Buy into the idea that glamour can be borrowed
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Buy into the idea that glamour can be borrowed
Buy into the idea that glamour can be borrowed
There is a way to get luxury and excess in your life for that one special night.
Consider renting that dream designer gown, handbag, accessory or pair of shoes without experiencing the sticker shock of a high-end fashion investment. A number of businesses allow you to unleash your inner celebrity while maintaining fiscal responsibility.
"It works like Netflix for movies," says Nadine Zaun
Wedding guest dresses, co-founder and chief stylist for Adorn.com, an online store that rents expensive jewelry. "We rent a lot of jewelry for weddings and love to be able to help a woman add beautiful jewelry to such an important day of her life. And we can also help her get diamonds for a fraction of retail."
For $300, a bride could wear $40,000 worth of diamonds. Rentals start as low as $75, with the average three-piece set renting for $225.
Here's the basic process. You find the site, browse the selections, choose a size or item, give the date you need it, and reserve with a credit card. Days before your big event, the item arrives, and you are ready to look amazing. You wear it, then ship it back. Sites can charge a membership fee, or add additional charges for cleaning
Ball gowns, insurance and security deposits.
Before anything is shipped, it is inspected for quality. You might have to steam a dress when it arrives. Some sites will eventually sell items that are no longer pristine, at a discount.
Laurie McDaniel-Klein of Houston, Texas, heard about Adorn.com through a magazine story about Chelsea Clinton who rented jewelry for her wedding. McDaniel-Klein rented Lockwood earrings and a Chadwick bracelet -- 10 to 12 carats of diamonds -- for her bridal portrait and wedding last November.
"It is pretty safe," she says. "Yes, you do have that hold on your credit card until the jewelry is returned, but the way they do it, they are protected and you are protected. The whole experience was great, from ordering to shipping to the quality of the product."
As with anything you purchase through the Internet
Purple dresses, an item could get lost or damaged in transit, but those scenarios aren't likely, says Burt P. Flickinger III, a retail analyst and managing director for Strategic Resource Group in New York City.
Renting is gaining in popularity, especially among the younger generation, which shops for many items online, he says. One reason is that department stores have tightened return policies on evening wear.
"You can pretty much rent anything you want," Flickinger says. "Most of the time, you won't wear a party dress you buy more than once. And clothing prices are the highest they have ever been in history. This is a great way for shoppers to wear something no one has seen before and won't see again
Petite dresses, because it will go back to the rental house."
Renting can be a way to change up your look, says Amber Herring, accessories editor for Self magazine. If you rent it, you don't have to worry that something is too trendy and might not be in style for long, she says. She knows women, for example, who carry a different handbag every month by renting them. Handbag rentals were talked about in the first "###### and the City" movie.
Jennifer Hyman and Jenny Fleiss are co-owners of renttherunway.com. Hyman had watched her sister struggle with "a closet full of clothes but nothing to wear" moment. She considered how great it would be for women to have access to their dream closet. Rent the Runway was launched in November 2009 to fill the needs of women who love fashion and want to experiment with new brands, without the anxiety of investing in piece after piece. A $1,350 dress can be rented for $150.
"We send two sizes to ensure the perfect fit and offer a backup style for only $25," Hyman says. "We also have a team of expert stylists that are available via phone, e-mail or live chat and provide recommendations to customers based on their specific needs."
They recently launched Rent the Runway Weddings, for which designers such as Badgley Mischka have created exclusive
bridesmaid dresses. The business offers a service to brides to help them find dresses for events leading up to their big day.
Rent the Runway features more than 120 brands from top designers -- Proenza Schouler, Calvin Klein Collection, Nina Ricci, Vera Wang and Halston Heritage, among others. Jewelry, handbags and
bridesmaid dresses are available. For the first-time user, Fleiss and Hyman suggest moving out of your comfort zone and experimenting with new brands, colors and styles.
"Renting designer dresses and accessories eliminates having to repeat outfits, so you don't have to be seen wearing the same dress in every Facebook picture," Fleiss says.
Or the same piece of jewelry.
When considering jewelry
cheap grad dresses, it's important to think about how it will look with the style of dress. You can e-mail photos of the dress, which will help consultants guide you inthe right direction.
"I love it when I hear the excitement in a women's voice when she talks about the jewelry she rented and how she felt like she was on the red carpet and felt like a million bucks," says Zaun of Adorn.com. "We never want to disappoint anyone."
Shanda Carstens, chief executive officer of Wear Today, Gone Tomorrow, decided to buy the business after noticing many higher-end consignment stores in the marketplace.
"My goal is to keep it budget-friendly and provide what people are looking for," says Carstens
A-Line dresses, who took over Jan. 1. "Women are trying to be more efficient and wise with their money. We still like fashion and want to wear something that no one else has (seen) before. I also want to turn the business into a closet management type of thing, where you think of the site for more items than just about special-occasion dressing."
An area where Carstens is expanding the site is
prom dresses. Prices start at $25.
"For something like prom, this site helps level the playing field for all economic situations
Sweet 16 dresses," she says. "Not all girls can afford to buy an expensive dress. ... We are currently expanding our sizes and styles for prom. I think a lot of people are curious about renting."
One of the most important aspects is ordering the correct size, so make sure you give your true measurements. Don't let a number keep you from ordering the correct size.
"We want the person who rents from us to open the box and say they love the gown, not, 'Oh no
Plicated dresses, there's a snag' or 'Here's a water spot,' " Carstens says. "If we see something we don't like, we won't rent that item again and it will go for final sale."
At the top of the rental business, Albright Fashion Library is known as the industry's premier, one-stop high-end designer resource for editors, celebrity stylists, costume designers and red-carpet event dressing. Customers need to travel to its 7,000-square-foot space in New York City. Available are this season's "It" pieces, as well as accessories -- from jewelry to handbags to a selection of more than 7,000 pairs of the most current designer shoes.
The CEO of Albright Fashion Library is Irene Albright, whose experience spans more than 30 years in the fashion industry, including working for Vogue, The New York Times and Estee Lauder. Her business's stylists can help coordinate the entire look, from hair and makeup to the dress, which can run $1,000.
Albright says other stylists can charge $3,000 to $5,000, and that doesn't include the dress. Albright has gowns worth $28,000 to $50,000.
She has more than 5,000 pieces to choose from.
"I have been on the red carpet, so I know what the look for the red carpet is all about," says Albright, talking from Paris, where she was on a buying trip. "I buy for a special audience. I am looking for special pieces that are elegant
inexpensive prom dresses, yet timeless pieces. I am really careful, because I don't buy mass-market. That is what makes me different. My audience can afford to come in and afford to spend $1,000. I believe I have a special eye for this."
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