I had seen the little symbol before: some weird upside-down horseshoe in a circle. My yoga instructor had even referenced them in the middle of class.

“Grab your legs, ladies. And don’t worry about stretching out those lululemons.”

I just never made any sort of connection. Lululemon? Is that some new way to refer to the va-jay-jay?

And then my sister in law brought me up to speed. Lululemon was a brand of workout apparel. The “best workout clothes around,” according to her; not to mention “super cute.”

“Lauren, they are seriously amazing,” she told me. “They are totally worth the money.”

So, when I was shopping with my mom this weekend and came across a brand new lululemon store, I decided to pop in and see what all the fuss was about. I sat my mom down in a chair and began sifting through the infamous black pants stacked neatly in little bamboo cubes.

I pulled out a pair labeled “tall;” simple black with some cute black diamond stitching at the top. They looked nice. Felt nice too. And then I saw the price tag. Read More »

It is impossible for me to find jeans that fit me well. If they are long enough (I stand a tall 5’10), then the rise is too low. If the rise is high enough, the pants are too short. And if I am lucky enough to get those trendy little jeans over my larger-than-average thighs, they rarely make it past my larger-than-average ass (thanks mom!).

Jean shopping for me is like bathing suit shopping for most girls. I absolutely dread it. I wait until the last possible second (like yesterday when my favorite pair ripped in the crotch for the fourth time) before making my way to the store. Once there, I bring armloads of jeans into the dressing room and try on every last one. There are often tears. And there is rarely a purchase.

Recently, though, I have come across a few brands of jeans that truly are made for every body. They are longer than the standard 32” that most designer jeans (Sevens, Citizens, True Religions) run and cut a little more generously for the real female body. Some are somewhat pricey, but when you have problems finding pants like me, the price becomes an afterthought: Read More »

Tattoos are always an iffy subject.

They stay on you forever, something that seems awesome at 20 (skull and crossbones with flames! Sweet!) might not seem so cool at 40 (“mommy, why do you have a scary skull on your back?”), and getting them removed is a whole hell of a lot more painful than getting them done.

Plus, people tend to look at you differently if there’s permanent ink on your arm or back or stomach.

Tattoos will always be a heavily debated topic, but what if I told you the discussion was about to get a little more complicated?

Branding Tattoos, a new way for advertisers to get their product out there and for image conscious buyers to forever connect themselves with their favorite apparel or make-up line, are slowly becoming more popular in the states.

Consumers are turning away from hearts, flowers, and tribal armbands, and getting Nike and Dior etched into their skin forever. Read More »