ExOfficio Women's Modern

I love this travel vest! Hidden pockets for almost everything. I even think this vest is cuter in person, well, at least, it's flattering on my 5' 0" petite body. I ordered a small. I do wish however, that the pocket for the cell phone was bigger. It's snug for an iPhone 5, and I had to wrestle it to remove it. There is no way that you can have earbuds sticking out of it in that picket. No room. I can only imagine that you'd have to move to a different pocket for an iPhone 6 or larger. In addition, I would add some kind of loops to thread earbuds from your phone or device on the inside of the vest to hide them, like it's competitor, Baubax. I own a Baubax sweatshirt hoodie jacket and love it too, but this vest is for an overseas trip to a hotter country next month. Despite my wishlist of upgrades, this vest is still worthy of at least 4 stars. I have not yet weighted it down with everything, so I hope it has enough structure to hold a tablet. It would make the vest droop and lopsided if you did not weight the pockets on the other side..

Selected this item after much reviewing of alternatives. I am 5'4, 118 lbs., not large in the bust; the Medium worked for me over a t-shirt and blouse. I would probably get a L if wearing a heavier sweater under it. I don't like tight clothing. It was comfortable with pockets loaded with items I needed...passport, wallet, phones, documents, supplements, tissue pack, pen, paper, keys, sunglasses to get through security--just put the vest into the bin (last thing to go into the scanner so I could get through the line and pick it up immediately). I did not use the large back pocket for a large device, but its a good use of space if needed. Later, I stashed the wallet in the room safe, took the card and $ I needed for the day in a much smaller zip bag in the secure inside vest pockets and had freedom of movement! Other ladies on the trip admired it and were going to order one upon returning home.

If I could have given this vest 4.5 stars, that's what I would rate it. It's not quite a 5, but better than a 4. As some reviewers have mentioned, it's a longer vest, which I don't mind but can see that it might bother some. Love all the internal pockets, but the half star off is mainly because it could use another secure pocket or 2 on the outside, for those times when you need to reach something more quickly. Also, because it's nylon, it doesn't breath like cotton or a cotton blend, so you can become a little over-heated depending on the location. I plan to wear mostly when we travel to cooler weather areas--although I will wear it on an upcoming trip involving flights in a warmer weather locale, mainly because it's great at an airport or on a plane so you don't need to fuss w/a big purse. Otherwise, it's a great vest, is well-made & very functional.

Wore this almost every day for two and a half weeks on an international expedition. Kept my sunglasses, camera, passport, chargecards -- all handy even hopping in and out of vehicle. I never used the back pocket -- not big enough for my ipad, and note very accessible while wearing the vest. I found that chapstick would fall out of its pocket when I bent over to pick things up, and I did look rather lumpy when all pockets were full of lumpy things and the vest was zipped up... Oh well. The missing star is because the water bottle pocket is useless to me, as I want to carry more than 8 oz. of water for the day. Of course I did manage to find other things to put in that pocket. But the best part was that it came CLEAN when I got home and washed it. Looked like it had never been worn.

I just received the vest, so I haven’t had a chance to use it yet, but I did try it on and fill some of the pockets. I suspect the vest has been used and returned, then sold as new. There is a small white stain near the top of the vest on the front. The inside tag appears to be wrinkled and discolored, and the clear pockets intended for cell phone and ID are definitely discolored and cloudy. The Velcro on the camera pocket is also very loose and does not stay closed if anything is placed in the pocket, but that could either be from use or just weak Velcro.I would return the vest, but we are leaving for a trip soon, and I don’t have time to return and receive a new one. Plus, I suppose there isn’t a guarantee that I would receive a new product a second time around since I ordered a new product initially, with no indication that I would be receiving a used item. I’m not opposed to purchasing used clothing, but I don’t think I should be charged the same price for a used item as for a new item, especially when ordering under the impression that I would be receiving a new item.Having said all that, the vest fits well. I am 5’4” and 125 lbs. I ordered a medium. The fit is a little loose with nothing in the pockets, but leaves plenty of room for the pockets to be filled.The cell phone pocket is way too small to fit my phone (iPhone 7 plus), but it actually fits well in the sunglasses pocket with Velcro closure. That might work out better that a zipper pocket because it will allow for quicker access to the phone. I was able to easily fit a kindle e-reader in the largest pocket. I initially put a knock off gopro (same size/weight as the GoPro) in the camera pocket, but because of the weak Velcro, that pocket is not very secure. I moved it over to the water bottle pocket and it fit well there. I’m not sure what I’ll use the cell phone pocket for, but I have a small back up battery that may fit there. I’ll have to play around to see where the larger backup batter can go.The passport pocket is pretty small. Seems to be made so that the passport just fits, with no wiggle room. The outside breast pocket is oddly small. I tried to place my phone in there, but it wouldn’t fit. Don’t know that it would hold anything with any bulk well. Probably a good spot for plane or train tickets. The hand warmer pockets sit at a good height/angle for resting your hands in. They are open, with no zip or Velcro closure. I’m good with that because I generally keep those pockets unzipped for easy use on clothing items that have zippers there. The lining is soft.I wish that they had included a large pocket on both sides of the vest. It would have made it easier to balance out the weight so that the vest would have less of a tendency to hang lopsided when open. This might not be as much of an issue if you are able to get your phone in the pocket labeled for a phone because this pocket is on the opposite side from the large pocket. Also, carrying a full water bottle in the water bottle pocket could help, but even then, the vest will become more lopsided as you drink and decrease the weight in the bottle. When zipped up, it doesn’t really hang lopsided, even when the weight distribution is off.Overall, I like the vest and I think it will be useful in the airport and in touristy/pickpocket probe areas for our trip. I’ll definitely have to play around with item placement to get the weight distribution right, but it seems doable. I really wish I had received a new product, though, and I think the functionality of the camera pocket may have been decreased by weakened Velcro from use by the prior owner.I’ll include pictures of the stain,discolored/cloudy clear pockets, and discolored inside tag. Also, the fact that the product label seems to have been attached with a plastic ring looped through the care instructions tag seems odd. I’ve never seen a retail item with a label placed there, increasing my suspicion that this item was used and repackaged as new.

Prompt delivery, great fit and feel. I ordered xsmall (5'3", 110lbs) and it was perfect fit. It doesn't look boxy but isn't tight so still have room to put items in the pockets. (Small chest /shoulders so if wide /busty may have less room for storage)