Marshall's and Nordstrom Rack Steals!

I meant to post this a few days ago....I had quite the successful haul at my local Marshall's and Nordstrom Rack. While some of these stores don't have a lot of good brands stocked, I'm lucky that my local stores have brands like Frye, Kate Spade, Coach, Ugg, etc.

I was looking for a cute little notepad to have at the house....mainly for my workouts and my blog "tasks." I love this natural spiral bound notebook. I ended up spotting it near the checkout at Marshall's and it was a steal at $3.50.

My favorite find was these Kate Spade earrings at Nordstrom Rack. They were originally around $70 and I got them for $24. Not a bad deal! I really like the style of these and I might have even paid full price for them if I saw them in the store.

Other small goodies at Marshall's. I got a pair of Tommy Hilfiger white flip flops. I was needing a simple leather pair. I also got a Bubba insulated water bottle. I have a Lululemon glass one that has been taking a beating. I like that I can throw this one around without worrying about breaking it. I also like that it's well insulated for the summer heat.

At Norstrom Rack I got two other small goodies. I got some grippy socks and a super-size bottle of Bliss Body Butter in naked. I already have one of these I purchased a few months ago, and I love it! I hate heavy fragrances so this "naked" scent is perfect for me. The "super-sized" bottle retails for $50, but they were on markdown for $16. Even online, the cheapest I can find (through eBay) is $30...which is the price of the normal size bottles. That's a pretty big steal!

Well I'm pretty happy with my "discount" loot! :) I like pretty things, but I'm not wrapped around the store they came from! If it is a great product AND comes with a great discount....that an even bigger win for me.

I'm a Maxxinista!

Still having a great golfing "boot camp" in Parris Island. While some are being shaped into Marines on the grounds, I am being shaped into an above mediocre golfer haha. It does make an interesting background for playing golf....screaming recruits in the far distance, Carolina gators vice groundhogs.....

I'm in an attempt to make the Marine Corps golf team this year, so we have been working on refining my golf swing. They have some pretty cool tech toys like the FlightScope, so I was able to get a complete breakdown of my swing and the impact on an iPad....very cool.

Weather has been pretty great. If I was in DC yesterday, I would have been snowed in the house! We have been riding mid 60s all week, so that is VERY tropical for me after long DC winter! I played Thursday through Monday. I'm taking Tuesday off, but I'll be back for one more lesson on Wednesday.

I stopped by the local TJ Maxx and I was able to find a few things I liked! Still in my silly golf clothes, I was wearing my Lululemon Beaming Blue Classy Cap, Athleta Shiva LS, Lululemon Bust a Move Pants in Soot Light, Nike White Ball Marker Belt, and my NB Minimus shoes. I did have my Lululemon Parallel Stripe Fleet Street Pullover on earlier in the day, but it got a little murky and hot so I removed it.

I was surprised to see some Glyder crops at TJ Maxx! I loved my Glyder Crops in Acai Berry. I wear a XS, but I can still wear a S. The S fit how a size 6 Lululemon Parallel Stripe WUC fit....a little more roomier without the compression. I prefer the Space Dye prints that have a little longer brush strokes, so I passed on these.

Same with the black....it wasn't a need or a must have, so I passed on them. I did like them and how they fit....

I have been searching for a good pair of spandex shorts for static trapeze! I tried all of Lululemon's, but they gave me serious camel toe or "muffin" legs. These were like $12.99 and the fit was great! They didn't dig in at all!

This Nike running pullover was in a pretty color and was marked down a lot....I just wasn't feeling the odd turtleneck/half zip.

I did get a Nike tank in a watermelon like color for $14.99. Not a supersoft tank, but I liked the color and fit. I really love my Lululemon CRBs, but its nice to have a few tanks that are not so long.

Sorry for the lack of photos, but I also got a purple LS by Roxy. They had a fitness line last year. I absolutely love the color. It fits like a swiftly, but has material that is similar to swim material. It was originally $54 and I got it for $24.99. I'm sure I'll be wearing this one soon. I love purples almost as much as blues!

I found my bargain unicorn!!!! I bought a NB sportsbra last year at a TJ Maxx or a Marshalls....it has been my absolute favorite bra. It's seamless, has padding, and adjustable straps. Plus its a neutral color so I wear it all the time...even more than my Lululemon bras! I've worn it out so much, I've been on the hunt for a replacement! Since its been almost a year, I gave up looking for it....and then there it was in the store! I guess they stretch out a little bit, because all of the sizes seemed small in the store. Luckily for me, I was wearing my old one. They are both size small.....both of them fit, but my old one looks so much bigger! I guess my new one will stretch out over time. It was only $14.99....definitely a bargain bra!

My skin was a little dried out, so I also got a c. Booth travel kit with a mini size body wash, dry oil, and body butter. It smells great, and the set of three was only $7.99.

I think I made out like a bandit on this trip. I got a long sleeve shirt, tank top, spandex shorts, sports bra, and travel kit for $80 after taxes!

Another Marshall's Score!

Ok...kinda irrelevant to the fitness apparel world...sorry for the deviation! I took back my peacoat to JCrew....so glad I decided to return it and wait for something else!

Next, I went to Best Buy to return my husband's Jawbone Up...we're going to order one online in navy instead of the black version. Future review to come! I'm really curious about these because they are so hard to find in the colors and the design is nice. We really want to track out sleep at night and as depressing as it it, see how active we really are!

Stopped by Marshall's and this is the second time I'm really impressed. I don't know if they have a bigger selection in DC, but I always find good items I want! I'm not even a big bargain hunter, but it's not as difficult to search for things here!

Top - Black and White Tweed Coach ballet flat, Center - Cerulean Blue Coach loafers, Bottom - Kate Spade Cheetah ballet flats.

There were some good choices of Frye, Ugg, Coach, and Kate Spade. Now I have a pretty system down. I just browse quickly through the aisles, looking for shoe boxes. Luckily for me, the brands I want have pretty distinctive boxes. Then I don't have to fight the crowd trying to look at every single ugly shoe! 

So my win tonight....totally made up for my uneven JCrew peacoat! I got......

Frye Boots! If I see Fryes, they usually are ugly colors or non-standard designs. These are a really popular design called Veronica Slouch. This design sells at $328 full price, and I got them at Marshall's for $199. A great deal! It's really hard to see them marked down.....let alone 40% off! I think some of the cheaper ones I've seen were around $238. 

The color is a really pretty fawn color. I haven't 100% fully committed to keeping them, but they only had 4 pairs and only one of them was in my size. I figured I would snatch them up and return them if I was having second thoughts. So far I really like them. I have a hard time finding riding boots because I have such narrow calves....since these are made to be slouchy it doesn't matter if they are loose. I really liked the color too because I have a dark brown pair of Jeffery Campbell boots and my other pair of Frye's are in burnt red. They are not similar to my other pairs.

So a score for me today. What do you guys think? I'm off to meet some girls at Top Golf tonight! It should be fun! It's like an arcade for golfers....each ball has a sensor in it and you play different games for points. It's usually packed on weekends, so we figured we would give it a try during the week. I'll make sure to upload some pics tonight!

That's it for now, thank's for reading!

Brand Brawl: Lululemon vs. Marshalls

Alright ladies, tonight is the start of our first "Brand Brawl," with Lululemon mega-brand facing off the thrifty saver Marshalls brand.

Going toe-to-toe, Marshalls will duke it out to find out how much discount fitness apparel you can buy compared to one pair of Lululemon leggings. Will it be worth it or will quality be scarified? We will find out if the deal was really worth the steal....

ROUND ONE

Up first is a pair of leggings made by a unknown brand 90 degrees. This Marshall's brand likes to replicate Lululemon colors and styles, even stealthily positioning their similar yoga-inspired circle logo in the same place. They had two pockets in the front and the red panels were similar to "love red". 

Price: $19.99

Verdict: PASS! These tights were TOASTY and opaque. The fit was great.

ROUND TWO

Next up is a Swiftly DUPE from another unknown brand called Climawear. Yes, this little look-a-like is pretending to be a Lululemon Swiftly LS with a seamless body, thumb holes, and a crew neck.

Price: $14.99

Verdict: PASS! Arms are a little larger than the Swiftly, but the material appears to be thicker. The garment is a little scratchy...not soft like Lululemon's....but compared to the $68 price, I won't have to worry about my sensitive fabric threads picking.

ROUND THREE

I spy SPRY! These bright crops come from another stealthy Marshalls brand called Kyoden. The crops are a dead ringer for Lululemon's color "Spry" blue. No pockets on these, but they have keyhole details on the back of the calves and a *gasp* diamond gusset!

Price: $15.00

Verdict: PASS! PASS! PASS! These crops were Lululemon soft AND opaque. The diamond gusset gave the crops a nice fit and the color was vibrant. I can't believe these were that cheap. I would have bought these for $70+. Seriously Lululemon....if a $15 knockoff brand can give me a diamond gusset and opaque brights, why can't you? These will be a new favorite.

ROUND FOUR

Last up is a jacket from 90 degrees. This jacket has a ruffled-ruched detail in the back, zipper garage, thumbholes, and a structured bodice. Compared to power purple, the color is a little darker and could be compared to Lululemon's color "tender violet."

Price: $24.99

Verdict: PASS! This jacket feels like Luon and has a structured fit. The color is nice, and I don't feel so guilty paying $24.99 compared to Lululemons $108 Forme jacket. 

FINAL OUTCOME

So what do you think? Who won this round?

Is my $30 outfit comparable to a $152 one? 

I don't think I'm going to ditch higher-end brands anytime soon, but I'm definitely keeping Marshalls on my radar in the future!

Thanks for reading and please do me a favor and like my Facebook page!