Columbia Jammin’ Journey Fleece
February 6, 2010
Could the name for this fleece be any dorkier? Here we go on a jammin’ journey! Good thing I love this top so much or I might not be able to get past the name. Ironically I wore this fleece every day on my own jammin’ journey to Canada – it was my trip staple because of its comfort, warmth, and, yes, cute looks. Wrinkle free and comfy, it didn’t even get too stinky on the five day trip, which I’m so sure is more due to the miracle nonstink fabric than the fact that I was basically just sitting still in a car for hours upon end. Plus, I don’t stink. Right?
Every few years I come across a half-zip fleece that sparks a sort of obsession. When I find a fleece that I like, I have been known to buy several of varying colors just to make sure that I’m never without. I still have a stockpile of past favorites in the closet that I just can’t let go of. What’s more versatile than a good fleece? The “Jammin’ Journey” (yeesh, do I have to keep typing that over and over?) is more versatile than most, with a superlong zipper that fits over a helmet or opens to allow airflow in those in-between temperatures. Best of all, this fleece has a really great cut. It’s longish but not ridiculously so and trim without being supertight. To my endless delight, it also has perfectly cut sleeves that accommodate actual muscles, and are long enough to actually cover my wrists and stay put when my arms are bent. Best of all, NO THUMBHOLES. I used to love thumbholes, but recently it seems that every single top out there has thumbholes and the accompanying superlong sleeves. Agh! Enough! I feel an editorial coming on.
So, no thumbholes on the JJ. Excellent! How many colors does it come in?
Buy ‘em all up before I clean them out.
Columbia G41 Parka
December 25, 2009
Take a gander at that jacket shown above. It’s awesome looking isn’t it? I guarantee you that when you pull out this jacket, it will be greeted by “oooooooooohhhhhh that is COOL!” This is one of the sharpest looking jackets to pass the Geargals’ door. The unique and striking color scheme is sure to garner attention wherever you wear. From what I can tell, there are two options available, the brown/white and a pink/purple/white. For whatever reason (which could probably say a lot about me if one were interested enough to psychoanalyze this little fact) I really prefer earthy colors like grey and brown, so I am really in love with the brown and white version. I think my G41 parka and brown ski pants are my second coolest ski outfit. In the interest of full disclosure, my very coolest ski outfit is my blue pants and red jacket, so you may want to take my color preferences with a grain of salt.
Performance-wise, this jacket seems pretty clearly designed for warm-ish winter conditions and mostly for lift-served skiing. I wore it in single digits (without the liner, see below) and was a tad chilly, but when skiing in wet conditions, the Omni-Tech fabric will keep you warm and dry (and very stylish, natch). The copious pockets are meant for your snacks and gadgets (there is the required iPod pocket, after all) and the styling walks the line between baggy and body-conscious. That’s right – you can rock the slouch vibe while not looking like Charlie Brown in a jacket 5 times too large.
My sample jacket also came with a removable inner liner which I admit to taking out to wear on its own and never putting back in the jacket. It’s a cute little well-cut hooded, thumbholed fleece that provides a little extra insulation while wearing the waterproof outer layer and translates well to apres ski or even a chilly morning run. The fleece even has the iPod pocket so you never have to go without your tunes.
Usually we traditionally hand off tested gear to other wearers, or donate it to a good cause, but all of us are having a hard time letting go of the G41 simply for the fashion factor. There is something for everyone whether you like the flashy pink and purple option or the more stately brown. You even get the bonus fleece liner which in itself is a nice addition to the gear closet, so if you want to stand out in the lift line or in while shredding that always-showoffy run right under the lift, the G41 is a good bet.
Columbia Canal Street Pant
November 16, 2009
A girl who lives in the Arctic can’t have too many pairs of insulated snow pants. This is a fact corroborated by my gear closet, in which resides about a dozen pair of snow pants, all of which get a fair bit of action throughout the winter. This means that when new pants show up, not only do I not have any room for them, but I measure them against all the other snow pants that I have. My snow pants are like a clique of high school girls, eyeing every newcomer to discern whether it will fit in, be a troublemaker, or end up ousting the top mean girl and leading the pack. While the Canal Street Pants probably won’t be the Homecoming Queen (too sporty), they might end up being one of the Heathers, as they really are quite a nice addition to the snow pant army.
Columbia cunningly sent the brown twill version, and I’m a real sucker for brown pants so I automatically reached for these for our sub zero dog walk last night. I like the low-waist style, and even though they’re not perfectly tailored and therefore gapped a bit in the back, they were decently comfortable without a belt. I was really enamored by the length; they are long enough to go over poofy snow boots without looking like I’m waiting for the snow to melt suddenly and create a flood.
Lightly insulated, the pants were warm enough for a 0 degree brisk walk, although I suspect they’re not warm enough to stand around in those temperatures. It has been a strangely precipitation-less week so I can’t fill you in on their water repellent properties, but from the feel of the fabric, they’d perform decently in the snow. They ARE snow pants, after all. They seem to run true to size as well. Although I like to report more on the functionality of the gear I test, I have to mention that I was going to hand these off to another tester who was hovering around my office door looking for gear, but once I tried them on and saw how cute they were I kept them for myself and she was out of luck. Sometimes it’s good to be the boss.
Columbia Attaca Jumpsuit
November 3, 2009
The Attaca is on BIG TIME sale at Backcountry.com right now – $100 off! Click here!
This is one of those items that I asked to feature – it’s cute, different, and definitely women’s specific. One of the interesting things about being a gear reviewer is the fact that even when you’re thinking “hmmm, I AM 35, can I get away with this?” it doesn’t really matter, because you can always fall back on the “it’s my job” excuse. This super fun piece is one of the ones that reminded me of my age – it’s certainly a trendy item, made for the style mavens out there. I don’t pretend to be a style maven but I do like cute, body conscious designs and I am one of those people that always wants to be wearing something no one else is wearing. With today’s styles rooted in the “baggy pants, baggy jacket” silhouette, the Attaca brings something new to the table.
I like to put my ski outfits together in ways that, er, surprise other people. Last year while hanging around in the parking lot of a local backcountry spot waiting to lead a class on backcountry travel, I happened to be wearing blue pants with a blue jacket that made it look like I was wearing a one piece jumpsuit. As my group of students pulled their gear together, I noticed a carload of my regular ski partners pull up and prepare to deploy into the mountains. I saw with glee their looks of disdain and rather snobby, overly cool demeanors as they gave me side glances and discreet once-overs, no doubt wondering what was with the group of noobs and their jumpsuited leader. I sauntered over to say hello and got a big kick out of their sheepish faces once they realized it was me and that I was just wearing a matching jacket and pants. This experience made me realize that one piece ski suits haven’t gotten any love for a while – and I’ve wanted one ever since. I can’t wait to go shred the backcountry in something that looks like it belongs at apres ski in Aspen. There’s no way powder can sneak in at the waist in a one-piece, and I am tickled by the idea of skiing in something that kind of looks like an industrial uniform (in a CUTE way, really)!
Now, the Attaca might not be the best backcountry gear – there’s only so much temperature management you can do with a one piece. It also doesn’t have any insulation to speak of, so for really cold weather it might not be appropriate even with the extra warmth lent by the one-piece design. But for ski resort visits and mild temperature, close-in A/T trips, the Attaca would be really fun. It’s cut to be worn in low on the hips with a trim fit that gives a flattering, I’m-young-again look (unless you really are still young; in which case: carry on). I’ve checked out both colors and I really like the blue denim-ish look. The copper color is not bad either, and almost gives a Carhartt-ish look which I like, but I’m not crazy about the fuschia zippers and accents on that one – they seem out of place and a little mismatched. Sadly for me the blue sample wasn’t my size, but I like the copper color decently enough. One thing that some consumers will struggle with is the sizing; it comes in S-M-L so it’s hard to adjust for height and nuance of body type. The medium was WAY too big for my size 6 self, and it was obviously cut for a MUCH taller person. I looked like a kid in her dad’s overalls. Even the size S has a longish torso on me, but since I’ve got a short waist, I think the cut will work just fine on most body types. The slim cut of the legs and hips makes in-depth layering not a possibility, so plan on using this on those warmer days. It’s mostly designed for an eye-catching, fashionable look while enjoying a nice day at the resort, and I for one would like to see this style really catch on. I think the shredder chicks currently rocking baggy pants and garbage-bag-style jackets could make a real splash in a more daring, body-conscious fit. There’s no need to dress like a dude just because you can shred better than a dude – embrace the look and give the new Attaca a try. Aren’t you tired of having your pants crotch down by your knees anyway?
Columbia PFG Eddyline Shirt
October 16, 2009
I worked hard to not judge this shirt by its color as I am extremely not a fan of pink. Luckily I was saved by the tag, which indicated the color to be ‘melon’. Whatever happened to a good blue or purple? I don’t think the fish care what color the shirt is. Sorry, I’m a little sensitive about the color thing. I must admit that I was told I was easy to spot in the woods by a friend traveling with me while I was wearing this shirt. Which would make me feel better, but at the time I was following a side trail to a toilet.
I’m not sure what makes a shirt ‘performance fishing gear’ and I decided to not research that aspect of the shirt. I went on a twelve day backpacking trip instead. I wore this shirt all day every day for hiking with a 50 pound pack. The weather was mostly sunny with some rain. Which made me really appreciate that the sleeves rolled up. Normally I make fun of shirts with sleeves that roll up and have a little loop to hold the cuffs in place. I think I will have to stop doing that now. At several points I even rolled them up higher than the cuff straps allowed. In the end I needed the sleeves down to protect my sunburn when I ran out of sunscreen, very effective.
The brand label was on a little Velcro tab on the left upper front of the shirt. I have no idea what the intended purpose of this is, but I found it useful for keeping my hydration tube near my thirsty mouth. Eventually it got saturated from my leaky bite valve and wouldn’t stick as well in the afternoon as in the morning.
On about the fifth or sixth day I discovered an amazing feature; this shirt has pockets! I had need to walk a few miles without my pack and was delighted to discover the pockets. Tiny seam zippers hide the mesh lined slits and they are roomy enough for my whole hands or wallet and cell phone.
As you can imagine a person gets to being a little stinky after sweating all day while hiking. After day two I was requested by others in my party to see if I couldn’t get some of the stink out of my shirt by washing it in the creek by camp. Their wool shirts didn’t stink at all, but mine had a greater versatility. I did rinse the shirt out every couple nights in a creek and it helped considerably with the smell. I can’t say it was exactly dry in the morning, but it wasn’t soaking wet either and some evenings were fairly chilly, so I don’t know that is a reflection of the fabric really. The fabric itself seemed to take the abuse of a pack and hiking alright, but I did notice some strange wear spots or pilling that didn’t seem at all related to the pack strap locations. It looked kind of like it had been washed with Velcro and gotten snagged, but I know this didn’t happen.
Overall I was pleased with the performance of the shirt and it will very likely make an appearance on my next hiking trip for its versatility. I suspect the vented back would be pretty effective if I didn’t have a back pack on, so I may try it with a waist pack next just to see. If I was buying it just to look pretty I might be a bit concerned about the unusual wear spots on the fabric, but it didn’t seem to affect the performance.
