So, here goes.
As you know, I own a couple Ink n Burn pieces, and you've seen them in this blog a few times now. In fact, you've seen me wearing this shirt at least twice:
What you may not know is how I found Ink n Burn to begin with... but you can probably guess. And if you guess I found them because I was looking for a running costume, you'd be right.
Now, don't get me wrong. When I say running costume, I use that term pretty loosely. As you can see above, that shirt is just a kick ass wicking performance shirt. It's definitely no Chewbacca running the 2013 TC Marathon. (True story, read about it here).
HOWEVER! About 2 weeks before Halloween weekend last year (2012), I discovered that Ink n Burn was going outside their realm of kick ass fitness wear ... and instead offering full on running costumes. And I don't mean a pair of basic black capris and a superman cape to pin on your shoulders, either. I mean running clothing that is fully printed to look like zombies, mummies and skeletons.
Soooo cool.
Unfortunately, I had already purchased my costume components for my Halloween race at that point, and the set was a little more than I had in the budget for "fun spending", so I decided to put the stuff on my Christmas wish list.
BAD IDEA!
Unbeknownst to me, the product they offered was limited edition, and pretty much totally sold out before I even made it back to the site again. DER!
I was pining for it non stop after that. So much so that I actually signed up for their email ads and created an account with them.
Which means, as soon as they launched their Halloween line this year, I was pretty much chomping at the bit with an order. And dammit - they made it even harder to decide what to purchase by introducing two new designs as well, a pirate and a robot.
Why can't I just be independently wealthy and buy everything I want?! GRR.
Here's the entire collection, photo "borrowed" from their Facebook page (men's sizes also available):
I decided to settle on one design. Boo, I know. I guess there's always next year...
At this point, the only thing that held me back from placing my order was that I wasn't sure on pants size. I owned a running skirt of theirs, but not capris. And I wasn't sure how the fit would vary between the two.
Not to worry, because Ink n Burn's customer service is AMAZING! I sent them an email explaining that I owned a skirt and wasn't sure how to size the pants... and within 2 hours I had a response. The woman who emailed me said she usually sized up in her capris because she found they ran a bit snugger than the skirts. I took her advice and ran with it... do you see what I did there? *thigh slap*
So, that prefaces the story of this review. A few weeks ago, I placed my order and anxiously began my daily email check to see if I had a shipping confirmation.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity (and it kind of was, since I've been wanting these since last year), last Wednesday I had an shipment confirmation email. And before I knew it, Friday night I received my package in the mail.
OMG I was so excited. I immediately stripped down and took pictures.
No, not nude selfies. I put the new stuff on you dummies.
Here's the photos I took upon arrival. Sorry for the quality, and ignore the fact that they are in my bedroom (just be glad I tried to 'shop out the dirty laundry in the corner). My husband wasn't home, and I knew I was going to get these sweaty right away Saturday morning at the gym, so I had to take pictures ASAP.
Don't you love them?! I don't have a single complaint... well, except for maybe that I can't tell you how AWESOME the Ink n Burn stuff is! Honestly, it really is great.
The shirt - I now own two of their shirts and I love them. A lot. I might even go so far as to say I'll end up transitioning my entire workout collection over to their shirts some day (LOL, if I win the lottery, that is).
The pants - Well I love them, too, but I wonder if I should have stayed with the same size as the skirt I have. I find that the capris are a little loose around the knees (you can see it a bit in the above photo). However, it's probably a good thing I got the size I did, because I do notice when I do deep squats and what not that the fabric stretches from black to gray/white. I take that to mean I'm putting the fabric to it's outer limits. So the extra wiggle room is more than likely a good thing. The only thing I don't really love about them is the pocket, which is just under my right hand in the above photo. It doesn't blend into the design that well, and in my opinion, isn't really useful since I always put my phone or other stuff in my armband or waist pack when I run. I'd be ok with them leaving that off on future designs. (**Also, note that the waistband has a cool funky fold down design which you can't see in the above photo - but it reveals a really neat printed fabric on the back side when folded down.)
The sleeves - this is the only thing I'm kinda "meh" about. And not because the quality is bad. It's just that I'm not really a sleeves kinda gal. Maybe because they never fit me right? It always drives me crazy that my arms are too long and you get a few inches of skin peeking out between my shirt and sleeve. The hazards of being tall, I guess. The only reason I bought them was because it made the entire set, and I really liked the look. I'll definitely be sure to use them, but I'm sure it won't be as often as the shirt and pants.
And incase you're wondering - yes, I really did wear them within 12 hours of arrival. It was my Saturday on rotation at the gym last weekend, so I taught Total Body Conditioning in these babies (well, minus the arm warmers - you don't really need those while you're in the gym). I haven't gotten out on a long run yet, but I'm sure that will go fine as well.
So, my verdict?
No complaints.
None.
And they've already been through the wash once. So I've done everything to them.
At which point, all I have to say to you is - which set are you going to buy?! (And if you do buy, use the code I did for free shipping and a 15% discount: emeliatoldme ).
So I'm a year behind, but I'm curious what size you ended up with or would recommend. Normal pants size? Up? Down? I normally wear a size 8 in pants and for a while that has translated into a L for my running tights, but lately I've found all my tights to be "saggy-ish" and I feel like I'm constantly pulling them back up or readjusting - I would just buy a Medium, but as you pointed at, I hate to experiment when I'm throwing a good chunk of $$ at it:)
ReplyDeleteWell!! Ink N Burn sells this set by pants size on the capris - IE 6, 8, 10, etc, and by S/M/L on the shirt.
DeleteCapris: I usually wear a street size 10-12 for pants, but have put on a few pounds lately ... that may be more a 12-14. I opted for a size 12 capri from Ink N Burn and it was fine for both when I was a little lighter AND now (as evidence by the fact that I ran a half marathon in the entire outfit last fall while still a smaller size).
Shirt: Depending on the top, I take a medium or large in street clothes. Ink N Burn's tops are more fitted, but I'm still OK with their large. Just be aware that a large pretty much skims my body, so if you want a looser / blousy fit, best size up (or order the men's version).