The Quest for the Right Holster part 1
It’s been a month since I’ve been a gun owner and I am still trying to find a conceal carry system that will work with my wardrobe and body shape. Like with everything else in life there is no one size fits all option so I have been going through trial and error in hopes of finding the right one.
I recently attended the local gun show in hopes that there would be options for me to try on but I was sorely disappointed. So instead I’ll be ordering online, trying it and returning it if it doesn’t work. This is a time consuming process and can get expensive as shipping charges both ways are not refundable but it’s better than not carrying at all due to not having a comfortable holster and then wishing that you had your gun on you if a situation arose.
Until I find the right one I am alternating between a waist pack and my TWAW IWB holster. I have just ordered a Raw Dog Tactical holster to try and I am considering an Ankle SoxXx in a month or two.
For the benefit of other women in the same situation I have decided to write reviews for the holsters that I have tried so far. They are:
Most of the pictures are low quality as they are selfies with my crappy cell phone camera but it’s better than nothing for those researching holster options.
Waist Holster Bag
Pros: Inexpensive. Better than a regular purse as it’s always on your body. Pull tab for quick access to gun, no fumbling with zipper. Works with any outfit including dresses or loose yoga pants as long as you don’t need to look dressy. Very adjustable for waist size and for size of gun and right/left hand draw placement. Has pocket for knife or extra magazine.
Cons: Not as good as true on body carry. No instructions, belt wasn’t threaded to buckle. It wouldn’t really cost the company to include some basic instructions to make it idiot proof. Phone pocket small, velcro strap for phone should be longer. Wish it had a pocket for ID and credit card. Not an option if you need something dressy.
TWAW IWB holster
Pros: Compact and good kydex, clip placement makes it slimmer than other holsters. No need to worry about a screw for the clip damaging your gun. Adjustable angle, ambidextrous, able to change height of belt clip. Wide variety of colors/prints and gun models. Able to use with almost any pant or skirt, no belt needed after adding Utilclip.
Cons: Only 2 colors available ready to ship, all other styles are made by request so have a longer wait. Not deep enough concealment, too much holster sticks out of waistband even at with clip at deepest setting. Have to constantly tighten screw, unable to use thread lock since I have to adjust cant depending on outfit. Angle opens up when using the restroom requiring adjustment again.
It took a while to find the right position and adjustment for this holster to work. All front carry positions were out due to it being super uncomfortable when sitting down as the muzzle stabbed my thigh and left a bruise and was harder to conceal. Back carry was comfortable but I had printing from the grip of the gun which is exposed above the waistband. A hip carry with the gun at an angle was the only way that I felt comfortable carry and felt like it was concealed. It passed the test when hubby came home and he couldn’t tell that I was carrying.
Unfortunately all is well until having to use the bathroom and then the angle would open up and would require the whole adjustment process all over again so while I use it on the days that I wear jeans or cargo pants, I am not loving it.
Ulticlip:
Pros: this clip is fantastic, super easy to install, no belt needed and it has excellent retention. It even works on my yoga pants! I don’t use it with most of my yoga pants because they are loose on me so the weight of the gun pulls them down.
Con: Some people complain that their shirt snags on the clip when trying to get their gun. It hasn’t happened to me yet but I can see how it could happen, specially with a tight fitting shirt. This is dangerous in a defense situation where every second counts.
Can Can Concealment Classic Hip Hugger
Pros: Multiple sizes, cute decorative accents, extender available for in between sizes. Quality materials and well made. Good gun retention when bending over.
Cons: It looks like it would be very hot, the material isn’t very breathable. Rides up on my short hourglass torso despite having non slip bands.
This was not my first choice when researching holster options but it kept getting recommended to me so I decided to try it out. I don’t have the money to keep buying holsters for every outfit and occasion so I chose the hip hugger because I wear a lot of yoga pants and other types of pants that don’t have belt loops and this is supposed to work with all of them, I was hoping for a solution that would work with all of my outfits but sadly it wasn’t meant to be.
I watched several YouTube and written reviews before ordering so while it all looked great, all of the women reviewing were slim with narrow hips and with long torsos, the opposite of my anatomy so I was taking a gamble by placing this order. I feared that it wouldn’t work with my curves and that it would be too hot but I needed something that would work with my mommy uniform of yoga pants and tank tops and this seemed to be it. I was mostly right.
I was originally looking at the sports belt version but that one is designed for square torsos which I definitely do not have, the Can Can Hip Hugger is designed for the curvy anatomy but they didn’t count on my curves! My hips are 10 inches wider than my waist, I can’t see that on the pictures because it’s mostly on my butt.
Since the company is based in Florida, the package arrived super fast, just days from ordering and I liked the nice touch in the wrapping.
Out of the package I feared that I should have gone up a size since my torso is so hourglass shaped but when trying it on I discovered that my torso is so incredibly short that it has to sit higher than in the website pictures. Add to that my curves and with normal movement and sitting it rides up on my hips starting on the back because of my Puertorrican butt until it ends up at my natural waist and the front eventually catches up sitting even higher, almost like a belly band. On the website models the hiphugger sits 1-2″ below the belly button, in my case it’s 1-2″ above.
It’s more comfortable that way but I experience more printing because about half of the gun is not inside the waistband anymore. I get a huge “muffin top”, specially when sitting down but if anything that helps reduce the printing futher, lol. As the day went on and the holster rode up I go back to my everyday muffin top. Maybe I should have gotten a corset instead but I simply didn’t want a corset. I could wear it on the widest hook at the hip and narrower setting at the waist but I still had trouble. I found that wearing it at my natural waist like a corset worked but the size was too big, I could have exchanged it for a smaller size but that position was warm and not very easy access.
It took some getting used to but it’s overall comfortable and I was finally able to comfortably carry in the appendix position. I usually prefer behind the hip carry which can be done with this but again, the part of the grip that sticks out of the pocket bulges my shirt and it’s not so comfortable when sitting down, probably because the holster rides up so the gun is higher on my back.
I wonder if I should have gotten the Shebang size even though the classic fits my firearm but the pinky extension in my magazine sticks out and causes printing, nothing horrible and I was able to conceal just fine with the shirt I was wearing (loose and with a print pattern) but it’s definitely visible with my tank tops that aren’t skin tight but not flowy either. The Shebang is wider and with my short torso it probably wouldn’t have performed as advertised. It’s still an improvement over my other holster because it keeps the gun closer to my body except for the part of the grip that sticks out of the pocket so that is the only part that “prints”.
The jury is still out on how comfortable this will be when it gets hotter outside but it wasn’t so bad in my air conditioned house. The only time it got uncomfortable was when I got sick with a fever, suddenly the holster felt unbearably hot and uncomfortable even though I was inside with air conditioning, it turns out that I had a 102 F fever at the time.
It works well with yoga pants, really any pants and skirts if you can get a good fit. Sadly this wasn’t the case for me, after much tinkering and adjustment it just wasn’t a good match and I returned it.
This is a great option for slim women and those with long straight torsos. If you have a very defined hourglass shape or short torso it may not work so well. I have seen many plus size women that also love it but I notice that they have a straight torso so they don’t have the riding that I experienced.
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