Things I should be doing right now:
1. Researching/arranging more college visits.
2. Thinking about what to have for dinner tonight.
3. Cleaning anything, ANYTHING AT ALL.
4. Taking a walk to fight against inevitable decline and death.
Instead, I am looking at cute school supplies. For me, I mean. The children are all set. These are the pencils I just ordered on the encouragement of Twitter friends:
(image from Amazon.com)
Kikkerland Woodland Pencils. I’ve had them in my Amazon cart for literally years. They’ve been $9ish, and I thought they were really cute but NINE DOLLARS FOR FOUR PENCILS ARE THEY IN FACT KIDDING ME. Plus, I kept thinking I’d see them in a store for less. Yesterday they dropped to $6ish. Today I bought three sets: one set for me, two to give as gifts. I am feeling conflicted, yet happy.
In part I was fortified by the success of these pens by the same company:
(image from Amazon.com)
Kikkerland retro pens. My sister-in-law and sister-in-law’s sister and I were out shopping at cute gift shops when we found these cute pens. My sister-in-law and I were both wavering, because they were something like $7 and that seemed kind of pricey for what were probably inferior pens dressed up in cute exteriors. Then the clerk said, “Oh, those pens are so cute, I had to have some. And you know what, they actually write really well! I’d assumed they’d be terrible, but they weren’t!” Well, how about SOLD? And she was right: they ARE really great pens. Since then I’ve bought two more sets for myself, and two more to give as gifts. I just love them. They go up and down in price on Amazon, so I keep them in my cart and buy them in the $6-7 range.
I have something to add to the underwear post. First, after not being able to find the Hanes Constant Comfort in my size/cut for AGES, Target had one of those temporary cardboard displays set up with a TON of them, and in a 4-for-the-price-of-3 pack. I bought two packs, even though I am nervous about them being undersized.
Also, I found these, but in different colors, at Walmart for $10:
(image from Amazon.com)
Fruit of the Loom Cotton Stretch Hi-Cuts (or here’s another listing for what looks like the same thing and may or may not yield a better price). Notice they claim to have a “comfort covered waistband.” So, okay, I hate to gamble $10, but if they’re good, that’s great; and if they’re not good, I paid $10 for info. That’s the way I’m looking at it.
I washed just one pair, figuring that if I hated them I could donate the rest of the package. I don’t hate them, but I don’t love them either. The fabric is indeed stretchy, in a way I can’t tell if I like or not. It IS nice not to feel as if I’m wrestling myself into them. Also, they’re plenty big, which is a nice change after the running-small Hanes that have been hurting my feelings lately. The colors/patterns are okay: my pack had solid magenta, magenta with white polka-dots, solid teal, teal with white polka-dots, black, and white (my pack didn’t have a bonus pair).
But they seem more like briefs than hi-cuts, or at least like a briefs/hi-cut hybrid. And the fabric feels very thin, not nice and cottony. I mean, it’s not slippery/satiny either, but…I don’t know. Anyway, I guess I’m keeping them. I don’t think I’m rushing out to buy more of them, either, but we’ll see. I hate this point I always seem to get to with plus-size clothing, where it’s like “Does it work AT ALL, even SORT OF?? Then I’d better STOCK UP.” But here we are.
Why oh why do we have to think about dinner Every Single Day? So irritating.
I have not used a pencil in maybe decades yet those animal pencils are so cute I feel almost FRANTIC to buy them. They would look adorable in a little vase or pencil jar – no need to USE them or anything, right?
I also want these pencils. Maybe a set for me and a set for Elizabeth. But can Elizabeth be trusted with pencils this cute? Or will she immediately lose them? Hmm.
My younger son and I are all over those pencils. I now have 3 sets in my cart.
I have the same favorite underwear as you do, but I just discovered them, so I don’t know if the sizing has changed. I’ve been annoyed at underwear quality lately. My issues are waistbands and stitching starting to unravel after only a few washes and I think they generally are aging more quickly. They used to look nice for a longer period of time. I am using the same washer and the same laundry soap, so I think it’s the underwear, unless our water has changed. On top of it all I’m scouring the shelves at Target like an underwear beggar looking for something, anything in my size that I even sort of like.
Anyway, the whole thing is a racket in my opinion and I am feeling a need to find some way to stick it to the man, because this is crap.
Ugh, on the “does it work AT ALL” feeling with plus size clothes…I am there right now with a sports bra I just ordered. It is slightly (EVER SO SLIGHTLY) too small, but it was a really great price and it’s very high quality and it’s exactly the type of sports bra I find super comfortable for working out. But it’s just a tiny bit (TINY TINY) too small to wear comfortably right now. So I’m dithering. I cannot actually use this item right this minute, at my current size/shape. However, I am working quite hard to alter that size/shape, and gods willing, I shall be able to wear this bra within a few months. So do I keep it, so that the minute I’m sized and shaped differently I have a shiny (it’s not actually shiny) new sports bra ready to go in my new size, or do I send it back and buy many of them once I can actually wear them, now that I know how nice they are? What if they stop carrying them? What if they sell out of my size? Several of my first color choices were in fact sold out of the size I ordered, so this is not a groundless fear.
I may have to buy some of those pencils. Those are darling.
I love helpful shop workers. When I finally broke down and bought The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, after ignoring for a long time, the checker told me to give it 100 pages and not give up. She promised it would be worth it. She was 100% right. I would probably have given up if she hadn’t called it almost exactly!
I know you have the underwear style you like…BUT just a thought, if manufacturers are no longer making that style in a way that works for you and is widely available, would you be willing to branch out to a DIFFERENT style that might actually work BETTER?
I ask because the more modern style of underwear uses flat, rubbery elastic that lays very, very, thin and does not bind or pinch. AT ALL. Some of them are cotton, some are a hybrid cotton with a soft “wicking” material that never gets sweaty which I love. Also this type of elastic leaves zero–really zero–panty lines no matter what type of clothes you wear.
It is just an idea, but sometimes I know if I have a system that works, and something changes so that it no longer works, I keep fighting to get the old system back. In the meantime I am stuck with a system that doesn’t work, and I’d really be better off developing a NEW system, but that would mean a) admitting my old system is gone for good, which is a bummer and b) change, which ha, not a big fan. But I notice you said you had been struggling with Hanes that didn’t fit well, and you couldn’t really find it anyway, and no one seems to make the underwear you like. But MAYBE there is a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT TYPE of underwear out there, that is actually just as good or BETTER than the Hanes! But you’d have to take a chance and break out of the underwear box, so to speak.
Just a thought! Good luck on your underwear Odyssey! :-)
Yes, I AM willing to branch out! It’s why I’m asking for suggestions for new kinds to try!
OK! I didn’t want to assume bc you did ask for suggestions — but your requirements seemed to pretty much fulfill the old type of undies, which I think aren’t really much out there any more. So I didn’t want to offer up something so different! But If you are open — I would suggest something completely different!
I would suggest trying some of the underwear that are marketed as “no visible panty lines”. You can still find that style in a high-leg brief, but they have NO binding elastic at the legs, and really most have none at the waist either. It is a type of very thin, very flat elastic & the underwear basically lays completely flat on your skin. They are super comfortable and have the bonus of staying in place! You can find some with cotton or moisture-wicking material, or of a more stretchy-lycra material. I think it might be something to try!
I can’t speak to good plus or near-plus sized sources — I would check the other recommendations on that. I get mine from a website called Soma which does go up to near-plus (I think size 16-18). I ADORE their “vanishing edge” bikini underwear, they are a bit pricey but they never ever leave lines, never move around, and are like wearing underwear that is so comfortable you feel like you’re not wearing any, except better because you ARE wearing some!!
:-)
Those aren’t requirements; I thought I should mention what I used to like, as a starting point—mostly to avoid suggestions from the “satin thong” and “nylon brief” categories, or for types not available in plus sizes.
I just bought two sets of those pencils, AND the adorable erasers that amazon kindly pointed me to!! One of the perks being a substitute teacher is that I get to totally indulge in my love of school supplies.
Oh, those retro pens-I bought them on your recommendation and they are my favorite pens ever. So much so that I hesitate to bring them to work, because I don’t want to lose them! I should just stock up and get on with enjoying them.
I was just browsing around amazon, and they have the retro pens in mini size! I love minis-so bought a few.
Chiming in re: thinness of Fruit of the Loom undies. I just bought a pack of 11 (8 plus 3 bonus!!!!) of Fruit of the Loom boyshorts for my newly toilet trained toddler, and they are super thin and kind of scratchy. No spandex content either, so they fall off her little butt. So, they seem to be using inferior fabric across their whole product line! These were purchased in desperation because we were, ahem, out of stock at home, so definitely an $8 for the info situation, otherwise I would be tempted to get this kind when I see fun patterns available online.
I am in LOVE with those pencils! Absolutely adorable.
Just ordered a set of the pencils to make a care package for my sister, who just got a new job! Thanks for the recommendation!!!
There’s a vlogger I love named Cora (her channel is “Vintage or Tacky) who does a lot of plus sized clothing hauls and try on videos. Her style isn’t something I would wear everyday but I sometimes find it encouraging to see someone be stylish, confident and also plus sized. Basically, I enjoy her clothing videos and would encourage anyone to check them out of their in the dumps about the selection of cute plus sized items available.
I am very late to the underwear party. But. As a plus size (24-ish), I’ve decided that it’s worth spending more money to get underwear that doesn’t suck. I also was a high-cut devotee in the past…the regular brief legs always hit me in a too-low weird spot…and I have found that some brands of hipster are just fine. What I really like are the seamless microfiber hipsters from Lane Bryant. They’re usually $33 for 3 pairs. I know, I know, it’s a lot. But they hold up reasonably well, and they don’t. move. around. They also don’t really show under clothes. They always have black. Sometimes, they have other pretty colors, and if you are vigilant, you can find those on clearance for $5-ish a pair. I wear my regular pants size in the hipsters (I usually sized down one in the high-cut version because I hate baggy underpants so very much). Don’t buy their “sassy cotton” high-cuts, they don’t hold up worth a crap to normal-person laundry habits. They’re not cotton, but they’re very soft and smooth. I’ve tried all of the Walmart/Target brands, and they all suck. Boyshorts stretch out so badly and the seam is not in a comfy place. They have a cotton/spandex blend but it stretches out too.
I am 42 years old and I finally decided to quit being a complete cheapskate about something I wear every day…and something that, if it goes wrong, will RUIN your day. :)