WoolWeenies Club

[Triskeliongirl]

So do the boxers have seams, i.e. do you use them instead of panties or with panties?

[KnottedYet]

So do the boxers have seams, i.e. do you use them instead of panties or with panties?

They have a full gusset, so no seams in icky spots. I wear them as underwear/panties. I'm a boxer-brief gal, regular underwear just isn't comfortable and tends to creep around on my, umm, "voluptuous" hips. Out of about 6 different brands of women's boxer briefs I own, Ibex is the clear winner. I wear them winter and summer.

[Triskeliongirl]

Thanks Lisa and Knotted for all that great info. Well the roaster boxers and energy tight are next on my list, but I will wait for them to go on sale. Lisa, you live near Boston, any stores in Boston/Cambridge I might check out for Ibex sales in February? (Lisa, did you know I also bought my titanium Isis at Harris Cyclery, they were the only shop that had one left in my size so I purchased it there on a trip to the cape).

I agree Lisa, I need time to wear the pieces I have just bought. Each day is a surprise. Like today, my shak was still wet on my drying rack from its first wash so I put my Kate on under a cotton ribbed henley, and found that I was amazingly warm even without another layer. How can something so THIN, give me so much warmth? The clerk in the store was so wrong, no wonder they ended up unsold and on the 50% off winter clearance rack. I bought the 2 black smalls they had, didn't buy the lime greens cuz wasn't sure that color would go with my clothes, but I am oh so tempted to go back for them..... But restraint, I already have the mid-weight ribbed crew on the way.

I always considered my shebeest drifit long sleeve cycling jerseys as my 'base' and then just cover them with my PI gavia jacket if its cold. But do you guys wear these wool bases under that kind of jersey? Also does anyone cycle in the energy tight? Do you need to size up if you want to put it over a cycling short w chamois? Is it warmer than say a shebeest or terry cycling tight (I have what terry calls the cool weather not cold weather tights). I do find my legs feel cold in them when the temp. drops below 40, which is probably why I don't ride in the 30s. If I ride I can put my goretex pants over them, but not really fond of riding in a pant.

[mimitabby]

Trisk, it's fun to watch you opening your packages.

I wear wool under winter jerseys, yes. The best of all worlds (in sub 40 degree weather) I wear a wool base layer with a lined zip up jersey on top followed by my raincoat (Showers pass)
This way I can unzip the raincoat and the jersey when necessary.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Thanks Lisa and Knotted for all that great info. Well the roaster boxers and energy tight are next on my list, but I will wait for them to go on sale. Lisa, you live near Boston, any stores in Boston/Cambridge I might check out for Ibex sales in February? (Lisa, did you know I also bought my titanium Isis at Harris Cyclery, they were the only shop that had one left in my size so I purchased it there on a trip to the cape).

Cool!
I know nothing of Ibex outlets near Boston, because i live 2 1/2 hour drive west of Boston, in NY, near the western border of MA. We drove a lot when we got our Rivendells at Harris. My Rambouillet was in stock there too, in my size! I remember seeing Terry bikes there. Did you get your bike there from Elton?

Each day is a surprise. Like today, my shak was still wet on my drying rack from its first wash so I put my Kate on under a cotton ribbed henley, and found that I was amazingly warm even without another layer. How can something so THIN, give me so much warmth? The clerk in the store was so wrong, no wonder they ended up unsold and on the 50% off winter clearance rack. I bought the 2 black smalls they had, didn't buy the lime greens cuz wasn't sure that color would go with my clothes, but I am oh so tempted to go back for them..... But restraint, I already have the mid-weight ribbed crew on the way.

Remember, most clerks haven't spent even one tenth of the time you have in researching wool. They don't know nothin', but they are paid to sound like they do. You will really like the ribbie when you get it.

But do you guys wear these wool bases under that kind of jersey? Also does anyone cycle in the energy tight? Do you need to size up if you want to put it over a cycling short w chamois? Is it warmer than say a shebeest or terry cycling tight (I have what terry calls the cool weather not cold weather tights). I do find my legs feel cold in them when the temp. drops below 40, which is probably why I don't ride in the 30s. If I ride I can put my goretex pants over them, but not really fond of riding in a pant.

Let's see.... Yes I wear merino thin base layers under anything I want, and often under bright yellow polyester jerseys cause I like being seen in traffic on my bike. Makes the poly jersy seem 3x as warm.
As to the energy tight -which is much like my approach tight- I wear these thick wool tights all the time....sleeping, walking, supermarket, biking, whatever. Since wool does breathe, on the bike the wind factor might mean you need an additional layer. If it's really cold I might wear my Shebeest chamois tights with my Ibex Approach tights over them. Or, I might wear my Ibex tights and then a padded short OVER them. (i enjoy the dork factor). The Ibex wool tights are VERY stretchy and will go on nicely over whatever other tights or shorts you want- no need to order a size up to layer them.
In the dead of winter I often go out for the day or go walking 5 miles in 20 degreesF wearing either:
My approach wool tights with an UnderArmor tight or a fleece tight on top of them...
or,
My UnderArmor tights or a fleece tight with the Ibex wool tights on top of them.
Either combo would be fine for cold biking down to about 30- you can use either of your winter chamois biking tights combined with the Ibex tight, and you probably wouldn't need the Goretex pants then. The tights let you move better.
I can go snowshoeing in the Ibex tights with a biking rain pants over them to keep the snow off.
It's all pretty versatile.

Exciting wool event today!:
DH took me to a sporting apparel store in MA (west coast!) that I heard has a lot of Ibex now. Indeed they did have quite a selection of Ibex, and it was weird to suddenly see many items that I have thus far only seen online and in photos. Everything was "alive"! =8-O
I got to try on all kinds of things that I've often wondered about or hesitated about, like....
They had the shaks in all 4 colors (i have only the black and brown), and I tried on the WarmGreen and the ThistleHeather ones. Though they looked fine on me, I decided I wasn't that much in love with either color and will make do with my black and brown ones until I can see what next autumn's shak colors are like.
I saw the Kates there! They are wonderful, and very soft. I loved that soft smoky lavender color, and the black....but they didn't flatter my figure much at all, like the shaks do. They emphasized my modest excesses around the waist and hips, they would have looked great if I was 15 pounds lighter. So I passed on those too.
I have enough in the way of nice jacket and vest and sweaters, so I really didn't much look at those things. DH was patiently meandering about and I didn't feel too rushed.
The one thing that caught my eye was the Carrie hoodie, which looked good on me too and I liked the weight and material. So I think I'll wind up getting one of those.
The best thing was that I came away feeling pretty happy about the things that I already have. I felt I had made some good choices considering I had to choose from things without seeing them in person in a store beforehand. So that was nice.

[Crankin]

Lisa, where was that store? In Gt. Barrington?
I haven't seen Ibex in ANY store in the Boston area. I've looked at E. Mtn. Sports, REI, and a local "outdoor store." I thought they only sold their stuff on line.

Robyn

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Robyn,
It's "The Arcadian Shop" in Lenox, MA:
http://www.arcadian.com/

Apparently they have sold small amounts of Ibex items for a long time, but now they have a whole section of Ibex for men and women. My friend was there when the Ibex reps were putting the finishing touches on the "Ibex mini-shop". If you go, be aware that there are a few Ibex items sort of hidden in their cycling area as well to check out- like El Fitto knickers and Ibex wool cycling jerseys.

[Crankin]

OMG! I can't believe I have never been to this store. We've been going to the Berkshires for cycling trips for the past 4 years, in addition to a few skiing and cultural excursions there.
I may have to take a field trip there SOON. Maybe we can meet for lunch in the cafe....

Robyn

[KnottedYet]

I have strayed... I just ordered this: http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/sto...feat=502282-tn

It's cute, it's cheap. The one I ordered (black) has hot pink trim-bits. I imagine it will look lovely with a pair of faded jeans.

BTW, LL Bean has some nice merino shirts on sale for $30. T-necks, LS crews, and t-shirts. http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/sto...Search&feat=sr

[Velobambina]

Knott--Those T-shirts are nice. Very soft, look nice. I have a couple of them, but they sold out of my size really fast so I had to go w/a small instead of the better-fitting xtra small.

I LOVE LLbean

[Triskeliongirl]

OK, I have to fes up.

1. I started corresponding with Knotted about my wool needs *IN PRIVATE* cuz I was too emabarrased to admit it to the rest of you.

2. I ordered MORE WOOL. Yes, I said it, I *DID IT* but help, I *MUST STOP*. Some of it is prompted by our unseasonbable cold weather here. Club rides were cancelled, it was in the 20s in the Hill Country where our rides were supposed to start from this morning. I can't get the first floor of my house above 60, and thats with the gas radiator, stove and all burners lit. So, now you see, I just HAD to order more wool......... But it is a sickness, and I MUST STOP NOW.

3. I WILL return some of it. I actually do MEAN that cuz this time I double ordered some pieces in small and medium to try on. But, will I be able to return as much as I should???? I DON'T KNOW???? But, I will stick to my gotta really love it rule.

4. So, what did I order? What made me do it?

Everyday that I wear the few pieces I own I am amazed more and more. I never cycled in wool cuz I worried I would overheat, but now I get it. Instead of wearing clothes that make you cold for the first 10 minutes, and warm towards the end, WOOL ADJUSTS. It really does!! So, then I realized owning pieces that take me from cycling or other outdoor winter sports to everyday use is what I MUST DO.

I never used to buy cycling jerseys without back pockets, but then I realized that my screaming yellow PI Vagabound jacket, in either jacket or vest mode pairs perfectly over my shak, so voila, pockets AND visiblity are taken care of. If its raining, no problem, same thing with my screaming yellow Craft Rain Jacket. If its really cold, my terry headwind vest adds more warmth with pockets to boot. So what did I do? I ordered a second full zip shak on sale at Uncle Dans, this time in black. It also helped that the first one looked and fit so nice after laundering. I told myself that in return I will return the Ibex organic sweater when it comes, but if I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT, I *may* keep it. I ordered it in M to either layer over my S shak, or my heavy cotton sweaters, but then I realized I wouldn't need to do that if I ordered some mid-weight zip bases to put under, and I already have the terry headwind vest to put over if necessary. I also realized that I would rather have a sweater that I can cycle in or dress up in, than one for dress up only.

But, I couldn't find Ibex bases on sale in styles I liked, but I got a sierra trading post 20% off coupon yesterday so I ordered some zip T-necks in Icebreaker bodyfit 260 http://www.sierratradingpost.com/p/,...For-Women.html as well as the matching long janes: http://www.sierratradingpost.com/p/,...For-Women.html , all with the wise counsel of Knotted via a lengthy PM exchange (thanks Knotted!). Now, is Knott a wool enabler or is Knott a WOOL ENABLER??? To quote from Knott: "Absolutely buy some Icebreaker! It's good stuff!" Let's say it, KNOTT IS A WOOL ENABLER.

I also ordered the base bottoms, cuz the thought of wearing cycling tights with chamois under my everyday clothes for a week in new england was just too unappealing. And now I don't need to buy a flannel nightgown either!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Woo-HOOOOO!

[Triskeliongirl]

Woo-HOOOOO!

Now Lisa, I know right from the start you thought I needed another shak vs the organic sweater. Now I think you were right! The shak is just such an amazing piece. I did hesitate (ok, maybe only a *little bit*) before ordering another one, but I hate when you find a piece you love, and then it gets changed the next year, or they don't make it in the color you want, etc. I patiently waited for my shak to dry, and when I pulled it on over my Kate this morning, I just went ahhhhhhhhhhhh. I HAD TO DO IT!

You guys never answered my coat querry, but now that I have this layering stuff now I know which coat to bring on my trip to new england, my columbia 3-in-1 parka. While not the most stylish, its only a little too big. Its a medium and if I were buying new today I'd buy a small, but its great for layering up with all my wonderful new wool pieces. So again, whether I wanna do something really active or sedate, I just have to layer it up appropriately. I'll also pack my goretex pants. Same thing, while they are a little too big, it means I can even layer them over my wool dress pants so I'll be prepared for anything from a blizzard to unseasonably warm weather.

But, oh, you girls are SO EVIL, especially LISA and KNOTT. Yes Lisa, you too are a WOOL ENABLER!!!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Tri- that new full zip black shak will look great over your mulberry ribbie!

Love my larkspur ribbie so much that I finally went ahead and got it in mulberry as well. I got the very last large mulberry one, because they were gone right after my order processed.

I got to try the Carrie hoodie on at that store yesterday, and so I did order one at 30% off directly from Ibex. I got the green one- it's a very beautiful rich emerald mossy green and looked nice on me in the store. It was good that I was able to try things on yesterday. I had been tempted by the oatmeal colored Carrie hoodie online, but in real life it made me look fat because of the light color. We'll steer clear of that one!

I sort of had to buy those new items because I was afraid that Triskellion would start to catch up with me.

Robyn- yes we could meet there sometime at The Arcadian Store! As soon as I figure out how to drive there on my own . My picky coffee acquaintance says they have the best espresso in the whole area. Did you see on their website that they are hosting some snowshoe and xcSki walks from there into the nearby park which has groomed trails? I have not looked at the details though, and I don't know if they provide man-made snow or what....I don't know much about those kinds of things since I'm not a skier.

[Triskeliongirl]

Hey Lisa, enjoy your carrie hoodie! I did try one on too, and it is a lovely piece.

You know Lisa, I may just have to keep the organic sweater (OS) and black shak. I had to order the OS in M cuz they were out of S, but I realized that means it will layer nicely over both my thistle and black shaks. So, while not exactly double shaking like you do, I'll get the same end result now won't I? If I do that, can I just layer the columbia parka over without the bulky zip-out fleece jacket (without the zip-out jacket its just like a typical moutain style shell jacket you'd find in a ski or outdoor store)? If so, how cold a temp could I go out in, not to exercise, but to city stroll, maybe wait for a bus, stuff like that?