WoolWeenies Club

[GLC1968]

I don't have a Shak (yet) but my guess is that you probably are a small. I don't have your 'endowment' but based on the items I do have, they seem to be pretty generous in that area. I'm actually boderline between M and S, and since you are now smaller than me, I'm sure you chose correctly. I've not had any of my Ibex stuff shrink on me, either.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Trisk.- It sounds like the small shak would be the right size for you. I'm usually a medium size in tops in general, and the shak half zip in medium fits me very well. I also have a shak full zip that I often will wear over it like a sweater set, and I purposely got that in large so it fits well over the medium shak.
If you are normally small, the shak in small should fit.
I have washed my shaks quite a few times already on gentle, lukewarm water, in the machine, using Woolite, then dried on LOW dryer setting (with a fabric softener because that's the only thing that really gets the cat hair to come off), and they come out just fine and have not shrunk more than a microscopic amount, nor pilled or anything. Shaks are great.
I agree, the Thistle will go well with your black and gray items, and will look elegant but sporty.

[Triskeliongirl]

Thanks Catherine and Lisa! Yeh, I love that I can move from work to play in it. Sometimes I bring my bike on a professional trip, or even go to meetings at ski resorts, so I think I will get a lot of uses from this one piece. I am convinced I'm gonna like the color but now I just hope that I will like the fit. That's the worst thing about internet shopping, you really just don't know until you try it on.

[Natasha]

I have a full zip Shak in the thistle heather color. It is purply-gray. Kind of a muted color. I wear it with black mostly, but it would look good with gray also. The shaks seem to run pretty true to size, though somewhat slim. If you wear a small in Shebeest tops, you probably want a small shak. I usually wear a medium in Shebeest and the Ibex pieces usually fit great in medium. The shak fabric is pretty stretchy and very comfortable.

[itself]

Ok, this is going to be a long post, but we will need your recommendations! It was high forties last night, when we went for our first ride with our new Ibex Woolie Shirts and Ibex Pingo jackets. We wore light fleece tights, and backlava for our heads.

Observations: We both started out a bit chilly, but about 15 minutes into the ride, I felt great. Good enough to zip down my Pingo jacket. My stoker, however, was comfortable, but kept hers zipped.

An hour into the ride, we begin a half hour ascent up a 4% grade hill. Still feeling really comfortable. Ah, but then the descent...we both froze! But once that was done, I felt comfortable again, Laurie was hanging in there.

The Woolie shirt is comfortable, and absorbed the sweat well. The Pingo jacket was great for the wind. It's so light you feel like you have nothing on. So "A" for comfort for sure.

Two hours into the ride (it's night time!), I still felt good, but my arms were cold. Laurie was cold on her chest (and her jacket was still zipped).

Ok, so what could we change/add?

1. I perspire a lot. I definitely felt post ride that I was not frozen like I was in my smartwool mid and bellweather jacket. I think the lighter layering worked for me, but my arms were still cold. When I took my pearl izumi backlava off, my head was soked. Ideas on how I could change/add to my layering. I'm so close to being perfectly comfortable!

2. Laurie was frozen post ride. She has in the past worn a lot more layers than me and doesn't perspire and is more comfortable. Ideas on what she should add for layers?

The woolie base layer is without question, the best one I have used yet, but I was using a smartwool midweight (we used to live in Maine). Living in Arizona we can definitely lighten up, but I can't explain the cold here,it CAN definitely get to you.

Thanks for your help gals...we really appreciate any suggestions!

Lisa & Laurie
ICE X2 Tandem bike riders

[GLC1968]

Hi Lisa!

I would add layers where you are coldest. My husband and I have similar issues...when he gets cold, it's usually his arms. For me, it's my chest. I just bought an Ibex tank that I plan to wear under my wool baselayer or jersey. Often, I can get away with just a wind vest where my husband needs a full jacket. And I've also been known to keep an extra wind vest with me for cases where I'm not quite layered enough. My H, on the other hand, just purchased the wool armwarmers from Ibex. His plan is to wear them under his jacket (over the wool baselayer) to add warmth where he needs it.

Of course, neither of us have tried this yet because wouldn't you know it...our new wool arrives and we get a warm front!

[SouthernBelle]

Ditto wearing arm warmers over the base layer. I just tried it last week and it helped a lot.

[sandra]

Not Ibex, but Eddie Bauer has this wool sweater 50% off. It's cute for you ladies in colder climates.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Lisa/Laurie- I would add a half-zip Ibex Shak....over your woolie, under the pingo jacket. If that proves to be too hot, then skip the woolie and wear the shak instead with the pingo on top. That should do it. Look a few posts back to the link to Udans.com for shaks on sale right now. They run pretty true to size.
Another solution would be to wear two woolies instead of one. That would probably work too, but the shak might be more fun to have in general.



P.S. My husband just ordered his second shak. When he got the first one, he said he was "only going to wear it for biking". Hah! I knew that wouldn't last, because they are just too damned comfy and tempting to put on. Sure enough, he was wearing it every day this past week....said he was "testing" it. Hah!
He confessed today that he has ordered a second shak.

[Duck on Wheels]

I want to thank expert wool weenie KnottedYet for the advice she gave Trek420 on woolie items for me for Channuka. I wore the Ibex glove liners and the woolie boolie socks today (inside my OR mittens and NorthFace down boots respectively) and my fingers and toes have never before been so toasty on a January day here before. Admittedly, it wasn't all that cold for this time of year, but colder than yesterday when my toastiness level left that little bit extra to be desired.