come as you are

Two weeks ago at our New Orleans store grand opening I witnessed the definition of community. It didn't matter how old you were, what yoga studio you identified with, or where you came from (in my case, Vancouver): it just mattered that you showed up and had a good time (case in point - the above photo).

it started with beads

It all started with some Mardi Gras beads and a rented Vancouver art space. Our designer Gill had an idea for store art that would tell the story of the city. Working with Vancouver-area (and New Orleans-obsessed) artist Harvey Chometsky and using the beads as a starting place, the final artwork evolved into three circles of found objects that includes everything from voodoo dolls to musical instruments.

Gill and Harvey art-strategizing in Vancouver

Each item was carefully chosen and painted white to balance the very colourful store interior. Each item also had an untold story. As the art came together, piece by piece, we knew that we wanted to celebrate our new store by bringing the art to life and experiencing New Orleans and its growing yoga community firsthand.

a few photos

The first thing we did when we arrived is check out the store. They had only been open for a few hours but you couldn't tell. It felt like any other lululemon store: welcoming, colourful, and familiar - but also distinctly unique.

The beautiful and colourful manifesto on the store's exterior

A bit of unexpected brass in the men's section!

Gill and Harvey's final artwork on the store wall!

At our ambassador Reyn's studio, a 10 minute walk from our store.

grand opening yoga

The next day was the Masquerade-inspired grand opening event which started with outdoor yoga and ended in a full on dance party.

Our ambassadors painted the town gold for grand opening yoga outside the store

Ambassador Lauren Darnell leading us through a fun and fiery practice.

Our yoga class was lit by flambeaux and ended with a very loud savasana as local brass brand To Be Continued got the party started and lead our group of yogis, family, and friends indoors.

watch the video

Thank you, New Orleans, for redefining what community means and for welcoming everyone, just as they are.

Connect with our New Orleans team in real life or on Facebook.

Many things help brighten our day as we head through the week (random smiles, exhausting sweat sessions). Click on the images below to see some of the stuff that inspired us lately.

meghan's goals

One year goal: I travel, teach yoga workshops, and lead retreats a couple of months out of the year by 2012.

One year goal: I create art, music, photo essays, clothing, writing, and yoga videos that I share with the world by 2012.

One year goal: I (safely) ride a motorcycle around India and study with bright beings by 2012.

One year goal: I write and record an album by 2012.

Two year goal: I travel via motorcycle wherever the wind blows, teaching yoga and creating a documentary by 2013.

Three year goal: I help create sustainable money free retreat/village "tree house" centres which revolve around giving back, simple living, real joy by 2014.

Five year goal: I speak 4-5 languages by 2014.

10 year goal: I live sustainably part time in a "tree house": growing food, creating beauty, and travelling part time to educate and always be educated by life by 2017.

Inspired by Meghan's goals? You can also turn your dreams into reality through goal setting. Learn more about it here: http://www.lululemon.com/education/goalsetting

View Meghan's top here.  

View Meghan's pants here. 

Name: Ashleigh
BHAG: By 2015 I will have 3 paintings showcased at White Walls Gallery (SF).

what is a bhag?

A BHAG (pronounced "bee-hag") is a big, hairy, audacious goal!

why share your bhag?

The more you share your goals, the more likely it is you will achieve them. For the month of June we will be sharing a BHAG every day on lululemon.com. Want to share your BHAG with the world? Send your high-res photo to blogs@lululemon.com and we'll publish a few of our favourites here on the lululemon blog.

Bev and Any, our talented graphic designers at the SSC in Vancouver, created two different Father's Day cards for you to download, print and give to your dad.

Instructions to get crafty:

1. Right click and choose "save as" on card one or card two (big file alert! Each card is about 6MB)
2. Print your card in colour
3. Cut along the dotted line
4. Flip and fold from top to bottom, left to right
5. Fill in the blanks (thoughtfully, of course)
6. Give the card to your dad this Sunday, June 21st!

Recently the lululemon design team hooked up with the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC for the finale of the 'Urban Yogini' design contest. The challenge was for students in any year to design 3 outfits for the urban yogini: taking her from the studio to the street with style. There was no better city than New York for the debut of the designs, and no better school to work with than FIT, which is recognized as one of the top fashion design schools in North America!

The idea was born as way to reach out to young designers and get their fresh perspective on lululemon, keeping in mind function, innovation and aesthetic. From 30+ design submissions, 8 finalists were selected and given signature lululemon fabrics (luon, luxtreme, french terry and organic cotton) to create their designs.

lululemon Union Square hosted the finale event, which was an amazing coming together of all the educators, ambassadors, FIT students and faculty and a few of us from the Store Support Centre in Vancouver, for a fashion show and schmooze, lululemon style. The concept of the fashion show was literally turned it on its head by inviting four New York ambassadors to be the models. Jamie Windrow, Laurie Cole, Kelly Dwyer, and Natalia Petrzela each strutted down the runway, but instead of striking your average model pout there were dancer poses, warrior threes, full vinyasas and even a cartwheel!

After a Project Runway-style judging, the winner was chosen: Sunghee Bang (designs shown above). Her innovative geometric layered look out of organic cotton and french terry really blew us away. Second place went to Eunju Koh, who created a sporty and chic outfit which included body mapping tights and a scoop back hooded vest that was full of personality. There were so many amazing entries with great innovations like built in yoga straps, removable capes and adjustable hems, the FIT students really stepped up to the challenge!

Want to learn even more about the Urban Yogini Design Competition? Watch the video below: