HONEST Tala Review _ Sustainable but is it FUNCTIONAL_!

Kendra Carter

Today I am reviewing TALA by Gracefituk! I bought a bunch of pieces from the TALA core collection and put them to the test in this brutally honest tala review! Grace Beverly launched Tala Activewear last year as a sustainable activewear brand! Grace used to be a Gymshark athlete but has since branched off to create her own activewear line of seamless leggings, seamless shorts, sports bras, and zip up tops! I got the collection in chai and sea and did a full, brutally honest review for you all, including a gym test! So are tala leggings worth it? Does TALA hold up in the gym? Watch and find out!   pieces in the video: Zinnia leggings (size S) Solsta bra (size S) zahara bra (size S) hosta shorts (size M) aster crop (size S)  MY MEASUREMENTS    - Chest: 29 in, 73cm - Bust: 35 in, 89cm - Bra size: 32 DDD (70DDD EU sizing) - Waist: 25 in, 64 cm - Hip: 37.5 in , 95 cm(widest part) - Thigh: 22.5 in, 57cm - Calf: 15in, 38 cm - Height: 5’9”, 175cm - Weight: approx. 145 lbs/65-66kg (changes all the time tbh)

Transcript

00:00 I think she's looking pretty good.

00:01 It should just be tight at the bottom.

00:04 So I have a problem with these shorts,

00:06 but I'll admit I was wrong.

00:07 Hey guys, and welcome back to my channel.

00:09 And today I feel like I've been waiting to do this review

00:12 since this brand first launched,

00:14 but then I missed that launch,

00:15 and then I missed like the next five launches,

00:18 but we're finally reviewing Tala.

00:20 Tala is GraceFit UK's activewear brand,

00:22 and I've always liked Grace.

00:24 I think she's like really cool.

00:25 She was one of like the OG Gymshark athletes,

00:27 and then she kind of like branched off and did her own thing.

00:30 She created like those GraceFit UK bands,

00:32 and now it's called like Bandstore,

00:34 and she has like all these guides,

00:36 and then she created her own activewear,

00:38 and she's always put an emphasis on sustainability

00:40 and all that, so this is a sustainable activewear brand,

00:43 which is pretty unique.

00:44 I only know of like a couple other ones.

00:46 So when she first launched the brand,

00:47 I watched her like video,

00:49 like explaining like what she wanted the brand to be

00:51 and all that, and she said she wanted it to be sustainable.

00:54 She also didn't want it to be one of those brands

00:56 that sells out immediately

00:57 and never has anything in stock,

00:58 and you have to like go launch by launch,

01:00 which don't think they've quite succeeded in that yet.

01:03 I did wake up at 5 a.m. for these items,

01:06 and by the time it was like 7 a.m.,

01:08 and like when I went back to sleep and woke up again,

01:10 a lot of these items in my size were completely sold out.

01:12 So two hours isn't exactly like, you know,

01:15 not selling out quickly.

01:16 I got the Chai and Sea colors, which were like so cute.

01:20 Like I love these colors together.

01:21 I definitely like the Sea color more

01:22 'cause Chai kind of like washes like pale colors out, but.

01:25 So if you keep up with me on Instagram and all that,

01:27 you know that I had some issues with the shipping.

01:30 So I spent like $300,

01:32 and in order for me to get shipping with tracking,

01:34 it would have been like an extra like $10 to $20.

01:37 I don't really remember,

01:38 but you have to pay extra for shipping with tracking,

01:41 which when you're spending like $300,

01:42 I just feel like it should come with that.

01:44 But I was already spending $300,

01:46 so I wasn't gonna spend an extra $10 to get tracking,

01:48 so I didn't.

01:50 So this is a UK brand,

01:51 and when I think of UK activewear,

01:53 obviously I think of Gymshark,

01:54 and these prices are very comparable to Gymshark.

01:57 I don't think they're really much cheaper at all.

01:59 So it's just kind of hard when you have similar prices

02:03 in like a similar type brand to Gymshark,

02:06 and then like don't kind of have

02:08 like the same shipping practices.

02:09 Like Gymshark, I can get in a solid three days

02:12 free shipping here,

02:13 and I waited three entire weeks,

02:17 three entire weeks for this order.

02:18 When I'm ordering from China/AliExpress, Nepoagym,

02:21 you guys know I like them,

02:23 I expect it to take about three weeks, okay?

02:24 Like it's like $15 for a pair of leggings.

02:27 But when I'm paying $50 for a pair of leggings

02:29 in a brand that is like trying to be,

02:32 I don't know, a nice activewear brand,

02:34 I just like a little bit faster shipping.

02:36 Anyways, I've been following the brand for a while,

02:38 and I feel like they have like a kind of few core designs.

02:41 They have their high-waisted seamless leggings,

02:43 they have their kind of like longer biker style

02:46 seamless shorts,

02:47 and they have all those like zip up crop tops,

02:49 they have like the tank one and the long sleeve one.

02:52 I got all of those,

02:53 and then with this launch,

02:54 I don't know if it's new,

02:55 but they also launched a sports bra,

02:57 which I am more of like a sports bra girl

02:59 than like a zip up kind of girl,

03:01 so I wanted to try that too.

03:03 Everything I'm reviewing is the same material.

03:05 It's an upcycled polyamide blend with elastane.

03:09 They claim to have a four-way stretch

03:11 and to be breathable and antibacterial.

03:14 For some reason I thought it was made of plastic bottles,

03:16 but like it's not, which is totally fine.

03:19 The idea of upcycling is taking something

03:21 that's like already made,

03:22 like probably another piece of clothing,

03:24 and then turning it into something better,

03:26 like upcycling, you know, upwards.

03:29 That's still super cool that they're doing that

03:31 because they're definitely saving the energy

03:32 of making a new product

03:34 and like all the like emissions

03:35 and everything related to that.

03:37 So if you like to be conscious of the environment

03:38 while purchasing clothes,

03:40 they got that on their end.

03:41 Anyways, let's start reviewing.

03:42 So first we have the Zinnia leggings.

03:45 I got these in the color C

03:46 because I just love this color.

03:47 These are a super high-waisted seamless legging,

03:50 made of that fabric.

03:51 Not gonna lie, the fabric like kinda smells a little weird.

03:53 It kinda smells like a new car smell,

03:56 but in leggings, which I haven't experienced very much.

03:58 It's a super thick knit fabric.

04:00 And honestly, since it is like a sustainable like fabric,

04:04 I was expecting it to be super, super stiff.

04:06 It actually has a good amount of stretch.

04:08 And I felt like really good wearing these.

04:10 I did do a gym test in these

04:11 that I'll insert in a little bit.

04:12 They have a thick ribbed seamless waistband

04:15 with their little logo embroidered into the fabric.

04:18 They also have this ribbed,

04:19 this kinda widow's peak booty contour detailing.

04:22 The rest of the fabric, as you can see,

04:24 is a classic knit material.

04:26 The fabric itself reminds me

04:27 of a Jed North seamless legging.

04:29 Maybe this might be a little stretchier

04:31 and like a Gymshark Energy seamless.

04:33 So it's not shiny, but it's also not like brushed.

04:35 So far, I've had no issues with any of the seams.

04:38 They're all holding up for me.

04:39 I did wear these on a pretty intense leg day.

04:41 I really tried to stretch as much as I could, you know.

04:44 And I did not have these ripping.

04:46 I know I've heard literally countless stories

04:48 of people telling me that their Tata leggings

04:51 have been ripping in the crotch.

04:52 Like maybe these are updated and the seams are better,

04:56 but I really, I really did not feel

04:58 like they were gonna rip for me.

04:59 I didn't.

05:00 Anyways, let's try these on and get into the details.

05:02 (upbeat music)

05:05 ♪ You were my best friend ♪

05:12 ♪ Didn't care about the rules ♪

05:13 ♪ Good on the weekends ♪

05:16 ♪ I'll be in fools drifting to deep space ♪

05:20 Okay, so here I am post gym.

05:23 If you're surprised that I don't have makeup on,

05:24 get over it.

05:25 So yeah, we had this little crease thing on the sports bra.

05:29 Not my favorite.

05:30 Also, I definitely feel like I have some boob sweat

05:32 going on in here and it's actually not showing it

05:35 on the sports bra.

05:36 So surprised by the sweat proofness and they didn't rip.

05:39 They're still in one piece.

05:41 Oh, I still have my socks on, I have unicorns.

05:43 I'm surprised.

05:44 I tested them on a bunch of different things

05:46 that should have definitely tested the seam strength

05:49 in the crotch and I really didn't feel like

05:51 they were gonna rip at all.

05:52 This top was surprisingly supportive.

05:54 And yeah, honestly, first impressions are pretty good.

05:56 Other than the fact that they're not the most breathable

05:59 thing in the whole world,

06:00 that I actually like them more than I expected.

06:02 As I was taking them off, I did notice that I had this

06:04 entire little extra seam around the crotch,

06:08 but it's not like any part of the seam coming off.

06:10 It's literally just extra.

06:11 So just wanted to mention that,

06:13 but still not having any holes.

06:15 So here are the leggings.

06:17 As you can see, the waistband is super high.

06:19 It goes like a solid one and a half inches

06:21 above my belly button.

06:23 I have noticed that a lot of the models and people wearing

06:26 it tend to roll it down like this,

06:28 which I mean, I guess it's cute.

06:31 I just prefer to wear my waistbands all the way up

06:34 and if you fold it over, you hide the logo as well.

06:37 So it is something to keep in mind.

06:39 You can definitely roll it down like a half an inch.

06:42 I don't know, I prefer to wear mine all the way up,

06:43 in which case it is a little bit high.

06:45 The waistband is a solid medium to high compression.

06:48 Definitely fits well.

06:49 I am in my normal size small here,

06:51 and I would definitely recommend going true to size.

06:54 Because this waistband is so high,

06:55 I just want to mention there really is no lower tummy

06:58 control because the waistband stops right about

07:01 at the lower tummy.

07:02 So if you are concerned about like lower tummy control,

07:04 I don't think these would offer a lot.

07:06 One of the strings did like kind of come loose

07:08 a little bit.

07:09 It's like this little elastic guy, very minor though.

07:12 And I feel like I can just cut it out,

07:13 but I do have a little gym clip of it.

07:15 I think just because the waistband is so tall,

07:18 it did get a little bit uncomfortable at times at the gym.

07:20 I felt like I was constantly like adjusting it

07:23 or just like kind of folds a lot.

07:24 So maybe folding it down would help.

07:26 I just wanted to mention it like did feel

07:29 a little bit weird at times.

07:30 Overall, it definitely has a very thick knit feel,

07:33 and it is the kind of fabric that's not going to collect

07:35 any lint.

07:36 It's also not going to pill at all.

07:37 It doesn't have any of that brush material,

07:40 but it's also not that shiny material.

07:42 And it's not so slick that it would slide down.

07:44 These did stay up very well.

07:45 They're a solid medium compression.

07:47 Kind of expected them to be high compression,

07:49 but because of like the amount of stretch,

07:51 they're pretty much a medium.

07:52 They are more of a 7/8 length on us taller ladies.

07:56 I am 5'9", so if you're shorter than that,

07:58 it might be a full length for you.

07:59 Last thing on the material,

08:01 they didn't feel like the most breathable.

08:03 I don't sweat like a ton at the gym.

08:04 I don't really do a lot of cardio,

08:06 and I don't mind it too much,

08:08 but it did kind of feel like it was making me sweat

08:10 a little bit.

08:11 Like they're definitely a heavy legging,

08:13 and I don't feel like they were like super breathable.

08:16 One random point, they do have this like line

08:19 down the leggings, and I don't know if this is intentional,

08:21 but it just kind of looks like

08:22 kind of a collection of the dye.

08:24 So I don't know if this is something

08:25 that happened in the dyeing process,

08:27 but I'm not really sure.

08:29 They also do show underwear a little bit.

08:31 I am wearing seamless underwear right now.

08:33 I tried to smooth it out as best I can,

08:35 but it's showing a teeny bit.

08:37 I honestly expected more single camel,

08:39 but I feel like these do a really good job

08:40 of like not gathering around the crotch too much,

08:42 which we all know I hate.

08:43 They do have a gusset crotch.

08:45 There's really no extra material anywhere.

08:47 I did notice that some people said

08:49 that they had some extra material around their ankles.

08:51 It's not like super tight against my ankles,

08:54 but it is also 7/8 on me.

08:56 So if this goes all the way down to the bottom of your foot,

08:58 you might have some extra space.

09:00 They're also pretty thick.

09:01 I'd say probably cellulite friendly.

09:03 I wouldn't say cellulite proof,

09:05 because I just don't think they would be,

09:06 but they're pretty thick.

09:07 I love a little Widow's Peak booty detailing.

09:09 Sometimes I don't like an under booty contour,

09:11 'cause I feel like it's like really trying

09:12 to draw attention.

09:13 So I like this.

09:14 And I would give these a medium to high on the booty scale.

09:17 I thought they would squish my butt down more,

09:18 but I think she's looking pretty good.

09:20 So yeah, I kind of thought I would hate these,

09:22 but I like them a lot more than I thought.

09:24 We'll see the final squat test score,

09:25 but yeah, they're pretty good.

09:27 (upbeat music)

09:40 Next we have the Solstra bra, which was $38.

09:43 I did translate all of like the British pounds to US dollars

09:47 'cause I had no idea what I was spending

09:49 when I was buying this actually.

09:50 I just kind of went to check out and it was like in pounds.

09:53 I'm like, I don't know how much this is,

09:55 but we got to do the review, so.

09:57 Okay, it wouldn't be fair if I didn't have Peach

09:59 say hi in this video.

10:00 Oh, you have a little nose.

10:03 What's on your nose?

10:04 She has some stuff on her.

10:04 This is a pretty full coverage bra.

10:06 I do have a larger chest,

10:07 so this is still more of a sports bra on me.

10:10 But if you do have a smaller chest, it's pretty long line,

10:13 so it might even be more of like a crop top.

10:15 It does have two spaghetti straps

10:17 and they kind of do this little crisscrossing in the back.

10:19 It does have removable cup pads,

10:21 which are not the best quality.

10:23 The fabric of the sports bra is the same as the leggings

10:25 and it does have a ribbed material,

10:28 kind of at the rib cage,

10:29 similar to the waistband of the leggings.

10:31 Okay, next we're onto the Solstra bra.

10:34 And I have to say, I saw this bra and I saw spaghetti straps

10:37 and I immediately was like, lights abort, no.

10:40 But I'll admit, I was wrong.

10:41 Grace also has a chest herself,

10:43 so I would think that she would make things

10:44 for girls with larger chests.

10:45 And I'm pretty impressed by the support of this bra.

10:48 The fabric is just so thick and has so much hold to it,

10:51 the same as the leggings,

10:52 that it actually does have a decent amount of support.

10:54 Really good coverage too.

10:55 It's totally covering all the cleavage

10:57 down to past my bra band line.

10:59 Really no side boob either

11:01 and it's actually pretty comfortable.

11:02 I did have someone tell me

11:03 that one of their straps ripped off,

11:05 but I did wear this to the gym

11:06 and I really have not noticed my straps

11:08 coming loose or anything.

11:09 In terms of support, yeah,

11:11 it's like medium/medium to high support.

11:13 I was really super impressed by the support of this bra.

11:15 It's also super cute and I love having a full set

11:18 and I don't love the zip ups,

11:19 so I'm glad that they do have the bra.

11:20 The back is super cute.

11:22 It has the double straps

11:24 and neither of the straps fell down on me at all,

11:26 even though these straps are straight up and down,

11:29 they're far enough into the bra that they don't fall down.

11:31 When you wear the leggings and the bra together,

11:34 they do cover most of your body

11:36 and I had a long torso, so if you're shorter,

11:38 this might actually cover your entire self.

11:42 My only thing is that, I don't know,

11:44 I really tried to cover them up,

11:46 but the cup pads are just so crinkly and so cheap.

11:50 I might even be better off without 'em.

11:53 I like having the cup pads in there

11:54 'cause I feel like they give a little more support,

11:56 but these are just pretty flimsy in terms of cup pads.

12:00 I don't know, this thickness of cup pads

12:02 doesn't work with this thickness of bra, so.

12:07 (upbeat music)

12:09 I also got the Zahara bra, which is the tank zip up top.

12:17 I wouldn't really call this a bra.

12:19 They call it a bra, but this is definitely a top for me.

12:22 Also, I haven't mentioned yet,

12:23 apparently you can plant their tags and grow a plant,

12:26 so maybe I'll try to do that.

12:28 Now, I'm not the person to test plants.

12:30 I only have fake plants in my house

12:32 because I don't trust myself to keep them alive.

12:34 See, Peach, she reminds me she has to be fed.

12:36 Plants, they just die and don't tell you anything.

12:39 So these tops are kind of a mock neck.

12:41 They do come up pretty high,

12:43 and they also zip down to the quarter zip.

12:45 They do have removable cup pads built into it,

12:48 so you could ideally wear it by itself.

12:50 I feel like I'd probably be wearing

12:52 a sports bra underneath this

12:53 just 'cause I don't really trust the support

12:55 of just a shirt type thing,

12:57 but we'll see when I try it on.

12:59 In the material all around this is just the knit material.

13:02 It doesn't have any areas of ribbing.

13:04 Okay, we have the Zahara crop.

13:06 So I like the idea of it.

13:08 I think that the little zip up neck is really cute.

13:11 It's just definitely not my favorite thing.

13:13 So I like that you can definitely zip it up completely.

13:16 Like, that's not my look,

13:18 but even if you zip it all the way down,

13:20 it's still not like you're exposed,

13:21 so it's never gonna zip off, which is good.

13:24 You can totally see the cup pads.

13:25 Again, I don't know if it's showing up on camera,

13:27 but it's totally showing up in the mirror.

13:28 If you're gonna have a $40 top,

13:30 please just invest in a little better cup pads.

13:32 I saw this happening to the models on the website,

13:35 and I was kind of wondering if it would happen to me too,

13:37 but this little bottom band,

13:38 I wish that they had the ribbed band

13:41 that the sports bra has at the bottom of this,

13:43 because it just kind of opens up, as you see,

13:45 and it's just kind of weird.

13:46 And this happens to all of the models,

13:48 I think even Grace herself.

13:50 And I just like, if it's gonna be super tight here,

13:52 which it is pretty tight on my chest here.

13:54 I'm wearing my normal sports bra size, which is small.

13:57 It should just be tight at the bottom.

13:58 It's also feeling just like a little bit tight

14:00 around this arm area.

14:01 It is a pretty thick fabric, so I'm not super surprised,

14:05 but it's not like the most comfortable.

14:06 Totally full coverage in the back.

14:08 If I were to wear this as a sports bra,

14:10 it actually does have good support.

14:11 I think that's just truly coming from the fact

14:14 that it's like swishing me down, which is fine.

14:16 I definitely prefer the sports bra to this.

14:18 I just think it was a little more functional and cute.

14:21 And I just, I don't like this little loose band.

14:23 (upbeat music)

14:26 Next we have the hostess shorts,

14:31 and these were $36, so pretty good deal.

14:34 I did size up to a medium in the shorts.

14:35 I tend to do this for most shorts,

14:37 usually 'cause I'm trying to avoid

14:38 the sausage leg happening here, which, spoiler alert.

14:42 These basically have the same exact construction

14:44 as the leggings.

14:45 It does have a ribbed seamless waistband.

14:47 It also has a little widow's peak booty contour.

14:49 The little logo here is in the back.

14:51 And they are a six inch inseam, which is pretty long.

14:55 That's honestly my preferred shorts length,

14:57 or else my thighs just kind of eat 'em up

14:58 and they end up around my crotch.

15:00 So we do prefer these six inch inseam.

15:03 But they are kind of like a mid biker short length.

15:05 So I have a problem with these shorts.

15:07 I sized up to a medium,

15:10 and they're still squishing my little thighs.

15:13 This brand is supposed to be super size inclusive,

15:17 and Grace herself has, you know,

15:19 she has normal size legs.

15:21 She has some quads, I see her.

15:23 But this is really squishing my thighs.

15:26 And we're not even at the thickest part of my thighs.

15:28 That's up here.

15:29 We're like at mid thigh,

15:31 where this shouldn't really happen anymore.

15:33 And I feel like, there's like a line on my leg now

15:36 from where this is.

15:37 And I've had them on for five minutes.

15:38 So this is a medium.

15:40 So the waistband is definitely a little big.

15:43 You can see it gaping.

15:44 So I would have to roll it down.

15:45 Rolled down it's okay.

15:46 There's like a little room around the crotch again,

15:48 'cause it's a medium.

15:49 If you roll it down again, you can't entirely see the logo.

15:52 They are a good length.

15:53 And if you have like twig thighs,

15:56 you probably can get away with it.

15:57 But they're just like really squishing my legs all around.

16:00 You can just see it go in at all angles.

16:03 So that's really not my favorite thing.

16:05 Still decently flattering on the booty

16:07 because of that little like booty contour.

16:09 They're essentially feeling

16:10 exactly the same as the leggings.

16:12 I actually kind of like the chai color.

16:14 It's actually making me look a little tanner than I am.

16:16 A little surprised,

16:17 'cause it's been a while since I've seen the light of day.

16:20 And it's a while since I've seen the fake tan.

16:23 The end of the shorts themselves

16:24 is even a thicker like ribbed material

16:26 than the actual waistband.

16:28 So I just wish there was a way

16:29 for them to make this a little looser.

16:30 (upbeat music)

16:33 Lastly, we have the AstroCrop, which is $45.

16:44 Just notice, this one is actually claiming to be a crop top

16:48 while the other zip up is claiming to be a bra.

16:51 Even though the only difference is really like the sleeves.

16:53 And this one does not have removable cup pads.

16:56 So it's a little interesting.

16:57 I feel like you'd put removable cup pads in both

16:59 if they have the same like bodice structure, but okay.

17:02 They do have long sleeves, the same zip up and mock neck.

17:05 And again, no removable cup pads.

17:07 So here's the AstroCrop.

17:09 I actually like it more than I thought.

17:11 It definitely is a crop top

17:13 as opposed to a bra like the Zahara bra.

17:16 The Zahara one was like definitely

17:17 like a double thickness here.

17:19 This is definitely a single thickness

17:20 and I'm not getting that same kind of support.

17:23 So I'm not wearing a bra right now.

17:24 But so I just kind of threw some cup pads in,

17:27 but this definitely isn't giving me the support

17:29 that the Zahara top was.

17:30 The sleeves are basically a full length on me.

17:33 They're like kind of go like right about to my wrist,

17:36 which is pretty good 'cause I'm pretty tall.

17:38 Again, we have the little looseness at the end.

17:41 I don't understand, just like make it tighter.

17:43 I do really like how it looks.

17:44 I think it's like really like chic and cool.

17:46 I just like, I would definitely not wear this to the gym.

17:48 The fabric, like I mentioned before,

17:50 is not like the most breathable.

17:51 It does have a lot of stretch to it.

17:53 And I would maybe wear it as like an actual shirt somewhere

17:56 like with some high-waisted jeans or something,

17:59 but I don't see it as a workout top myself.

18:02 (upbeat music)

18:04 So that's it for the video.

18:11 Overall, I still feel like Tala has like somewhere to go

18:14 before they reach what they really want it to be.

18:16 And I think definitely working on the shipping

18:17 would be nice 'cause three weeks was a long time.

18:20 I actually really liked the leggings.

18:22 I really thought that I was going to experience

18:24 some kind of crotch tightness or ripping.

18:26 I went to the gym, I tried my best.

18:27 I literally didn't have an issue with any of the seams.

18:30 So I wanna mention that that is something

18:32 people have dealt with,

18:33 but I didn't personally have that problem.

18:35 I actually was really impressed with the leggings.

18:36 I really liked them.

18:38 They are $50, but they're a good pair of seamless leggings.

18:40 Sports bra is cute too, cup pads, eh.

18:43 And this whole outfit wasn't my entire favorite

18:45 in the shorts, we're a definite no.

18:47 Let me know if you guys have tried Tala yourselves

18:49 in the comments down below.

18:50 If you liked this review,

18:51 please make sure to give it a thumbs up

18:52 and leave me a comment and let me know

18:54 what you want my next brutally honest review to be.

18:56 Thank you guys so much for watching

18:57 and I'll see you next time, bye.

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