Cycling Fashion

designergirl

Hi Girls (and any guys that are lurking in the chicks forum)

This is my first post, so hello to all.

I am a keen cyclist, I do about 200 ks per week (and building.)

I am a Fashion Designer. I am interested in chatting to people about Cycling fashion.

I am wanting to design my own label for cycling wear, mainly for chicks

What do people prefer to wear, shorts or bib shorts. Sleevless or sleeve tops.

How can my designs be differant and sexier

Look here http://community.webshots.com/user/katiestern

These are some of my clothes designs (not cycling) Have a look, i am on there somewhere too.

Regards

Katie

cheapie

wow. yes you are!

Equus123

hello and welcome! im very happy to hear that someone wants to make-over the women's cycling apparel world. its great news to my ears. i'm 23 and have been an athlete my whole life. i don't like girly clothes, i'm not a big fan of feminine style. i like the sporty look. i enjoy wearing youth boys clothes (ex: Abercrombie). they're the perfect fit to my body and i love their styles. i'm very thin but i have Cs (if you know what i mean), so even though i wear boy's clothes, it doesn't come off the wrong way.

with that being said...i, personally, dont like women's cut tops. i dont like working out in "fitted" shirts. i cant stand women's t-shirts that have the baby-doll sleeves (the sleeves that are like an inch and a half long). i prefer a more traditional looking shirt. i love sleeveless crewneck shirts, i think they're very functional for working out. i would like if cycling clothing companies made more neutral colors for their women's line. i'm not a fan of the pinks, yellows, flowers, etc.

so those are my thoughts. i understand that my views are not with the majority

__________________
Cyclists are like men. The more T.I.T.S. they have, the better off they are.

Eden

Yeah -I'm kind of opposite. I'm very small and an A ;-) with a tiny waist. I totally prefer fitted cycling shirts. Normal ones are too baggy on me and flap in the wind which drives me nuts. (check out Canari's women's jerseys I like the "profit" cut) Little baby doll sleeves I hate. I want to keep pulling them down -plus try to put on arm warmers with little tiny sleeves - the arm warmers will keep falling down. I love patterns, but I like abstracts more than recognizable things. I don't like cute slogans or cartoon characters. Pockets are often missing or tiny on women's shirts. I won't buy a cycling jersey without pockets! Material is important to me too. The better it wicks and the drier it stays the better. Nothing cotton or cotton like.

Personally I wear normal shorts, I don't even know if I could find bibs in a small enough size, but I do know gals who prefer them. Taller people like them because when you lean over there is no way that you'll get a gap and a draft between your shorts and your shirt.

designergirl

Thanks for the responses.

I wear the "normal" sponser nik and jersey. I am a D cup, so I am wanting more support around the chest.

Can people post pictures of what style of clothing they like? Guys and girls. This might be a silly question but do guys and girls wear undies/knickers under thier riding niks??

Might do a poll, preference over shorts or bib shorts,

Katie
Melbourne

Eden

As far as I'm concerned its not a good idea for a lot of reasons. Undies trap sweat next to your skin, the seams can really easily chafe.... Let the chamois do its job and go au naturel. (plus it really really obvious if and what you've got on under your lycra!)

a pic of my current favorite jersey (I have this color and a purple one)
http://www.eyebike.com/product/cana...rsey-p1887.html

pilotgoddess

Lets see:

Colorful vs neutral: depends on my mood! I love them both.

Shorts vs bibs: Shorts. I hate having to almost completely undress to get my shorts off when visiting the little girls room, or them bushes on the side of the road. Especially when it's cold out, and the restroom isn't heated.

Padding on the shorts: minimal padding is nice. I have a pair of Pearls that I no longer wear because the excess amount of padding makes me feel like I'm wearing a super, heavy duty fem pad.

Fitted vs loose tops: Right now, loose. The fitted will get worn when the excess ahhhh....fluff gets exercised off my belly. And yes, those shorty baby doll sleeves are an annoying waste. Either you have sleeves, or you don't.

Tags/labels. Nothing more annoying than having the back of your neck scratched to death by those sewn in tags. However I have noticed some have the iron on decal type, like the Under Armour thermals I have.

Black shorts. Perhaps shorts that compliment the jersey? The only womens shorts I can find are black.

Shorts with skirts. Love 'em. I just wish I could remove the skirt if i didn't want to wear it.

Zippers. Please, please, please, would someone make a womens jersey with a full length zipper? Its almost impossible to pull a sweaty, sticky jersey off over your head without pulling you hair out of its ponytail and smashing your sunglasses into your sweaty face and smearing the lenses so bad you can't see.. That's why most of my jerseys are mens.

Pockets. I seldom use the back pockerts on the jersey, but I would love for one to be on the front. My allergies get so bad sometimes that I have to carry kleenex in my hand and sticking it into my glove is kinda gross, and if I tuck some up under the hem of my shorts, its to icky sweaty to use. They also would come in useful for aaahhhh, other small things that are kind of embarassing to drop when you are pulling one out of your tailbag with a bunch of guys standing around.

Undies with your bike shorts? GROSS!!!

ausgirl

Well, first, i think it's great that someone is interested in designing women's cycling clothes and that they are from Australia! Yay!

Sleeves - with the high rate of skin cancer in Australia, short sleeves a similar length to those on the men's shirts are good. Ie, not too short or why bother.

Cut - I'm small (about size 8) with Ds. So something that is cut to allow room for the chest and doesn't assume that because you are 8-10, that you will be flat-chested. A feminine cut that follows the shape of the body without being too tight. If you make them feminine cut with a range of sizes like 8-16, that would allow women to choose the size that fits the way they like - like a size larger if they like it a bit looser.

Pockets - 2-3 pockets on the back. 1 of these having a zipper would be useful for security when carrying money, phone or mp3 player.

Zipper - I agree, full-length zippers are really useful. Either totally unzip or stop 2-3 inches above the waistband.

Shorts - definitely. A range of colours - none too light. Light colours fade quick making the shorts see-through. I like the 8-10 panel shorts in black with the coloured piping or stitching along the seams - very nice. No undies with bike shorts, ever!

Shirt design - I am sick of flowers. I love bright colours. I agree about the abstract designs, they are nice. But if you can get some well cut jerseys in really nice and fashionable colours - they can be stunning. Maybe think like some of the turqouises and purples that are around at the moment.

Equus123

one thing that would be cool would be a pocket of some kind on the sleeve, depending on how long it is, to hold an MP3 player? that might be a catchy selling point to some people. if not, then it can be used for holding tissues!

one thing that i've never seen (thought they could be out there) is mesh on a jersey. the front would be the best location where the sweat builds up (though would decrease aerodynamics because of the material), but under the arms, down the sides, or on the back would be nice? if not mesh, maybe a spandex would work well around the shoulder joint to give more mobility and comfortable range of motion. I like to wear my jerseys tight but the tightness conflicts with comfort around my shoulders the more i stretch out.

i def agree to give the shorts some life. why do they only come in black for women? i know that the color is because of tradition, but come on now! matching outfits would be desireable. nothing too crazy. if a top has a patter, adding some of that to the shorts would be really nice - either a stripe down the sides or around the bottom of the leg piece or anything that isn't all that color or pattern. i do have a bit of a fondness for the black but it needs a touch of life.

thats my $.02 for now.

__________________
Cyclists are like men. The more T.I.T.S. they have, the better off they are.

chickonwheels

The most important thing (besides looking good) is function. That chammy is crucial, so I suggest you pick up a really good pair of cycling shorts made specifically for women and copy the chammy construction/stitching etc etc.

I think regular shorts vs. bibs are better since we need to pull shorts all the way down to pee, and having a jersey over the top of bibs caused a big hassle. I ride sleeveless most of the time, preferably even a tank style with racer back, but some may prefer more coverage from the sun. You definitely need rear pockets on jersey. And another suggestion: don't make the shorts too high cut - I hate the waist digging in to me when I'm bent over the handlebards.

Good luck.

charly h

There's a cool company in the UK that makes more interesting cycling stuff, foska.com ... check out that reflective bones jacket! (A lot of the brands on the shirts are UK specific ...) I am going to get one ... dunno what your climate is like but here in London there is a lot of darkness at the moment, so something that combines looking good with being eyecatching and functional is good!

I'd like more unisex style stuff in women's sizes - I really hate all that patronising pink/blue stuff - while the guys get serious looking sports apparel! Plenty of pockets is essential, when the weather warms up I'll be after a combat style pair of shorts with lots of pockets, then I'll wear my cycling shorts underneath (which is what I do at the mo only with long cut-offs - army surplus is v useful!) I dont wear underwear under my shorts - you never realise how many seams you have til you do that - OWW! Another thing that I'm using in the cold climate is my usual fingerless gloves with longer gloves underneath, not very innovative, but wouldn't it be useful if you only had to buy one pair of gloves, with a cold weather inner and fingerless outer?

Ummm, can't think of much else! Good luck!

dw_moto

Katie, I'm so excited about your posting. I've been looking for cool bicycle clothing for a long time and haven't been able to find what I like. I personnally think flowers are best left in the garden and that I don't need a jersey that proclaimes my gender (ex. "Biker Chick" jersey). I like bold colors (no pastels). I also really like the jerseys that have those panels that go under the arm down your side (the ones that make you look skinnier then you really are)or racing stripes down the arms/legs (to make you look faster). I also would like a wider variaty of sizes. I find that my C chest has a tendency to pop out or get crushed even in the largest jerseys, maybe a line of jerseys that are made for people with big chests and normal waists.

Equus123

amen to that sister

__________________
Cyclists are like men. The more T.I.T.S. they have, the better off they are.

cheapie

cheapie <---- Glad he's subscribed to this thread.