Lululemon recalls see-through pants

Lululemon Athletica has recalled 17% of the women's yoga pants in its stores because the latest batch were apparently too sheer. The quality control problem forced the company to cut its revenue forecast by $12-17 million and its stock price took it on the chin.

"The ingredients, weight and longevity qualities of the pants remain the same, but the coverage does not, resulting in a level of sheerness in some of our women's black Luon bottoms that falls short of our very high standards," the company stated. "We want you to Down Dog and Crow with confidence and we felt these pants didn't measure up."

"See-through pants problem causes Lululemon recall" (CNN, thanks Jess Hemerly!)

David Pescovitz is Boing Boing's co-editor/managing partner. He's also a research director at Institute for the Future. On Instagram, he's @pesco.

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foobar

They don’t exactly leave anything to the imagination as is.
sdmikev

I go with my wife a couple times a week to yoga and I can confirm about these pants. From a purely scientific visual standpoint.
- Donald Petersen
  
  Do you go to yoga to see London and France? Or just to see through someone’s yoga pants?
  - sdmikev
    
    Yes.
    And to almost die from the heat and workout. Maybe that’s my wife’s plan.. :)
MonkeyBoy

A Google image search does not turn up any examples of this problem.

Maybe somebody noticed the infamous problem of black clothing becoming transparent with camera flashes.

In other words Pics or it didn’t happen
- Stooge
  
  David has included a pic of the phenomenon: the model’s thong is clearly on backwards.
  - http://celesteagnes.blogspot.com/ Sekino
    
    Duh. It’s way more comfortable that way.
Drabula

Problem? What problem?
Antinous / Moderator

Why recall them when they could have just sold them off to International Male or Frederick’s?
- http://theladyfingers.blogspot.com/ Ladyfingers
  
  Or rebrand them to exhibitionists as Mumumuffin.
  - http://twitter.com/bigbadchang Chang Terhune
    
    LADYFINGERS FTW!!!
http://www.facebook.com/matthew.urso Matthew Urso

pics or BS
Navin_Johnson

We want you to Down Dog and Crow

Instead of “Down Camel and Toe”.
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  Adho Mukha Uṣṭrangusthasana?
- http://www.geekforce.com Hugh Johnson
  
  Ninja boot is so much nicer than camel toe
http://imcravingpresidency.tumblr.com/ SedanChair

I too recall them
Quacky

Where is the correct forum to suggest that it will be a FINE day when these turn up at Marshall’s, TJMaxx, and/or Kohl’s?
- http://daruiburns.tumblr.com/ Dlo Burns
  
  Ugh, I don’t want my mother even touching these.
- oasisob1
  
  You think they won’t?
- IronEdithKidd
  
  Do you really want these falling into the hands of my 56 year old, yoga-obsessed aunt?
http://anomicofficedrone.com/ AnomicOfficeDrone

I’m always surprised at how clearly you can see flesh tones through some black yoga pants. It makes me wonder if the women wearing them know just how much they’re showing off.
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  I’m always amazed that people wear loose tops to yoga class. The instant that they fold forward, the tee shirt becomes a necklace.
- blueelm
  
  Meh… I circumvent that question by showing up in a sport bra and booty shorts. More comfortable, no awkward hanging forward when my legs are in the air, and everyone knows I know my chones are showing so no one has to wonder if they should tell me. Yay!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=566626970 Russ W. Wallace

I don’t think I could come up with a more pristine example of a First World Problem.
- http://daruiburns.tumblr.com/ Dlo Burns
  
  “I spilled coffee on my pants and now everybody at the mall can see my crotch”
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  I don’t think I could come up with a more pristine example of a First World Problem.
  
  Clothing that’s not fit for purpose seems like a pretty big problem in the Third World, as well.
pineapplecharm

This is a missed opportunity to market a piece of pants which you wear under your pants to cover up the goodies – in other words a boner-killing buttkerchief.
booomer

This article sums it up well ;)
http://gawker.com/5991206/america-descends-into-lawless-pandemonium-as-lululemon-threatens-shortage-of-black-yoga-pants
- http://www.youtube.com/user/Freethinkersanon Christopher
  
  There’s something oddly appropriate about this issue being mentioned on Gawker.
unit_1421

So sayeth The Lord, repant and thin no more!
cstatman

silly me, here I thought the whole point of yoga pants was indeed TO SHOW OFF your business. your lady business
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  Apparently, you’ve never been to a yoga class.
pjcamp

I have a hard time understanding how you’re supposed to Down Dog with opaque britches.
http://daruiburns.tumblr.com/ Dlo Burns

Have you seen their bags? My friend had a gift card and refused to carry one of these around all day.

http://www.mindposts.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/luluGaltbag11.jpg
- blueelm
  
  Ugh… that tells me everything I need to know about their brand. Actually yoga “branding” is already kind of pathetic. There’s really no demand put on your clothing in yoga that isn’t put on your clothing in most dance practice. You can buy dance clothes for a fraction of the price though, and they’re often better designed.
  - Donald Petersen
    
    Having spent about as much time in yoga classes as I’ve spent on the ISS, I’m speaking from a place of Compleat Ignorance: could not one yogatize in fairly complete comfort in a lightweight sweatsuit?
    
    As for that bag, I wonder if it would help matters to whip out a bottle of Wite-Out and alter it to read, “Who the F*ck is John Galt?!”
    
    Nah, probably not worth it.
    - Antinous / Moderator
      
      A sweat suit would be fine if it fit snugly. Otherwise, it’s going to get all wadded up in your cracks. And if you’re in class, it makes it hard for the teacher to see if you’re in correct alignment. Fitted trunks or snug, stretchy pants plus a snug tee/ tank top/ sports bra is ideal.
blueelm

No good for Down Dog, but fabulous for the Dirty Dog. Get on the floor!
Sean Breakey

Marketing *shakes his head*

There are plenty of people who would buy this as a selling point. Aside from being libidinous, maybe as an alternative to pantyhose that wouldn’t tear after 5 seconds of use. Especially after they claim it doesn’t affect durability.
snipehunt

Good GOD LuluLemon
novium

didn’t yoga pants used to be relatively sensible & comfortable, like pajama bottoms? I miss that.
ChickieD

I’m a yoga teacher, and well connected into the yoga community. Lululemon is not highly regarded by those in the know; it is seen as hopping on the trend and not for serious practitioners.

There is an excellent brand of clothing made by a yoga teacher called Marie Wright. http://www.mariewright.com/home.php Their pants and unitards have double panels to fully cover genitals, butt, boobs. They last forever and look great after many washings. They are expensive but they are a good investment; not many cotton exercise clothes wear this well. They also have some shirts that are cut high, so that when you are doing a shoulderstand you don’t have the problem of spilling out of your top. I’m very curvy and really have a hard time finding tops that work well for me. They are one of the only sources of unitards suited for yoga.Another brand that I love for pants is Swadeshi Yoga: http://www.swadeshiyoga.com/Home-Page.html Their clothing is made in the USA and their owner inherited this family business. The owner is steering the company in a new direction with the yoga clothing in order to keep the business afloat. I met the owner when he toured through several yoga studios to promote his brand and he impressed me so much with his devotion to his employees and to yoga. His pants are sized generously and are some of the few that really fit women who are size 10, 12, 14 and up. I don’t really like the shirts for myself as they have built in shelf bras, which just don’t work for me, but they are nicely made and would be good if you find a shelf bra supportive enough.
- oasisob1
  
  “sized generously” = sized honestly.
  
  I have to agree with you that lululemon is more brand than product.
- Ambiguity
  
  Yes, but can you see through them?
http://www.youtube.com/user/Freethinkersanon Christopher

For the brief period of time that I was taking yoga classes I was too busy focusing on making my own body do what the instructor was telling us to spend any time looking at anybody else, except before class when the guy next to me would change his shirt. So if anybody other than the instructor had see-through pants, or see-through anything else I didn’t notice it.

I’ll take this, though, as a reminder that I should find another yoga class. I really, really, really enjoyed it, but even though it was billed as a beginner’s class I was the only person in the class who hadn’t been doing yoga for at least five years. And the instructor was working on some high-level certification and decided to use the class to review. In short, I don’t care what you’re wearing as long as you can help me with the basics.
haineux

Apparently, there are many PG-13 rated websites on the “hawt girls in yoga pants” theme. So, those that seek pictures, TO THE GOOGLES!

The other day, at a public park, late in the sunny afternoon, I observed this phenomenon. Coffee-skinned woman wearing black yoga pants over a thong underwear. I want to say that the thong was also black. It was completely underneath the pants, but quite visible. I doubt there was any possible underwear that would be less visible, though.
When she turned around, I realized she was about as pregnant as it was possible to be without the baby actually sticking out.
How did I feel about all this? Somewhat surprised. Later I was relieved to hear that it might be possible that she didn’t realize how much was visible.
dan deresh

Free The See Thru Lulu!!

#FreeTheSeeThruLulu is a campaign to persuade Lululemon that see-though yoga pants should be just one of many options available to consumers.We strongly believe that sheer, and transparent yoga pants are an important part of a free society. Do we see the oppressed people of North Korea wearing these form-fitting, gossamer pants? The answer is: NO.
So please join me in asking Lululemon to return these freedom-loving pants to the free market. Ask them to do it for the greater good, for freedom, for you and for me.
Sign the petition at: http://www.change.org/en-CA/petitions/lululemon-return-recalled-yoga-pants-to-the-free-market
Discuss #FreeTheSeeThruLulu on twitter with @ThatDanDeresh and @Lululemon
Share this post: http://dderesh.tumblr.com/post/45808934843/lululemon-campaign-freetheseethrululu on Facebook
http://twitter.com/stuck411 David

LOL. It’s not just yoga pants that have the problem. No idea of the maker but last year I spotted different women, at different locations who where wearing jeggings of some sort. Each had a reason to bend over at some point as I passed by. Shoes off of a shoe store floor & going through their purse on a low bench. Oh! The sights I saw those days!
http://greggman.com greggman

They should have just announced they were mis-labelled. They should have been labelled “stockings”