Another month, another Stitch Fix! Looking back, I’m now on my fourth stylist – the one from last month didn’t do this month’s box, so I got another new stylist. This is Fix #11 for me, and I had a note from the stylist for this box, Laura.
Hello Melissa! Happy 11th Fix day! How were your holidays?! After reviewing your profile, I selected a few items that’ll make getting dressed effortless as the days have become shorter and the to-do lists have gotten longer. Reverse those winter blues with this mood-lifting flannel knit back top by Q&A. It’ll look terrific with the jeans from your previous Fix. Look forward to Valentine’s Day with this modern asymmetrical sweater by RD Style. Pair it with jeans, leggings, or trousers. Slip into these on-trend jogger pants by Rune for a rendezvous at the local farmer’s market and treat yourself to a fragrant artisanal bouquet! Update your look with this with this chambray top by Skies Are Blend made of 100% comfortable cotton. I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on everything. Until next time, have fun and enjoy! Warmest wishes, Laura.
I um.. Well, the week this arrived, it was about 15 degrees F, and there haven’t been artisanal bouquets at the farmers market since about September. My farmers market is a real, honest to goodness FARMERS market, with real farmers, selling meat, vegetables, freshly baked bread, and we huddle together in the winter, cheering each other on for being badasses and braving the cold to support local, hardworking producers. My farmers market is more (real) flannel, jeans, and work boots than joggers. The husband is gone for Valentine’s Day, so there’s another miss (not that Laura would’ve known, but still, he’s gone for work so much that it’s better to err on the side that he’s not home). I leaned pretty heavily on my Instagram friends to get opinions since I very nearly sent everything back on sight, I was that disappointed with what was sent. Unfortunately (fortunately?) they agreed with me. Well, before I go too far, let’s get into the items.
Item: Q&A Romane Knit Back Top
Cost: $54
Paired With: Jeans (prior fix), boots (mine)
This was ENORMOUS on me. You can see that my fingers just barely show out of the arms which were too long. The bust was huge, the shoulder seams are off my shoulders, and I have to admit that I wasn’t a huge fan of the knit back. And again, I have to complain about plus size clothing and how I loathe the shapeless sack rut designers fall into. Yes, I may want to minimize my belly, but it doesn’t mean I have to wear a tent like this! The fabric is also pretty light and not at all suitable for our winters in southeastern Pennsylvania.
Item: RD Style Juily Asymmetric Hem Pullover
Cost: $64
Paired With: Jeans, boots, tank top (all mine)
I know I told Lana to please not send dolman sleeves since I find them unflattering and uncomfortable, but I guess since I’ve been through two more new stylists, that got lost in the notes. This makes me look like a marshmallow in the middle since the dolman sleeves add so much bulk to the body of the sweater. The fabric was a heavy knit, so the price was right for such nice fabric, but every time I moved, the sweater would ride up and I spent half the time prepping for this photo pulling the damn thing back into place. It’s just completely impractical to wear – I’d be futzing with it all day long.
Item: Skies are Blue Talar Cotton Blend Chambray Top
Cost: $54
Paired With: Jeans (prior fix), boots (mine)
I really had no idea how to style this. The card that shows styling tips showed it paired with white jeans (LOL I could never own white jeans since I’m kind of a disaster) and with regular jeans and a long cardigan. I’m just not into chambray on denim since it just looks a little too Canadian Tuxedo to me. It’s hard to tell from the photo, but the chambray had this washed out polka dot print on it that I really liked, just, not in chambray. If it had been a navy color or red, and maybe a full button down? It just did nothing for me, and again, it was a box with sleeves and no shaping through the middle at all.
Item: Rune Luciana Jogger Pant
Cost: $68
Paired With: Sneakers, Jordandené tee, cardigan (all mine)
Okay, so here’s the thing.. These were SUPER DUPER comfortable, but it’s $68 for a pair of polyester/spandex blend jogger pants. Also, I end up spending a lot of time at home since, as a photographer, I tend to spend a lot of time on the computer doing editing. If I’m leaving the house, even for grocery shopping, I feel like as a minimum effort I can throw on jeans. I’m totally down with it if you feel like joggers are meant to be worn in public, but.. I’m not that person. So I can’t justify spending $68 on pants that would essentially be pajama and dog-walking pants.
Item: Absolutely Maxx Cutout Detail Pullover
Cost: $44
Paired With: Jeans (prior fix), boots and tank (mine)
Well, this was the only piece that my Instagram commenters suggested I keep, if anything. I don’t like the cutout detail at the shoulders and would be CONSTANTLY tugging at it to keep it from showing my bra or sliding down and they just felt awkward. It was also MUCH too big in the bust, but it had a slight high-low hem and fell nicely over my hips. The knit is an open knit, so I definitely need to wear something underneath, but it also means I can use this beyond winter as a cool-summer-evening sweater. I did end up keeping this, but I have to sew the cutouts closed or I’ll go absolutely crazy. I have to admit that the only reason I kept this is that I didn’t want to lose my $20 styling fee, and it only cost an additional $24 on top of the styling fee. It still almost went back with everything because I was that upset about this Fix.
So, final thoughts.. I kept one piece begrudgingly because I didn’t want to lose my $20 styling fee (they taken the styling fee off your kept items purchase, but if you send everything back, you lose the $20). I still have to modify the sweater to sew up those stupid cutouts and make it something I’ll actually wear, but I’m not incredibly thrilled with it, and absolutely nothing in this box jumped out at me. I mean, I like to have fun with my wardrobe – I wear nerdy, funny t-shirts and jeans most days, and having pieces to wear that stand out (my cherry print swing dress!) are super fun. These were all boring, shapeless sacks, and there was no structure, no fun, no life to any of them. I see other plus size gals on Instagram getting fun prints and fun pieces, but they’re also younger than me, so, I adjusted my age down by three years. It feels SO wrong to do that, lying about my age, but I feel like I’m getting boring pieces because of my age – that the computer algorithm is going, “OOOHH she’s past 35, muted colors and shapeless clothes for her!” I know Stitch Fix has detailed how their algorithm works, but I feel like it’s failing me here, and that the failure isn’t necessarily the stylist, but that the stylist gets a garbage set of options to choose from for me. I don’t know how else to fix this other than make myself look younger. So, one more box .. if it’s another complete failure, I’m going to have to call it quits with Stitch Fix which is a shame since I did have a few boxes that I kept everything, and I have enjoyed trying some new things (skinny jeans!) and have gotten a bunch of great pieces I wear all the time.