Events: A Report on the Rent the Runway Sample Sale

I went to the Rent the Runway Sample Sale with a friend on the morning of the second to last day of the sale (Saturday).  I was very pleasantly surprised to see that there were still a lot of nice dresses left on the racks for all sizes.  I found some especially good finds by See by Chloe, Christian Siriano, Missoni, M Missoni, Herve Leger, Tibi, Badgley Mischka, Alice by Temperley, and Temperley.  There also seemed to be unlimited amounts of dresses from Nicole Miller, Milly, Haute Hippie, Moschino Chic and Cheap, Rebecca Taylor, and Catherine Malandrino.  I even saw a David Meister dress I bought last winter for probably 1/5 of the price I had paid!  While I tried on mainly short cocktail dresses, my friend tried on several full-length gowns.  The best she looked at were from Badgley Mischka ($50 each) and Yigal Azrouel.

Here's what I especially liked:

Find #1:  Calla Lily Cap Sleeve Dress by Tibi
Rent it on Rent the Runway HERE
Retail $378, RTR Rental $50, Sample Sale: $37
Note: Slight flaw - About 3 inches of the seam of one of the cap sleeves had been separated away from the body of the dress but nothing that five minutes of quick sewing couldn't fix.  It was right along the seam so it wasn't torn or anything like that and extremely easy to fix - anyone could do it. Trust me, I'm not an expert seamstress and just used an old travel repair kit with some white thread and a needle.
Find #2: Heartbreaker Dress by Herve Leger
Rent it on Rent the Runway HERE
Retail $1050, RTR Rental $100, Sample Sale: $167
Note: The dress was a Size S but I assume that I would normally wear a bigger size because I tried on another Leger dress in a M that fit just quite snug.  The dress was probably in the sale because it had been stretched out a bit while being rented.

The other two dresses I liked are no longer being rented on the RTR site but had been featured in a few of their blog posts (Missoni1, Missoni2, La Rok1, La Rok2).  Both were in impeccable condition with no additional notes to be made.
Find #3: Emily the Empress Dress by M Missoni 

Retail: $795, Sample Sale: $113
This gorgeous striped brown M Missoni cocktail dress pairs well with all fall/winter neutral accessories and with the tribal & animal prints that are popular right now.
Find #4: Lovely in Lace Dress by La Rok

Retail: $278, Sample Sale: $60
This very casual white frilly dress from LaRok that will be great for the summer, especially when paired with a very long dangling necklace or statement collar necklace - with the perfect sandals of course! 

The second to last day was actually an excellent day to go to the sale.  While I was disappointed that there wasn't anything left from Kate Spade or Lilly Pulitzer (as I read there had been earlier) and that the selection of Herve Leger had significantly depleted, everything was being sold at an additional 40% off.  I heard that on the last day this was increased to 50% off but I imagine not all that much was left after Saturday.  My suggestion would be to visit a sample sale like this twice, once at the beginning to grab up some of the more popular items that are going quickly and again on the morning of the second to last day to get some even better deals.  This was not my first sample sale by any means but it was definitely one of the ones where I found the best deals.  My other favorites have been the regular Diane von Furstenberg and Ralph Lauren ones.

Here are some great sites I'd recommend that make announcements about upcoming sample sales: The Vogue City & Sample Sale Avenue.