The Budget Babe | Affordable Fashion & Style Blog

Fashion for Rent: A Review of 'Le Tote'


Le Tote: Fashion for rent!

Fashion rentals are quickly becoming the latest way to expand one's clothing options without the commitment of spending a lot on a new wardrobe. Recently I was approached by LeTote.com to check out their site for a month - some are calling it the "Netflix for fashion." Keep reading to see what I got and how it went!

The Budget Babe reviews LeTote.com fashion rentals

How it works: You create a profile on LeTote.com and tell them about your style by selecting items you love, as well as inputting your clothing sizes and measurements. The process was quick, fun and painless - in fact, I did this on my iPhone while getting my hair colored.

Once your profile is complete, you pay $49/month and 3 garments plus 2 accessories are delivered to your door. My items came within 5 business days.

Keep your items for as long as you please. Then, send them back in a pre-paid shipping envelope and your next box will be shipped out to you as soon as they receive it. You get unlimited boxes with your $49/month membership. (That's $588 for one year.)

Oh! And if you'd like to buy any of the items in your box, you can do that, too: It's $50 for dresses, $30 for separates, $20 for necklaces and bracelets, and $10 for other accessories.

What I thought: I was really impressed! The fashions are definitely fast-fashion but everything fit me well and looked great. Were these items I would have selected for myself? I'm not so sure...but I enjoyed the challenge of figuring out how to style each piece to suit my taste. I loved the element of surprise and the fact that they pushed me to try things I normally wouldn't have worn, like the strapless checker-print dress. It was so cute and comfy! I also adored the blue blouse; the color was gorgeous and the fit was really flattering. The floral chiffon skirt didn't seem like "me" at all, but I made it work with a simple black tee and my denim jacket. The perfect fall-casual look!

The accessories (a ring and two bangles) were the least impressive but maybe if I change my style preferences, I'll get better options next time.

Overall, I think Le Tote is a great service. These clothes would in no way replace my everyday wardrobe but they would fill the gaps for, say, Friday night out with the girls or a Saturday date night (not that I do these things, just providing examples). Thinking back to my days working in an office, I can honestly say LeTote.com would have been a godsend. I'm less impulsive there days but how many times back in my twenties did I just go buy a new dress or cute top to wear for the weekend because I had "nothing to wear" and "NEEDED" something cute and new for so-and-so's birthday dinner or Sunday brunch with the girls? LeTote.com would provide that cute new look that I could wear once, then send back, saving space in my closet and money in my wallet.

I'm going to send my box back and see what else I get - follow me on Instagram to see! And if you try LeTote.com, let me know what you think!

P.S. This is not a sponsored post but I did get to test drive Le Tote for one month free for the purposes of writing this review. Opinions are always my own!
Comments
Its a neat idea but I find it hard to put $50 out when they don't even give you at least sample pictures of what types of clothes they will send you...
#1 Cat on 2013-09-25 17:06 (Reply)
This is such a great idea. Very cool. Going to check it out
#2 Eliza Castro on 2013-09-25 17:20 (Reply)
Cool review. I would be more interested in this service if the monthly fee applied to any purchases.
#3 Joann on 2013-09-25 17:30 (Reply)
The pieces they gave you were great! However, it wouldn't work for me just because I couldn't even spend that much a year on clothes, and it's just casual clothing. I have used Rent the Runway for formal events just because I would rather rent a dress for $50 then buy a dress for $100+ that I would rarely wear. A formal event maybe takes once a year or less than that for me. These days it's getting harder for people to shell out more money per month, but it's overall a good concept.
#4 Liz on 2013-09-26 08:54 (Reply)
This is cool! I am definitely going to try it out. I wish they helped you put the outfits together, similarly to Budget Babe's Dress by Number.
#5 Lisa on 2013-09-29 19:01 (Reply)
lovin that idea!
#5.1 The Budget Babe on 2013-09-30 09:11 (Reply)
I’m on my second tote bag now. I love my first tote bag and the second tote is kind of disappointing…
Check out my reviews and see what’s in my tote bag: http://sfashion903.blogspot.com/2013/10/le-tote-tote-2-review.html
http://sfashion903.blogspot.com/2013/09/le-tote-first-tote-review.html

Serena
#6 Serena (Homepage) on 2013-10-21 14:31 (Reply)
This seems a more ethical way to do what some folks do anyway. Buy a dress and then return it so that they can wear it one time to one party. Here you pay for what you are doing. Cool idea!
#7 Sweet Sticky Rainbow (Homepage) on 2014-12-29 17:02 (Reply)
I have been using Le Tote for a few months and LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! Waking up and trying to figure out what to wear for work get so old! I always feel like I wear the same thing so this helps so much! I love it!
#8 Melissa on 2015-12-07 16:24 (Reply)
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