@LasMa - thank you so much for this thread! It was very interesting to read about your shopping experience and I can so relate to all you wrote about not knowing how to shop. I really like the things you ended up buying. The trousers look great and I’m planning to purchase a pair myself. If they work out as well as I think they will, I likely end up getting more in other colors. I also really like the black and white top you purchased and may also get that for myself. Hope you don’t mind that I’m stealing your good ideas!
I’ve lost around 50 lb over the last few years, most of it in the past couple years. Since I have been at or below my goal weight (which is in the very low end of the weight range for my height) for over a year now, I have decided to go for a wardrobe update. Over the years I have had so many clothes of various sizes that I’ve been hesitant to spend any significant amount of money on new clothes in my new size for fear that I’d be wasting money if I yo-yo again on the diet front. But I’m feeling confident that I’ve got this new eating and exercising lifestyle down with a year under my belt, so it’s time to shop.
All the discussion on this thread prompted me to give Stitch Fix a try. My daughter uses it and likes it, although she has had varying levels of success with what they have sent her. I got my first shipment yesterday and I am thrilled with what they sent. Not a single piece is something that I would have picked out to even try on in a store, much less even consider buying. I don’t have any fashion sense and avoid anything trendy, preferring to stick with timeless classic styles. But what they sent is all so cute that I’m keeping every piece! I don’t wear dresses, except for weddings and the occasional formal event, but they sent the cutest dress that I just love. I also got a couple tops that are cute (and comfy!) and a pair of printed straight leg crop pants that I wouldn’t have considered trying on or buying in a million years but they are super cute. So anyway, I ended up keeping everything they sent and have already ordered a next shipment! I hope you are as successful with your shipment that is coming this week.
Thanks again for the thread - so many great ideas and helpful hints from the experts. I see a pair of black jeans in my future…so many choices with all the great links!
@C3Baker Steal all the things you want! I’m also going to get more of the pants in other colors. Why mess with success, right? And how great that you loved your first Stitchfix box!
Which is more proper dressing to go out to an upscale but not formal restaurant; designer jeans with a sparkly sequin sleeveless top or a knee length sleeveless dress with sequin trims around the neck?
After a depressing trip to the store yesterday and trying on 17 dresses in a variety of sizes, none of which worked, I signed up for Stitch Fix and am ready to give personal shoppers a try. We have a Nordstrom’s and that’s where I’ll start. I am style-challenged and always have been. I am such a fan of the “effortless” put-together look and at close to 60, I’d like to present a more polished image. Thanks for the “push!”
Igloo, both would be perfectly fine. I’d wear jeans if I were not in the mood to shave my legs and/or the restaurant is notorious for its arctic AC. If I felt like showing off my new heels and it was hot, I’d wear the dress. Have a fun evening!
So cool to hear everyone’s stories. The beautiful butterflies were always there… they are just emerging.
I personally don’t understand why Stitch Fix would be an appealing option as compared to a personal shopper. They send you 5 things and charge you $20 if you don’t buy one of them. There’s no opportunity to try on multiple sizes of the same item, no coordinating of outfits, no saying “I’d like to try it in a different color,” no knowing in advance what you’ll be getting. I hate shopping but try on at LEAST 20 things THAT I PICK OUT before finding one thing I want to buy. And sizing is all over the place! I can’t even imagine someone picking out 5 random things and getting even one of them right! And paying $20 to try on 5 things is very expensive!
I’ve seen people’s boxes on line and haven’t been all that impressed with the selections.
And then not having access to the in-house alterations people is a turn off too
I know many people have had good luck with it, but I know it would never work for me. But I’m really interested i hearing about the experiences of others! It is fascinating to me that this concept could work at all!
I think some of the appeal of Stitch Fix is that it’s a little like Christmas when you’re a kid. You don’t know what’s in the shiny boxes under the tree and you can imagine all kinds of wonderful things - it’s fun to have a box show up that’s a complete surprise and see what’s in there. But honestly, some of the appeal for me is that it’s just easy. I didn’t have to go anywhere, I didn’t have to talk to anyone (I have some social anxiety, although I am fine at work. I can give a presentation to 200 people and feel great about it and be completely confident in what I’m doing, but if I have to go to a social/cocktail hour and/or dinner with that same crowd afterwards, I’m a complete mess). So just filling out the info online and providing comments to me is way easier than having to deal with a salesperson and devoting a good chunk of a weekend day to go out shopping.
One of the things that is stressed about Stitch Fix is to try on everything they send you, regardless of first impression. I think that’s really important, because there’s no way I would have even considered trying on 3 of the 5 things they sent if I had seen them in a store. And yet when they were on, I really liked them. So I agree, looking at pictures of some people’s boxes doesn’t necessarily inspire enthusiasm - the stuff looks a lot better on.
I understand the $20 fee - they can’t afford to have people just use the service to get ideas and return everything without buying anything. You get the $20 credit back if you buy just one thing in the shipment so I think it’s a reasonable business practice.
I was also skeptical on sizes since I seem to wear different sizes in different items by different makers. But everything in my shipment fit pretty well.
I understand where you are coming from, nottelling, and if I didn’t dislike shopping so much I probably wouldn’t be as thrilled with Stitch Fix as I am.
I could only find links for a couple of the things I got. Here is the dress that I totally love. It was $78 and I think that’s very reasonable.
This is one of the blouses they sent. I really like the mint color. It’s more flowy than the kind of thing I usually wear, but it’s pretty. You can’t tell it from the picture, but the back has kind of a trendy cross cut to it. I liked it on better than I thought I would. And I can also put on a blazer and have a more traditional looking outfit.
I’m very fortunate to have my youngest D who loves fashion and loves helping put together looks for people of every age. She learned a lot during her time working for Nordstrom and I definitely benefit from her insight. I would encourage anyone that doesn’t like to shop (I do!) and feels challenged with what their style is to schedule some time with a personal shopper. One of my very good friends is a stylist at Nordstrom and I have sent many of my other friends to her for help. A few years ago I was working night and day on an accounting system conversion and realized that it was Wednesday and I had a wedding to attend Friday night and nothing to wear. My friend at Nordstrom knew I only had an hour to pop by and try on dresses and I told her my budget so that when I arrived my dressing room was set up with dresses and shoes. I was able to find a dress for the wedding within my hour time frame and it is a dress I have ended up wearing quite a few times over the years.
@nottelling I can understand that for people who have the knack for shopping in stores or online, Stitchfix wouldn’t make much sense or be very useful. For those of us who have had nothing but bad experiences, though, it’s very appealing to have someone else do the picking.
The profile they have you set up is extremely detailed, and you can make requests for each shipment as well. For example, I asked them to focus on work shirts this time. So they’re not choosing things at random. And they want you to give very specific feedback on every item they send – exactly why you didn’t like it, or why you did – so that they can sharpen the next round of picks. I’d guess that @C3Baker 's experience is not typical, liking every item in the first box. I’ve heard that it can take several rounds for them to “get” you, just like my personal shopper’s first-round picks were mostly misses, until she better understood me.
I think the size issue can be easily addressed if the folks at Stitch Fix know the peculiarities of each brand’s sizing. Saks has its own sizing help on the site which would recommend the size based on your prior ordering history. You have to take the computer’s recommendations with a grain of salt, but I think the humans selecting items at Stitch Fix can do much better.
To me, the bigger issue would be “wardrobing” and the availability of tailoring. If they team up with a network of tailors who can provide alterations, it would definitely give their service an extra star.
I really like that dress, C3Baker. I hate to shop, so in theory I would love someone to be able to send me stuff.
Seeing that dress helped me to put my finger on why the service might work for others but not me. I have a very hard time finding clothes that fit properly and it would take me a very long time to find a version of that dress that hit me properly. (I’m very tall and relatively thin but I have very wide hips. It’s a combination that makes it very difficult to find clothes for some reason, which is why I hate shopping!)
Anyway, really looking forward to hearing about what comes in your box, LasMa.
That is a great dress! I’ve just looked at some posts elsewhere of Stitchfix boxes and it seems they have access to some rather unusual pieces that you wouldn’t find without a lot of shopping. I’m tempted to give it a try.
I have to really be in the mood to shop because it is such a PITA to find stuff that fits me. I am not quite 5’4". Petites are usually too short and regulars are too long. Plus I have a longer torso and short legs and arms. I remember back in the day ordering clothes from the Spiegel catelogue (remember that?) a time or two and sending all of it back because it did not fit.
I am intrigued about the personal shopper. Do you have to pay an hourly rate for the shopper or does she work on commission? Did you tip her?
musicmom1215 - if you have a Nordstrom near you I would suggest making an appointment with one of their personal shoppers.
My D helps many of her friends and our family shop for clothes because she really has a talent for styling. We have been shopping at Marshall’s or TJ Max several times and people have come up to us and asked if they could have her help as they hear her talking to me (or whoever she is with) explaining why she is picking out certain things!
Another Stitchfix fan here. I recently changed jobs and my clothing needs are quite different from my previous life where I had the luxury of wearing workout clothes every day! As a result, the more business casual world I now inhabit is a challenge. I’ve gotten two boxes so far and have kept 3 of five items in each. As mentioned by others the stylists really want to know what you need and why things they send you work or don’t work. And C3Baker is right, they really encourage you to try on everything they send. I kept one item in each box that I would never have thought I liked without trying it on.
It’s a fun process! I will probably do another two boxes or so, then I should be set for awhile!
I’d love to hear more about the items in your Stitchfix box, @Anxiousmom, if you are willing to share! What did they send, how did they fit, etc. And, also, do you generally have an easy time finding clothes that fit? I am completely fascinated by the process!
What a great thread. I just read it through and want to congratulate LaMas on her success! On another thread, I described one of my D’s challenges…she’s not great at knowing what looks good on her and graduated college and was starting a new, professional job (she’s a civil engineer). I made an appointment with a personal shopper for her at Nordstrom and she had great success. There is no obligation to buy and I would highly recommend it for anyone who isn’t sure what looks good on them, gets overwhelmed shopping on their own, etc. I will say that I first went on the local Nordstom’s website and they had a description of each of the personal shoppers and what their areas of expertise is. i picked one and then went to schedule an appointment (also online) and that particular person didn’t show up on the schedule. I ultimately called and spoke with the person who oversees the personal shopper department, described my D and her needs and the person recommended a particular personal shopper.
