For the final try-on installment (for now), I tried on a couple of recent items that seem to be becoming core pieces, or at least “core” for the season, plus a couple of seasonal extras. You can check out part 1 and part 2 of this round of try-ons if you missed them.
Reviewed in this post:
Retreat 7/8 pants – deep navy
Sculpt shorts – alberta lake
Wunder under crops – black cherry
Top speed crops – star crushed coal black
What the sport singlet – black
What the sport shorts – cyber stripe deep coal
For reference, I am 5’3″, and I typically wear a size 2 in lululemon tops and bottoms. Unless otherwise noted, that’s the size I’m wearing in these pics.
Retreat 7/8 pants in naval blue
(just MD’d in the US yesterday)
The retreat pants are luxtreme yoga bottoms with a high rise option. When worn up, the rise is quite high, all the way to my belly button. I thought they looked and felt better folded down–the high rise doesn’t seem to be as good as the rolldown WUs (not sure how much that has to do with luon vs luxtreme though). The fit was true to size and the fabric was not see-through in a bend (yay!). I didn’t like the angled hem. Especially being short, I thought the angle looked odd at my ankle. This doesn’t seem to serve any functional purpose and makes these a little overstyled (with all the rest that’s going on in these crops) and not very friendly to short ladies, so I think a straight hem would’ve been better here. At the MD price of $69, these are a much more reasonable purchase than at full price, though still not tempting for me.
Sculpt shorts in alberta lake
Oof, I just hate these shorts so much. Ok, first, the good: they aren’t sheer, and the fabric is thick enough that they do, in fact “sculpt”. (Note: some online reviews say they’re sheer, so your mileage may vary.) The fabric is seamless and similar to the in the flow crops, but it felt much more substantial to me. Because they’re thicker, they did feel a bit stiffer, but not in an uncomfortable way. They were true to size for me. These seem like they’d be quite functional.
But, I basically felt like a 90s jazzercise mom in these shorts. I hate the high rise and they’re generally not my style at all. I wouldn’t wear these if someone gave them to me for free. Blech.
Wunder under crops in black cherry
There’s not a lot to say about these. They’re the typical wunder under crop fit and true to size. The color is pretty, the fabric felt fine, but my pair was see-through. <thumbs down> Next.
Top speed crops in star crushed coal black
(see also: more top speed colors)
Quite a few colors have come out in the top speed crops for spring. The shorter length is nice for warmer weather. This pair fit true to size for me, were not sheer, and offered a little bit of compression. The length hit at a spot that looked nice to me, though since I obviously did not go running around in these, I’m not sure whether the hem would stay in place or sneak up and bunch behind the knee. The rounded look that the back butt seam creates isn’t my favorite out of lulu’s other crop offerings, but not a big deal. They still seem like a functional and decently cute style.
What the sport singlet in heathered black
Despite all the cute colors that have come out in this tank lately, this was the only one available in my size. Sorry it’s boring, hah. Anyway, I was hoping to like this tank, but I was definitely disappointed. Some have said the fabric is clingy, and I can definitely see why, but it didn’t bother me. It’s definitely thinner fabric, though not see-through, which is good. I do wish lulu had gotten a little more creative with the back, which is a pretty generic racerback style. In my true size (also my CRB size), the top was a little loose but nowhere near as baggy as a 105F. I don’t mind the swoopy, high-slit sides, and the length, while longer, wasn’t overly tunic-y on me so that was all well and good. My main beef with this tank is the straps/neckline. The straps were too close together and actually angled inward. Compare the neckline you see in the pics above to this CRB:
Much better. I’m not sure if it’s how the WTSS is cut or just how I am built, but I really, really hated how the neckline looked on me. It was awkward-looking and it made my boobs look weird to boot. Dealbreaker for me.
What the sport shorts in cyber stripe deep coal
Another style that lots of colors are showing up in lately: the what the sport shorts. With the side pockets, reflective detail, and short length, these are great for summer. They seem to be going after the Nike Pro compression shorts with these (which a lot of young women seem to get pretty obsessed with), especially given the similarity of the waistband. Of course, the trouble with the waistband is it makes them look kind of like men’s boxer briefs (although some colors aren’t so bad about this). I thought the waistband was going to be a thin, single layer of elastic, but it was actually very thick, enough that there was actually some squishiness to it, if that makes sense. The fabric of the shorts themselves was opaque and pretty compressive. So much so, in fact, that they actually cut into my thighs a bit:
Now, I don’t have particularly large thighs for my size (as evidenced by how much space I have at the leg opening of my speed shorts), so I was surprised with how tight these felt. This wasn’t very comfortable to me, and the boxer brief look doesn’t do a lot for me, so I’ll definitely be sticking with my speeds.
great review once again AA! :)
i noticed the same thing with the what the sport shorts! i really wanted to love them, particularly with the cute colours and the side pockets. but they totally cut into my thighs, it wasn’t a good look. even in my size up. but i do have quite large thighs, but mainly it’s all muscle from years of soccer and alpine skiing. ohh well, i’ll have to keep using my other ones i bought last year without side pockets (i can’t remember the name right now…ughh).
Yeah, a slightly longer fitted short might’ve been nice (boogies aren’t quite enough for me). The what the sports had potential but seem to have missed the mark in a couple ways.
Ugh. I like nothing. :(
I haven’t bought any LLL at all this year, and I used to be one of those fanatics who had to have ALL of the things. :P
I’ve found a new obsession in netaporter, so instead of buying spandex I actually have some nice work clothes now. I guess it is working out, haha!
Ditto (err except that I did buy a couple basics). I saw someone else mention making a similar switch. Not a great sign for lulu, I guess, when we’re jumping ship to something that’s not even the same category :P
Hehe well I guess it does balance things out a little bit anyway. :)
I was wondering about those retreat 7/8 pants! They tempted me at the WMTM price. May go for the Moody Mirages, but I’m kind of stuck on roll downs rn!
I tried on the Retreat 7/8 pants in store and absolutely loved them! I thought they were really flattering and ultra soft. I don’t recall having the baggy ankle issue, and I’m only 5’3″ – but it may have been the pair or shape of my legs. Anyways, I knew they weren’t selling super-well so I left them at the store assuming they would end up on WMTM. I grabbed them the second they did! I bought both moody mirage WUCs on WMTM. The dark ones (blue) that aren’t roll down are dreadful. They seem much tighter than my other WUCs – I wore them to yoga and was pulling at them the whole time. The white moody mirage roll-downs are great, 1000X more comfortable and go with many more tops. The only issue is that the white portions are sheer, so you need to score a pair with no big white spots on the rear end!
I have the light moody mirage roll downs, and LOVE them! Darn about the dark moody WU’s!! I had them in my cart just now. I know what you mean about some being tighter, I have darkest cranberry solid WU’s that are awesome, then garden party ones that I’m always tugging at. :| Maybe I’ll try the retreats instead! Or maybe I’ll just take a chance on both haha. I do love dark moody mirage anything.
Your reviews really confirm how Lulu has missed the mark on so many pieces. I had to laugh at the Sculpt Shorts review! I liked them only because they are longer and give compression and since I have bigger legs I need both. But I also thought they made my butt look a little dumpy. I do love my What the Sport Singlet, but it’s very flattering on my figure. That said, they don’t seem to be selling well online, so I’ll probably only buy more in MD or for a fantastic color.
I went to my local store today to see if they had the run backpacks. They didn’t. I got a spacedye fuel green LS Swiftly on MD. I wanted it when it came out but I pretty much won’t buy Swiftlys at full price. It is so soft and thick…so will sit in my drawer until next winter.;-) Also got the Ultra Violet Vinyasa on MD–another thing I wanted but didn’t want to get at full price. I tried the new Trail Bound Shorts & really liked them. I think they are great for women with bigger legs like me. But the Clear Mint was see-through, and they didn’t have any on black in my size. Also tried the new version of the Pace Rival Skirt and liked it. I’d get it in a good color.
I bet you’ll luck out with WTSS on MD sooner or later (probably later, sadly). They do seem to be lingering, although I’m not sure if it’s for the same reasons I disliked them or not. I think the trail bound short would be doing much better if they’d made better colors. The bark berry is kinda of nakey and the clear mint is just sooo sheer.
Great reviews! It’s super helpful to see clothes modeled on the same body. Lululemon doesn’t seem to do the ultra sporty look well (like 2012/2013 colorblocking of everything). They’re best at adding feminine details like rose gold hardware, ruffles, draping and pleats.
Thanks! :) And I agree, they do best with feminine, fun designs, not so much the more sporty “Nike” look, if you will.
I am 5’4 and really loved the Retreat pants but only in the black/gray color. They are actually slimming visually in this color and go with anything. I love the waistband also, they seem to fit a little looser in my normal size so I could see sizing down in them. I was really surprised that I liked them because they are not something I would normally pickup but one of the girls that worked there insisted that I try them and I am glad I did.
Yup, I agree that that’s the best color! Apparently others agree to because it seems to have sold the quickest.
Totally convinced Lulu thinks I’m fat (see photos below). So Suzanne, I took your advice and sized up in Speed Shorts. I tried a size 8 and ended up buying them in Clear Mint, Boom Boom Juice, and Fresco Blue. I was really disappointed that I had to size up to a size 8, but almost had to size up to a 10!
Seriously, shame on Lulu….what they hell are they thinking. I’m by no means a “skinny” girl, but I’ve always been extremely athletic. Issues with my torn hamstring have caused me to gain about 8-10 lbs, but it is almost insulting to think that Lulu would call me a 10…..when 12 is the max size. You can see from the photos…why yes, I could probably get my mid section in better shape (I finally cleared through physical therapy to start lifiting…yay!), but I am by no means “overweight” where my size would be considered the second “biggest” size in the store. While I’m looking forward to getting in shape for summer and shedding the pounds….its kinda discouraging to see how bad the sizing has gotten.
For the photos, the Boom Boom Juice were the “best fitting”. The Clear Mint were a little see through but at least they had a Clear Mint liner (unlike Zing Pink). Both Clear Mint and Fresco Blue were tight….almost too small in the legs and rear. I couldn’t go up a size because of the waist. The plaid and cadet blue are both size 6 (plaid 2 way, cadet 4 way). Kinda sad that my Cadet ones are looser than the Fresco Blue and Clear Mint ones!
The only reason why I’m keeping the tighter ones is because I know my weight gain was due to my immobility….but still….. I still like the Oiselle Roga’s, but sadly Lulu is the only one that has fun colors (and liners that fit so well).
Thanks for sharing these pics! A lot of them look a bit longer than rad plaid and cadet, too. Blergh, lulu. :( They basically have a monopoly on good shorts, which is a shame, because they can get away with stuff like this. Crazy that you had to go up to an 8, but I bet they will fit great once you’re moving around more again.