Stitch Fix #2 {Review}

A few weeks ago I got my second Stitch Fix in the mail. You can read all about my first Stitch Fix here. I loved it and felt like the style and clothing that was chosen for me was very, well "me". While I only kept two things, I have worn those two things plenty of times already this summer and feel like it was well worth my money. I went away happy from my first Stitch Fix and eager and excited to try it again.

For my second Stitch Fix, I requested lots of summer stuff. Dresses, skirts, summer colors, and fun summery shirts, etc. It didn't matter to me as long as it screamed summer! I made it clear that I wanted summer clothes. After all, where I live summer is very short and I wanted to enjoy it with some fun outfits!

When it came, I hated it! All of it! I heavily debated posting this review, but I like to be honest in all aspects of my blog, and I had to be honest when it came to this. Stitch Fix did not listen to me and I was very disappointed that I wasted my money on it. My request of summery items seemed to fall on deaf ears. I got one short sleeve shirt and one long skirt that could be considered summer. The style itself wasn't "me" at all. In fact, I wonder if they even looked at my style profile I filled out? My Pinterest style board? I promised friends that the next time I did this review it would be with pictures of the clothes on me. However, I just couldn't do it. The clothes did not flatter my body at all!

Item #1: Kut From The Kloth Denna Skinny Jean: $78

I liked these, but umm....definitely not summer. Also, they were long and baggy! While I rarely wear skinny jeans because my body is curvy, not skinny, I am up for nice-fitting, attractive ones, just not in the summer. These were a definite no!


Item #2: Market and Spruce Twain Twisted Neckline Slub Knit Shirt: $48

White, white, and more white with a very oddly placed line down the middle. This did nothing on my curvy frame. Instead, it made me look rather large and frumpy. Also, it was pretty thin and not the greatest quality. Again, long sleeve doesn't exactly scream summer either. Sigh...no!

Item #3: Pomelo Blake Ruched V-Neck Knit Shirt: $48

Yay! Summer! I was happy to see a summer shirt in my box but not so happy that for a very plain shirt, it cost so much money. I love ruched shirts, but this was again not attractive on my frame and left me looking more pregnant than not. No one wants that, so again this was a no.

Item #4: Pixley Monty Scarf Print Kimono Cardigan: $58

Being completely honest, I pulled this one out and knew from first glance that it wasn't me. I don't think things that hang on me look good. I tend to like more fitted looks and while I liked the colors of this, it ended up looking like a tent on me. No good!

Item #5: Papermoon Amilea Abstract Tie-Dye Mixed Print Maxi Skirt: $58

 
This was the only item I was tempted to keep. I liked it and it felt very comfortable on me. I love the look of maxi skirts and I hope at some point, I get one in my Stitch Fix that will work for me. So why didn't I keep this one? It went up to my boobs and that was folded over! It just wasn't practical for me to keep a $58 skirt that didn't fit right.

While I know I technically shouldn't post a review on something I didn't like, I want to be honest to you my readers and to Stitch Fix in the hopes that they will listen and change in the future. It's not the first $20 I've wasted in my life and I'm sure it won't be my last. So will I do another Stitch Fix? Yes, I am trying another one in a few days. I debated for a bit if I wanted to do so, but decided I was curious to know if they would listen to me and actually look at my profile this next time and get it right. I'll for sure be letting you, as my readers, know what I think.

I still think Stitch Fix is a good deal! I still find it fun to have a stylist shop for me and receive those pieces in the mail rather than dragging my three girls with me to the store in the hopes of finding at least one cute outfit. Do I think it is worth it to try? Yes! If you aren't already familiar with Stitch Fix, you are going to want to pay attention because for only $20 you have a stylist shop for you, ship 5 items to your door, and you keep & pay for the items you want and return the rest. Don't like what you bought? Make sure you are specific on why you didn't like it. Didn't fit right, don't like the color, the style, etc. Sign up here  to get started today!

I'm curious about you: If you've done a Stitch Fix have you liked all of yours? Do you feel as if your stylist has listened to you? Have you ever returned your whole box?
 

Summer Beach Birthday Party

Each year I go WAY out for the girls' birthday party! I've done a rainbow party, A Very Hungry Caterpillar party, and a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom party. Last year, after asking the girls their thoughts on it, we decided not to have a party. They were totally fine with it, but towards the end of the summer they kept asking us when they were going to have a birthday party. Sigh....total fail on our part.

So, this year I was back to thinking and planning a party. We have large families so we always plan for about 50 people so you can see why it's a big thing for me to plan out. I deep clean my house, get the garden work done, and think through the logistics of a party. Normally I'm really into it, but this year I was struggling to figure out a theme and to get in the spirit of the party. I asked the girls and it changed daily: beach party, Frozen, polka dots, Frozen (again), etc. This past Christmas they had received a pool from us as their main Christmas gift. So after doing some Pinterest searching, I suggested to them a possibility of a beach party and they could swim with their cousins, aunts/uncles and just enjoy the time outside.

My goal with this party was to cut back a bit on spending compared to past birthdays. Again, I go all out so this was a bit hard. The first thing I did was decide to send beach balls in the mail as the official invite. That was the plan at least until the post office said they had no idea how to mail them like that. So, instead I put them in an envelope with writing on the inside flap of the envelope that said "Inflate for the date". :) 


Thankfully for us, the weather ended up being perfect, and we got the pool set up and filled about a week before the party, which gave us just enough time to have that water warm up!

I hit up the Dollar Store in order to look for decorations. Thankfully they had a great amount of decorations that fit the beach theme! Yay!!

On the day of the party, I just kept thinking of more things to do! All fairly simple and easy to do so if you are planning a beach party, know that I would say this is the most simple party we have ever done! Also, relatively cheap!

I was not originally planning on using this lemonade stand that Chris made last year for our family pictures. However, at the last minute, I decided to stick this in the garage as a fun addition to our beach theme and hang beach balls from it (we also hung beach balls from the ceiling of our garage). The girls loved it and were teasing everyone that came through the line that they needed 25 cents for lemonade!

The table decorations were by far the easiest! I got the table cloths at the dollar store, used brown sugar as my sand, and bought the little sand buckets/rakes/shovels for a great deal on Amazon! We filled our little buckets with a combination of peanuts, raisins, and M & M's, as a treat for everyone while they were sitting around and talking.

We kept it simple with the food! BBQ beef sandwiches, lots of fresh fruit, and a veggie tray (in the shape of a beach ball).

We closed out the party with our beach ball/sand/flip flop cupcakes! These were SO good and were made by two of my local friends who have started a little bakery. The best was that they were able to make the girls and myself gluten free versions of the cupcakes!

At the end of the day, spending time with some of our family and closest friends was so worth the hassle of planning a party. Also, the girls had an absolute blast and are already planning next year's party. The theme? Frozen....even though I try to tell them it will be an "old" movie by then, they insist that will be what the party is all about. We will see! :)

Do you do birthday parties? Family ones? Friend ones? Do you stick with a theme?