Stitch Fix Review: My First Fix

OH BABY! My very own Stitch Fix review!!!

I have read so many of these that it's kind of fun to write my own! So I signed up for Stitch Fix back in May and didn't get my first box until the 4th of July weekend. I imagined being styled by young 20-something hot young things who had nothing better to do than to flip through fashion magazines and Pinterest boards to figure out how to dress me. Needless to say, the anticipation built up and I was super excited. I broke my Pinterest ban and made a style board to help my very own P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing, aka Stitch Fix Stylist) and in my first Fix I stated that I already had the basics and that I was looking for fun and interesting summer items for a very hot southern California summer. When the box came, I called my friend Dee over and she had a RIOT going through the box with me and taking pictures. I asked her to avoid the messy areas of my living room, to which she said, "There's no way to do that." *SIGH*

What I Received

 Faye Beaded Statement Necklace

Bay to Baubles Faye Beaded Statement Necklace, $34

This pic is a selfie because Dee took one look at the necklace and said, "Don't bother."

Now I'm no rocket scientist, but based on the colors I received, I would say the Stylist either started with this necklace as inspiration, or just kind of threw it in because it matched the color scheme of the box. I really liked the colors but once I put it on I very much felt like this is not the direction I wanted anything in my wardrobe to go in. Maybe because one of my longtime bosses who was in her 60s wore necklaces like this, or maybe because I didn't think there was anything on-trend about this necklace. In general, wearing the necklace made me feel like I was trying too hard, and I want to look effortlessly chic. I mean, let's be honest here, I'm a mom of two young children - I need fashion to BE effortless.

Linda Cross Front Knit Top
Leah Straight Leg Cuffed Jeans

41Hawthorn Linda Cross Front Knit Top, $54
Dear John Leah Straight Leg Cuffed Jeans, $78

Oh, where do I start? Probably the top. So this is not the first time I've put on a top like this. And the main problem with tops like this is that you have to be careful how the fabric crosses your breasts. If you've got a good set of ladies, you really risk one breast looking HIGHLY accentuated or fabric bunching up and puckering in weird places, which it did. The bright coral color was unexpectedly awesome - I don't own anything in this bright color and now I think I really should, but the top was overly cumbersome in making sure the fabric was hitting in exactly the right spots to not look weird. And for the price, so not worth it for me to have to fidget with it.

Onto the jeans. So I was somewhat annoyed at having received just a straight up pair of blue jeans after noting that I already had the basics. To me, there is nothing, and I mean nothing, more basic than t-shirts and blue jeans. That being said, the jeans were great, but a size or two too big. Plus cuffed I think they were supposed to hit higher up on the leg than just below the ankle.

Joan Mixed Print Henley Tunic

Fun2Fun Mixed Print Henley Tunic, $44

So the first time I tried this on I was wearing some denim cutoffs, because, you know, it's 100 degrees here in Pasadena, and you couldn't see my shorts under this top. The cutoffs weren't Daisy Dukes or anything either. This tunic was way long and I was calling it the nightgown. Plus the colors were as dowdy as dowdy can be. This is when I started getting mad at my Pretty Young Thing (P.Y.T.). I really think that there could have been no way someone seeing my style profile and Pinterest would have sent me this top. When I first saw it I thought it was a faded reject from the fourth of July as the colors were white, blue, and some weird raspberry pink color. And it really doesn't look so bad in the picture but I thought it made me look 7 months pregnant. And then Dee piped up, "Do they think they are dressing some 55 year old stay at home mom in Iowa or something? You did tell them you live in L.A., right?" So here I am, in this picture, wearing the cuffed jeans that were way too big and long for me, with a dowdy top made for someone that is 5' 7" and about 20 years older than me. The funny thing is that this very top was sent in a better colorway to someone who IS actually like 7 months pregnant!

Carey Abstract Print Cowl Neck Knit Top

Tart Carey Abstract Print Cowl Neck Knit Top, $44

Okay, so here's where things really start to get screwy. Plus, I apologize but Dee and I were really punchy by this point and all the pictures of the front of this top were blurry. Maybe I was still smarting over the Joan Henley Tunic above, but I think I got really frustrated at this point. I tried on the Carey Cowl Neck Top, and I really liked it. The Carey top has a nice thick fabric and long sleeved, and I was left wondering how in the world I was supposed to wear this in 100+ degree heat. I get that in Stitch Fix is based in San Francisco and their summers are different, but people in San Francisco should know what the weather is generally like in much sunnier and hotter Los Angeles. This too was the only top that the Stylist said was inspired by my Pinterest board. The top has a built-in shelf bra, a nice cowl neck in front, and fun triangle cutout in the back (shown). The print was reminiscent of some dip-dye items that I had pinned, and it was my favorite item from the whole Fix. The problem was that I was really looking for summer items, and besides the color, this, to me, screams winter.

So you could say I was disappointed in the first box. I felt like the Stylist just kind of glanced what I was asking for in my "Note to the Stylist" and saw "summer" and when she looked at the Style Profile saw that I was a mom and that was it. I wasn't thinking they were going to get it 100% on the first try, but I didn't think that it would be this far off, and I wasn't really prepared to go three or four Fixes so they could get to know me and my preferences. So I emailed about the jeans and the clothes and the fact that the box was really not what I asked for, and after writing them what seemed to a dissertation on my style preferences, they offered to basically redo the box if I chose not to keep anything.

My Decision & Lesson Learned

   

After an email exchange with customer service, I felt comfortable that I wouldn't need to go through 3-4 boxes before they started getting it right so long as I was more specific about what I was looking for and what I wanted. I ultimately decided to keep the Tart Carey top! It was a hard decision because I didn't see myself wearing it very much until the weather cooled down, but it was such a flattering top, and at $44, a steal for a Tart Collections top!

So I'm a newbie at the Stitch Fix game, but I think in addition to having a concise Pinterest style board (as in, it should be mostly things you would wear, not what looks pretty on the model), you need to assume that the Stylist assigned to your Fix for the month isn't going to get it right based on the Style questionnaire alone - you need to be a little bit bossy about what you want to wear and what you would like to see in your box for the month. So I think my mistake was saying, "I'm looking for fun summer items, no basics." I assumed my definition of "fun" and "basics" were the same as the Stylist, and they obviously weren't.

So in my long discourse with the customer service rep, who was awesome by the way, I explained that in my next box I wanted colored denim, fun summer tops, and maybe a fun summer dress or romper, but that I would be more than happy not to receive a dress or romper.  I also changed my jeans size on my Style Profile and checked the box that said I would prefer not to get necklaces since I had to rethink the whole game plan of getting random expensive costume jewelry. I also scheduled my next Fix for the end of July, since I have been in serious need of clothes that haven't been spit up on!

So if you're interesting in trying Stitch Fix, I wouldn't mind the referral credit!