Why pay retail for kids clothes?
The cooler weather caught us unprepared, the daughter needed warm weather clothes. A quick 30-minute trip to my favorite thrift store was all we needed to stock up for winter.
I’m a big advocate of having just enough clothes for kids and no more. Anything extra just means more things strewn across the floor and more laundry to wash. Also, having too many clothes means extra time folding and more space needed to put things away. I buy enough clothes that she can wear a different top every day of the week and about four pairs of pants — we buy a couple extra items for days that it rains or the clothes just get messy. I don’t believe in school clothes and play clothes, thats too much space and laundry for me. Shopping at thrift stores means I don’t freak out when she wears her “new” pants to play in the mud (though, I do fuss a little) and I don’t mind (too much) if things get holes in them.
All of our thrift store clothes are in great shape — I don’t buy anything that is worn or has stains on it. The price on the like-new items is the same as the well-worn items, so I like to get my money’s worth. Also, I often end up reselling the items after she’s grown out of them, sometimes for more than I paid. I visit thrift stores where they have 50% off specials; at my favorite store, each items has a different color tag and certain colors will be 50% off that day. If I see something that’s perfect, but not 50% off that day, I pass. I know that I’ll find something else just as wonderful for half the price.
I find it helpful to know your local thrift stores and stick to the ones that are easiest to shop at. There are three near the partner’s work that have good prices. However, I primarily shop at one because they are always clean, everything is hung up according to color, and the racks are not jammed tight. If I feel like I really have to dig to find what I want, it’s not worth it. Today I scored 5 pairs of pants, 5 tops, 1 light weight jacket, and 2 pairs of pyjamas for $30, all within 30 minutes – for me, this is shopping at it’s finest. The daughter tried everything on and it all fits, we’re lucky that she’s pretty easy going in terms of fashions and is usually happy with anything I pick out.