Buying clothes for your kids should be easy, right? Wrong! You have to find a balance between factors like cuteness, comfort, social pressure, and price! It’s important that your kids like what they are wearing, it helps their self-esteem, and you should also know that there are sometimes fashion trends in Australian schools that you may think you can just ignore as passing fads, but can be really distressing to young people. If everybody is wearing a sports shirt with an embroidered crocodile sewn to the breast, then you don’t want your kid to be the only one with a dinosaur, or any critter other than that darn crocodile! It’s serious, so be empathetic, but don’t let it break your bank!
Fortunately, there are some really nice stores out there that specialise in kids’ clothing you can go shopping at with your youngsters that have everything they need, but will be affordable like Dream Nu, which has a fantastic selection of new and ‘previously loved’ (used!) clothing at really reasonable prices!
Here are some tips we have collected that we hope will help you navigate the sometimes tricky seas of kid’s clothing!
Fabrics – This is not the place to go cheap, pick out clothing made from high-quality fabrics like tencal modal, hemp, linen, super combed cotton, wool, and linen. Take note that these are all natural fabrics that last longer and are nicer to the skin. While they may look fun and flashy, synthetic fabrics like nylon, spandex, and polyester are hard on the skin and can even cause allergies and rashes!
Prints, Patterns, And Solid Colours – This is a good time to give your child some choice in the matter. Just because you think the red and white stripes will look cute, doesn’t mean they will agree! Let them choose their favourite colours and whatever prints and patterns they feel attracted to, they will be happier and so will you! If they pick out items that really don’t appeal to you, so be it, you can always get back at them later by making them wear that ugly Christmas sweater Aunt Beatrice makes for them every year, “It’s just for a day, dear!” Heh-heh.
Get The Right Fit – While it is sometimes tempting to say “You will grow into it” it’s really not fair, they will feel uncomfortable and embarrassed swimming around in something that’s two sizes too big and will probably hate you for it the rest of their lives, so just don’t do it! Purchase clothing that’s a good fit today and maybe for the next six months, they do grow, and when that happens you can give the hand-me-downs to charity, or make a younger sibling unhappy by passing it along to them.
The main points are that your kids feel good about what they’re wearing, it’s made of quality material, and is tough enough to handle everything they can throw at it! Just make darn sure it has a crocodile!
