Stitch #5 | The Surprise Box I Didn't Mean to Schedule

On Christmas Eve, I sent back my returned items from my fourth fix. And on December 29th I received an email stating 'Your Fix is On its Way!" I was very confused and thought maybe something weird happened when they logged in my return items to their warehouse or something. I checked my account and couldn't figure out how I had scheduled any fix to arrive at all, let alone scheduling one just five days after I returned items from my last fix. So I emailed Stitch Fix and they said apparently I didn't 'uncheck' a box that would cancel future shipments, so somehow I had manually selected the December 21st fix and there was an automatic one for January 2nd. I still don't quite understand how that happened, but was a little bummed that I didn't even have a chance to write a message to my stylist for ideas with this fix.

The box arrived earlier than scheduled on New Years Eve and I was happy to see that my previous stylist, Kelley, kept me for my first repeat stylist. She seemed excited to create this immediate box for me and noted my height and my desire to be a 'cool mom'. Score two points for Kelley, she is actually listening to me! Even though I didn't want or need this box so soon, it was still a fun one to receive.




Please note that many cast members participated in this photoshoot, very professional and real life of me, I know. Also, I am not big on 'styling' the pieces with various jewelry options, or shoes, or different layers to make everything more put together. If the pieces don't look great by themselves or with a pair of jeans and socks, they are probably not a great choice for me. Even though I'm trying to look put together and like I'm making an effort to actually get dressed each day, I'll never be a mom that has tons of layers and options for accessorizing. What you see is what you get, but maybe I will put on a pair of sneakers (er, snow boots currently) before walking out the door to complete my 'outfit'.

1. 19 Cooper Clemency Split Neck Tunic $68


Kelley said this would be one that I'd be torn on keeping, since it's a top I had specifically pinned but also because it's not machine washable. I find that most of my Stitch Fix tops I've kept aren't items I can pop in the regular laundry anyway, and usually I will just hand wash and hang to dry to be safe. So that part didn't matter to me, and I really do love this print and bold color. Plus: tunic!

But I found the arm length to be weird on me, and the split neck came down pretty low, showing my tank underneath (where cleavage would normally be on women, I suppose). It's a tab sleeve, so rolling them up helped a bit (a total sucker for tab sleeves). I'm all for flowy tops but this was almost too baggy and shapeless.

I really do love tunics, guys. This one just didn't fit great and was pretty spendy, so I was torn.

This guy is the best accessory yet, I think. Note his killer smile and fat ankle, totally on trend.

VERDICT: Returned


2. Market & Spruce Caroll Henley Tunic $54

I immediately loved this print and the blue with white combination, since it's not something I have in my closet already. The tag says it's a tunic but yeah, pretty much just a slightly longer shirt for me. But it fits my most commonly selected style of top from Stitch Fix: henley neck line, rolled tab sleeves, flowy, and long length.

So this type of shirt is quickly becoming a part of my uniform for looking 'nice', and it pairs well with jeans and casual shoes or I could dress it up with black pants and boots. Maybe a cardigan and long necklace if I'm feeling wild. I guess one could potentially tuck this type of shirt into a skirt with tights and booties if one was a million times hipper than me, too.

Truman wanted to take pictures of me now, nailed it.

Even with the sleeves rolled down, it is a nice length for the arms. Predictable yes, but at least it's a different color and print than the two other tops I have like this now.

VERDICT: Kept it. Will try to steer away from this exact same style in the future if possible, one only needs so many henley/rolled sleeve tops!

3. Collette Barron Lace-Up Back Ribbed Knit Top $58


I really dislike lace up anything except for shoes, obviously. But on the back of a top? No. Not my thing at all. Cecelia is skeptical as well.

Also it is a weird sleeve length and torso length. And a weird material--very itchy. And my under-tank is majorly showing. No, just no. Sorry, Kelley!


VERDICT: Returned.

4. Laila Jayde Quinne Hoodie Knit Top $58

I love hoodies and basically all work out gear, so this one seemed really wonderful at first. It's a nice stretchy material and I like the ribbed seams.

But for nearly $60 I knew it wasn't worth the price, since I have plenty of 'bum around' hoodies in my closet that were about $20 from Old Navy or the like. Also, a black hoodie would be impossible to wear with my standard black yoga pants and who wants to mess with the 'comfy' mom uniform too much? Wearing a hoodie and jeans seems difficult to me, a person that likes to compartmentalize categories into outfits (i.e. jeans and a real shirt, a hoodie and work out pants, etc). So it's a nice enough top but not for the price and not in black.

VERDICT: Returned

5. Mavi Freida Skinny Jean $98

Since I didn't intentionally schedule this fix, I didn't get to tell my stylist that I just bought two new pairs of jeans before Christmas and am at my max for denim. The two new pairs I have were both $40, super long, and very stretchy (one from Loft and one from Uniqlo, big fan of both stores and especially big sales). So when I saw that Kelley sent me jeans for $98 I knew I wouldn't keep them unless they were pure and utter perfection.

They were just 'meh' for me. Sure they were long and stretchy, but the wash isn't my favorite. A little baggy around my ankles. And difficult to get a full length picture when Truman was in charge of the camera for a bit, but you get the idea. They are jeans, nothing that special, especially when I have a pair like them for less than half of the price.

VERDICT: Returned

So this surprise box was a 1/5 but I'm really happy with the top, although I wasn't in dire need of another henley/tab sleeve. I will most likely wait on another fix for awhile, since my closet is sufficiently bulked up from Christmas gifts/pre-Christmas self-shopping/two Stitch Fix boxes in two weeks. It's nice to weed out the less than joyful pieces in the closet to focus on the stuff I really love, although I'm a long ways off from being konmari-esque.

My referral code is here if you are considering jumping on the bandwagon. Do you think I selected the correct keeper this time? Am I super boring for picking the same tops over and over again? (maybe don't answer that one). But seriously, do other people have good luck branching out into new styles they didn't think would work for them when using Stitch Fix? I know that is a part of the deal, having a stylist who picks things you might not normally choose for yourself. Maybe I'm just too basic to take risks with my wardrobe, though.