WoolWeenies Club

[GLC1968]

If you could check tonite I would appreciate it, as I am still waiting for my coupon to arrive for doing a gear review on altrec.

p.s. Acutally I have have just gotten an answer. I phoned Ibex, and they told me the pez runs similar to the shak and is sized to fit over a light layer. They recommend a medium to layer over a small shak.

I think a medium makes the most sense. I checked and mine vest is a medium and when comparing it to my medium Shaks, it's almost identical in the body in terms of size. I obviously can't compare shoulders/sleeves though...

Anyway, I think you'll be good on size AND I think you'll really like it!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I scored a black 100% merino ribbed turtleneck at GoodWill last week for $3.50.

[Triskeliongirl]

Thanks for everyones comments on the pez. Size M is on the way!

To chime in on the sizing discussion, my personal experience has been that Ibex runs smaller than Icebreaker which runs smaller than Smartwool.

For example, in Ibex and Icebreaker tops I am a small, and in smartwool a medium. In bottoms, I am an XS in Ibex, a S in Icebreaker and a M in smartwool. But, I should warn you that my bottom is really smaller than my top (for example while most of my clothes are size 6, I have one suit I bought as separates where I bought the pants in 4 and jacket in 8). I am slim hipped but have a broad back, broad shoulders (size 40 handlebars!), and big bust (36C).

In terms of quality, I found my ibex looks the best over time, no holes, no pills, etc. on stuff I have now had for several years. I bought my husband a nice icebreaker sweater last christmas and it already has a hole in it. My smartwool looks more worn than my ibex as well. For me, routine care is to machine wash and drip dry.

[Eden]

I got my Walz wool cycling caps!! I placed an order for the team - we got custom embroidery with our logo on the sides. They look great and are totally cozy. I got a regular 4 panel and an earflap cap for myself. I wore the earflap cap yesterday. Love it - warm and cozy, yet not bulky under a helmet - doesn't seem to block as much of my hearing as my old thin fleece beanie.

www.walzcaps.com

[OakLeaf]

that's so weird about sizing, because I have way too many Ibex pieces and a few SW, and the fit seems to be consistent. I'm a true Small in Ibex topss. Compared to athletic wear it's true they run large, but compared to street wear and anything I have from SW, they're smaller. I have a Small SW tank that just hangs on me, where my Small Ibex tank ... I hate to even wear it because it's so perfect for everything, and they don't sell them any more!

[Triskeliongirl]

Maybe there is variation from piece to piece. I have a ton of ibex (including shak, zepher, kate, tank), all the tops are small and bottoms (woolies) are XS. I only have one smartwool top in M (midweight zip T) and one mideweight bottom also in M (mideweight long underwear). I tried on a lot of icebreaker tops and bottoms in both S and M and was a solid S in everything but ended up not buying any.

[Triskeliongirl]

Well, I sent the pez sweater back. It was really frumpy on me. The M fit good over my shak in the shoulders and bust, but the sleeves, hip, and overall length were all much too long/big. But I think the biggest problem was that it really lacked styling. One of the reviewers said it fit like a bathrobe and I have to agree with that description, or maybe a potato sack would also be accurate. It just wasn't something I could feel good wearing.

On a more positive note, I did pick up a brooks brothers merino long cardigan at one of their airport stores, and while its not as heavy as the pez, it does the job of insulating the raincoat and looks much nicer when I take the raincoat off! I'd show a link but its only sold at the airport stores (kind of weird but true). If its really cold where I am going, I'll just take my primaloft coat, so maybe it was just a dumb idea to try to make one coat do everything.

[Grog]

I am just back from a trip to Seattle and I went to Feathered Friends, the outdoor gear store on Yale just half a block away from REI. Ibex's web site says that they have an Ibex "store-in-store" there. No kidding! I tried on about 10 different pieces of Ibex clothing and they had more. I ended up with a Carrie hoddie, a new Indie shirt, a pair of Izzi pants and a Kurta top. My husband got a Shak vest. Everything Ibex was 20% off.

Totally worth a visit!

[bmccasland]

I am just back from a trip to Seattle and I went to Feathered Friends, the outdoor gear store on Yale just half a block away from MEC.

I had to look it up. MEC = REI, for those of us "south of the border". Maybe folks here already knew that, hangs her head in shame, but I'm still learning y'alls language.

I found some nice wool blend turtle/roll/necks at Banana Republic. Still need more WARM things - light enough weight to wear inside as a layer. Guess I'll be adding to my wool wardrobe for a while, right? Not much chance to wear my sleeveless tops year round like I used to - topped with a lightweight wool sweater in the winter. See, I do own wool - just what I have you'd classify as "summer weight."

Bought myself some LLB boots - so I can do field work in this wet squishy ground and keep my toes dry. Now I need more hiking socks.

[Grog]

I had to look it up. MEC = REI, for those of us "south of the border". Maybe folks here already knew that, hangs her head in shame, but I'm still learning y'alls language.

Oops! I really did mean REI but you're right that MEC is the Canadian equivalent. (I edited the post above.) They are totally unrelated businesses, though. Thanks for pointing that out!

[7rider]

A downside of washable Ibex and other brand merino sportswear....
not ALL wool is washable!!
A certain someone put my brown wool turtleneck (for dress wear, not sports wear) in the washing machine. And it shrunk from a size Large to a size Small!!!

I tried it on after that debacle. I really can't wear it...

If you want it...it's yours. PM me and I'll send it to you (domestic US please).

1 Kenar "100% Italian Merino" (made in China ) sweater.
Brown, 3/4 sleeves, rolled edges.

Measures as such:
from base of neck in back to bottom: 20"
Across the chest under arms: ~16"

pix available upon request.

[Biciclista]

so far as I know, all Ibex "washable" is washable. Sorry about your size small.

[Cataboo]

A downside of washable Ibex and other brand merino sportswear....
not ALL wool is washable!!
A certain someone put my brown wool turtleneck (for dress wear, not sports wear) in the washing machine. And it shrunk from a size Large to a size Small!!!

I tried it on after that debacle. I really can't wear it...

If you want it...it's yours. PM me and I'll send it to you (domestic US please).

1 Kenar "100% Italian Merino" (made in China ) sweater.
Brown, 3/4 sleeves, rolled edges.

Measures as such:
from base of neck in back to bottom: 20"
Across the chest under arms: ~16"

pix available upon request.

did you get that at tjmaxx or marshalls? I think that's the brand of a turtle neck that I had bought last year at tjmaxx and the same thing happened - wore it once, it accidently went into the washer on cold and it was miniscule when it came out (it didn't go in the dryer)

Since it was only a week after I bought it or s, I took it back to them and told them that shouldn't have happened. They gave me my money back.

[7rider]

did you get that at tjmaxx or marshalls? I think that's the brand of a turtle neck that I had bought last year at tjmaxx and the same thing happened - wore it once, it accidently went into the washer on cold and it was miniscule when it came out (it didn't go in the dryer)

Since it was only a week after I bought it or s, I took it back to them and told them that shouldn't have happened. They gave me my money back.

I think it came from a Marshalls in Connecticut, near my sister's.
Alas...if so, it was last year (don't wear it much), and receipt is long gone.

And that's exactly what happened!

[jessmarimba]

Have any of you guys ever bought the ibex dresses? I really want the hoody one but I'd like a personal review