Let me preface this by saying that I am extremely picky when it comes to clothes. I would go as far as to say I am the bane of every salesperson's existence: I will go into a fitting room with 10 items and I'm lucky if I come out with one. When SuitableYou approached me to try their styling service, I was game, but I really didn't expect to like it. Well, I guess only fools never change their minds, right? This was actually an awesome experience that I totally recommend.
The service
SuitableYou is a super-cool startup founded by Gillian Brown and Crystal Calder to, in Brown's words, "provide [young women] with a working wardrobe and send them pieces that they can mix and match." The service aims to take the guesswork out of shopping by picking outfits for you. When you go to sign up for SY, you'll be asked to complete a short style survey that will help their in-house stylists create the perfect personalized box for you. "[My colleague Rachel and I] sat down and took a bunch of style surveys, and we tried to take the best questions from each, as well as creating our own that we thought were important," Brown says.
Once you've completed the survey, you sit tight until your five-item box makes its way to you. After that, you decide which pieces you want to keep and which you want to send back, and you check out on the site, where you pay a $20 styling fee plus the price of your clothes. If you keep all the items in your box, you get 20 percent off the total, and if you keep three or more, you get 10 percent. The items you keep will stay in a nifty tab called "My Closet" for you to reference. "I’ve tried all the box companies to see what all our competitors are doing, and I’d say that the biggest difference about SuitableYou is that we send you pieces that you can really mix and match with one another, and we always build on your previous boxes," Brown says about the service.
The whole process took me about five minutes, and the box arrived just a few days later. So far, so good.
The box
Each box includes five pieces that you can mix and match, as well as a free tote bag for new customers, and a personalized note that explains some of the ways you can style each piece. When I opened my box, I was pretty weary (I told you, I'm super picky!). The items didn't seem like my style at all, but SuitableYou honestly proved me wrong.
Here are my thoughts on each piece upon opening the box.
Black Lysse Ponte Leggings ($78)
Can't go wrong with black leggings! (Actually, you totally can—more on that below.)
Love Tree Suede Zip Jacket ($55)
I was a bit weirded out by the color of this jacket, as well as the flappy bits, but I liked the softness of the suede.
FRNCH Black Blazer ($60)
This blazer was fine, but could have been a touch edgier, even though I would describe my style as pretty classic.
J.O.A. Red Shimmer Blouse ($43)
Okay, I really liked this blouse, but I don't like wearing A-line clothes, because I got ~boobs~.
J.O.A. Blue Dress ($75)
I know, I know, these clothes are supposed to be workplace-friendly, but like, this was a LOT of fabric, especially around the sleeves. That said, I definitely liked it—I just didn't think it would suit me.
The outfits
Ahh, cute!! I'm always going to have a problem with A-lines, but I have to admit this top is really pretty, and I love the color. As for the leggings, for such a simple item, good leggings are definitely hard to find. This pair from Lysse was super flattering (for lack of a better term) and comfortable, and I'm super obsessed.
This is definitely a good outfit for an interview, and I like it on me, but I'm still not a big fan of the blazer.
I'm sooo conflicted about this outfit, because I straight-up LOVE how it looks on me, but I don't love either of the items individually. But I guess that's the whole point of a styling service—to make you look bangin' in clothes you didn't think you'd wear!
Conclusion
Unfortunately, even though I loved my box, it's holiday season and I'm broke AF. Read: can't afford :( Under normal circumstances, I would have gone with the leggings and red blouse, especially since everything I received was in my price range. That said, I'm so glad I did this, because this whole experience has inspired me to step out of my comfort zone. From now on, I'll be sure to try styles that I'm not used to and mix up my wardrobe! And I'll definitely be using SuitableYou again, once I have some dolla billz to work with.
If you want to organize an office wardrobe workshop for your sorority or organization, bring SuitableYou to your campus by contacting gillianb@suitableyou.com.
