Buying Children's Clothes Second Hand

It has come to my attention that some poor souls out there are still buying new clothes for their children, forking over a lot (and I mean a lot) of money to dress their little darlings in all the latest gear and send them into a world filled with freezies that stain, poop that explodes and mud that entices fingers and toes to come and play!  Well, count me out of that group, my friends, because I have discovered the joys of second hand clothes shopping.  Here, take a look at this:

Last night I went to check out a *new* 2nd hand clothing place that apparently had a great selection of children's clothes.  Now, it's very important to me that Samuel looks nice.  I prefer that he is dressed in very good quality, long-lasting, classic, modest clothing.  Usually this means higher-end brands, such as Land's End, Ralph Lauren, Osh Kosh and Dockers.  These clothes, if you buy them new, are not cheap.  But I buy mine secondhand!  And what you see in that picture is what you can get for $34.18.  Two long-sleeved plaid dress shirts and one short sleeved version.  A sweater, a pair of courderoy overalls, four long-sleeved cotton shirts and five t-shirts.  Not shown, but also included in the total, was a pair of mittens, a sun hat, a merino wool dress for myself, and two books.

Obviously the price is a factor for buying second hand, but it goes beyond just saving at the cash register.  When Samuel stains a shirt or rips a pair of pants that I paid 50 cents for, I don't panic.  Actually I usually don't even try to mend it!  I just put it in the rag bin or throw it away.  But if Samuel were to stain a shirt that cost me $30 (not an unreasonable estimate; my mother recently bought him a t-shirt that was about that price from the store The Children's Place.  One shirt.)  I would be hunched over the washing machine employing every stain-removal technique I knew about.  Buying clothes secondhand offers me a less-stressful way to clothe him.

Another factor is accessibility.  I live in a small town and getting anywhere is an ordeal sometimes.  If I needed to make several trips a year into the city just to buy clothes for my son, it would be exhausting, not to mention difficult to impossible to find higher end brands.  By buying secondhand someone else has already done that leg work for me.  They've gone to Gap Kids, found a cute shirt, used it half a dozen times, and passed it on to me for $1.  Maybe one twentieth of it's original price.  And if there isn't a Gap Kids where I live (which there isn't) I don't need to buy online, hunt down a store or go out of my way in any fashion.  The clothes come to me.

One of the biggest reasons I shop second hand for Samuel's clothes is a factor that I've heard a lot of people put a negative spin on: seasonal selection.  You see, maybe out there there are mamas who walk into end-of-season sales and know that that blue jacket on 75% off is going to perfectly fit their baby next year, but I do not.  I go into the store knowing one thing and that is Samuel's approximate size.  And then I don't but anything smaller than that.  Anything bigger is fair game.  Some of the shirts you see in the above picture won't fit him till Winter 2012, and I'm just fine with that!  Because I like the clothes, and eventually those clothes will fit him, and I can't be certain that when I do need a size 4 pair of jeans I would be able to find brand-new Wranglers with the tag still on them for $2.  So I buy what I find when I find it, confident in the knowledge that eventually it will fit Samuel. 

Some people dislike being able to buy any season of clothing at any time of year because it increases the amount of clothing you have to sift through, to get to the season you want, and also it decreases your chances of buying something trendy for 'this' season.  Well, the first is true, you will spend more time in a second hand store, checking and re-checking all of the purchases you're making.  I like this because it makes me think very carefully about what I'm about to buy.  If it's a little faded, or not the perfect shade of blue, I just don't bother with it.  I know that I can find what I want elsewhere.  The second point is just silly, though.  I almost never buy trendy clothes for one very good reason:  right now I have Samuel, but what happens if I have another child someday?  Maybe a girl?  I can tell you that most of the clothes Samuel wears could be worn by a girl as well.  I don't buy clothes with Disney characters, or those decals that disintegrate in the washer, nothing really boyish or girlish.  I buy khakis, jeans and cords in basic colours.  I buy a lot of striped cotton shirts in bright colours.  I buy white socks, soft-soled shoes with neutral patterns, like stars, grey wool mittens, linen hats, etc.  Sure, I buy some things that are noticeably boy clothes, but not usually.  I have tubs of basic children's clothing, and because it's all good quality I know it will last through Samuel and probably two more children after that.  And if it doesn't?  Not a big deal, I have lots of clothes.  I have enough clothes to dress a few children at a time, so if something, by fluke, tears or doesn't make it through the rough-on-clothing little boy I've got, I just get rid of it and quickly replace it with something else.

A few reminders and tips on using second-hand clothes:

1)  No matter how adorable it is, do not buy it if it isn't very good quality.  This means the skirts should be lined, buttons should be tight, no stains, wear, rips or general ick.  Check cuffs for fraying, check collars for rings and check the pockets for tears in the lining.

2)  Buy what you like when you find it if it's too big for your child.  If the store has a sale on baby onesies for sizes 18-24 months, and your baby is a 9 month old, buy those onesies.  But don't buy newborn sizes unless you're expecting.  Your child will always get bigger and eventually they'll wear the bigger sizes.

3)  Clothing should do triple duty.  It should work for a boy and a girl, if that's an issue for you, and for multiple siblings.  It should be useful in at least three seasons, if it's winter clothing, and all four for summer shirts, because they can be layered.  It should be 'transitional' in nature - I love capri khakis that can button up on the cuffs to make a shorter pant, and then roll down the next year for a taller child.  Samuel's classic wool vests that he wears to church over a dress shirt are always purchased big on him, because there aren't arms to worry about, just length, and he can wear them longer that way.

4)  Swap with other mamas for more gendered pieces.  I have a couple of friends with boys a few sizes bigger than Samuel who are more than happy to pass on 'boy stuff'.  Pants with diggers on them, shoes with pictures of airplanes and trucks.  I mix and match my gender neutral stuff with the 'boy clothes' and it fits seamlessly.  For a girl I would use more girly colours, maybe swapping my 'boy' stuff with a mama who had a girl and using her girl's clothes.  You really only need a few pieces like this.  Something frilly goes a long way!