FINALLY, I RENTED A DRESS
Having been working in fashion for more than 10 years and enjoying the shopping hunt for those frequent parties, it was a very new experience to take a step back and to say; no! I don't need to buy another outfit for another event. This revolutionary moment was the final step in a sustainable evolution that has not only been happening inside me but also gradually around us in the fashion world.
If you had told me some years ago I would rent a dress to a party I would have been as surprised as you asking me to rent out my own bedroom; until AIRBNB came and changed that. The same change is happening around us now in the retail space and companies like HURR and Matches fashion rental are trying to change the way we see these things.
Jumping back in time, I would open any party invitation with excitement to not only the host part but the dress code part. Was it gonna be a black tie moment making me head to Zara to find something elegant yet affordable or more of a disco vibe making another great excuse to hit my favourite vintage markets? Fast forwarding, the dresscodes have become more of a panic read than excitement, probably because not only is my wardrobe at this stage full, also my taste has gone from Zara budget approved to Loewe less budget friendly. So finding myself ahead of christmas, with many christmas shopping still not fulfilled, opening another party invite I was finding myself in despair. The dress code was silver and red! I don't own anything silver, I’m a gold kind of girl… The invite was otherwise too good to be ignored (plus it was my friend who owns his restaurant's party, so a no show was not an option. Luckily red is a colour I do own, so the detective search went out to find something silver. Google has lately become my own very close stylist friend, even though you have to ignore most of the first suggestions… Googling silver dress, the most beautiful Vampires Wife Silver gown came up. It was perfect. Sadly way out of my budget. So in an enthusiastic search launch to find it on ebay or somewhere else second-hand-ish, the same dress came up on Matches fashion rental, for a fraction of the price.
Renting a dress? Me? Who cherished my very curated wardrobe; a life project from working many years in fashion. It felt like I was about to cheat myself. However, clicking through, and seeing the ease of the process. They would deliver it with a 4 day window (you can choose for how long you want to rent it for), the return tag would already be inside and they would actually come and pick it up from my house again, SOLD! For the same price I would have spent back in the days at affordable highstreet, to get something fabulous but less quality, I now had a fantastic super dress on its way to me. How sustainable! It hit me that even though most of the dresses in my wardrobe have a history behind them, the fact is I don't wear them that often. Some I never wear, they just hang there as a beautiful memory of some moments long ago, fear of sounding old and nostalgic, (I do think that some pieces are worth holding onto but the future is bright with new possibilities), I thought if I can rent this dress, someone else can too and if some genius figures out an economy behind it (no idea how they can survive thinking about postage and shipping) then we have for the first time in the fashion ready-to-wear world a real circulatory system.
Imagine a future when you see the catwalk, choose the look you like, put in your size and BAM you can wear that very piece, be a part of that beautiful moment and then give it to someone else. Embracing fashion for its beautiful escapism that it ultimately stands for.
For me personally this was truly revolutionary. The day the dress arrives, I jump with excitement. That feeling I can only describe as (if you know you know) the moment you walked home with THAT movie you rented in the blockbuster store. The feeling of having something borrowed for you that ultimately will give you a moment of entertainment. (sorry GenZ, you will for sure have your own meta version relation)
As the dress arrived a sudden fear hit me, what if it doesn't fit. No plan B was in the making and as I anxiously opened the package, I was mesmerised the fabric was beautiful. The sparkly effect was illuminating, then and there I decided this dress had to fit. Normal people at this moment take the dress and try it on. I'm not normal, I hang it up on the door. Enjoyed the way it reflected the light and decided It was just meant to be. Next day at work I deeply regretted this moment of utter confidence and went over and over my wardrobe in my head to find a safe Plan B. The option of wearing a jacket over could also be a solution if the zip did not go up…
Arriving at home that night to get ready it was with utter joy the zip did go up. The fabric felt so soft, the cut so good. I paired it with red lips and red heels from my wardrobe and out and about I went. Fabulously, telling everyone that dared to listen to me about my new rented experience. Due to our limited time together, I felt like the dress deserved to be taken out the most and we even went to ANOTHER party after the original, my excuse to give it its fullest potential.
The day after the hangover was present, so was my return of the dress. One click online to book the pick up slot and back in the bag it went. I thanked it for our time together and I'm thrillingly looking forward to my next party dress code.
Follow more of my style journey @isabellapapaz