A few months ago, I started getting serious about my work out routine. Being in the military it’s my job to be in shape, but my postpartum body has been struggling with it. Believe it or not, a huge part of my struggle was that I didn’t have a lot of work out clothes that fit me well enough to work out in. Enter Fabletics.
I had seen the ads over and over and I decided that I wanted to give it a shot. If you’re considering giving Fabletics a shot, check out this post…
What is Fabletics?
Fabletics is an online athletic wear shop. Or so it seems. It’s actually an athletic wear subscription site although it really doesn’t look like it on the surface. In fact, I didn’t even know it was until well after I made my first purchase. When you’re creating your VIP account, there are no disclaimers that pop up that tell you that your card will be charged monthly and you have to physically click on “how it works” for this to be explained. Even then, the explanation is more than half way down the page.
The VIP membership charges your card $50 every month unless you cancel it. Before I wrote this post, I checked my bank account, and I’ll be damned, I was charged that $50 for an outfit. I didn’t even know. I attribute this to a few things:
- I made my purchase on my phone. There were no pop ups that explained this and when I was putting in my card information, it appeared to be for only that purchase.
- I didn’t receive any outfits, so even when I had figured out that it was a subscription site I figured that because I hadn’t gotten any outfits, it must not have subscribed me. I did it right.
Wrong.
You have to go on the site and opt out by the 5th of the month if you want to “skip” that month and not be charged. And canceling cannot be done on the site. You have to make a phone call or start a live chat (I tried the live chat option and the people didn’t respond fast enough and I had to leave). Never the less, I made the purchase and tried the products.
The Buying Experience
It was pretty easy to choose the outfits that I wanted. It was the same as any e-commerce site. You select what you want and add it to your cart. Once I got to check out though, I had to try 5 or 6 times to actually make the purchase. The point of sale system wasn’t working right and I had to start over 3 times. I almost canceled my transaction I was so frustrated. Eventually though, I was able to check out and my outfits were on their way.
Shipping and packaging
My outfits came in inexpensive clear packaging and it took the full 10 business days to receive them. At one point I got an email that said it would take a little longer to get my outfits. Then I actually forgot that I had ordered them until they came. This isn’t a huge complaint though. I’m not the type to pay extra for faster shipping so waiting a while comes with the territory.
The Fit
I set up my profile as a M size 8 which is what consistent with most of my currently clothes which some exceptions. I read a few articles about the fit of Fabletics and most things said that they were true to size, so I went with this.
My gray pants fit perfectly, but the bra was a little bit awkward. The elastic on the bottom is very wide and the fit was a little bit different than I was used to, but after I wore it for a while it grew on me.
The flower outfit fit pretty well and was very comfortable. I think I ordered the right size for this. It seems that different outfits may be from different manufacturers, so the fit may not always be quite perfect, however that’s true with most online retailers.
I think the most important thing to mention about the fit though is that I felt so confident in these. I’m not super thin and I often feel self conscious when I’m showing off more than I’m used to, but I didn’t feel that way in these. I actual went outside to take photos in them because I felt quite good about myself.
The Quality
In general I’d say the quality is an 8 out of 10.
I have only worn the flower shorts twice and they look like they’re pulling a little at the seam in the crotch, and it’s wearing a hole. However this could very well be because of the size. Maybe I need a slightly larger bottom for these.
I’d say the quality was pretty okay for what I ordered.
The Price Tag
The total cost ended up being $57.67 after tax and shipping. I think it was fairly reasonable for two outfits at fairly good quality. I can justify paying nearly $60 for it. I’ll more than likely end up making at least 1 more purchase. I have a credit for another outfit because I didn’t know it was a subscription…
Overall Impression
Pros: Pricing was fair and I did like the products I purchased. They are definitely stylish and with the athletic wear trends of week. I’d say the biggest pro is that I felt great in both of these outfits. They put me a little bit outside of my comfort zone and it really seemed to work out well for me. I should also note that I did work out in them and they performed well there too.
Cons: The site isn’t clear about what you’re signing up for. I intended to only make one purchase and ended paying another $50 by accident. I just ordered another outfit to take advantage of my accidental subscribing…
Overall, I won’t keep the subscription, because I don’t need $50 worth of work out clothes every month, but I might pop in from time to time and buy some very stylish work out gear.