Rated. Reviewed. LOVED! The Nuuly Clothing Rental Subscription (AND a $20 Referral Bonus for You!)

I've known about clothing rental subscription services for a long time. I actually even worked on one for awhile, back when I was at JustFab (we had our own version of this service called PS by JustFab). And it's not that I didn't think they were a good idea -- I just never really saw the point. Until I discovered Nuuly, that is. Well, how times have changed!

My friend Suzy first told me about Nuuly this past fall. I immediately signed up to be notified of an opening in their service, and lo and behold, I was accepted within a week! I frantically started adding items to my closet and shifting them to my cart.

But you may be asking ... Jamie, what IS Nuuly? Here's the breakdown.

HOW NUULY WORKS

1) Nuuly is a clothing rental subscription from Anthropologie, Free People and Urban Outfitters. You can select styles from those brands, or the many brands they also sell. New styles are added to the site all the time, so there's always something different to try.

2) Each month, you select 6 styles on the site that are sent to you within 2 business days. You have the entire month to wear them as much as you want!

3) You can always add styles to your closet -- it's like a wishlist. Then, when your Nuuly opens (after you've shipped back your box and on your renewal date each month), you can add the 6 styles you want to your cart. You can sort by only what's currently available, so you're not looking at styles you can't even get at the moment, or you can look at everything.

4) The styles are sent to you in what looks like an oversized lunchbox. It contains a prepaid return shipping label, so you just drop the styles back in at the end of the month, drop it at UPS and go about your day.

5) The cost for the month is $88 plus tax (it usually works out to about $94). For SIX styles. I'm extremely bad at doing math, but my calculator tells me that works out to roughly $15 an item. If you're trying really expensive dresses, like I have been, you DEFINITELY get a good deal.

6) When you send the items back, you don't need to worry about dry cleaning! Nuuly takes care of all of that good stuff at the other end. They don't even mind if you spill something!

SO, WHAT TYPES OF STYLES HAVE I GOTTEN IN MY NUULY BOX, ANYWAY?

I've been a loyal Nuuly fan since September. Here's everything I've gotten and loved each month! (As you can see, some months were a bit better than others.)

SEPTEMBER

I started off strong with five total loves!

The Carolina K Sera Jumpsuit. OMG. I am in LOVE with this jumpsuit! If it weren't so expensive, I definitely would have bought it out of my box. I wore it multiple times during the month and it always garnered tons of compliments!

The Coldesina Vacation Time Caftan. I got this specifically to wear to a friend's 70s-themed birthday party in Palm Springs and it was PERFECT!!

The English Factory Pretty in Poppies Swing Dress. I really did love this dress, but if I'm being perfectly honest, I didn't actually wear it aside from taking this selfie. The collar and armholes were a bit too restricting. While I would have worn this to work, I was worried that I'd feel too suffocated by the end of the day. It's so cute, though!

The Free People Can't Help It Mini Dress. I. Love. This. Dress. As soon as I put it on, I just felt so chic! It was just still too hot in September to really get to wear this as much as I wanted to. If the temps had cooled down more, I would basically never have taken this off.

The Free People Fields Frolic Dress. Is this dress stunning or what? I ended up wearing it to a movie one night because the days were too hot. It came with a slip, but the slip was SO TIGHT. I ended up using a different slip underneath because the one that came with this dress barely even fit on my body.

OCTOBER

Not everything in my box worked this month, although I loved one style so much I got it again in November (and you'll see it when you scroll to that section).

Another month, another Coldesina style! This month I got the Coldesina Abi Wide-Leg Jumpsuit. As you can see, it's definitely too long on me, but it worked well for my Adventureland-themed Disney bound I did at Disneyland!

The Free People Sophie Mini Dress. I'd been curious about this dress on the Free People site for awhile, so I definitely wanted to try it! As soon as it arrived, I fell in love. I wore it to work, I wore it out to dinner, and I wore it in this popcorn-themed Disney bound at Disneyland!

NOVEMBER

Five out of six knocked it out of the park once again!

The Chufy Oasis Tunic Dress. The dress I loved so much, I ordered it twice! I got this in my October box, too. I loved the way this dress fit, I loved the print, I loved the length, I loved that it was so different from anything else in my closet. I just didn't love the $450 price tag! But I'll definitely rent this again in the future. Photo by Jake Douglas.

The Cynthia Rowley Avery Mini Dress. Have you ever wanted to feel like the chicest cupcake? This is the dress for you! I really wasn't sure if this dress would look amazing or terrible, but I'm so glad it was the former! I wore it to see a production of "Love Actually Live" in Beverly Hills. I wish the neckline would have been a bit lower and looser, but overall this was a win!

Another style I'd been ogling on Free People's site for awhile before I decided to get it in my Nuuly! I went back to Cleveland for Thanksgiving, where it's pretty darn cold, and I knew I needed a cute puffer for the journey. This fit the bill so much that I bought it out of my box! I love the bright pink hue (it's way pinker in person than it was in the pictures on site), and I love the oversized fit. A DEFINITE win!

The Free People Hearts Run Wild Maxi Dress. Okay, I definitely got this dress solely for the photo shoot opportunities! I had a shoot scheduled with my photographer extraordinaire, Jake Douglas, and we knew we wanted to capture some images of it flowing in the breeze. It's a bit too long and too low cut for me to wear normally, but it worked SO well for a shoot!

The NORBLACK NORWHITE Euphrates Dyed Tunic Dress. Another dress I loved so much, I bought it out of my box! I'm OBSESSED with how this dress fits and how I feel when I wear it. I've gotten so much use out of it in only a couple months! Photo by Jake Douglas.

DECEMBER

Only three of the six worked this month, though I actually was okay with that (keep reading to find out why).

The Free People Can't Help It Mini Dress. Yes, I got this dress in black, too! I went to a holiday-themed popup bar in Downtown LA, and this was the perfect dress to wear!

The Free People Lou Jean Babydoll Dress. I LOVE this dress. I actually got it again in my January box! I'm honestly just waiting for it to drop in price a bit and then I'm going to purchase it. I wore it so many times in December and it just HAS to be mine! Plus, I loved pairing it with my sparkly Doc Martens.

The Innika Choo Scallop Frill Iva Biigdres Maxi Dress. YOU GUYS. If I could marry a dress, it might be this one. I've been such a big fan of Innika Choo for so long, but her dresses are just typically a little too pricey for me. I was so thrilled to discover her dresses on Nuuly! I love EVERYTHING about this dress, from the fit and fabric to the gingham and scallop ruffles. I got it again in my January box to wear to Palm Springs!

So, with all that being said, what do I actually think about Nuuly?

IT'S AMAZING TO HAVE SO MANY NEW FASHION CHOICES EACH MONTH.

I am not what one might consider a minimalist. I like THINGS. I like getting new clothes. However, I am also trying to become at least a bit more sustainable and conscious about what I'm buying and putting into my closet. I love the idea of Nuuly because I can try 6 styles a month in a more sustainable manner.

I LOVE THAT I CAN BUY STYLES FROM MY BOX AT A DISCOUNT.

I've definitely done this twice already! I love that if the price is right, I can own the pieces I'm wearing all month for a fraction of the actual cost. The buy price is determined by how many times the item has been rented and how long it's been on the site. I bought a dress and a coat from one of my boxes, and there are other pieces I'd DEFINITELY buy if they were a bit cheaper! As previously mentioned, I like to try very expensive pieces, so they're not always readily affordable.

NUULY HAS SO MANY STYLES AND DESIGNERS TO CHOOSE FROM.

Not only do you get to select styles from Free People, Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters, but you also get to try styles from the other designers they sell! We're talking Cynthia Rowley, Carolina K, Innika Choo, Spell & The Gypsy Collective, the list goes on. I've really enjoyed getting to wear some truly stunning pieces from designers I can't always afford or justify spending money on.

I WISH THERE WAS A BIT MORE FLEXIBILITY WITH MY SUBSCRIPTION.

As much as I love Nuuly, I do wish I had a bit more flexibility with each box:

1) The renewal and ship dates are not able to be changed, so if you're traveling, it's tough to get the full month's worth out of your box.

2) You only get 1 size of everything, and you're locked into those 6 styles for the month. If something doesn't fit, you can't exchange it for a different size or item.

3) If you really like an item but don't want to buy it, you can't keep it for another month and roll it over as one of your 6 for that next month. You either have to send everything back, send back just the styles you don't want to keep while buying the ones you do, or buy everything. I've had a few months where I LOVED one of my styles so much I just wanted to keep it again, but I had to send it back and then re-request it for the next month. That's fine, unless it gets snapped up by someone else while you're waiting to request your next box!

NUULY'S CUSTOMER SERVICE IS TOP NOTCH.

I've reached out to customer service on two different occasions and received STELLAR service both times. On the first occasion, I asked if I could change my shipment/renewal date due to travel complications (I would basically only have my next box for 2 weeks based on when I'd be able to ship back the previous one). While they couldn't change the dates, they offered me my next month at half price! On the other occasion, I offered one of my friends my referral code (stay tuned for that!), and she signed up because of me but used a different (better) code. They still honored the referral and credited my account! I am very impressed not only by the level of customer service but by the immediacy of the responses. Nuuly definitely cares about their customers!

MY FINAL THOUGHTS ... AND A $20 REFERRAL BONUS JUST FOR YOU!

So, with all that being said, do I recommend Nuuly? WHOLEHEARTEDLY!! I've gotten to try such amazing pieces by incredible designers, all at a fraction of the cost. It's also just so fun to change up my wardrobe each month and add some special pieces for a few weeks at a time, especially if I'm traveling somewhere or have an event to attend. I'm going to Palm Springs and New Orleans for my birthday in a couple weeks, and you BETTER believe I requested some specific pieces for each of those trips!

Curious about Nuuly and want to try it out for yourself? I have a special referral code for you! Just click here to save $20 on your first box.