A Fashion Experiment

and now, for something completely different.

The last few years, as a lady of a certain age, have not been kind to my closet. I’ve never been a clotheshorse, but I do have preferences in what I wear. Problem is, my figure changed (all the sand in my hourglass wound up in the middle!) and when I looked at a garment, I had trouble telling if it would fit me, look good, and… it was frustrating, my head map no longer matching up with reality. I’d gained enough weight that all my ‘nice’ clothes were packed neatly away in hope of someday, perhaps… Sigh.

I’ve always been more likely to thrift clothing, having little to no budget for it. After a dreadful period of life more than a decade ago, when I realized that the majority of my closet was hand-me-downs from my grandmother and her friends, I purged almost everything and then for a long time I wore jeans and geeky tee-shirts. Recently, though, I have been working at bringing my closet towards clothing that fits, is comfortable, and perhaps has a bit of style. I still enjoy thrifting, for the challenge of finding fun clothing that isn’t terribly expensive so if I spill on it I’m not too sad. This takes time, though, and I don’t have that.

Which is how I wound up trying StitchFix. I was successfully marketed to. Although for some reason I conflated them with ThredUp, which resells used clothing. I was expecting lightly used clothing, and what arrived is new, although I didn’t recognize any of the label names. I am not a designer-clothing person, by the way. The softest nicest leggings and camisoles I’ve ever had were from Walmart, the Terra and Sky brand. I buy based on fabric feel - which makes online purchasing a challenge! - and comfort. I am so past the age where I’d wear clothing for look and put up with pinching, scratching, or constriction.

Toast inna box! It was just her size (any size is just her size. Cats are a solid, liquid, and a gas, expanding to fill the available space).

The box came in, with a no-cost return guarantee, and having done a brief quiz for the ‘stylist’ I was hopeful that my comments there would have influenced the selections, as well as having provided measurements. Note that they do not ask for full measurements, and this is a problem. There was a pair of jeans, a short-sleeved top, two lightweight sweaters, and a cardigan. The cardigan could not have been worn with any of the tops. The jeans were about 4-5 inches too long (I can usually wear a regular length, petite is too short). The cardigan was very not my style with modern metal decoration, and the sweaters were fine if bland. The short-sleeve top was horizontally striped, and… well, now we get to my real objection to the box. All of the tops were polyester, not terribly good quality, and the list price for the short-sleeve top was $39 for something I’m fairly sure I’ve seen at Walmart for $10. All told, had I kept all the items, I would have paid out $168 for them, and that’s after a 25% discount for keeping them all - if you only keep some you pay full price for each item.

I packed everything up, and shipped it back. I didn’t think to take a photo, I’m afraid. I was showing it to my husband, who eyed them dubiously, made comments about the color palette (olive drab, navy blue, and black), and encouraged me to send it back. I told him I could do better, and far cheaper, if I went to the local department store and bought there.

“Why not?” he asked.

“Want to come along?” I don’t have time, and knew this couldn’t be a long trip, but I wanted to spend time with him.

“Yes.”

So! We went on an impromptu date. Shopping as a game to beat the prices, with dinner after. I dearly love getting him involved in selecting my clothing, as he usually refuses to have an opinion and influence me. When he does make approving noises, I’ll wear whatever that is happily as much as I can (given one of his favorite things I have worn is a linen chemise from my re-enacting days, that’s not easy to work into a modern styling!) I hit Kohl’s because I knew they’d have stuff I like and fit me, and I made a beeline for the clearance rack. I did look at prices of the first-line displays, and their pricing at list retail was similar to the stuff in the StitchFix box, but better styles and colors, also, a lot of sales running meant you really never have to pay full price, unlike the stuff in the box where you take something you don’t want to get the sale price.

I wound up finding, in maybe a half-hour of looking, pants, cardigan, a short-sleeve shirt, and a dress. I walked out of the store having paid $114, tax included. I’d bought things which had natural fibers in them, leveraging the clearance racks to buy quality above my budget. I had colors I was in the mood for, and I’d tried all of them on and gotten my husband’s eye-twinkle of approval. I was happier with what I’d gotten, and with the price, and I will happily wear all of them in combinations. I wasn’t necessarily building a capsule wardrobe - I don’t need to, and more importantly, I like to dress by mood - but these things would all work together to make outfits in combinations. They are fun! I may be of a certain age, but that doesn’t mean I have to subside into dull hues and drab plumage.

This may be too long, I’m rambling and unraveling thoughts as I write it. The lessons learned are… take a little time. If you have so little time you can’t spare it? Make the time play two purposes, in this case both shopping and a date. If you walk in with a budget, you are both constrained and freed. For me, spending $168 on clothing is a lot of money. Knowing I could afford to do that was exciting! It was fun to get in, find nice things, and do it with my best friend. I likely won’t do it again soon, but I’m tucking this away as something we both enjoyed to do again in six months or so. I may not have the figure I want, but I don’t have to dress like it. I can wear colors, and pretty things, and I don’t have to act my age.