Response Post #5: RTR- When It's Smarter To Rent Than Buy

In Feliz Is Her Name's recent blog post, she talks about her love of weddings and how exciting but daunting it can be to find the perfect ensemble. I was just recently a bridesmaid in a winter wedding and thought it was incredibly smart for the bride to have us all wear black dresses. Why? Because it was practical and unlike a lot of my other dresses, I will most likely wear it again. Sad but true, a bad habit that I've been slowly trying to break-- buying intricate, printed pieces instead of classic staples that can be worn any kind of way.

Last week, my boyfriend and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary. In January, we made the Final Four of George Mason University Sweetheart 16 Contest and won a night's stay at the Mason Inn. We decided to take advantage and have a mini- staycation. I started searching for a dress 3 weeks before! I knew it had to be special but didn't want to splurge on something I would only wear once. My friend Emily suggested Rent The Runway a couple months back. I loved the idea of being able to wear top notch, high fashion dresses from Dolce & Gabbana, Herve Leger and Vera Wang all for an affordable price, however, I feared that they would arrive and look horrible on me. I had been eyeing a blue Herve dress and a black and white Tibi dress for a good couple of weeks until finally, I got in contact with a fit specialist. I was surprised yet impressed at how helpful and responsive they were as I asked question after question.

Four days later, my dresses (you can pick 2 sizes at no additional cost!) had arrived. I ended up choosing the High Tea Tibi dress  and was delightfully pleased! It felt like Christmas came early. I paired it with RJ Graziano's Dress Me Up necklace, which I also rented. I enjoyed the evening in this lovely dress without any worries, especially purchasing the $5 insurance. The return process was incredibly easy especially because they provide you a pre-paid envelope to slip the dress in. No need to dry clean, just drop it in the mail box and you're done!

After such a great first experience, I am excited to use RTR for future special events. The brilliant concept coupled with high quality pieces and great customer service make RTR a must for fashionistas.

Kudos to Mason Inn for being pet friendly!