Lingerie Blog

September marks the nationwide observance of National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, as designated by the President of the United States. The Ovarian Cancer National Alliance launched the “United States of Teal“. The first Friday in September — September 3, 2010 — is National Teal Day and the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance will lead the efforts of thousands of Americans wearing teal to increase awareness about the deadly disease.

To visually illuminate support for a disease that kills nearly 15,000 women a year, each State  that demonstrates its commitment will be highlighted in teal on the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance’s website until the entire map of the United States is filled with teal resolve.

“We must use every means available to us to get the message out about the risk factors, symptoms and options for women, and this new endeavor helps highlight this issue - state by state,” explains Karen Orloff Kaplan, CEO of the organization. “Any attempt to spread the word, whether it’s by posting a blog entry, handing out symptom cards or writing to our local papers and our congressmen, gets us that much closer to a solution.”

In addition to wearing teal, corporations and organizations are jumping on board to help the cause. More than 50 Partner Member organizations of the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance are hosting events including health fairs, walks/runs and fundraisers.

Georgetown Cupcake of the TLC hit show, DC Cupcakes, has created a special cupcake featuring the Teal ribbon called “Teal Velvets” and are donating 100% of the proceeds to the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance. Orders can be shipped nationally throughout the month of September. To place an order call (202)333-3309 or email shipping@georgetowncupcake.com. Please reference the Teal Velvet when ordering. For those in the DC area, you can purchase Teal Velvet cupcakes from the two Georgetown Cupcake locations exclusively on Sundays and Mondays during September. Store locations can be found at georgetowncupcake.com.

For a full listing of September activities, visit www.ovariancancer.org.

September is National Yoga Month!!! This is the time of year when we at Intimate Guide shift our focus from lingerie and underwear to sportswear, athletic apparel, and those great yoga accessories and gadgets.

If there is a product you think should be featured this month, please send me an email: rachel [at] intimateguide.com.

Last year we also had some great giveaway, most notably a Jade Yoga mat. This is one of the most comfortable mats your feet can ever touch. It’s earth friendly and ultra plush with a great non-slip surface. It’s hefty!

This yoga month we’re starting out with an accessory some fitnessistas can’t live without - a mobile device holder. Maybe you run with an ipod, or do all your errands with an iphone, or - like me - listen to YogaDownloads from an MP3 player while at the gym. This is an armband that allows you to wear your device called a Cellie. You can read about them at http://mycellies.com. They are bedazzled with rhinestones, so they can also be worn if you go dancing for the night. Or if you find yourself in an outfit without pockets.

Our guest reviewer who tried Cellies is a runner who Captains a team for the Ragnar Relay. She is training now for the Ragnar running from Miami to Key West in Jan 2011. She tried out the Cellie on a 5 mile training run. She said:

I played with the Cellie for a few days and showed it to some friends. My iphone 4 fit in perfectly, and I loved that the little silver logo on the armband hit exactly where the command button of my phone was so it would be easy to push without having to look too closely. It also has a little flap on the inside to keep my phone tucked in safely.

When I finally put it on to run, though, the stitching tore, not a good first sign. It was not a convenient place to have a headphone cord flinging about - from my wrist to my ears - but it worked out when I ran the cord through my t-shirt sleeve. While running, the mesh got really itchy and hot. I took it off half way through the run (25 minutes). I sweat a lot so my phone was completely soaked, probably not great for the phone. I can imagine that if I were dancing out at a club it would do the same thing. The mesh material allowed me to see the iphone and use the controls which was a nice bonus. However, sight was limited when I was in the sun.2  of the large gemstones fell off the armband during the run. I didn’t notice until after, but I lost the beautiful jewels! I let the armband dry, and now it is hard from the sweat, stinky and more jewels are close to falling off. I would not recommend this product for running.

Sorry readers. We still recommend the Mobigrip.

Recently I was asked to browse through the new SwimSpot website and order a bikini to wear and review.
I review a lot of websites on the side. I help companies think about what is user friendly, search engine friendly, easy to read, easy to follow, etc. Some companies are so focused on how “pretty” their site is, that they forget it has to fulfill a sales or marketing goal. People have to enjoy shopping on the site, and find it easy to shop on the site.

One of the best features on the SwimSpot website is the ability to alter image sizes of products. With one click at the top of the site you can decide how large or small you want the photos to appear on the page - with 3 sizes ranging from about 1 inch to about 4 inches. Once you click on an item, you also see photos of additional views. I think seeing the back of a swimsuit is very important.

I find the buttons on SwimSpot easy to read and easy to use, but I wish I could search by item type – bikinis, coverups, etc. Instead you have to view by brand name. There is a small arrow at the top left that says “Filter By:” and here you can filter by collection or item within a brand.

SwimSpot also offers a fun bikini builder function. With a model’s photo in the middle of the screen, and images of swimsuit tops on the left and bottoms on the right you can mix and match pieces within each brand to build your favorite suit. You can not, however, mix brand names. This is on purpose, so color and hardware variations (like 2 different shades of red) don’t surprise unsuspecting customers. If you happen to be in Orange County, CA, you can go to their pop-up shop and easily do this in person. And, with free shipping BOTH ways, you can take a stab at buying different pieces you think will mix and match nicely, and if it doesn’t, you can return what you don’t want at no cost.

Their lines are high-end brand names you’ll recognize that span many age ranges. I love all of the youthful junior-sized Reef collections! The Ella Moss tunics make pretty cruisewear and coverups. I’ve also worn tankinis from the Tommy Hilfiger collection and they are high quality fabrics and stitching that don’t fade, stretch out or run easily.

This summer I tried a Reef reversible string bikini. After checking the Reef size chart and using the bikini builder, the 2 pieces I ended up with are pictured here. Reef’s Roca Loca Reversible Banded Halter Top retails for $49.00. It has the signature tulip stitched small on the striped side of the bikini, or the reversible brown side features a large tulip sewn on almost like a patch from the striped fabric. The soft cups have tiny pads inside, not enough to add a cup size, just enough for modesty. The top ties around the back and around the neck so it is easy to adjust to suit your body. The thick brown band under the cups adds a bit of support and shape so the top is not flimsy. The Roca Loca patterned bikini bottom ties on the side to size the swimsuit to your tush, with cute plastic and wooden beads on the ties. It is a very low rise bottom, but stays in place well when tied tightly. The inside fabric of the bottom has bright orange and green palm leaves, and though it does not say it is reversible I think it can be worn inside out if you remove the tag. Then you can put the top on the mostly-brown side with the leaf-print bottom, or the striped side with the striped bottom and it looks like 2 completely different bikinis. Great for travel!

Cover up with the matching Reef 9 inch board shorts or the cute, brown Belize me Sylvia dress made from light gauzy fabric.

If you need an extra bit of Oomph with your swimsuit, Braza offers Foam Swim Shapers to sneak into your top. They provide fullness, lift, cleavage, shaping and in some cases, added support. All foam pads are covered with a comfortable nylon fabric that will prevent the pads from becoming saturated with water. Pads can be either placed in the top of a two piece style or sewn in if needed. These pads live up to their responsibility! Some of the pads are silicone, so they never get water damaged. You can use them to replace pads that came in your swimsuit that have become misshapen and out of place. Say goodbye to crumbly moldy pads that crease and don’t hold their shape.