Don’t Be Afraid to Return Those Clothes!

Doing shoot after shoot can involve tons of wardrobe, which can be any girl’s dream but if you don’t have the funds to accommodate a growing closet filled with clothes there is always the option of returning it when you’re done with your shoot. I’m being serious!

I learned about this secret from a wardrobe stylist I worked with. I went shopping with her at H&M in San Francisco (this was for my portfolio shoot for Ford) and while I loved the clothes, not all of them were exactly outfits I would wear on a daily basis and a couple of them were a tad on the pricier side.

She pulled me aside gently after I finished trying on a bunch of clothes and said, “Don’t even worry about the price…tomorrow just return them! We’ll make sure to hide the price tags during the shoot!” I was tickled pink when I heard this. And it is a common practice for everyone in the industry from models to stylists. Hey, not all of us are continuously rolling in dough! My stylist told me that there had even been times when she had to stay out of certain stores for a few weeks just because she frequently returned clothes after shoots and didn’t want them to get wise or remember her face.

Of course if you want to keep the clothes you buy, that’s totally fine. I returned all of my clothes simply because I didn’t have a need for them outside of my shoots and you can only wear one clothing item only so many times in photos. I planned on keeping one top that we purchased from a different store but it was $80 and after the shoot the threads were starting to come out. I don’t know about you but if I pay that much money for clothes, they better stay in one piece!

So for all you models out there who need clothes but are afraid of coming out of pocket, you can choose this option but do it with care. You don’t want to get caught up and ruin this practice for everyone else, including yourself. When you buy the clothes, make sure to keep all the price tags attached. During the shoot these can be tucked, pinned or faced away from the camera. Make sure you don’t get the clothes dirty—keeping your makeup off the material also counts. Be mindful…any damage to the garments will decrease your chances of being able to successfully return them.

Note the store’s return/refund/exchange policy and choose your payment method wisely (cash, check, credit card, ATM). Each store differs and there is also a timeline for when you can return items for a full refund. Don’t make the habit of returning bundles of clothes all at once often at the same store. Spread yourself out and buy a little from several stores. Returning over $100 worth of clothing items tends to draw some attention.