Bottoms Up! The blog that celebrates life, business & fabulous undies!

I can’t believe Christmas is over. After weeks of preparation it was over in a flash. It was a blast and the best part, I got the Canon Elph camera I was really wanting and got lots of pictures of the kids playing Guitar Hero and generally having a great time! If you didn’t get what you wanted and some new undies were on your list, you’re in luck! We’re having a sale - just use the promo code: HOLIDAY08 and get 50% off any regular priced Smart Ass thong. And don’t forget to stock up on EuroTrash lingerie - we’re blowing it out so shop now! With prices this good it won’t last long!

We did it. We ran in our undies. And Smart Ass raised a lot of money, almost $11,000 for cancers below the waist. Not bad for a small team of runners that joined at the last moment. The experience was incredible, the energy amazing and some of the outfits - out of this world! In total the Vancouver Underwear Affair raised over $610,000 with approximately 6,000 runners and walkers participating. We plan to make this an annual event. Little did we know how much the experience would affect us. If you would like to donate to help find a cure for cancers below the waist, please visit: www.UncoverTheCure.org. Thank you to everyone who donated. We couldn’t have done it without you.

Yep, that’s the plan. July 12 is the BC Cancer Foundation’s Underwear Affair here in Vancouver, BC. It’s a run to support research for cancers below the waist: prostate, colorectal, ovarian, testicular, bladder, cervical, and uterine, and the list goes on. We’ve talked about doing this every year since we started Smart Ass and this year we finally stopped talking about it and decided to run with it, literally! The response has been overwhelming. So many of our friends and colleagues have been touched in someway by cancer. In less than 24 hours we hit our personal fundraising goals ($1000 each), so we doubled them. With the help of enthusiastic team members we have raised over $5500. Now we’re setting our sights on raising $10K for cancer research. If that doesn’t fuel our running, I’m not sure what will! Stay tuned for race highlights, embarrassing photos and most of all, the total we raise! To contribute to this very worthy cause and help us reach our goal click HERE. Thank you and Bottoms Up!

Last week we got this online order that just screamed BRIDAL PARTY! The order was for 6 of our Smart Ass signature thongs, you know the ones with the sassy sayings on the back T-bar, beautifully packaged and just ready to give. It was the type of order that makes us smile when we get it since we can just imagine each one of the recipients. This bridal party was made up of 6 very different little girls…

First there was the Control Freak – can you said Maid of Honour?! Then, the Natural Blonde, no doubt the bride or groom’s sister. Next on the list was Gold Digger, we figure every bridal party has one, isn’t she the one who’s supposed to hook up with the best man?! Then there was the Party Girl, probably the bride’s college roommate she’s the one who took her to the frat party where she met the groom. And then there was Domestic Diva, doesn’t every wedding needs their own Martha Stewart to make sure everything is just so? And last but not least there was Bombshell, she’s the bride’s BFF and sometimes frenemy, think Nicole Richie/Paris Hilton, best to keep her close by as the old saying goes.

We hope that the bridesmaids enjoyed receiving their bridal tokens as much as the bride enjoyed choosing them. As you can see, we had fun imagining the reason each was given.

To choose gifts for your bridal party visit: www.SmartAssGals.com

It seems strange to be thinking about Valentine’s Day when I haven’t finished sending thank you notes for some of my Christmas gifts BUT the day of romance is fast approaching. We Smart Ass Gals were reminiscing about the ghosts of Valentine’s past and we realized (over a few laughs) that there have definitely been a few hits and a few misses in the gift giving department over the years. We started quizzing our friends about their best and worst Valentine’s gifts and realized we weren’t alone.

Here’s a round up of the good, the bad and the downright ugly!

Top 5 Worst Valentine’s Gifts

5. Bike lubricant - no we’re not talking personal lube, bike lube and for a gal who isn’t even a super jock.

4. A juicer - nothing says romance like mushed up carrots and celery.

3. Gas station flowers - yes, men we can spot them a mile away.

2. A subscription to Jenny Craig - practical yes, romantic no.

1. The #1 worst Valentine’s gift - no gift at all. Boys you’ll be dining on “roast of cold shoulder” if you don’t come up with something.

Top 5 Best Valentine’s Gifts

5. A handmade card - one of our friends described in great detail a card made by an old boyfriend years ago. Crafty men take note!

4. A wedding proposal - while definitely not an option for everyone, our friend said it was her most romantic Valentine’s ever. You think?

3. The keys to his apartment - nothing says love (or trust) like access.

2. Bling! Bling! Bling - need we say more. Note; this option does not need to be combined with #4. It can stand alone.

1. Sexy lingerie - ok, we know this is a bit self serving but lingerie is truly a gift that keeps on giving. May we suggest our camisole and gal short in the pink hearts print? It’s the perfect Valentine’s ensemble.
Happy Valentine’s everyone. Drop us a line if you have a Valentine’s gift that fits into either the “best” or “worst” category and we’ll post it to the site.

Cindy & Alix

Here on the West Coast, in British Columbia in particular, there are a few brands that loom large in the psyche of entrepreneurs – Robeez, Sugoi, Lush – but, perhaps the biggest of all is Lululemon!

Not long ago the Smart Ass Gals attended a breakfast with Chip Wilson founder of Lululemon. Chip talked about growing his business, his keys to success (he’s a fan of vertical integration) and trend spotting. He mentioned something that really stayed with us. He said he takes notice when he hears about something 3 times in a short period of time – maybe within one or two weeks. If this happens his Spidey senses start to tingle because he knows something is a buzz.

After the breakfast we started to pay attention to Chip’s “3 times” rule. It keeps your mind alert to things happening around you. This is definitely a plus for spotting opportunities and we experienced a “3 times” incident recently.

1st – We met Elena Verlee. She’s a go getter of an entrepreneur with many businesses. She launched and sold a company called Monthly Socks. She talked to us about how she thought our product would be perfect for a similar concept.

2nd – My husband and I were chatting about the upcoming gift giving season and he said, “You know for guys, it needs to be simple. Why doesn’t Smart Ass do an underwear subscription?” I told him about the sock’s company. He felt ours would be even better (no offense Elena) because different that socks, if you give your wife/girl friend lingerie, it’s the gift that keeps giving back each month – always the guy angle!

3rd – Finally, we were recently on CNBC’s The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch. The segment was called “My Idea Will Make Millions”. Donny felt Smart Ass was perfect for the gift market. We have created thongs in the past with holiday sayings and we know that given our products are all packaged that Smart Ass makes the perfect stocking stuffer BUT we knew we needed to do more.

So, we’ve created “Monthly Knickers”. A pair of sassy panties delivered to the lucky recipient’s door each month. There is a 12 month and a 6 month option. Both are discounted off the regular price and the shipping is free each month.

We hope men will be thrilled. Now we have to tell them about it. We’ve been thinking about ways to reach men online and it’s tricky. Blogs? Business sites? Sports sites? When downloading music? We need to do this cost effectively too! If you have thoughts on how to reach men online and let them know that we have the perfect Christmas gift, drop us a line at thegals@smartassgals.com or comment below.

Thanks. Remember to pay attention to the “3 times” rule. Who knows what you’ll create.

There was a fair bit of excitement around our office last week. Late last Thursday afternoon, we got a call about a press release we had just sent out. This in itself is worthy of a fair bit of excitement, however, this was one of THOSE calls … a producer from blockbuster hit CNBC show, The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch! This is the sort of call entrepreneurs like us dream about. The producers had seen our press release and decided that we looked like the sort of company they wanted to interview for a segment called, “Our Idea will make Millions!” So, when they asked us if we could be in New York the following Monday to meet Donny and tape the show, we naturally said, of course. That was followed by lots of shrieking and high fives.

The next few days felt a bit like a dream. We left for New York on the Saturday prior to the taping, and got the star treatment right from the start, an upgrade to business class. We took this as a good sign of things to come. We spent Sunday in New York doing important things, like shopping at Bloomingdales for the right outfit to wear on TV, and getting our hair done at Elizabeth Arden’s Red Door on 5th Avenue.

On Monday at 8 AM CNBC sent a car to pick us up at our hotel. Upon our arrival at the CNBC studios, we were whisked to the Green Room where we chilled, until we were called in for hair and make up. In minutes (ok, it was more than a mere few), we were TV ready. Wow, a gal could get used to this sort of treatment! So now we just had to wait, and wait until the taping began. While we waited we met some great folks.

There was Chip Davis from Mannheim Steamroller, who has sold more Christmas records than Elvis. What a nice man. He also is a food aficionado and makes all sorts of things like this AMAZING hot chocolate (which he kindly shared with us and that my kids are now crazy for). We also met Susanne Cohen from Smart Mouth, a long-lasting mouthwash. We thought this was a funny coincidence, and that Donny might need to wash his mouth out with Smart Mouth after speaking with the Smart Ass Gals …! We also met Blake Kirkorian founder of the Sling Box. Now here’s a guy who realized his dreams when he figured out a way to watch his favorite sports teams on his own TV from anywhere in the world. Now, he’s enjoying the fruits of his labors too. A super nice guy who deserves his success.

So back to the taping … finally around 1:30 they started calling the interviewees in to the studio. Those of us still waiting our turn watched on the monitor from the Green Room. It was a bit like waiting in the dentist’s office to have a tooth extracted and having the pleasure of watching those who have gone before you. I think it’s safe to say we all had butterflies in our tummies. And then finally it was our turn.

We were taken into the studio and introduced to Donny and then hair and make up appeared to give us a touch up. Hey, we’d been made up HOURS ago. And then the interview began. True to the spirit of the show it was high energy and fun. Donny wanted to know how we began our business, what our Big Idea is and how it will make millions. We told him the story of the “thong flash” that started it all, how we conceived the “world’s first inspirational gusset”, and how we believe women should have underwear that’s comfortable, sassy and sexy and that most of all that underwear should be fun. After all it’s the first thing you put on in the morning. Why not start your day with a smile? To see the interview visit the Donny Deutsch Show or check out Smart Ass Gals.

October is Breast Cancer awareness month. If you didn’t know that, chances are you’ve been living under a rock. Even my five year old has noticed the abundance of pink ribbons out there. This brings her delight and me hope. Awareness for early detection has skyrocketed in recent years, buoyed by celebrity involvement (Sheryl Crow), and international brands (Ralph Lauren) that have created specific products to fund breast cancer research.

This year there seems to be a plethora of amazing products out there that support breast cancer research. All a gal needs to do is buy some Balmshell Lipgloss, Fidelity Denim, or a Pink Cashmere Hoody, and she’ll look incredibly stylish and will be doing good all at the same time. Most brands that are jumping on the breast cancer bandwagon are donating a percentage of sales to one of the many breast cancer research funds out there like, Rethink Breast Cancer or Susan G. Komen for the Cure. We applaud them.

Being a women’s lingerie company, we too felt compelled to get involved and do our part towards finding a cure. So for the months of October and November, Smart Ass will donate 10% of online sales of our Pink Hearts EuroTrash Collection to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. It’s a small thing but we hope we can do our part to make a difference. Because until a cure is found all those pink ribbons serve to reminder us all to remain hopeful and to be passionate about finding a cure.

At Smart Ass Lingerie we talk about underwear all day long - really! We spend a lot of time discussing what makes Smart Ass different than other knickers. Is it the sassy ‘tude? Yes, of course that is a bit part of what makes it Smart Ass. Is it the fun prints, with many more in development? Yes, the prints are unique and we’re so excited every time we develop a new print. The packaging? Yes, yes yes! The witty sayings on the back of the Signature thongs? Of course, that’s what started it all. But, the sassiness of the prints, the sayings and packaging doesn’t matter if the underwear isn’t comfortable.

At Smart Ass we make sure that every piece we create is REALLY comfy. We can honestly say that our Signature thong is one of the most comfortable thongs on the market. We tried on hundreds of thongs to get it right. For those of you out there who maintain you cannot wear thongs, you’ve probably tried on thongs that dig in where they really shouldn’t. Of course you don’t like thongs, uncomfortable skivvies can really ruin your day.
So, what makes one thong comfortable and another one downright painful? After many test drives we have discovered that the most comfortable thongs do not have bands anywhere. Not at the waist, not around the legs and especially not on the back floss (our name for the strip up the backside). Look for a thong that has serged seams or a very thin elastic but not a band. A thong with a band will only dig in and result in unsightly VPL’s and lots of discomfort. Also, the ideal thong is not too high in the rise. Look for a thong that sits well below the belly button, ideally at least 6 inches below the belly button. Finally, a fabric that has a fair amount of stretch is ideal and look for a thong with a cotton gusset.

So there you have it the Smart Ass guide to finding a comfy thong. Good luck. Remember your undies are the first thing you put on in the morning and the last thing you take off at night so it’s worth your effort to find lingerie pieces that are really comfortable and work for your body.

This inspirational sass is brought to you by the The Smart Ass Gals.