In case you haven’t heard, there’s all these “subscription box” programs floating around – BirchBox, Glossybox, Sock Panda, Barkbox, and more (more here: http://www.subscriptionboxes.com/). I finally found one I wanted to try – StitchFix!

Premise of a Subscription Box

For those that don’t know, most of these programs involve one of two main ideas. You normally either pay a base fee and each month you get a wonderful box of goodies each month or pay just a little bit upfront and then pay more if you keep the items in the box. Whatever the subscription method, it’s mostly just a fun way to get a regular package in the mail to get stuff you might like – no fuss, no muss, no shopping – just fun.

StitchFix

With the StitchFix subscription, you pay $20 up front as the stylist fee – not bad for a personal shopper! If you keep any of the five items you’re shipped, the $20 fee is applied to the cost and you pay the rest. If you keep all five items, you get an additional 25% off the full cost. If you don’t like any of them, you send it back in their pre-labeled bag and you’re only out the $20 stylist fee.  (read their site for the best explanation)

To start with, you fill out a “Style Profile” to define your style, your sizes and your budget. I was pretty explicit on what I did or didn’t like and my size. This included my bust size (you’ll see why this is important in a moment…) There’s also a place to share a Pinterest board if you have one…which I do. It’s here: http://www.pinterest.com/tababcock/stylin-stuff/

Part of my Style Profile

 My First Box

I signed up in January and the first day I could select for delivery was Valentine’s Day. Wonderful – a nice surprise and maybe I’d receive something sexy to wear out to dinner with my husband. Here’s what I received:

Nessa Love Birds on Branch Necklace from Bay to Baubles

This item was just “ok”. I like classic, simple jewelry and this fit that request. But I’m just not big on birds and in the 5 minutes I had it on it flipped upside down 10 times. Cute for the right person but a NO for me. And at $32 I wasn’t really upset at turning it down.

Jonni Lace Hem Detail Dress from Peppermint

I opened the box and this was the first item I saw. To be completely fair to the review, I LOVE the color – absolutely gorgeous. And I already knew it was a dress from the StitchFix website; I saw my checkout page before I got the box. And I thought it would be a wonderful Valentine’s dress…until I pulled it out. Look at the card below:

I was fairly certain my college-age daughter wouldn’t even wear this and it definitely wouldn’t look good on this 40-year-old body. And I was right. WOW, was I right! It squashed my not-so-small chest, accentuated my not-so-small mid-section and barely covered my cute (but not-so-small) booty. And where it didn’t cling it hung. This is a dress?!

Harper 3/2 Sleeve Jacket from 41Hawthorn

I love this jacket…had I been shopping for my grandmother. We went from barely teen-worthy to old-lady worthy. Sigh. To be fair, I did try it on and it’s not completely unfortunate on me. It would potentially be good for the office if I was in a more business-attire required office. However, it only works if I want to leave it completely open.

Below is the closed version. Again, squished breasts and big gaping holes between the buttons. Definitely not worth the $58 price tag for me. So…another no.

Chloe Chevron Striped Maxi Skirt from Lily

Now we’re talking. I love maxi skirts. I’m already a decent height (5’7″) but maxis make me look even taller…and skinnier! I liked the chevron print too. It fit well and was actually a tad too long – an easy fix if I kept it.

You’d think this would be a YES, right? Unfortunately, the $88 price tag was a bit much for this type of skirt. Especially when I already own several maxis I LOVE that cost less combined than this one – and they fit better.

So, back in the bag this went as well.

Aleah Heathered V-Neck Dolman Top from 41Hawthorn

Hands down, this was instantly my favorite item in the box. A beautiful heather green, a longer length, dolman sleeves and so very soft. It didn’t look too bad on me either:

I didn’t really like the complete lack of form to it however. So, I threw on a regular black belt and it felt a little more “me”.

Then I tried to style it similar to one of the suggested looks, with black leggings, leopard-print shoes and a bit of attitude. Not bad for a night out (maybe) but not a great look for me.

I was going to say yes to this…but the price tag stopped me. At $48, it just wasn’t worth it. I know now that it looks okay on me without shopping and I can now find it less expensively if I really want it in the future. So, this went back as well.

Wrap-Up

All-in-all I was fairly disappointed in my first box. I sent it back with honest feedback and also adjusted my personal style form to better match my style (not many changes but a couple). I reiterated that I DO have a style board on Pinterest. It’s filled with looks I like and many of them are tighter fitting tops with cardigans, belted looks & dresses flattering to my size and age. Hopefully the stylist will take a closer look this time and match better. Yes, I’m trying a second time. But if not closer this time, I’m done.

Another Service

In doing a little research on this topic I did come across another subscription box I think I want to try. It’s called The Fantasy Box. I won’t say anything else on that box…go check it out yourself. 😉

XO – T.

PS – Sorry for the photo quality. I really need a new phone! Hopefully future reviews will have better photo quality!