Fun fashion services: Stitch Fix and Rocksbox

So maybe I have to wear gym clothes Monday through Friday, but on the weekends, I like to dress up a bit more. Recently, I’ve had the chance to try two new services that have helped me to up my fashion game, which is always fun for me.

The first one — Stitch Fix. The second one — Rocksbox. And these companies are both right in my neck of the woods, each with their headquarters in San Francisco. Yes!

Stitch Fix offers you a personal stylist 

I had read tons of blog reviews of Stitch Fix, which calls itself “online personal stylists for women,” and was always interested to try it out for myself. Well my wonderful older brother heard from some lady friends that this was a cool service, so he gifted me a $150 credit to spend with Stitch Fix for my birthday a few months ago, without me ever even mentioning it. After Dave and I moved into our new place with more closet space, I signed up right away and have since received two “fixes,” which is what Stitch Fix calls their shipments. 

This is what arrives at your door …

When one of these babies shows up, it’s awfully exciting to dig in. Shown above is a Stitch Fix box and one of the “styling sheets,” which shows you how to wear the pieces that you’ve been sent.

You don’t pick out the items yourself, in fact, Stitch Fix connects you with a personal stylist, who selects five items for you at a time, which you try on at home, then you send back what you don’t want. You can keep everything in the shipment to get a big discount applied to your entire order, and you always pay a $20 styling fee for each fix, but that fee goes toward whatever you choose to purchase.

Here’s what I received in my first “fix” with pictures taken on a no make-up, hair-in-a-bun gym-working weekday, so I’ve chopped my head off to save you from that mess …

Honestly, I would have kept every single item in this “fix,” but couldn’t justify the expense when I really don’t need any of it (I only really need gym clothes and play clothes, so the business casual jacket was not anything I’d wear these days). I ended up keeping the dark skinny jeans only.

The first shipment included the following pieces:

• Bay to Baubles Franklin Pan Flute Shape Necklace – $34
• Eight Sixty Chloe Animal Print Dress – $98
• Just Black Adorra Skinny Jean – $88 (KEPT!)
• 41Hawthorn Carson Graphic Chevron Cross-Front Blouse – $64
• Market & Spruce Torin French Terry Stripe Blazer – $72
• If I had purchased all of these items and received the 25 percent discount for doing so, the total “fix” would have been $252.

I realize now that it makes sense to buy the whole “fix,” because the discount is so significant. But of course, that’s not what I did. 

Here’s a little taste of what I got in my second shipment, with photos taken on such a sunny day that shades were required …

These are three items from my second “fix”, the Beckett Graphic Print V-Neck Blouse on the left (worn with the jeans from the first “fix”) and the Rylin Pintuck Blouse and Baxley Skinny Jean on the right.

The second shipment included the following pieces:

• Cleokai Therese Shift Dress – $98 (way too big for me, so un-pictured)
• Kut From the Kloth Baxley Skinny Jean – $88
• Fate Jocie Striped Chiffon Layer Cardigan – $48 (un-pictured, because it was wrinkly and I didn’t have anything quite right to wear underneath it)
• Daniel Rainn Rylin Pintuck Detailed Silk Blouse – $78
• 41Hawthorn Beckett Graphic Print V-Neck Blouse – $48 (KEPT!)
• If I had purchased all of these items and received the 25 percent discount for doing so, the total “fix” would have been $255.

I wasn’t as happy with the second fix, because the dress sent was way too big for me and some of the stuff was too pricey. Other than that, I enjoyed the rest of the items, but couldn’t bring myself to pay nearly $80 for the black silk top, which I actually really loved. Therefore, I settled with the blue-ish blouse instead, which should be great for spring.

Overall, I’ve purchased one item from both of my fixes. I’ve liked at least something about every single piece sent to me, and using Stitch Fix has introduced me to new brands, while also giving me a chance to have the latest styles delivered right to my door.

The benefits of Stitch Fix

• Free shipping both ways
• Diversity of items, including bags, clothing, dresses and jewelry
• A stylist sends you clothing brands and pieces you may not think to try yourself 
• You get a 25 percent discount and savings if you purchase the whole “fix”
• You can stop and start your service as much as you want and schedule your deliveries
• There is no membership or monthly fee, but a $20 fee each time you order a “fix”
• You receive brand new clothing items, sent with tags 
• There is a detailed survey and ways to tell your stylist what you’re looking for via feedback forms and even by sharing your Pinterest board
• You receive a styling sheet, with ideas on how to wear each item
• And as of late, Stitch Fix now has maternity clothes available too

The downsides of Stitch Fix

• The items seem to be fairly expensive
• You only have three days to decide on the pieces before sending them back
• You may or may not love what is sent to you, yet still have to pay the $20 styling fee each time you receive a “fix”

Tons of fabric and pattern choices have been sent my way with two “fixes” under my belt, which is good, because although I love patterns, I tend to primarily buy myself solid colors.

I’ve enjoyed getting my fixes and will probably get a few more to decide if I want to continue or not. As of now, I don’t think my stylist quite “gets me,” but I plan to tell her a a bit more about what I want and need to make sure she sends better items more suited to my lifestyle.

If you want to have your own personal stylist and try this service out, visit Stitch Fix <– affiliate link> today to sign up. If you use that link, A Lady Goes West will get a little kick-back, which will likely be put toward carrot cake, so thanks for that!

Now, up next is another fun service, which I’ve been enjoying …

Rocksbox sends you bling to borrow or buy

The lovely folks at Rocksbox, a premium jewelry subscription company, reached out to me about trying their service for free for a few months. Being that I’m a jewelry lover and support of Bay Area companies, I agreed. Rocksbox sends you a box of three pieces of jewelry, and you can wear the jewelry as much as you like, before sending it back. If you like the pieces, you can purchase them at a discounted price. The service is a flat fee of only $19 a month for membership, in which you get full access to unlimited shipments of jewelry. That’s a great price, if you ask me, because some of the jewelry is super nice.

Here’s what it looks like when you get a Rocksbox in the mail. So many things to open!

The first shipment included the following pieces:

• House of Harlow 1960 Aztec Bangle in Black – $38
• Perry Street Abby Necklace in Black Crystal – $60
• A pair of Gorjana Taner Ear Climbers – $32

Rocksbox is quite fun to receive and open, because all of the pieces come in their own protective bags, so it was like Christmas morning getting to the actual item. You can get nearly any kind of jewelry in your box, from understated classic pieces to crazy punk pieces, and I was happy to see my first delivery had only gold contemporary items. Just like Stitch Fix and other services, you answer a bunch of style questions when you get started, so the stylists can get an idea of what to send you, and my stylist was right on target.

The benefits of Rocksbox

• Free shipping both ways
• Gives you the chance to try out jewelry styles you’re unsure of
• No limits on how many times you can wear the pieces before returning them
• Option to buy pieces you want at an insider’s rate
• A chance to wear edgy or trendy jewelry without having to purchase it forever

The downsides of Rocksbox

• As of now, I don’t really see a down-side, except some of the pieces could have been worn by others before getting to you, but they are fully sanitized

I have always had a stocked jewelry box, yet I tend to stick to the same pieces over and over again, so this service will give me a chance to branch out from my accessory routine.

Outside of the reasonable price, the best part about Rocksbox is that the website and service is really easy to use. And it only takes just a few minutes to sign up and fill out your style profile. For more details, you can see how it works here. 

Loving these colors! I wore the earrings around town for lunch and shopping and the bangle bracelet out on a Saturday night. Definitely my style.

I’ve received one box so far and loved all three items. I’m a fan of statement pieces and often wear a lot of jewelry on weekend nights, so it’s been fun for me to add a few new things to my rotation. I’ll probably send all of them back after a couple more wears, and I can’t wait to see what comes in my next shipment.

Try one month free of Rocksbox

If you want to try Rocksbox, you can get one month free using the promo code: aladygoeswestxoxo. This code is good for the next 30 days, so act quickly! And the Rocksbox team will drop a few pennies in my jewelry bank if you sign up, so that’s pretty awesome too.

That’s that, folks! A fun fashion post for your day. I hope you have a fabulous day, and I’ll see you back here tomorrow for some talk about food.

*Disclaimer: I paid for my own Stitch Fix service and did not receive any items for free. However, I have received a few months free of the Rocksbox service, and all the opinions above are completely my own.

Questions of the day

Have you ever tried Stitch Fix or Rocksbox?

How would you describe your style?

Anything fun on the agenda today?

 

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