UPDATE: You all convinced me to just go for it ETA pics of my first order. I’ll report back once it arrives. I got the cheapest plan plus paid for one extra item this month. These items would be too warm for my hot and humid PA summer, but I’ll be in Seattle for two weeks at the end of June so I rented some jeans and longer sleeves. I went for the more expensive and unusual patterns and silhouettes on purpose this round to really get the “runway” experience even for casual wear. But I am somewhat amused that you can rent overpriced sweats.

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Hi all, happy weekend! I’m here with some musings on my shopping strategy lately. I’ve read through past posts, and historically there haven’t been many fans of wardrobe rentals here. I never had a strong feeling one way or the other - I wasn’t opposed, but I felt no urge to try it. But lately I am thinking that a subscription like Rent the Runway might actually fulfill my shopping needs much better than anticipated. Reasons I’m considering it:

• I buy and wear almost exclusively secondhand items, so I don’t feel any qualms about the “used” aspect.
• I have expensive taste but not the budget for it! So rotating through several designer pieces is more enticing to me than spending the same amount at a retail store.
• I’ve easily spent more than a RTR subscription on failed purchases and frustrating returns.
• It could be a good way to try out expensive pieces that I could envision buying. If a piece became a fave, I could track it down secondhand with confidence that I know my correct size. For example, I want to try a pair of AGOLDE shorts and don’t want to spend $128 just to find out whether they work. I could rent them and actually assess how much they get worn.
• I have a strong preference for statement pieces rather than mix-and-match items. Buying every statement piece I want to try is impractical, and eventually I tire of some of them, so renting would keep the rotation fresh.
• I have learned about myself that I actually don’t much enjoy the creativity of putting outfits together. I want to put on a piece or two that are already creative items and be done with it. It’s been a process for me to admit this about myself, but I just use up my creative energy for my art and don’t have a lot extra for outfit creation.
• I love lots of items that require special handling (hand washing, dry cleaning) but I will never end up getting my own items dry cleaned. I know myself, and I just won’t make the effort. With RTR you don’t have to as they clean the items for you.
• I am somewhat of a minimalist, so rotating in some new items temporarily without growing my wardrobe appeals to me.