ve never purchased anything from SoulCycle in the past because I figured nothing was in my size. The largest size they have is a large, and I don’t wear large shirts (in straight size clothing, like Old Navy, I’m wearing either a XXL or XL top). But I decided to try it anyway.

And guess what? It fits!

Of course, I bought it. It’s a nice comfortable sweater. It’s designed to be pretty high cut (almost a crop top) in front so I’m definitely wearing a tank top underneath. But now I can go out and about sharing my love for SoulCycle with the world.

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Posted in Fitness, Fun Stuff, Shopping

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A Free Weekday (or Planning Ahead For Fun Things)

Posted on January 21, 2014 | Comments Off on A Free Weekday (or Planning Ahead For Fun Things)

While I was out sick last week from work, I missed some schedule changes that were made. So when I returned on Friday, I learned that we were going to have Monday off because of the MLK Holiday. I still ended up working on Sunday so it didn’t feel like an extra day off, but it was a pleasant surprise.

A lot of times with these extra days off I try to plan some sort of adventure. But since I’m still in recovery mode from this cold, I tried to take it easy but have a fun time as well.

I went out to lunch with my friend Kate. She’s currently job hunting so I wanted to catch up on that with her. And I had my usual randomness to catch her up on. Since I will be unemployed soon, we are trying to figure out some fun outings to go on when we both are out of work. One thing that is definitely on our list is to go to California Adventure at Disneyland. Kate has never been in that part of Disneyland before and I told her that she has to do it (she agrees with me).

After a nice lunch, I continued on my adventures by doing a little shopping for a trip that I have in a few months. My sister-in-law, Krystle, and I are going to New York for a few days in March. I don’t really need too much stuff for that trip, but there is a new Nordstrom’s Rack I wanted to check out and shopping for that trip was a good excuse.

I’m still not in “standard” sized clothes, so shopping is still pretty tough. And the plus size clothes options are pretty pathetic. But I did managed to find a 100% cashmere sweater that was only $40. So I got that. And I’m still on the lookout for a trench coat for my trip. I don’t really own any rain coats or nice jackets and I’m pretty sure that I will need that for my trip. It might not be as cold in March as it is right now in New York, but it will probably be colder than it is right now in LA (where it’s been 75 degrees and sunny every day).

Shopping for the trip is really getting me excited about it. Krystle and I really need to get on top of doing some planning. We have our flights and hotel booked, but that’s it so far. But I’m looking forward to doing whatever we end up doing because I haven’t been to New York since the summer I turned 17.

After my shopping (where it seemed everyone was shopping because it took me almost an hour to pay), I headed back home to do what I usually do on Sundays to prepare for a full work week (grocery shop, clean, do laundry). I’m starting to feel almost back to normal again and I feel like taking the time yesterday to have some fun has really gotten me ready to be back at work for a full week.

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Posted in Fun Stuff, Health, Shopping, Tough Stuff, Travel, Work

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Surviving My Work Holiday Party (or Getting Braver With My Clothing Choices)

Posted on December 5, 2013 | Comments Off on Surviving My Work Holiday Party (or Getting Braver With My Clothing Choices)

This week was the holiday party for my day job. Last year, the party was at a bar near the theater we work at and it was more of like a dinner event (although no dinner was actually served). We all sat at a long table and chatted. Then the artistic director gave a speech and handed out Trader Joes gift cards to everyone as a holiday gift. I don’t remember what I wore last year, but I remember that it was pretty casual (I usually wear jeans to work and I’m sure that’s what I wore to the party).

This year, we had more advanced notice about the party. It was going to be held at Gladstones and we were expected to dress festively. It was suggested to wear something similar to what we would wear to work a show. But since I normally wear a dress and heels to work a show and I knew I’d be working on the phones before the party, I wanted to wear something more comfortable.

All of my dress pants are looking a little sloppy because they are big right now. But then I remembered that I just bought some leggings. I’ve been weary of leggings. They are very body conscious and many leggings look more like tights (as in they are see-through and not appropriate as pants). But these seemed to be a thicker fabric so I decided to wear them. And if they didn’t seem as cute, at least the restaurant was going to be dark.

I paired the leggings with a tunic style top and headed off to work my shift before the party. Turns out, my outfit was a huge hit! I got a bunch of compliments from my co-workers. In fact, I’m planning on wearing those leggings on a more regular basis. Who knew that some of my thoughts on clothing could be so off? First skinny jeans and now leggings.

The party was pretty good. The food at Gladstones was ok (lots of fried things that were a little too greasy for my taste). But since the restaurant was right on the beach we had a nice view. And it was nice to see everyone dressed up and not running around trying to work a show.

Besides the food, there was some caroling singing (I mouthed the words since I’m tone deaf and everyone else I work with is an amazing singer), and then someone hooked their iPod into the sound system and there was some dancing. My hips were starting to kill me by the time the dancing started so I just sat off to the side.

Before I knew it, the co-workers I drove with were ready to head back to work where the rest of us left our cars. And I was home at about the same time I would get home from a late shift, so that was nice.

Overall, I had a really great time at the holiday party. I know that for some people work events can be stressful. But since so much of my work is already at events, that stress was taken away (and the co-worker who hates me is antisocial so she wasn’t there to bother me).

If you have to go to a work holiday party, you should check out this article on BuzzFeed. It was pretty funny (and had some good advice)!

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Posted in Celebrations, Food, Fun Stuff, Shopping, Work

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The Most Impossible Shopping (or Thank Goodness For Online Stores!)

Posted on August 14, 2013 | Comments Off on The Most Impossible Shopping (or Thank Goodness For Online Stores!)

With the Hawaii trip coming up super soon, I’ve been doing some clothing inventory figuring out what I still need to get.

I’ve pretty much got everything I need but there are a few things that I’d like to get before the trip. Toward the top of my list right now is shoes for the wedding/rehearsal dinner. I’ve got some cute wedge heels I can wear, but I’d like to see if I could find something more comfortable (and easier to pack). These are not completely needed, but would be nice to have.

One thing that I managed to cross off the list this week was getting another bathing suit. Technically, I had 2 already, but one of them was the last-minute shopping trip bathing suit I got when I needed one for Burke Williams. When I got that one, my future sister-in-law, her friend, and I ran over to Macys to buy bathing suits as quickly as possible. And in the store, I didn’t have too many options. Most of the ones in my size were swim dresses (yes, seriously). The one I ended up getting was ok, but I didn’t love it.

I did find some nice plain black bathing suit bottoms through Old Navy earlier this summer, so I had those. And I got this top through Torrid about a month or two ago.

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It’s super cute and comfortable. But because of the Hawaii trip and the fact that I’ll probably need more than one bathing suit on the trip, I had to go shopping for another one.

I was thinking since it was the end of summer I should be able to find some great deals. I was, but the supply was extremely limited. The only tops I could find at Old Navy were bikini tops (and I really don’t want to have my stomach exposed).

I searched lots of the usual websites on a regular basis with no luck. Finally, I tried Target (I swear they aren’t paying me to write this post), and I found a ton of options and they had a “buy one get one 50%” sale!

Since I know that the stores won’t really have any of the bathing suits in my size, I ordered 6 different tops and bottoms to try on at home (and I could return the rest to the store). All of my purchases arrived this weekend, and I spent some time trying everything on (is this fun for anyone?).

Some were easy to eliminate either because of the style or fit. But there were two that I liked that I had to pick between. I ended up going with this top and a another plain black bottom.

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I’m actually starting to get a little excited to wear a bathing suit since this new one is so cute! I’m going to be going to Tahoe this weekend to see my family, so I’ll probably get to wear my new bathing suit then as well.

I’m just glad that I can cross another item off of my to do list (and this one was a tough one to get done!)!

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More Cute Workout Clothes (or Why Can’t More Companies Be Like Old Navy?)

Posted on July 22, 2013 | 1 comment

I’ve mentioned my love for Old Navy clothes in the past. For a while, I’ve worn Old Navy workout capris and tank tops to various exercise events. The clothes fit me, they aren’t too expensive, and sometimes I find something awesome like this shirt.

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But most of the tops I’ve been wearing to workout in were not designed to be workout clothes. They get stretched out and don’t wick away any sweat (so I leave class feeling like my shirt was shrink-wrapped onto me).

Many of the women in spin class wear cute tops from stores like Lululemon. I’ve looked on their website, and most of their shirts don’t come bigger than a size 12. I won’t be wearing a size 12 anytime soon, and even when I do, I don’t know if I want to support a clothing company that doesn’t celebrate women of all shapes and sizes that workout.

So I’ve been on the hunt for real workout tops that come in my size. And guess where I found them?

Yup. At Old Navy.

(I’m seriously not paid by Old Navy to say any of this. But if they want to give me a gift card to support my shopping habit at their store, I wouldn’t turn it down)

In their Active section, they now carry tops that remind me of things I saw at Lululemon and other fancy stores like that. I purchased two different tops, both which had shelf bras in them. And I got them recently delivered to my house.

My review: I love these tops! The shelf bra isn’t the most supportive for someone like me, but it’s nice to have. I could see myself wearing these for walks without having to wear a sports bra underneath. I’m not sure about wearing them alone to spin class, but I might be gutsy enough to try it out this week.

I feel like it’s important to feel comfortable and beautiful while working out. And you don’t have to dress up to feel beautiful. I have friends who feel amazing when they workout in tank tops and sweat pants and that’s great! It’s just not me. I want to feel cute and stylish (but I’m not so crazy that I want to do my hair or wear any makeup when I’m working out).

I highly encourage you all to check out some of the workout clothes by Old Navy. I don’t get a kickback or anything. I just want to show support for a company that supports my body type. I am slightly peeved that they don’t carry any plus sized regular clothing in their stores (those are online only), but the largest size of the regular clothes is pretty much plus size.

If I have the courage to wear my new top to spin class, I’ll make sure to report back!

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Posted in Fitness, Fun Stuff, Shopping

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