I’ve talked about Carbon38 quite a few times before on the blog. Since I discovered them last year, they’ve created quite a name for themselves as one of the best places to shop for high-end activewear. I browse their site often, and it’s become one of my go-to sites for perusing the latest and greatest workout gear. C38 goes for a sexy, cool vibe with both the pieces they stock as well as how they style them. I really like that they use fitness instructors as their models, and that they’ve started to add measurement info on the “ambassador” tab of their product pages, which is incredibly useful.
Although lululemon dominated the market for stylish activewear for years, their grip has loosened considerably, both as their quality has been slipping and as more and more companies are moving into the space. In the ever-evolving activewear world, everyone seems to be wondering: what clothing brand is best poised to replace lululemon? I don’t think there’s a clear answer to that. The market has diversified so much that I highly doubt any single activewear line will dominate the spotlight again.
Instead, I think specialty stockists like Carbon38 are the future of activewear. We spandex junkies are increasingly noticing that many brands are producing stylish, functional, quality products. Still, even though we want to mix and match labels, we definitely value the convenience of one-stop shopping. Beyond that, Carbon38 does the legwork of hunting down new brands, then curates the best products from those brands for us to shop. At this point, any fitness fashion lover has to have Carbon38 on her radar.
Since I shop at Carbon38 myself, I was thrilled to add a couple new and different pieces to my spandex stash!
Disclosure: Carbon38 gifted me the crops and sports bra to share with you all. As usual, all text and opinions here are all mine.
Mini-reviews: Michi and Blue Life Fit
Of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t share the scoop on these two new pieces! :)
I’ve been dying to try Michi for quite a while, and was thrilled to get this pair of stardust crops. The fabric on these is fantastic and feels very luxe. It’s slick-faced, rather than cottony, but softer and silkier than most bottoms made of a similar fabric. It’s nicely opaque, too. I found these crops to fit true to size, maybe just slightly to the larger side if anything. I recommend taking your regular size, or your smaller size if you’re in between. I didn’t find the fabric to be compressive on me, but since I am on the small side of XS, your experience may vary there. (If Michi made an XXS, it would be a dream come true for me!)
The rise is higher, just a bit below the belly button, but you can fold down the waist if that’s more your speed. The waistband itself is made of a thicker, reinforced elastic material that’s firm enough to hold everything in, but soft enough not to cut in. The length is on the longer side for crops (my pair measures just shy of 22″), so these will work well if you’re tall, too. I had to slide the hem up just a little bit to keep it from gaping, so I’m considering hemming an inch or two off these for my shorter legs. They felt great when I tested them for a workout, both in terms of fit as well as the feel of the fabric. I would wear these anywhere–CrossFit, yoga, spin, barre, etc.
The mesh side accent and the extra side pocket add just the right amount of stylish yet subtle detail. The pocket has wide mesh layered over fine mesh so that you can slide your hands in and out without catching your fingers on the larger openings. The mesh down the side of the legs is noticeable and helps with ventilation, but wasn’t too revealing on me.
Trying out this pair of these crops helped shed light on why Michi’s prices are on the higher side: the quality strikes me as notably above average. Plus, they’re made in Canada, and I always like to see brands manufacturing close to home, even if it results in higher prices. Overall, these are a quality, versatile pair of crops suited to any fitness occasion.
Now for the sports bra. I have to admit I get into a bit of a sports bra rut a lot of the time, so this Blue Life Fit bra is a fun change of pace. There are no slots for cups, but the front fabric is quite thick, so I didn’t have any show-through issues. The band is not as sturdy as some other sports bra bands and has a lot of give, so overall, expect support to be in the light to medium range, depending on your body shape. Mine is an XS, and I think this size would be best for ladies who wear a 32 band, or possibly even 34s with a smaller cup size.
The coverage is, obviously, full in the front, which is great since there aren’t any issues with it cutting in, and I can fold forward and go upside-down without feeling like half of my business is falling out. :) The full coverage is nicely balanced by the mesh, which keeps it from getting too stuffy from a functional perspective, plus ups the sass factor. Take note that the solid snake fabric doesn’t cover very far back on the sides, so if you’re busty and/or have wide-set breasts, be mindful that the coverage may be low there.
The best part about this bra is how comfortable it is. It doesn’t dig in anywhere, and I comfortably wore it for hours at a time without any desire to change out of it (which is rare for me!). I also really appreciate that it’s made in the USA.
P.S. I couldn’t help but mix in my Alala fractal tee in poseidon with this outfit, since it happened to go perfectly (I previously reviewed this tee here). I love the little pop of snake that peeks out at the neckline. The tee is an ideal to-and-from layer to tone down the outfit from a sassier look to something a little more easy-going, but still stylish. I love that these new pieces integrate so nicely with what I already have.
This outfit
Michi stardust crops with mesh pocket
More Carbon38 favorites
Blanc Noir mesh inset puffer vest
those crops are sooooooo superdeeduper. dammit!!!
i got the antigravity bra with the bandier FIT15 discount and i love it!
i am totes running out of things to sell on eBay to keep paying for all of these great things you are finding for us :-/
How did the antigravity bra run for you? I read some reviews saying it ran a little small, which would be ideal for me since I wear such a small band size.
And seriously, I’ve bought so much lately and I hardly want to return any of it! Grow money tree, GROW.
i always order a small and it seemed like a standard small to me – at least not atypical enough that i noticed. it actually looked a little strange with the cups in – like the seam around the top of the cups was too tight and then with the cups it made like an indent above the breast. i took the cups out and it lays perfectly smooth and looks very nice. i have A cups though, so i bet people with larger cup sizes would find that that upper seam digs in a bit in their TTS. maybe that is the issue? i did not notice it being smaller in the band at all, so you might not benefit in that way, but it’s worth a try i think. bandier still has their coupon code AND no tax AND free shipping/returns, right? hello no brainer!
Hmmm darn. Sounds like it won’t work for me, then. I could’ve sworn I had seen an XS somewhere, but now the smallest anywhere is an S, and I’m sure that will be too big. Ah well. :
I love that the crops have pockets. I’m obsessed with crops with pockets at the moment. It makes it so much easier to run with your phone and keys. I’ll have to keep my eye on those. :)
Yes, pockets are so useful! This one probably isn’t big enough for a phone, and it doesn’t zip, but you could still stash a key or card in there.
What an awesome outfit! I hadn’t cared one way or the other about Michi in the past, but this review definitely makes me want to try a pair. Incidentally, you write… “I recommend taking your regular size, or” but something happened and I am not seeing the rest of the sentence. Or?!
Oops! Forgot to say, I think what you said about the future of the activewear market is really true. Plus, I also love how Carbon38 features fitness instructors with fit and other info about them. Very cool.
here is full sentence: I recommend taking your regular size, or your smaller size if you’re in between. I didn’t find the fabric to be compressive on me, but since I am on the small side of XS, your experience may vary there. (If Michi made an XXS, it would be a dream come true for me!)
:)
Thank you! That’s so weird that it wasn’t showing up for me. I am between sizes so this is helpful info :)
Haha there’s a reason! I actually went back and fixed it right after I saw your comment, but I had to go finish making dinner so I didn’t have time to reply. ;)
Ah, I see! Well, all the better that there’s a logical reason behind things ;) Maybe I’ll get a pair of Michi leggings to reward myself for achieving a goal or something level-headed like that.
Thanks for bringing that up! Sometimes I get so deep into editing I overlook some things. Oops. :) I think Michi is definitely worth a try, so long as you’re ok with the price. Definitely one of the nicer brands I’ve tried lately, in my one-pair-of-crops experience. :)
You look great in these as usual. It’s interesting that companies have been sending you muted or black stuff since I see your taste as more colorful. You can pull everything off though!
Thanks! :) I think I tend to go to one extreme or the other–either tons of color or totally neutral. I looked at my winter stuff the other day, and noticed it is literally 100% neutrals and teal/blue. Seriously, every.single.piece. I guess I’m predictable, haha.
I recently got my first pair of Michi leggings and I am in love! I was skeptical about the price, but now that I have them, I totally understand. Definitely higher quality than lulu, which is already very good! I have the same complaint as you though- I need an XXS for them to be compressive, and since Michi does not make XXS, I have not worn them and may end up returning. As much as I love them, compression is a big plus for me. I hope they start making XXS!
Glad you liked your pair! It’s too bad more brands don’t make XXS. Sometimes XS is cut small enough in some brands, but that’s not really the case here. Hopefully they will expand their size ranges. :)
I love Michi’s design. I think the style is edgy and hot, and while I think the price point is super high, I could justify it because it was so unique, and I used to think the quality was great. I ordered the shadow legging last year (but style is couple of years old), which I LOVE. The style and the quality are on point (as it should be for $180!). HOWEVER, I tried on the supernova capri in fuschia, which I was convinced would be the same, but I think their quality has gone down A LOT. While the material does feel luxe, it’s not nearly as compressive as the shadow legging, and I’ll be damned, but they were totally see through from the FRONT. How is that even possible? But I could clearly make out my underwear (not even that dark) through the fuschia color. I was so incredibly disappointed, especially since these were $175 (although I got them on sale on Shopbop). The material was so thin, it just wasn’t even worth considering to keep them. I had hoped they were just a fluke, and during the recent Shopbop sale, I ordered the stardust crop legging in red. I love the style, but again, the opacity just isn’t there. This color seemed to be better than the fuschia in terms of opacity, and since they were “only” $90 with the sale (reg $125), I decided to keep them. But I wonder if that was a good idea since I only wear them with long shirts that keep my privates covered because they are still see through. Probably a dumb decision on my part. For almost $100, I shouldn’t have settled.
I’m glad your Michi pants were not see through, but I get the feeling that, even though they are made in Canada, their quality and manufacturing have really gone down. While it hurts to pay so much for good activewear, I don’t have a problem with it as long as the quality is really there. After 2 bad purchases, I’m starting to wonder if they care about design more than quality. It is ridiculous for their stuff to be 2x as expensive as Lulu but half as good in quality.
PS- their customer service isn’t good either, nor do they stand behind their clothing the way Lulu does. Their ecommerce site is TERRIBLE to order from (charge for shipping and you have to pay for returns)- highly recommend going through 3rd party if you order their stuff.
Ugh, so sorry to hear that. I’d definitely be pretty put off if I had two bad experiences in a row, too. I know exactly what you mean about front sheerness–I’ve tried on leggings that had that issue. Quality control issues seem to plague almost every brand out there right now. One pair of pants is wonderful, the next pair is awful, with no rhyme or reason. I’d like to think that paying high prices means paying for more stringent QC, but that’s definitely not always the case. Hopefully I won’t run into those issues if I order more Michi. Thanks for sharing!
I agree with what you said about activewear future. There’s no way one brand can have the market anymore. And that’s a good thing for us consumers.
I also have few Michi items. I have Hydra crop in magenta, stardust crop in cobalt, bionic bra( my most recent purchase, saks had 25% f&f deal), tee with mesh back and a casual top with mesh sleeves. I’m a size 4 in lulu and wear xsmall in Michi , but it’s not compressive in my tts for me either. I would prefer xxs if they had it. Love how fabric feels thought. And I love that their flat seam mesh to regular fabric. Lulu for some reason doesn’t do it with mesh and their seams are too thick IMO .
Yes, I agree it’s a good thing! It’s great to have choice, and competition means brands will push each other to up their game. :) Thanks for the feedback on Michi, too! That’s at least 3 votes for XXS, haha.
So excited to read this! I am still kicking myself for not getting the Michi tights I really wanted when they were on sale on Shopbop, but they were a size up so good to know they probably wouldn’t have worked out. It sounds like Michi is definitely worth a try in the future though when something catches my eye again. And I love that bra! I really love C38’s edgy style, but it doesn’t seem very geared to running (I’m imagining running in that bra you have on with my side boobs showing, ha ha) & I do other workouts at home so wouldn’t really have a use for most of it unless I wear it casually. But I still like to look & dream!
Yeah I don’t think you would’ve been happy in a size up, so I think that worked out after all. :) I agree it does seem like C38’s selection and overall styling tends to be more geared toward yoga/studio/group fitness more than hardcore running. There are certainly running-friendly pieces in there, but it’s not necessarily obvious which those would be.