Wednesday, February 06, 2013

Stitch Fix Report

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my plans to try out Stitch Fix, a new online shopping/personal styling service. I promised to report back with how the process went.

The sign up process is easy and quick- they have an online form you fill out giving details of your size and style. Their method for assessing your style is pretty smart- they show pictures of collections of outfits and ask you what you think of them. You get to give a preferred price range, but be warned, this service is not for the super budget-conscious: the lowest range is what I'd call "Nordstrom level."  That's fine with me, though, so I went ahead.

I got my first box on Monday night, and I was pleasantly surprised by how well the first fix turned out. There were five items in my box: one pair of earrings, one jacket, and three tops. There was also a page with the prices of the items and a personal note from my stylist, which indicated that she had checked out my blog (I'd provided my Twitter handle). She had read my post about my de facto uniform, and had used the information in it to help guide her selections.

I know you're curious, so, I'll show you what came in my box. I'll include pictures, but it will quickly become obvious that I have not missed a calling as a fashion model, and my husband has not missed a calling as a fashion photographer. Also, pictures without my head are just going to look a little weird. Sorry! Several people have commented here and on other posts wondering about the price, so I'll also include the cost of each item in my box.

I didn't take a picture of the earrings. They were pretty fleur-de-lis silver studs ($33). If I had decided to keep the other items, I would have kept these, too, and I would probably wear them. However, as we'll see, one of the other items didn't work for me, so I decided to send the earrings back. I have quite a few earrings already, and I tend to favor low key dangling earrings over studs.

The first piece of clothing I tried on was a jean jacket ($78).


I had no prior desire to own a jean jacket. To be honest, I associate them with my high school days, when I was never without one in my closet. So I was a little skeptical when I tried this one on, but I loved it. It is a flattering fit, I think it is a nice updated version of a classic look, and it is the perfect weight for San Diego. It was an obvious keeper.

Next, I tried on a black blouse ($65).



This is not a style I would ever have picked off the rack to try on, but I ended up loving how it looks with a favorite old skirt of mine. (The skirt, incidentally, dates from my graduate school days. I have tried many times to find a skirt I love as much as it, but have never succeeded.) The style card that came with the blouse indicates that I should wear it with a "statement necklace." I do not have such a thing! I tried it with one of my favorite necklaces (the rabbit necklace I described in an earlier post), but I don't think it is quite right. I still liked the blouse, so I decided to keep it, too.

I really wanted to love the next shirt in my box, a gauzy green top with very subtle, almost invisible purple stripes ($58). I loved the color and the fabric.



Sadly, the boxy cut was absolutely not flattering on me. So I reluctantly decided to send it back. As you can see from the style tag that came with the top, though, it would have been really cute on a different body type:


My final shirt ended the box on an up note, though. It was a plum-colored jersey top ($48).



The color isn't one that is super flattering on me, but it isn't a bad color for me, either. I absolutely love the way this shirt fits, and I like the detail at the neckline:


So I kept this shirt, too.

I checked out online last night, and put the rejects into the prepaid return envelope and dropped them in the postbox today. Overall, I liked the Stitch Fix experience- it was fun to get the box and go through it, and the hit-to-miss ratio was better than I expected. It was definitely less annoying than going shopping at the mall. My only complaint is that all of the shirts I got were dry clean only, which is suboptimal for me. I can live with that, though, so I went ahead and scheduled my next fix to come in a few weeks, and requested they send some bottoms this time. I suspect the hit ratio will be lower with bottoms than tops, because they are harder to fit, but I have the same problem when I go to the mall, so why not see what my stylist comes up with?

Ginger at Ramble, Ramble tried Stitch Fix, too, and liked it even though her hit ratio was lower than mine. Also, if you're tempted to try it out and want to give me credit for referring you, you can use this link: http://stitchfix.com/sign_up?referrer_id=3042032.

33 comments:

  1. You got some great stuff! I think they did a great job picking items for you, and the ones you kept are all really flattering. (And I love that skirt too. I can see why you love it!)

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    1. Thanks! I am going to cry bitter tears when that skirt finally gives up the ghost....

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    2. Cloud - re: that skirt, find a local tailor who does custom work and ask them to replicate it for you. If you were going to Asia, it would be super cheap to do it there :)

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  2. Oh how funny, I felt like I'd just discovered them, and they're here in the Bay Area too, thanks to a friend sharing their website. I had totally forgotten you'd planned to try them.

    The color on the green blouse was lovely, it's a shame the fit wasn't right. Did you pick a particular price point for this try? And can you choose machine wash instead of dry clean?

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    1. I picked the lowest of the price ranges- you get to specify your preferred range in your style profile. There was no place to specify washable vs. dry clean (although there was a question about being a mom, which I thought might be a hint towards washable...) but I did give that feedback in my comments on this fix, so we'll see what happens in the next one.

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  3. Thanks for updating us! They gave you some really nice pieces. Too bad the green shirt didn't work. I'd love to hear how the next round goes.

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  4. I especially love the black blouse/favorite skirt outfit. So what about the earrings?

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  5. Sorry, read right past the comment on the earrings. I think with your hair, studs aren't a good pick -- they'd get lost and not really be worth it, y'know?

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  6. Anonymous5:06 AM

    Dryel for the dryclean stuff. Doesn't work on spit-up or a blow-out, but it is better than just using febreeze or never wearing something again because you can't make it to the drycleaner.

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    1. I've thought about trying Dryel... but I haven't been able to find it in the stores here. May have to try Amazon. Or maybe it ran afoul of some law in CA?

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    2. Anonymous7:08 AM

      That's possible, given that we can get it at the grocery store here. Though we were able to get it in California a few years ago. The NIH seems to think it's relatively harmless: http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/household/brands?tbl=brands&id=16003632 and says it isn't subject to CA labeling.

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    3. Anonymous9:31 AM

      http://dryel.com/where-to-buy-dryel/
      Looks like mostly at CVS and Rite Aid in San Diego. Also Target.

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    4. I suspect my local Rite Aid doesn't carry it for demographic reasons. But maybe I can find it at my nearest Target. Or just order some on Amazon!

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  7. Glad you had such a good experience!

    (A friend just gave me an old bag of sweaters and my outcome wasn't entirely dissimilar to yours. I have to admit, the fact that the price point on my options was all $0 helped, as I kept 3 and would probably only have kept 1 had I been paying for them. But it is nice to have clothes show up at your house and get to pick the ones you want without having to shop!)

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    1. I LOVE the "a box of clothes just showed up" aspect of this. It doesn't feel like shopping, which is a good thing for me.

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  8. This seems like such a great way to get out of a style rut. I love that she checked out your blog.

    Can you request no dry clean only items? Or maybe she'll know that's what you want now :-)

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    1. I noted my preference in my comments back after this fix. The thing is, I'm not completely anti-dry cleaning- I just prefer things I can wash. But I will buy things that are dry clean only if I really like them.

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  9. Very impressed that the stylist went to the trouble to read your blog. Loved the fit of the plum top on you.

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  10. I like the picks! And what a smart stylist to read your blog. I might have kept the green blouse and worn it with a light cardigan, or the fitted jean jacket (? you may have tried that combo...) as a way to have the color but not have the shape matter as much. Then again, that attitude may be why I have useless clothes in my closet...

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    1. It didn't occur to me to try to make the green blouse with a top layer of some sort. Maybe because San Diego weather dictates that you almost always layer... but also that you always be ready to take off the top layer. Or maybe because I'm not very good at this sort of thing!

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  11. Thanks for posting the update, I can't possibly afford something like this right now, but it is really fun to see what goodies you're getting!

    I'm in such an earring-rut. I've got the one pair of little silver hoops that I just leave in all the time. Working with MR means that I have to remove anything ferro-magnetic several times a day, so I just never wind up wearing anything aside from wedding ring and watch.

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    1. I only recently started wearing earrings again- I had put them away when Pumpkin got old enough to pull on them, and only recently realized that Petunia is now old enough not to pull on them. I'm having fun wearing earrings again!

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  12. Thanks for sharing an interesting experience. Have you ever tried an in person personal shopper?

    I've brought pieces from my closet to Nordstrom and gotten help finding mates. When I couldn't decide between pieces, she told me to buy them all, walk them around my closet at home, and send the rejects back to her within a week or two. I kept about half.

    My sister had a Nordstrom personal shopper (when she worked in downtown Seattle) show up before store opening and usher my sister into a dressing room where everything, right down to the shoes, were in her size and colors.

    It's so convenient if you don't sew because they have a tailor on the premises and send the altered items straight to your house.

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    1. I haven't tried in person personally shopping yet... but it is on my list of things to do this year! I'll probably post about that, too.

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  13. Oh, this is so cool! I signed up shortly after you did, and have ordered my first "fix" to be delivered...in early May. :( Because hopefully we will have dug ourselves out of our short-term cash-flow issue by then and I'll have some spare money to spend on nice clothes.

    I'm very impressed that your stylist was an actual person! I was certain that it was all going to be handled by complex algorithms that pretend to be people. (Not to say that the actual person wasn't significantly aided by algorithms, though.)

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  14. "I had no prior desire to own a jean jacket. To be honest, I associate them with my high school days"

    LOL, I know what you mean - glad you're keeping the jacket despite your first reaction to it! Due to being over 35, it's hard for me to get comfy with all of the 80s-ish fashion trends making a comeback these days - I mean, 1987 seems like it was yesterday! Now all the day-glo colors and weirdly washed denim and crazy patterned pants are baaack!

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    1. Anonymous5:59 PM

      I shudder when walking around today's youth fashions because I keep getting flashbacks to middle school! Especially the tapered leg.

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    2. Anonymous1:26 PM

      Though I also gotta say I *love* the colors for grown-ups this season. The deep purples, the rich dark teals, the forest green (though maybe forest green was last season as I do have one of those from my last shopping expedition). Spring semester has almost made me want to go out and get a few staples, except I'm full up from my pre-pregnancy trip.

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    3. Anonymous3:40 PM

      Question: What do grown-ups get to wear when Grunge comes back in? Do we get to dress down too, or are we stuck wearing things to please The Man?

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    4. Emerald green is Pantone's color of the year. Woot!

      I would love a grunge comeback. It was great being younger in that era when silhouettes weren't so body-hugging all the time, and a fashionable outfit could be had on the cheap.

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    5. I think when grunge comes back, the kids will get into the cheaper looking/thrift shop stuff while grown-ups have to pass on the trend or spend $$ on Marc Jacobs grunge-inspired flannet (does anyone else remember that?)

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    6. oilandgarlic9:53 AM

      oops..meant to type Flannel

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  15. Anonymous3:54 PM

    That black blouse has the loveliest neckline on you! Thanks for sharing your Fix. :) -Anne

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