June Stitch Fix - Ready for Summer!

This month, my Stitch Fix box arrived on my birthday, just a few minutes before we were headed out for dinner and to see Wonder Woman - so I quickly opened the box to take a peek (because I am no good at all with delayed gratification.

Inside, I found two summery blouses, a pair of denim shorts, a dress, and a pair of earrings.

I decided to take a moment to clean and wear the earrings, figuring this would be a great opportunity to get them a test run.

(And completely forgot to get a picture of the on, because we were running a little late by then.)

I really love the look of these earrings, but unfortunately, it quickly became apparent that  they weren't going to work for me.

First, one of them kept spinning around so that the back of it was face out.

I fiddled with it, took it out two or three times to try to sort out what was causing it, and it still kept happening.


Secondly, it was long enough that it was actually clacking against my necklace, and that was annoying.

And lastly, when I tried to put them on the next day to get some pictures, my ears were so sore from wearing them the night before that I decided not to.  They didn't feel irritated otherwise, so I'm not sure if that was metal sensitivity, or just fatigue from the weight of them and having taken them out multiple times.

So the verdict: I love the style, but need a different execution of it.

Diem Stone Drop Earrings
Bay to Baubles
$28.00
RETURNED

The next day, we had plans to join some friends for an afternoon of board games.  This was set up by one of our friends whose birthday is the day after mine.

About a dozen of us met up in College Park, MD and a wonderful place called Board and Brew.

Set right off the University of Maryland campus, with nearby parking available just a short walk away across a footbridge, Board and Brew is the perfect place for friends to hang out together.  They have classic games like Scrabble, to massive multiplayer campaign style games.  They even had a good collection of children's games available, and this was a kid friendly environment (with adult supervision).

Each person pays a $5 cover charge to stay as long as they like and play all the games they like.

It was an amazing day!

For the occasion, I chose one of the blouses that had come in my Stitch Fix box.

This is a very lightweight sheer pleated blouse with crochet detailing at shoulders.  It came with a deep blue adjustable camisole that fit very well.

I felt like I looked nice all day - and more importantly, it was so comfortable to wear that most of the afternoon, I didn't even think about it at all.  There was no riding up or pull as I moved.

I expect to be wearing this often throughout the summer, and with a light jacket over it, it will handle the early days of Autumn just fine.  Verdict: BIG WIN!

Tanzelle Crochet Sleeve Blouse
Daniel Rainn
$64.00
KEEP

Finally, on Sunday, we planned to go out and take pictures of the remaining items, but were thwarted by our apartment management stripping and polishing the floors, so we were trapped at home most of the day. (The floors do look nice, though....)

So, we took to the balcony for these.

First, I tried on the second blouse and the shorts.

Starting with the blouse - I thought this was another win!  This one is a sleeveless peasant style blouse, also with crochet detailing around the neckline, the waist, and the hem.  It is made up of two sheer layers - the one underneath is a deep blue that is attached at the shoulders and is slightly longer than the outer, patterned layer.

I think it looks fantastic!  It is slightly less comfortable than the other blouse - it seems to not breathe quite as well.  But as long as I avoid it on very muggy days, I think it's really pretty and versatile.

What I like best is the shape of it - the empire waistline, and then the flare, so that it isn't hugging my hips in an awkward way.

Verdict: Yes!

Tiffina Crochet Detail Top
Daniel Rainn
$64.00
KEEP

Sadly, the shorts were a different story - they were way too big for me in the waistline, but not in a way that changing the size would have helped.

I am quite pear shaped - and as is often the case, these shorts fit well enough around my butt and thighs, but I had a big gap around the waist.  So, while I think the top looks really cute with shorts, these are not  the shorts I'm looking for.

Verdict: Nope.

Corynne Distressed Boyfriend Short
Kut From the Kloth
$68.00
RETURN

Lastly, I tried on this dress.  It's a lightweight fabric that moves nicely and feels comfortable, and the dress sits just about a knee length on me (I am 5'4").

What I liked about this dress most was the neckline, which had a faux collar and cut in a way to create a V neckline.  Sadly, this didn't offset a couple issues I had.

My eyes! My  eyes!

First, the pattern on the dress was not my favorite - had this arrived in, say, black, or a more on point print (gingham maybe?), I think I'd have kept it.

But this pattern, in shades of bluish purple and some sort of orangey pink (??) was nearly headache inducing.

The second issue I had was the elasticized waist band - I honestly couldn't figure out where it was suppose to sit.

When I had it pulled down to the waist, the dress looked fine, but it really looked like it was missing a belt, and I really didn't want to have to buy a belt for this dress.

For the pictures, I decided to hitch it up above the natural waistline so the top could blouse over it more loosely - and I thought this also looked fine (not fantastic.... just fine).  But I also kept fighting the urge to play with it and adjust it, and I know me well enough to know I'd never really feel comfortable wearing it if I kept having to fix the way it was laying.

I struggled with this right up to the moment it was time to seal the parcel for returns - in the end I chose to send it back.  I like the concept of this dress, but I'd like a different version of it so much better than this one.  Verdict: Not this time.

Keziah Shirt Dress
41Hawthorne
$64.00
RETURN

While in the end, I only kept the blouses, I thought this box was a good match for me - where items didn't work, it was only 'near misses' and I do think my stylist and I are beginning to zero in on what I like.

My final cost was $108.00, after taking off the $20.00 styling fee.

If you'd like to try Stitch Fix for yourself, it's easy to sign up - you take a questionnaire on your style, size, etc, and schedule your Fix.  It costs $20 (a styling fee), which is subtracted from the price of what you choose to buy.  If you like the entire box, you can buy the whole thing at a 25% discount, and you get three days to decide what to keep and what to return.

Sending back returned items is as easy as putting the items into a large, prepaid vinyl envelope and dropping it off at the post office.

For next time, I have asked my stylist for some basic pieces - fewer patterns and more solids, and 'go-withs' - maybe shoes or some capris and some sort of summer weight kimono or other type of throw.  I can' wait to see what she comes up with!

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