Online Shopping: Zappos or NorthFace.com?

Shopping for clothes online is always a bit of a hassle if you ask me. Will it fit? Shipping costs? What about the return policy? But sometimes you don't have a choice. There might not be any retailers nearby that carry the color or size you want. Or maybe you just don't like dealing with overbearing sales people. The obvious place to get your goodies would clearly be your favorite brand's website, yet if you've ever checked hotel prices you might have noticed that company-owned websites tend to be on the pricey side and the best deals are usually found on independently owned websites. Though there are many websites that sell North Face clothing, I thought today I would look at one of the most popular online shopping websites, Zappos.com, and compare it to North Face's website.

Presentation:
North Face: B
Though the website design is top notch, there are few pictures of people wearing the clothes which is a major pet peeve of mine. I mean, how are you supposed to get a mental image of how something might look on you if there isn't even a person wearing it?
Zappos: A+
Yes, Zappos website uses a rather simple design but features at least four different pictures of the product from different angles as well as a VIDEO presentation. What more could you ask for?

What about sizes, colors, shipping and returns? Check out the winner after the jump!

Wilderness Soundtrack: What are your favorite travel songs?

Fabienne and I always enjoy a good conversation about music. There's something so intimate about sharing your favorite songs with someone and talking about the special moments and feelings that you associate with them. Today, I though it would be interesting to share one of my favorite songs of ALL TIME! "Train Song" by Vashti Bunyan and more recently covered by Feist is, in my opinion, quite a master piece. The song is about 'traveling north' to a long lost lover and sitting on the train wondering what will happen once you get to your destination. Well, I personally love train travel and the anticipation of a new, unknown place, whether it is a large bustling city or a beautiful, remote national park waiting to be explored. Check out the original song below and the cover after the jump! Also, leave a comment with your favorite travel song!

Get the Latest Wilderness Chic Deals with iPhone App

There is nothing worse than hearing about a great deal only to find out that all that's left are weird colors and extremely large/small sizes, but with all those 'one day' sales it's easy to miss out if you're not constantly hitting refresh on the Patagonia website. Thanks to the developers over at Hunter Research and Technology who have just a released a new iPhone app called ODAT 2.0 you no longer have to worry about missing awesome deals. The app monitors 15 online outdoor apparel and gear retailers for the latest deals so you can save some serious cash. Among the retailers included in the app are Patagonia and REI. The app is free, so if you have an iPhone download it right now by clicking here!
Photo Courtesy of Hunter Research and Technology.
Source

North Face, Patagonia Win 'Gear of the Year' Awards

Every year National Geographic Adventure publishes a 'Gear of the Year' list which some might say is the outdoor apparel equivalent to the Vogue September issue. This year both North Face and Patagonia made the list with North Face bringing home one award for their Kisthwar jacket and Patagonia scoring two awards for a jacket and a sweater. Let's take a look at those products and why they stood out to the editors at National Geographic.

North Face Kishtwar Jacket
North Face calls this jacket, rather boastfully, the 'holy grail of soft shells.' It's supposed to be have all the benefits of a hard shell while not sacrificing comfort and movability. I personally don't own this jacket so I can't comment on the holiness of the it but it seems to be quite popular. Unfortunately, it seems that North Face no longer carries the nice black and green design that is featured in NatGeo, they do, however, still have the all black and blue model. Get it at North Face. $279. Photo courtesy of North Face


Patagonia M10 Jacket
Patagonia took home an award for their M10 hard shell jacket. NatGeo praises it's light weight and describes it as an 'impenetrable fortress.' Impressive. Get it at Patagonia for $399. The model for women is currently on sale for $239.40. Photo courtesy of Patagonia





Patagonia Special Edition Down Sweater
This special edition down sweater from Patagonia took home the award for most awesome down sweater. Not surprising really, considering that it comes in this cool circa 1960s Apollo 5 astronaut look. If you love shiny things and need a sturdy, light weight down sweater you can't go wrong with this sweater! Available at Patagonia.com. $275. Photo courtesy of Patagonia





Check out the rest of the National Geographic list "Gear of the Year!"

Unusually Pretty: Stylishly Wild

As much as we love wilderness chic clothes, most outdoor clothing brands tend to play it safe and stick to conservative colors and styles. So what do you do when you want to mix it up a little? Check our blog, of course! In our newest column called "Unusually Pretty" we will feature some of the more 'out there' wilderness chic clothes for all of you daring and fashion forward wilderness lovers who want to make a statement when you're out there climbing Mount Everest or bushwhacking through the Australian outback!



Today, we want to start of with a nifty little hat. This stylish fedora is for all you hipsters out there who are into the whole bi-fashionable thing! Go from hipster to hiking in less than 30 seconds! Get it at REI for under $11! Better hurry before it's sold out!
Photo courtesy of REI







This jacket doesn't look so unique until you pay close attention to the blue stitching that is placed strategically across the jacket. The vertical front pocket is also pretty cool! Very stylish and very urban wilderness indeed. Get it at Patagonia. $349.
Photo courtesy of Patagonia.





This last item, a pair of hiking boots, I love because they look very plain and normal except for the little dash of purple that makes all the difference. It's not always about wearing the loudest or most unusual clothes, sometimes just a little touch of color can make you the star of the hiking trail. Available at Patagonia. $170
Photo Courtesy of Patagonia

I love hoodies...! Bet you've noticed.

North Face - Women's TKA 100 Masonic Hoodie

A lightweight, soft fleece, feminine full zip hoodie! This is a simple yet modern design perfect for your morning jog.

Also available in red, green, blue and gray! Get it here

North Face - Women's Mossbud Hoodie

With a name like mossbud how could you go wrong? Silky smooth and cozy hoodie made of super soft fleece. It features a large kangaroo pocket at front and has two button closures at neck. The ribbed cuffs and hem add to a casual, sporty fit.

Also available in blue and white. Get it here or here.

North Face - Women's Windwall 2 Jacket
Windwall is one of North Face's signature fabrics and this extra-warm fleece jacket is breathable and wind-blocking - ideal for arctic gusts or an extra cold winter night.

Comes in all your standard colors plus bordeaux and pink... :) Get it here

Hiking up to a frozen waterfall

On one of my last adventures up north in British Columbia, Canada, some friends of mine thought it would be a great idea to hike up a wash-out at night, with the snow knee- to hip-deep. It was hard to hike (crawl?) up to the frozen waterfall and no one realized how cold it actually would be that night. After about 1.5 hrs with many stumbles and one fall (mine of course), we finally made it as far as we could without bringing out the heavy equipment. We stood there and let nature do it's thing. It was a clear night, with a bright moon and so many stars out we didn't even make use of our flashlights. I think we all stopped breathing for a few seconds when we finally saw and felt nature's beauty that night.

The hike was so exhausting that even a couple of days later I was still sore and bruised from the first trip up the hill. We went up there again and it took me a bit longer that day (even with less snow), but it was more than worth it.

Since I know that many readers will appreciate it, I posted some pics of that adventure. And yes, the person that looks close to frozen is me during the day trip. Needless to say it was a windy and cold day!

Apparel:

- The North Face Thermal Shirt

- Mountain Hardwear "longjohns"

- Firefly Snow pants

- Sherpa Outdoor Jacket

- Columbia boots (Omni-Tech)

Some more size issues...

I know Patrick already wrote about this issue but I have some things to get of my chest too. As he already mentioned I'm tall, almost 6ft. And I am not on the skinny side, but wearing an L/XL doesn't really make me fat either I think.
Anyway, my problem, and I'm sure many women out there feel the same way, is that I can hardly find any Wilderness Chic clothes in women's sizes. I've been looking for a nice vest for over a year now, without any success. I'd really like one of those hooded vests with a more feminine cut and style! Oh sure, I can find stuff in the men's department but, come on, what women wants to always wear black, gray and dark blue? Not this one. Plus, men's clothes always end up looking like a bag on me because the cut is simply wrong.
Unfortunately, there's no choice for people like me. I love being outside even when its cold and that means I need some proper clothes. Hiking in jeans and a normal sweater is not very comfortable, warm or dry and just won't do anymore! Are you listening North Face?

Oprah Loves REI

TV personality Oprah Winfrey stopped by a Fresno REI store last week and caused quite a commotion. The Fresno Bee reports that Oprah fans quickly showed up at the store and were excited to see their idol. Winfrey, along with her friend Gale King, reportedly needed some gear for their camping trip to Yosemite National Park which was celebrating its 120th anniversary on Friday. Filming crews were present, so I guess we can expect an "Oprah Goes Camping" segment on the show's final season. Seeing Oprah cuddle up in a sleeping bag next to Gayle should definitely make for entertaining television. Throw in a hungry bear and a near death experience and we're talking Daytime Emmy for sure!

It's Difficult Being Green: Patagonia Website Reveals Struggle to Be Carbon Neutral

In our advertising and consumer-oriented world, we are often deliberately deceived and a lot of money is spent trying to conceal the real cost of the products we purchase every day. Ironically, outdoor companies are in somewhat of a predicament. If they destroy the earth, they also destroy their business because without a pristine environment I doubt there would be a large demand for hiking boots or camping gear.  It is not surprising then that most wilderness chic clothing companies claim to be environmentally conscious.
Patagonia, for example, has a cool little feature called "The Footprint Chronicles" which allows you to track the path that a product takes all the way from the design process in California, back to the distribution center in Nevada. The website omits the final trip from the distribution center to the retail stores. The website reveals how unbelievably wasteful our current globalized production system is. The company's rainbow shadow jacket for example, travels over 10,000 miles and has a carbon footprint of about 35 pounds more than 43 times the weight of the jacket itself (Again this does not include the last part - shipping products to retail store all around the world). While the website is informative and shows that Patagonia is committed to improving their environmental record, it also reveals the limitations of working within the current industrial system. Will a company like Patagonia every be carbon neutral? If a 'good' company like Patagonia struggles to be eco-friendly, what does that say about more mainstream companies? There are no easy answers to sustainability issues but maybe it's time we start thinking about alternatives.

First North Face Store in Indiana!

Exciting news for all wilderness chic lovers in Indiana! North Face is opening their first store in Indiana today! Head down to The Fashion Mall at Keystone for the latest North Face gear. This is the company's 32nd store in the US and will include a 'hydration station' for all you thirsty mall rats!
Source: Indystar.com

Patagonia Founder part of AMEX Commercial Campaign

Ok this may be old news but I still think it's worth a post. Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard recently appeared in an American Express commercial. It may just be another advertising campaign that tries to get people to sign up for credit cards but it's nice to get a visual of the person who is behind one of our favorite stores.

What's on Sale at Patagonia? *T-Shirt edition*

Everyone loves a good bargain so let's check out some of our favorite items that are on sale over at Patagonia.com:
We love to "live simply" and is there a better way to let people know than with a t-shirt?  On sale now! Only $12! Get it at Patagonia.com

If you're a whale-lover, and who isn't, check out this nifty tee... A true bargain at $12 - Get it at Patagonia.com

Quiet please. Let other people know how you feel about their inappropriately loud cell-phone conversations without getting confrontational. $12 - Get it at Patagonia.com

Last one: We're not sure what exactly this is supposed to represent but the color is nice! $12 at Patagonia.com

Images courtesy of Patagonia.com