Delaney D.

There are pros, and cons.

Pros.
*Lots of name brand/ designer dresses and clothing items to choose from---thus there is quite a bit of variety, so you can change-up your wardrobe without large investment in individual pieces you may only wear a couple times.

*I also found Gwynnie Bee to be a nice option while losing weight----its hard to invest in nice clothing that you know you will shrink out of soon (especially expensive dresses). When I started I was a 22, and now am a 16... so theoretically it is nice to have options, and to be able to change the size of items you have in your subscription closet.

*Plus sizes. Let's face it, it is harder to find clothing that does not have Tweetie birds and excessive use of animal prints when you have a little "extra to love".

* While I still was active, they started a "prioritize" system so that you could at least narrow down the clothing choices to have a better chance at getting what you most would like to wear.

Cons.
* Long turn-around time. It often took well over a week ( as much as two weeks) between returning, and receiving new garments. Additionally, I would get messages that new items were on the way, but in reality it was just a creation of a tracking number and notification of item to be shipped... and the item itself often would not ship-out until several days after that number and notification were created. The result was, when I only had one item at a time... I only received a couple garments within a month, and thus it just made it all the more frustrating if something did not fit, or look right. When I had 3 items at a time it helped to have a few more options, but still could not even guarantee having 3 new items a week no-matter how quickly I myself put them back out. I could not help but wonder if the shipping delays sometimes were on purpose to slow-down the frequency/ shipping costs. Part of the problem is that they only have one distribution center, and it is located in Ohio. That means there is longer turn-around/ shipping times for those of us on the West Coast.

* Lots of bold geometric patterns, animal prints etc... I realize this of course could be a personal choice, but it is a complaint others I know have also had. Though there are a lot of garments, it often can take a lot of weeding to find solids, and simple prints etc... Though some people like bold/ loud prints, in reality far more people do NOT, and thus it would be nice if there were more options that do not cause headaches to look at, and that are more classic, simple etc... I often would weed through multiple pages before I found an item that that did not have some loud print or odd design that did not look very flattering. Just because women are plus-sized does not mean they want to cover themselves in crazy patterns to try to detract. There is a lot to be said for classic, flattering shapes, lines... solid colors etc... It was for this reason that it was hard for me to find tops that I liked. I mainly put dresses in my closet, because so many of the tops had the crazy patterns and cuts etc... that just were not flattering. It would have been nice to see more balance---at least add more options for those of us who are more classic with our clothing, rather than wanting to look like edgy, loud, 1980's street art.

* Though there are lots of pretty, stylish dresses ( which was my favorite element of the site---I especially like a-line/ fit and flare classic looks, and there was good variety of those)... it just would be nice if there were more options with long, or 3/4 sleeves. So many of the dresses are sleeveless... and that continues to be true, even though it is winter. Many of us live in areas where it is too cold for sleeveless dresses, or need to wear modest clothing for work or church etc... that require sleeves. Additionally, many plus sized women are self-conscious of their arms, and so sleeveless dresses are not a good option. Sure, we can wear cardigans and shrugs, but sometimes that just hides both the dress, and our shape/ makes us look "frumpy" etc... not to mention, can be difficult if you also need to wear a coat and do not want people to see you "sleeveless" during transition times. I know this may sound petty, just... I often was amazed at how hard it was just to find dresses with adequate sleeves on them. Many people even have religious restrictions that do not allow for wearing sleeveless clothing, so it would just be nice to see more options with sleeves provided.

* I understand availability makes it hard to ship specific items out. When I first started, it was a crap-shoot as to what you would get, and then they at least started a prioritize system. However, lets face it... we have events and circumstances that determine what we actually currently need. If we have a date, or a function that we need to dress-up for, we of course may have our eye on a couple specific dresses for that purpose in hopes that we don't have to go out and buy something... but we can't guarantee we will receive a garment that fills that need. It would be nice if they took it up another level, and were able to indicate what items in your closet are currently available for shipping... and if you could somehow select/ reserve those specific items as your next choice (if you of course have put current ones in the mail). I may of course be naive in this, but it sure would make the service more worthwhile for many if they could further narrow-down what items they receive to suit their needs.

* Glitches. I often noticed that items I had returned took a long time to have their status changed. One of the first garments that I received, and returned ( in a package envelope with another garment no less)... continues to sit/ show in my account as "return notified" ( meaning it has not been cleared as having been received). The item it was with was received, so it had to of been as well. I returned it in July, and it is now the start of January. When I deactivated my service, I was sent notices that I would be charged for that item. I corresponded with staff, and they said they would settle the issue, but nothing ever changed... so I live in wait for the day when I get charged for something I returned 6 months ago, and would even be way too big for me now if I did have it.

Overall, there were clearly both things that I liked... and things... well, not so much. Ultimately the reason that I canceled my subscription was because the turn-around time was too great to really justify the price... especially when it felt like I really was only getting a couple wearable items a month, even when I was doing three at a time. I have been looking at some of the new dresses they have added, and been tempted to try it again, but then I remember how long it took to receive things. It would be nice if they had distribution centers in multiple locations... I live on the west coast, so everything had to travel back and forth across the whole country. I imagine those who live east coast have faster turn-around, and thus have better experiences with the program. So, really for the cost, and lack of regional distribution, I just am not sure if its worth the expense to start it again... even if the dresses are cute.