Rent the Runway - The low-cost ($139 per month) Netflix of fashion

[MrStash2000]

If poorly made Forever 21 and H&M clothes aren't for you just subscribe to the $1668 per year service that lets you rent one dress at a time.

http://www.businessinsider.com/rent-the-runway-unlimited-review-2015-11

[nobodyspecial]

Do they have a programmer version for $1.39? They send you a new plain black T-shirt a month
 

[rockstache]

I had a fancypants event this year (free tickets/black tie), and was talking to a friend about what to wear. She was really enthusiastic about rent the runway and told me how she had used it several times this year. You pick it out online, choose two sizes, and then ship it back dirty. Shipping is included. It sounded like a pretty good idea until I went online and saw that they were renting from $60+. I wore a black dress from my closet instead. I still can't get over the money she must have spent this year and she doesn't even have a dress to show for it!

[Jschange]

I think that I'd subscribe if I accidentally married an old money billionaire and had to regularly look the part at our charity functions where we drink champagne and convince the nouveau riche to patronize our favorite causes. I'd probably end up with a shoe and purse subscription too.

I'd imagine being royal would have similar problems, but at least then you can mix in normal clothes and rewear items to show that you're just like  a real person.

I like that it's a less wasteful way to access items that don't normally get used up. But in my current life, I'm more likely to want to rent a dress I can get on sale for $25... And that wouldn't cover cleaning, shipping and admin for a rental company.

[Villanelle]

As someone whose lifestyle involves a good deal of formal and dressy cocktail events, I know a lot of people who use RTR.  They do the one-time rentals, not the subscription.  It always amazes me that it is touted as the budget friendly way to get a dress.  I admittedly have a Shopping Problem when it comes to fancy dresses, but I am able to purchase them for equal to or often less than the prices of rentals from RTR.  Ebay, consignment, and discount stores (TJ Maxx, etc.) allow me to find dresses in a similar price range, and I can wear them more than once.  Also, there's no stress about whether it will fit or not come Ball day, even with the back up size RTR sends.  And I can hem as necessary. 

In other words, I can purchase for the same cost or less than renting, though admittedly it wouldn't typically be the same designer brands. 

[11ducks]

Crazy.

My mother always mocks me about shopping at second-hand stores for clothing. We have a big formal family event coming up in January, and I found a great fitting, beautiful black formal gown for $10 from a secondhand store. Told her I got it for $60 at an awesome 50% off sale. She loves it, tells me how much nicer it is than anything I own, and really, isn't it worth it to splurge sometimes? Sigh.

[mm1970]

Crazy.

My mother always mocks me about shopping at second-hand stores for clothing. We have a big formal family event coming up in January, and I found a great fitting, beautiful black formal gown for $10 from a secondhand store. Told her I got it for $60 at an awesome 50% off sale. She loves it, tells me how much nicer it is than anything I own, and really, isn't it worth it to splurge sometimes? Sigh.

this made me smile

[frooglepoodle]

I know plenty of women who use RTR occasionally for events like military balls, but like other posters, I'd rather buy a dress at a discount store or second hand for usually far less. Reselling a dress on eBay maintains the environmentally friendly aspect and can reduce the cost to near zero, or potentially even turn a profit.

[mlejw6]

I was considering using RTR when I had a wedding to go to earlier this year. The dresses I was interested in were about $30-$40. Then, I thought better of it and went to the fashion outlet stores and found a perfectly nice dress for the same price. Except, now I can wear it again and again!

[nobodyspecial]

I would have thought a wedding was one occasion where it made sense to rent the dress - unless you intend getting married dozens of times the ROI on buying a wedding dress would seem to be poor.

[stlbrah]

My ex was subscribed to this service. She would regularly pay extra to get more items at once, and then not like any of them. $139 is cheap compared to how much she paid them. There were multiple occasions where she ran out to BeBe to pick up something at the last minute because the shape of the Rent-A-Runway stuff had something microscopically off. Of course a $250 hair job had to go with it. Luckily, none of this was paid for by me.

So stressful. I am glad that one didn't work out, lol.

[MgoSam]

Out of curiosity, as a male I find dressing up to be largely easy, just have a closet with a few staples that work in like 99% of occasions, a good suit and the like. Worst case, I'll buy a new tie to look a little different. Oh, and there is a Netflix-like service for ties, in case anyone in here needs to wear unique ties on a regular basis.

For women, I imagine it is a lot tougher to dress for a variety of social and work functions. What would be a mustachian way to do so?

[Villanelle]

Out of curiosity, as a male I find dressing up to be largely easy, just have a closet with a few staples that work in like 99% of occasions, a good suit and the like. Worst case, I'll buy a new tie to look a little different. Oh, and there is a Netflix-like service for ties, in case anyone in here needs to wear unique ties on a regular basis.

For women, I imagine it is a lot tougher to dress for a variety of social and work functions. What would be a mustachian way to do so?

Noting that I don't always follow my own advice, there are several options.

Rewearing is one of them.  This depends somewhat on how often you go to formal events, and whether they are always with the same crowd.  Of course, you *can* wear the same dress regardless.

Shopping on ebay or consignment/thrift.  Or discount stores like TJ Maxx. 

Borrowing or trading with friends.  I've done this a lot.  Sadly, because I own too many dresses, I've done far more lending than borrowing. 

For less formal occasions, there is the ubiquitous Little Black Dress, or some variation there of.  One basic, somewhat forgettable dress that can be transformed with different accessories.  This is good because it can also be made more or less formal, or work appropriate depending on whether you wear it with ballet flats and a scarf or strappy, sparkly heels and a shiny statement necklace.  It won't ever be formal, but could work for anything up through some cocktail situations.

[Kwill]

For women, I imagine it is a lot tougher to dress for a variety of social and work functions. What would be a mustachian way to do so?

I'm still figuring out the dressing appropriately for a variety of social and work function thing, but . . . Stay the same size as long as possible and try to stick to a smaller range of colors that work together so as not to need too many kinds of shoes, bags, and accessories. Dressing up a little bit is cheaper and easier than trying to do things with nice jeans. Nice jeans pretty much have to be new, but black skirts and many dresses, blouses, and sweaters can look nice longer. Also people give up their dress clothes to consignment or thrift shops when there's still a lot of wear in them, but they wear their jeans to death. I have a pretty, classic, semi-formal dress I got at TJ Maxx for $16 in 1995, and I end up wearing it about twice a year to things like vintage dances. Some of my dresses haven't aged as well and have gone on to thrift stores, but even one or two keepable things a year adds up.

[MgoSam]

For women, I imagine it is a lot tougher to dress for a variety of social and work functions. What would be a mustachian way to do so?

I'm still figuring out the dressing appropriately for a variety of social and work function thing, but . . . Stay the same size as long as possible and try to stick to a smaller range of colors that work together so as not to need too many kinds of shoes, bags, and accessories. Dressing up a little bit is cheaper and easier than trying to do things with nice jeans. Nice jeans pretty much have to be new, but black skirts and many dresses, blouses, and sweaters can look nice longer. Also people give up their dress clothes to consignment or thrift shops when there's still a lot of wear in them, but they wear their jeans to death. I have a pretty, classic, semi-formal dress I got at TJ Maxx for $16 in 1995, and I end up wearing it about twice a year to things like vintage dances. Some of my dresses haven't aged as well and have gone on to thrift stores, but even one or two keepable things a year adds up.

Fair enough, I heard about RTR from a friend that I saw at the opera. The opera can be easy for us men, I generally wear a suit with a bowtie and pocket-square, though a few men I know rent a tux (or own one). Most of the women I have gone to the opera with or go regularly have a few dresses/outfits that they will alternate between, but I've heard a few comment that it can be hard to avoid wearing the same thing, and if they are hanging out with the same people then someone might comment on them wearing the same clothes.

Back in September, I saw someone at the opera that I met at a wedding and it was largely due to her wearing the same dress that I recognized her. For some reason, she realized that the dress helped me in recognizing her and commented on not spending her money on clothes, which I took as a form of defense (that was unnecessary to me, I don't really think too much about what people wear as I wear pants and a sweater each day).

[Kwill]

... Most of the women I have gone to the opera with or go regularly have a few dresses/outfits that they will alternate between, but I've heard a few comment that it can be hard to avoid wearing the same thing, and if they are hanging out with the same people then someone might comment on them wearing the same clothes.

Back in September, I saw someone at the opera that I met at a wedding and it was largely due to her wearing the same dress that I recognized her. For some reason, she realized that the dress helped me in recognizing her and commented on not spending her money on clothes, which I took as a form of defense (that was unnecessary to me, I don't really think too much about what people wear as I wear pants and a sweater each day).

Yes, it's tricky, that expectation that a woman should wear something different to each special occasion. But I think it is part of our disposable culture that relies on cheap labor overseas to make clothes that fit many people tolerably well but no one perfectly and that waste resources. I am trying to get variety by switching around jewelry, scarves, jackets, sweaters, and so forth. Or wearing the same thing two or three days when I don't expect to see the same people. I would like to learn to make alterations on my own clothes, but that would take a lot of time and practice.

[Villanelle]

For women, I imagine it is a lot tougher to dress for a variety of social and work functions. What would be a mustachian way to do so?

I'm still figuring out the dressing appropriately for a variety of social and work function thing, but . . . Stay the same size as long as possible and try to stick to a smaller range of colors that work together so as not to need too many kinds of shoes, bags, and accessories. Dressing up a little bit is cheaper and easier than trying to do things with nice jeans. Nice jeans pretty much have to be new, but black skirts and many dresses, blouses, and sweaters can look nice longer. Also people give up their dress clothes to consignment or thrift shops when there's still a lot of wear in them, but they wear their jeans to death. I have a pretty, classic, semi-formal dress I got at TJ Maxx for $16 in 1995, and I end up wearing it about twice a year to things like vintage dances. Some of my dresses haven't aged as well and have gone on to thrift stores, but even one or two keepable things a year adds up.

Fair enough, I heard about RTR from a friend that I saw at the opera. The opera can be easy for us men, I generally wear a suit with a bowtie and pocket-square, though a few men I know rent a tux (or own one). Most of the women I have gone to the opera with or go regularly have a few dresses/outfits that they will alternate between, but I've heard a few comment that it can be hard to avoid wearing the same thing, and if they are hanging out with the same people then someone might comment on them wearing the same clothes.

Back in September, I saw someone at the opera that I met at a wedding and it was largely due to her wearing the same dress that I recognized her. For some reason, she realized that the dress helped me in recognizing her and commented on not spending her money on clothes, which I took as a form of defense (that was unnecessary to me, I don't really think too much about what people wear as I wear pants and a sweater each day).

I don't think daily dressing for women is that much different than for men, or at least it doesn't have to be.  It's special occasion stuff where I think there is the biggest difference.  No one is going to notice that you wore the same tux to the last event, even if that event was a week ago.  In fact, they'd assume you would wear the same tux. Not so for women.  And while it is easy to make one dress look different with accessories, that's less true for formal or true cocktail wear, which is much more elaborate and thus much more memorable and less adaptable.   

[nobodyspecial]

Except no man is going to notice what you're wearing (unless it's the sort of outfit where they are noticing you!) and they certainly aren't going to notice or care if you wore it before

[rockstache]

Except no man is going to notice what you wearing (unless it's the sort of outfit where they are noticing you!) and they certainly aren't going to notice or care if you wore it before

True. But the women I know who are concerned with what other people think about their clothing aren't too worried about the men. It's often the other women that can be so judgmental.

[JLee]

Except no man is going to notice what you wearing (unless it's the sort of outfit where they are noticing you!) and they certainly aren't going to notice or care if you wore it before

No straight man is going to notice what you're wearing. :P

[RunHappy]

The fashion subscription is very popular right now.  I have several friends on FB who are constantly raving about Stitch Fix and showing their monthly outfits.  Part of me is jealous because I love the rotating of pretty outfits, but the other part of me is mentally calculating how much heftier my retirement account is by not succumbing to FOMO.

I have to say I am a fan of RTR for years and have used them a few times for formal events (long dresses required).  They actually started as a place for bridesmaid dresses, but changed their focus and have become more successful. 

[chouchouu]

I honestly don't care for the opinions of someone who would judge me for wearing the same outfit again. That said I do love dressing up so have quite a few evening gowns. As a pp mentioned, you can buy stuff on eBay for less than rtr and they stay in your closet to wear again later. If I'm going somewhere nice I will leave off on having a haircut until the occasion so my hair will be styled without extra cost, I go to the korean hairdressers in Chinatown who are skilled and cost a quarter of other places.

I also have a tux that is tailored more feminine, if men can wear the same suit every occasion why shouldn't a woman? This whole notion of new dress for every occasion is ridiculous. Get a new dress for your wedding but everything else is worn again.

[serpentstooth]

Do they have a programmer version for $1.39? They send you a new plain black T-shirt a month

Someone once asked my husband if he owned any colored shirts. Plain black t-shirts are very important for programmers who are also gigging musicians.

[serpentstooth]

I would have thought a wedding was one occasion where it made sense to rent the dress - unless you intend getting married dozens of times the ROI on buying a wedding dress would seem to be poor.

Orthodox Jews do this as a matter of course; they're called a gmach. There are gmachim for just about everything: baby supplies, wedding dresses or gowns for formal events, leftover infertility drugs (because insurance doesn't cover them and they are very expensive, it's a way for couples to save money by using meds someone else didn't end up needing), furniture, interest-free loans... My best friend got her wedding dress there and returned it after. I think it cost her $200 for cleaning and alterations through the gmach, which is far less than you're going to pay for a full-length, long sleeved, high-necked wedding down and veil anywhere else.

[pbkmaine]

I honestly don't care for the opinions of someone who would judge me for wearing the same outfit again. That said I do love dressing up so have quite a few evening gowns. As a pp mentioned, you can buy stuff on eBay for less than rtr and they stay in your closet to wear again later. If I'm going somewhere nice I will leave off on having a haircut until the occasion so my hair will be styled without extra cost, I go to the korean hairdressers in Chinatown who are skilled and cost a quarter of other places.

I also have a tux that is tailored more feminine, if men can wear the same suit every occasion why shouldn't a woman? This whole notion of new dress for every occasion is ridiculous. Get a new dress for your wedding but everything else is worn again.

I have a long black skirt I wear with a sparkly black jacket that is my "uniform". If I ever need a new outfit, I will get a black women's tux with a long jacket and skinny trousers. I think they look super cute with strappy sandals.


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[greenmimama]

My friend rented her wedding dress, I thought that was a pretty good idea.