This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure here.
I’ve seen a few friends rave about Stitch Fix for years now, and finally decided last week to try it out for myself. It helped that they will wave the styling fee on your first box so it is risk free to try, plus I decided I would make it an adventure and share all the details with y’all.
I think every girl secretly wants the experience of an Extreme MakeOver and in a way that’s what signing up for the box feels like to me. I love the idea of a fashion expert picking out clothing for me, since my regular picks would be the comfy t-shirt and pair of jeans (that I probably wore yesterday).
First, the Quiz.
When you first sign up they start with your personal style quiz. There are a number of questions and I would recommend pondering them and not “Christmas treeing” it. They use your answers to match you with a stylist and to help pic what goes in your box.
If you hate it, it’s okay to tell them that. I am not the person on the bottom, though I know some amazing women that are, and I would never feel comfortable wearing it.
Tip: Many folks recommend going big here and creating a pinterest style board and sharing it with your stylist. I do think at least sharing a picture with them is helpful. I told mine that I am paler than pale so to please consider that in color options and that I don’t need anything with missing shoulders, extra holes etc. She probably went ahead and labeled me a grandma, but if I wouldn’t let my little girls wear it I really shouldn’t either.
Now Order The Box.
This is the moment of holding your breathe and seeing if the person gets you. Normally there is a $20 styling fee when you order the box, but it is waived on your first box if you go through this link. The $20 fee is then applied towards the purchase of anything in the box you decide to keep.
Having no risk I wasn’t too worried, I was more excited to see what my personal stylist was going to pick.
Have Your Little Makeover!
My first fix arrived in 9 days. Normally when I order things online I want them to arrive super fast, but for some reason this came so fast that it made me wonder how personalized things really would be.
I went straight for the paper showing all the prices first… I had to see just how much “trendy” was going to cost before I fell in love with anything. No need to set myself up for heartbreak.
If I bought everything in the box the total would be $190. That was after their “Buy All” 25% off discount. That’s a little too rich for my pocketbook, but I was at least willing to still try them on.
Each box has 5 items. Most folks say they get one accessory and mine was a long necklace (my favorite type). This was the first thing to get nixed in my mind though being $34. I think some of the deals we post has me a little spoiled but I don’t think I could ever pay more than $15 for a fashion jewelry necklace.
I loved the colors and style of everything else, but not always the fit. The striped sweater was a bit baggy (not to mention horizontal stripes that I stopped wearing 5 kids ago) and the blue and white henley was more like a tent than a shirt. I know that some of these things are trendy now, but tents and I don’t go well together.
In the end I really loved the purple cardigan and the jeans.
The cardigan was semi-reasonably priced and a favorite color so it got put to the side to consider longer. The jeans were some of the softest jeans I’ve ever worn… and if I could justify paying $68 for a pair of jeans, maybe I could keep them… but I can’t. Remember I’m frugal (aka cheap)…
A Perk of Stitch Fix
Getting 5 items sent to your home is the ideal dressing room. There is no horrible mirror and bad lighting, plus all your favorite clothes are there to try on with it!
I took the cardigan and started pondering what I already had that I would wear it with. Would it look good over certain shirts or with dress pants etc. It was a fashion show with a goal of seeing just how versatile that sweater could be. In the end it won and I decided to keep the cardigan.
Things To Keep In Mind
You probably won’t recognize many of the brands you receive, but do a little homework before returning or buying items. Some of the brands are actually in-house labels made exclusively for Stitch Fix, which I think is fine if you want to buy it and this is the only option.
Some of the items are smaller name brands sold in Nordstrom, and boutique shops. Because these items are sold other places you may find them cheaper at other places. Stitch Fix does have a price match guarantee if you find an item a cheaper price within 7 days of delivery. This is basically throwing down a challenge for me… sadly I couldn’t find any of the items in my box online at all, much less cheaper. I’m guessing that’s for two reasons, they either have the brands design styles exclusively for them or they are last years designs. It’s probably a little bit of both.
Shipping It Back
You’ve got three days to decide what you don’t want (meaning you can’t wear the jeans all over town trying to make up your mind). They give you a pre-paid shipping bag to send anything you don’t want back. So, you didn’t pay anything to get the box or to send it back!
You’ll hop online to leave them feedback on each item, why you didn’t want it, or what they could have picked better. At the bottom it will ask if you want to get another box or not.
I decided to be brave and try again. Next month is my birthday, so maybe they will send me something my husband can wrap up (it would probably be a thousand times better than any clothing he’d pick himself). Beyond next month I’m not sure that it’s something I would continue as we don’t have $40 in our clothing budget every month for me to get something new. Maybe if I worked in an office setting and not in my living room…
Remember your first box is completely risk free with no styling fee, but the second box you’ll pay the $20 styling fee that will then be a credit towards anything you keep.
This post is not sponsored by Stitch Fix. All opinions are 100% my own.
