Monthly Archives: June 2012


Respect Your Universe performance apparel for men review

Respect Your Universe, or RYU, is a performance apparel company which currently produces workout gear for men and will introduce a women’s line in July 2012. RYU is a unique performance gear company in that the company uses recycled materials and believes strongly in sustainability. Love this!

Respect Your Universe was founded by a group of friends who wanted to create the best martial arts shorts money could buy. They spoke with elite athletes and with their input, designed the ultimate shorts for martial arts, and working out in general.

Strength, honor, respect and sustainability were the athlete’s unspoken code and it was this way of life which inspired the brand to be born. The apparel stays put; wicks moisture, moves with the body and it is incredibility comfortable; we discovered this by putting the apparel to the test!

Rob tested out the “Tanto Compression Short,” a tee-shirt and the “Tanto Compression Long-Sleeve” shirt in 80 degree California heat, in direct sunlight. Rob ran sprint drills, bleacher drills, shot a few hoops and ran football drills on the field. RYU’s apparel was incredible and kept the moisture off his body so that he was able to feel cool and comfortable while working out.

The shorts and tee shirts allowed Rob to move easily and stayed put on his body while he ran drills. He loved the apparel and is excited to wear it again when he hits the gym for a spin class, martial arts class and for weight training. He also plans to use the tee-shirt for playing tennis. Final verdict by Rob: he loved it!

Bay Area Fashionista rates Respect Your Universe (RYU) apparel five out of five stars.

For more information about Respect Your Universe (RYU) please visit ryu.com

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Model: Rob, Photo Credit: Cathy/Bay Area Fashionista 2012©

*We received four pieces of apparel from RYU for editorial consideration. We were not required to write about the line, nor did receipt of the items influence our opinion or review of the product. Everything contained in this article is the sole opinion of the writer and tester and should be treated as such. For more information or if you have any questions, please see our disclaimer.


Fall 2012 fashion trends: Black and Gold

Black and yellow gold, worn together, dominated the runways in Paris, Milan, New York and London for the fall/winter 2012/2013 season. The classic combination, which was most memorable on the Dolce & Gabbana runway, offers many options for Fashionistas in the upcoming cool weather.

There are so many different ways to wear black and gold together, which is what makes this trend easy to follow for fall 2012; and possibly easy on the wallet. Many Fashionistas have an abundant amount of black clothing, and since yellow gold jewelry is classic, many fashion-savvy dressers may very well have at least one necklace or pair of earrings in the golden hue. This makes the black and gold trend easy to follow just by shopping one’s closet and pulling together black items and gold jewelry.

Of course, the black and gold trend can also be worn in an edgier way than classic black clothing and gold jewelry. Metallic accessories such as shoes and handbags can be found in yellow gold and paired with black apparel. And, the opposite can be done with gold apparel paired with black shoes and a black handbag.

The fashion-forward way to wear black and gold this fall 2012 season is to emulate what we saw on the runways. Designers created black apparel embellished with gold embroidery, threads and beadwork which added a rich and decadent feeling to the color combination.

There are so many ways to wear black and gold together this fall 2012 season. This is definitely a trend which can be found inside your closet, or can be shopped for guilt-free since black and gold are classic hues.
We found a few fabulous black and gold items around the web and assembled them into the Polyvore below. Hope you love it! Happy shopping and stay fabulous 

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