The Beauty of Customization

           In past posts I have talked about the allure of the idea of customization to buyers. Many sportswear companies offer this aspect, so that prospective buyers have the opportunity to make a product the like into one that they love. This past month, I used the customization process offered by Nike called Nike ID to design my basketball shoes,  and I want to share my experiences with you, so you know the options available to you through online shopping.
          Shoes on Nike’s website have the most options when it comes to customization through the use of Nike ID. When you log onto the Nike website and begin to look through their numerous shoe collections, under the picture of each shoe there is a little colorful tab that reads, “Customize It” to allow you to reach the Nike ID app for that specific style of shoe. Once you open up the Nike ID customization tab, the original shoe design that you had clicked on will pop up with a side bar that lists the different components of the shoe and the numerous color options for each component of the shoe.
          Over the past few years, Nike has expanded their customization capabilities by allowing the customer to not only change the color of the shoe, but for certain shoes, there is the option to add graphics such as a camo, crackle, or fade aspect to the color of the shoe. You can even make them glow in the dark! Also, after you finalize the exact color combos you want and love the look of your shoes, there is the option to add your name and number to the shoes, to make them even more personalized.
         When I customized my new Nike Hyperdunk basketball shoes through Nike ID in early November, I was able to send the link to my teammates for them to view my creation and ask for their opinion on the shoes. One thing that was really nice was that there was no restriction on opening my design through the link, which allowed my teammates to add their own personal touches to the shoes without having to do it through my computer, they could do it in the luxury of their own home. Once we finally ordered the new shoes, it took about 3 weeks for them to be delivered to my house which I think it relatively quick considering they were customized and not in stock. Due to the fact that these shoes are not in stock there are some extra costs added into the original shoes, and shoes that customized through Nike ID usually cost about $50 more than the original shoe that is in stock.
         If you have searched numerous websites and still haven’t been able to find that perfect color combination on the shoes you want, I would definitely recommend checking out the Nike ID option. Though I do suggest that you might want to use this option on certain shoes that you really, really like to make them special because using this customization option on all your shoes may prove to be a little costly. In my experiences with using the Nike ID options it was a positive outcome and I was very pleased with the quality of the product I designed and I hope that you have the same results when you choose to use the great option for your new shoes!  

Christmas Wish List: Part 1

           With Christmas rapidly approaching, happiness and joy begin to fill the wintry air. Apart of the millions of people ranging from toddlers to the elderly, I am hoping that I get what I ask for this holiday season. But, I have hit a road bump, like thousands of others, who have no idea on what they want. So this is the guide for those of you who are looking to amp up their closet for the New Year ahead.

Black Nike Women's Vintage Gym Pants

          The first, (and only), item on my Christmas Wish List so far are the Nike Women's Vintage Gym Pants, which have the color options of Sail Blue, Action Red, Dark Gray, and Black and their price comes in around the average cost of a pair of Nike sweats. These type of “vintage” sweat pants are starting to become a big trend, as the so-called hipster style takes over the teenage generation of America. I really like how these sweats combine a comfortable relaxed style, but still fit along the lines of the fashion trends of today. I would call them dressy sweat pants because you can still “bum it” in these pants and still look put together, rather than when you throw on your oversized baggy sweats and a random t-shirt.
           For those of you who are health and result driven maniacs then the new technological wrist bands developed by leading sports brand companies such and Nike and Adidas may be the perfect gift for you. Nike has their Fuelband SE while Adidas competes with the Micoach Smart Fit wrist band. These athletic wrist bands are like the step counter you were forced to wear during gym class, except these step counters are highly advanced. Aside from all the different components that go into these athletic wrist bands from their numerous calculations to their smartphone connections, these bands also have aesthetic appeal as well. When comparing the two, I feel like Nike’s Fuelband has a sleeker more simple design, whereas I see Adidas’ Micoach Smart Fit to be little bit more bulky in its size and design. If all this sounds great to you the next stop would be cost, where the Nike Fuelband retails from about $100-$150 and the Adidas Micoach Smart Fit comes in at around $200. In the end, I think it comes down to preference, and which athletic wrist band has the qualities you are looking for and fits your style as an athlete.   
         It’s around this time of year that I begin scavenging sportswear websites in search of the perfect Christmas gift. Stay tuned to my blog, as throughout the next few weeks leading up to Christmas, I will be sharing my latest and greatest finds for you to enjoy this holiday season!

 

Images Courtesy of www.nike.com



Equal Options for both Men and Women?

           With basketball beginning tomorrow, I have been on the lookout lately for a new pair of basketball shoes. As I scour the numerous sportswear websites, I’ve come to a glaring conclusion: men are offered more variety in style than women. I’ll prove it to you, go look at the Nike website and click on Men's Basketball Shoes and then go to Women's Basketball Shoes, just numbers wise you can see a vast difference between the two.
          As a girl I can attest to this unfairness. I mean how would boys feel if they always had to get their shoes based on women’s sizes? How would they feel if they only had the small selection of styles that are given to women? They wouldn’t be too happy with the small number of choices they have and would start to look somewhere else for their shoes, where a wider variety is offered.
          My biggest issue with this problem is that I feel like these sportswear companies stereotype women and assume that we just want basic plain colored shoes including pink. No, just because I am a girl doesn’t mean I always want to wear pink nor do I just want solid colored shoes. I like to spice it up, and get crazy patterned shoes just like the men wear, so why can’t they make those types of shoes in women’s sizes as well?
        I highly doubt that this will be an issue that will be changed in the near future, or even just the future in general. Women will always have to defer to men when it comes to sports, because that is how the stereotype of our generation is set. I just wish that women were given the creative ability that men were, because we do care and do have an opinion on what we like to wear and it would be great if those creative options were given in our sizes as well.  

Trending: Crew Neck Sweatshirts

               Fashionable, comfortable, and affordable. Those three words are the motto that is lived by most teenage girls when they go out shopping. The problem is that most things that are fashionable and comfortable, aren’t affordable, and those that are affordable and comfortable, aren’t fashionable. Well, what if I were to tell you that the common crew neck sweatshirt fits all three points of the criteria, and is rising in popularity amongst teenagers across the country.
               I myself am a sweatshirt fanatic as I own about 20 sweatshirts (not kidding!). Part of this obsession has to do with the fact that I live in Iowa, where a majority of the time we have cool temperatures so what other choice is there than to wear a sweatshirt on these days. Also, it is very cozy to curl up in an oversized sweatshirt and hang out on lazy days in front of a fire during the winter months.  
                Now, you are probably wondering why I specifically said that crew neck sweatshirts are making the upward trend and not just regular hooded sweatshirts. For me, I think a majority of the reason why I like crew necks more is because as a girl you don’t have to worry about your hair getting all tangled up in the hood of the sweatshirt. So that makes it easier to wear your hair down with a crew neck rather than a hooded sweatshirt where it will get bunched up in the back. 
                Another reason as to why I think crew necks are rising in popularity, has to do with the common fashion theme of my generation of teenagers. I would identify our fashion theme as a throwback to the 80s, commonly known as hipster, because you see a lot of high-waisted shorts and leg warmers making their comeback. Another article of clothing you could add to this list of throwbacks would be the crew neck sweatshirt which was also very popular during that time period and is once again making its comeback amongst our teenage population.
                So, if you are just having one of those lazy days, where you don’t feel like dressing up and wearing a nice sweater, but you want to wear something that is fashionable and comfy, I would definitely recommend throwing on a big oversized crew neck with some yoga pants. For the affordable aspect you can literally buy a crew neck sweatshirt anywhere, from your local Goodwill all the way to a department store. For this winter season, I foresee the crew neck being a big hit, so get out and go buy one for yourself!

Organization is Key

               As an athlete, I know I am always hustling and bustling from one practice to the next. Your day seems to never end, even when your head hits the pillow late at night, because you know you still have to wake up in less than eight hours and relive this journey once again. As you begin this daily trek, you really need to make sure you are organized and have the right equipment for the correct practices, or else you could end up having to speed home to pick up the correct gear. To help myself stay organized, I like to carry different types of athletic bags, and whether it be a drawstring bag, backpack, or duffle depends on what type of equipment I have and how much space I need to store it.

Nike Drawstring Bag

              The most basic and simplest form of organization I’ve seen through bags, is what most describe as the drawstring bag. For most popular sports brands like Nike and Adidas, these types of bags retail at around $15-$20. They are about the size of an average shoe box and some of these bags have a small pocket on the inside to store items like a phone, keys, or money. I find the drawstring bag very helpful when I only need a pair of shoes, or maybe when I just need to carry a few extra articles of clothing. This type of bag is also nice to have if you don’t want something that is really heavy or takes up a lot of space in your locker.

Nike Elite Basketball Bag

          My favorite type of athletic bag to carry would be a backpack. Currently for both basketball and soccer I carry backpacks, which are the Nike Elite and the Adidas Estadio II respectively. What I really like about having a backpack for both sports is that they are the perfect size to fit all of my equipment, and they don’t take up a lot of space as compared to a duffel bag. A major reason I like backpack more is that they are more comfortable to carry because the weight is evenly distributed amongst your shoulders rather than all the weight being supported by one shoulder, which happens with a duffel and can sometimes lead to injury. Also, I like the fact that with most athletic backpacks, there are multiple pockets, so you don’t have to stuff your smelly shoes in the same pocket as your clean clothes.

Nike Duffle Bag

              If you need to carry a lot of equipment and clothing to numerous places, then I suggest that the duffle bag is you best option. One really convenient quality about the duffle bag is that they come in many different sizes within themselves. So, after you’ve decided that you want a duffle bag, you can then go and decide which size you need based on the amount of stuff you need to carry. In the previous paragraph I talked about some of the drawbacks to this type of bag, but there are also many positives to it outside of the amount of stuff it can carry. If you invest in a duffel bag for a certain sport, I see it as a 2-in-1 deal because you can use it for the specific sport, and if you need to travel it is big enough to fit all your clothes, shoes, and toiletries. I think the duffel bag is a great choice if you need something that can have multiple uses because it is big enough to fit a wide array of equipment.
             When deciding on what bag is best for you, I think the key aspect is the size because if it’s not big enough to fit all your stuff, then what’s the point in getting a bag in the first place. Also another big aspect is the comfort factor, because you have to remember that you will be carrying this bag day after day, hour after hour, you don’t want to get a bag that may cause injury to your back or shoulders. In the end it all comes down to preference, and I hope that my insight on these different types of bags gave you a better understanding as to which one fits your crazy lifestyle best!

Images Courtesy of www.eastbay.com

 

Jordans are on another Level

“Don’t touch my Jordans,” is a common phrase heard throughout urban America. Jordan shoes which are named after the legend himself Michael Jordan, have earned their reputation for being the God of all street shoes. It seems that year after year the company comes out with a new style that leads to mad rushes of people who are trying to be the first ones to acquire the shoe. What is it about these shoes that entice millions on people, what is it that makes them the end all be all of basketball shoes?

Could it be there reputation and who the shoes themselves are representing? Everybody knows who Michael Jordan is, whether they are a sports fan or not. He is known as the greatest athlete of all time. Yes athlete, not just basketball player, but athlete of all time. Maybe that, just by itself, is what makes these shoes so luxurious. By wearing the shoes that are named after a great, the people who wear them feel that they are great in some way. Some people might think that if Jordan was such a great man, then his shoes are great, which in the end makes me great because I’m wearing them.  

Another reason that may be why Jordan shoes are so important is because of social and cultural aspects. There’s this idea in urban America that if you see a guy walking around in Jordan’s, that makes him important or cooler than a guy just wearing regular Nike kicks. I think that it’s the way people who live in the cities of America show who they are and that they are of some importance or value because they are wearing the beloved Jordan shoes of their culture.

You can’t deny that Jordan shoes don’t have swag.  I mean the brand has an entire song based on them! They are the shoes that define the city streets of America and the millions of basketball courts throughout the country. If you want to fit into that type of culture, go buy yourself a pair of his latest kicks. Jordan’s are unlike any other street shoe brand. They aren’t the type of shoes that you would go out and ruin in the mud; they are the type of shoes that are taken care of as if they cost you your life. That is what makes Jordans such a special brand.

Staying Warm this Winter Season

              Winter is nearly upon us and if it’s anything like last year’s, we are in for a chilly one. For those of us who live in the North, we have many different types of coats for all different types of weather. There is the fleece, windbreaker, every day winter jacket, and a heavy coat for when you are in a snowstorm. The most popular brand that offers all these different types of jacket is known as The North Face, and with my own experiences, I’ve found them to be reliant, long-lasting, and fashionable jackets.
               The first thing you are going to notice when you look at a North Face coat as a buyer is the price. They are considered to be a more expensive brand, but I think that the cost is reflective upon the fact that these coats last a long time, so you don’t have to replace them year after year, and they are great at doing their job of keeping you warm. So yes, the first year you go to buy your North Face you are going to have to spend a little more than you would like, but remember you won’t have to spend that cash repeatedly each year, so it’s a smart buy.
                 Another great aspect of North Face jackets is that they are very light. Now, you’re probably wondering why in the world is that a good thing; I want a jacket that keeps me warm hence the name “heavy coat”, not some lightweight pullover to keep me warm on a 50⁰ day. Yes, that is exactly what my dad thought when I got him a North Face coat for Christmas, but then later that day he wore it out in the below zero temperatures and said it kept him a lot warmer that he had expected. This is what I think puts North Face ahead of competing companies because it already sucks having to be outside in freezing temperatures, but to then be weighed down with a 5 pound coat isn’t fun either, so by keeping it lightweight and warm, North Face has created a win-win.

North Face Women's Osito Jacket

                 Walk in to your local sporting goods store like Scheels or Dicks and you can find a plethora of different North Face winter coats in numerous different colors. The most popular style amongst my friends as teenagers is their Women’s Osito jacket which has a furry textured outside. North Face is the most contemporary winter coat brand out there with their sleek and simple design. I would highly suggest checking it out when you are looking for a winter coat this upcoming season.


Images Courtesy of www.dickssportingggoods.com