1950’s vintage dress, 1950’s hat, and the epiphany of new yoga pants

We Love Colors sent me tights for review, but all opinions are my own. I strive to provide honest and reputable reviews on everything I post here, whether I paid for it with my own money, or whether I work for it with my time and energy through blogging.

We Love Colors

This weekend we went to an old military base, and I got to test the wearability and warmth of a pair of tights from We Love Colors. I had reached out to We Love Colors because, of course, I wear a lot of tights and had heard a lot of good things, and I was so excited when they responded positively! They sent me two pairs: dark navy, as worn, and golden yellow.

Colorful tights are getting harder and harder to pick up these days. I used to swarm Target around fall for their rack of colorful $5 pairs, but this year it seems they’ve done away with that plentiful hoard of legwear in favor of sedate maroon and navy and black. I couldn’t find a single red or yellow pair of tights in the entire store, and I was sorely disappointed. And then, once I resigned myself to grabbing a few pairs, my size was rare to be seen.

As it stands, I currently wear a 1X pair of tights. Most selections come in Small, Medium, or Large; and the bigger-hipped and thicker-thighed sizes are few and far between. Reduced to a choice between gray and black, no patterns or colors to be found, I looked online.

I’ve heard of We Love Colors for quite a while; years, in fact. I’ve always meant to purchase a few pairs, but being as I have sharp nails even when they’re short, and tend to put a run in most tights, I was hesitant. Plus, sizing is always tricky. I can’t wear low-rise tights at all; my bum is far too plentiful for that. Even a 1X pair, if low rise, will fall and become uncomfortable. So I was happy to see that We Love Colors carries tights that are high waisted, and whose sizes go up far enough for someone 6′ tall and 335lbs.

The two pairs I received are, however, labeled two different things and fit differently, though I assume they’re both meant for someone of my approximate size.

This pair is labeled a 1-3x size, and is of the solid lycra/microfiber type. While I love the feel and they proved more than able to endure a day full of walking, hiking, sweating, and generally not being gentle (no pilling, tearing, or chafing to be seen!) they did fall a few times and needed to be hiked up despite being fairly stretchy and not at all strained over any part of my body.

The other pair, which I will be wearing later on in another post, are labeled “A-B” size, were long enough in the waist to pull entirely over my chest, and don’t fall at all when worn all day. After a little searching, it looks like those are the plus-size lycra/nylon tights, and I much prefer them! The material is a bit thicker and more opaque, and overall the wear is much more comfortable.  

I will definitely be purchasing quite a few pairs of tights from We Love Colors, and am so thankful I was able to “test” them as it were before taking the plunge. Now I know that right now, as my body stands, the plus-size tights will be a better fit for my hips and general activity! And I am so excited to find a plethora of colors in such good quality. The opacity and softness is so far unparalleled by any other tights I’ve ever tried.

Have you tried We Love Colors? What do you think of them?

The Epiphany of New Yoga Pants

And that brings us to a little update on the health journey that I had mentioned a while ago. As some of you know, I have a fitness account of sorts on Instagram where I had been religiously tracking the food that I ate. For about a month, I ate a steady and healthy diet and lost about ten pounds. And then… there’s always the and then.

I got lazy, slipped up, and fell into a cycle of being sort of okay but not excelling. I was eating an okay diet, I was getting okay movement in, I was okay with the plateau of non-progress. I made a lot of excuses and put off trying harder because Evie didn’t sleep through the night, or we all got sick, or I didn’t have a car, or I didn’t have weights, or yoga pants, or the right bra… the list goes on. 

And then… Friday I started to realize I was letting food be my escape again. Saturday my husband reminded me that he was doing no sugar, and hoped I’d join in too. Sunday I realized something big: I wasn’t fighting for myself. I wasn’t rooting for myself. I wasn’t looking forward to success. I wasn’t doing anything, really, except just trying to pass. I’d eat healthy meals, but also fruit snacks and Goldfish and anything I fed my kids even after I’d already eaten. I’d go on hikes and activities on the weekends, but do nothing more active than housework during the week.

I was just coasting. 

And that’s not how I want to live my life. I don’t want to just be okay. I want to be excellent. I want to thrive, to fight, to push for it, to have something I can be proud of and not something that’s just kind of mediocre.

So this morning, I started a 90 day challenge, pushed myself out of that little comfort zone (and the mindset of “hey well, I’m not GAINING weight…”), got all wobbly and sore, and went out to buy myself three important things: a set of 5lb weights, a new sports bra, and a revolutionizing pair of yoga pants.

It’s not really the pants that are revolutionary though, but the realization that I need to invest in something if I want anything out of that thing. When I invest my skills (and yes, money) in blogging, I see the most return. When I invest my mind in a subject, I learn and grow. When I invest my time and love into my kids, I see them thrive.

And in the same way, I had never thought about it until Sunday… I needed to tangibly invest in my health, and in myself.

Putting money into my health, even though it was only about $30, completely changed my perspective and motivation around working out and making good food choices. Money has always been something I’ve been extremely conscious of, because I was raised in a fairly poor household and work to budget and be wise with our money so that we can afford to live (and then some). And I have seen so many women lately investing in their health; in programs and workouts and shakes and diets that do so much for them, but they’re always things I can’t afford. I can’t afford a $200-per-month program, a $40-per-month gym membership, a $150-per-month supply of shakes.

But I can afford $30 worth of workout clothes and dumbells and a free workout on YouTube, and that little bit of money made me realize how worth it my health is. Sure, I could do that YouTube workout in old pants and a tee shirt, with sand-filled water-bottles to replace the 5lb weights. I could have done it completely free. Yet investing that little bit in myself added a sense of worth, to the program I’m doing, to the time I’m spending on it, to… what I think of myself. In 90 days I hope to be stronger, healthier, slimmer, and happier with what I can accomplish.

Much like a beautiful dress and the perfect accessories boost my mood and make me generally more productive throughout the day, a new pair of yoga pants and a sports bra that match my personality, that are brand new just for me, completely revolutionize my attitude towards workouts. Because now, unlike any other time I’ve ever tried sticking to a plan and changing my diet, I’ve told myself I’m worth it. And now… I look forward to the burn.

1950’s dress, Lotty Dotty Vintage | 1950’s hat, gift from Skye | boots, Breckelles on Amazon | tights, c/o We Love Colors | belt, thrifted | earrings, vintage | brooch, Erstwilder | petticoat, Amazon

If you want to follow me and cheer me on or be an accountability or weight loss buddy, I have a private Instagram for it: @kristinasuko. I am restricting the account to women only, as I’ll be posting progress shots that I’d prefer to be more private, however I’d love to encourage all of you any way I can to reach your own goals!

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