Smartwool dilemma

Well, yeah! I've worn this smartwool zip-t several times all day and am doing laundry and looking at it and it LOOKS okay and I sniffed the underarms and it smells faintly of deodorant -- fresh, not stinky. And I know it should be washed, but I'm hesitating because I've never laundered it before and does it really need it.... Haven't decided yet!

The other thing I figured out (doh!) is that one reason it looked so bad when I tried it on the first time is I was wearing a bra that gives no support. Yesterday with my sports bra on, I caught a glimpse of myself and it didn't look as bad. Not that it looked GREAT but I'm not gonna look great in anything that clingy. But it looked MUCH better. Which I should have realized when I first tried it on -- try it on with the foundation garment you'll be wearing under it!

Hey Pooks, my DH and I both have several of those thin merino layering tops that we use not only for cycling but also as a base layer in cold weather just everyday. I often wear the SW crew long sleeve underneath their Zip-T and it's so toasty and nice feeling.
It amazing how I don't get any underarm odors at all wearing merino several times! I only wash mine after maybe 4 wearings, and like you, only because it will take on my deoderant odor, not because it smells "bad". (maybe I should use less deoderant now!) I actually wind up doing far fewer laundry loads since wearing merino base layers.
We save up quite a few merino/wool tops and socks and longjohns, and then do a small machine wash of them on GENTLE with Woolite and cold water. I fluff them a little bit in the dryer on LOW for only about 15 minutes (gets the cat hairs off for one thing!), then I just lay them or hang them out to dry.
Woolite is easier on the wool fibers than a harsh detergent like Tide. We tried Ivory Snow liquid, which was recommended by the Woolistic brand merino manufacturers, but we hated the smell of that stuff and went back to Woolite.
If I take good care of my real wool stuff I hope it will last almost forever. (it sure ain't cheap!)

Cheap wool warning:

I've gotten a couple Duofold woolies (2 shirts, 2 pr long underwear bottoms) from Sierra Trading Post. Cheap price. Crappy quality.

I'm constantly sewing holes, rips, poor seams, and spontaneous discombobulations on those things.

My Ibex stuff is much much better quality. As is my Icebreaker.

For the price difference, I would go for the expensive stuff.

BTW: I've never had a problem with Duofold two-layer stuff. The cotton/wool double layer that they are known for is great. It's their 100% wool single layer that is just not up to par.

I use Ivory Snow powder for woolens. It doesn't seem to have a smell to it, I don't notice one anyhow.

JoBob- check out the smell of the liquid Ivory Snow next time you pass by it in the supermarket aisle....YUCKO! My DH first complained about it and I thought he was just exaggerating- how bad could it be?- until I washed my things and found he was dead right. And worse, the smell stayed in the wool through days of wearing it afterwards. I could smell it on a base layer right through my other layers! Sort of a sickeningly sweet artificial soapy smell. I bet you're right about the Ivory powder not smelling bad though. But DH and I are happy with the Woolite now, so we'll stick with that. I also find that it doesn't take much soap of any kind to get the merino woolens clean and fresh- less is best.

Knotted- thanks for the warning about the Duofold 100% wool items. I'll steer clear! My DH loves their two-layer wool/cotton blend longjohns and henleys. He recently got some all merino tights and chamois shorts from Woolistic that he loves- they look really well made.

I was in REI yesterday and I saw they had the Smartwool midweight zip-T in stock, so I tried it on im my usual size M, and ... yikes ! :eek:

That fit of that top is so much different than the fit of the microweight crew neck (which I happened to be wearing at the time).

The midweight top is a much snugger fit, and I looked like a purple sausage in it. :p I didn't bother trying on the size L, but maybe I will next time I wander thru an REI.

But it looks like I'll be sticking with my beloved microweight Smartwool.

The SW zip-T's are much more form fitting than the simple crew neck longsleeves. They are tailored in at the waist. I have largish hips but a small waist, so they fit me fine. I still like the crews though- comfy!

I wash my smartwool stuff in and all my biking clothes in cold water on gentle and I use the new Johnsons Lavender scented baby shampoo. It smells wonderful. I try to air dry everything.

Doh, I just remembered, it was the midweight LS crewneck that I tried on, not the zip-T. (REI had both the midweight crewneck and the midweight zip-T in stock).

Gah, I'm getting senile. :o

So allow me to rephrase ... in my experience, I found that the smartwool LS crewneck in the midweight wool is much more form fitting (as in, purple sausage casing) than the smartwool LS crewneck in the microweight wool.

And...to further clarify and confuse:

The Smartwool midweight Zip-T (like the one Pooks got) is more tapered in at the waist than the Ibex "Zephyr" zip turtleneck. The Zephyr is straighter shaped in the body and a tiny bit more loose fit. I have both of these in medium so I am able to compare the size and fit of the two brands against each other.
Other than the fit, these two zip turtlenecks are quite similar in weight and feel. They are both nice. I like my zephyr in Persimmon color because it's pretty visible in traffic and is a warm happy kind of color for autumn.