Ok help with uniform definitions here please

[GloriaVanderbilt]

Can I ask you please, what are 'school trousers'?

We have been told that we can only wear 'school trousers' and no other sort of trousers presumably will do.

Does this have to mean polyester or do you think there are alternative candidates we might get away with? How can we prove they are school trousers? I want my children to wear cotton, furthermore friend's children need to wear cotton because of eczema.

So how do we work around this (petty) issue? Having a word with school is not currently an option as they are On My Case iykwim.

[GloriaVanderbilt]

Oh and they have added a disclaimer, now - no cargo trousers or cords. Obviously as cords are so dreadfully scruffy and associated with gang culture

[mrz]

It's probably easier to say what School trousers aren't ... not jeans (even smart black ones) or cords or combats or joggers so basically "smart" trousers in school colour (I would go for easy wash and dry fabric.)

[IndigoBell]

I would think anything sold by the dept stores as school trousers would be fine

There must be some cotton ones there....

[IndigoBell]

What about these?

Boys Skinkind trousers

[GloriaVanderbilt]

Thankyou, that's great - so plain cotton trousers, even if not in that 'style' (I mean the pleated front sort of style) would be considered ok?

Obviously not joggers, of course - those skinkind ones look alright, but they seem to be out of stock. I might check the M&S shop in town.

Ds is a funny shape and doesn't really go in at the middle so finds the usual style really uncomfortable...I had hoped he could wear something a bit more stretchy round the waist.

I really dislike our HT at the moment. She's trying her best to make everyone's life difficult.

[GloriaVanderbilt]

sorry for rant, she really is though! Grrrr. Not relevant to thread!

[Takver]

DD has those M&S skinkind trousers, they seem good quality and she finds them comfortable.

Although they have the standard 'button' elastic waist adjustment the elastic is a little more sturdy than is often the case, so they seem to hold up better.

[JenaiMarrHePlaysGuitar]

A word of warning about cotton trews - I was the same, hated the idea of putting my pfb ds into manmade fibres.

However it got to the point where he was wearing through the knees of his cotton trousers on a weekly (sometimes more often) basis.

He wears Teflon coated ones these days

[mrz]

My pfb son had no knees in his teflon coated trousers the first day he wore them ... only problem is he's 27!

[thisisyesterday]

ahh it's a nightmare isn't it?

last year tesco sold cotton trousers for £5. this year they only do a 50/50 polycotton mix.
we have some of those, but i've had to dye them blue for ds1

there ARE other places to get cotton school trousers, but they're really expensive. M&S do them (skinkind) and lint-kids.co.uk

IMO if they are sold as "school" trousrrs, which the m&s ones are then they should be just fine

[thisisyesterday]

oh and try the m&s ones on... they'r enot that generous. or at least they weren't last year

[JenaiMarrHePlaysGuitar]

mrz

What do they do to them?

Another thing about cotton trousers is that they take ages to try. If yours is anything like my son he'll need clean trousers every day so that's a lot of washing or a lot of money to spend on getting 5 pairs (unless you get lucky and find some inexpensive ones).

[GloriaVanderbilt]

thankyou...yes TIY I remember looking at the fairtrade tesco ones and now they only seem to do the girls' version. (ds wouldn't be happy with those)

but they were a good price.
He's not extra thin, with his shape I meant he doesn't really go in at all, waist or elsewhere...sort of a sturdy chap (not the little one you saw the other week! that one doesn't start till January!)

so mainly the usual schooly trousers kind of dig in or I have to take them up by 4 inches or something and buy a much bigger size.

Asda do brilliant stretchy waist trousers which fit him nicely but sadly not in a school style. And 'generous fit' school ones you can buy in BHS are enormous! It's weird. Can't seem to find the right fit at all.

Poor you having to dye them. That's a hassle you don't need!

[GloriaVanderbilt]

Good point about drying, JM...mind you we have a constant supply of damp washing all over the house so nothing new really...

[thisisyesterday]

what colour do you need? cos i think i have 2 black skinkind pairs in age 5?

[GloriaVanderbilt]

Oh gosh that's really kind, but we're not allowed black...only grey now sadly.

Thankyou so much all the same. How are those bunnies? Our big ones managed to burrow OUT of the enormous walk in run the other day...bad rabbits! I had ignored their seemingly self contained network of burrows until a long eared creature appeared among the foliage of the garden proper. And proceeded to eat a good deal of it.

[thisisyesterday]

the bunnies are fine, still waiting for dp to finish the "super-hutch"... they could be waiting some time!
the one with more white on (who is now called Raa Raa ) has taken to humping the other ones face. which is nice.
appt at the vets to discuss neutering next week

and they managed to eat through the bottom of my curtains lol. but they're very sweet and cuddly and even sit and let DS3 stroke them, which he quite likes. our other 2 have got a bit feral now and run away when children approach!

[GloriaVanderbilt]

Oh god I'm sorry about your curtains!! but glad they are sitting to be stroked.
Re the other thing, Do you know what, it must be the time of year because one of ours was doing that to one of the others...all certified female and neutered...never seen them do it before.

Bizarre. Your DCs looked very sweet btw I'm sure they are more gentle than mine...little one tends to roar a bit, with the pets. As in, ready, set, ROAR as he runs down the garden towards terrified creatures.

Hope the hutch building goes well. next time I do a big run I think I'll line the bottom with wire as well!

[GloriaVanderbilt]

Raa raa has to be better than 'twitch' and 'mittens' which were their given names (not by us...ds1 liked Jessica and, erm, Samuel... he was unmoved on the gender front)

[thisisyesterday]

i like twitch and mittens! very cute, proper pet names.

the other one has been christened Buneary. which is a rabbit pokemon

guess who's gonna look a right twat at the vets next week? lol

and the boys may look sweet but it's all a ruse, they're very bad, especially the little one.

[twotesttickles]

I got a frankly bizarre note from preschool (at our old school which just said). Parents are reminded that chinos are not trousers

Well WTF are they then?

[thisisyesterday]

hahahaha i'd have liked to send one back saying "i'd like to remind you that chinos are, in fact, trousers... what is your point?"

i went and got blue chinos for ds1, then got the letter saying "school trousers only, no chinos" gah

i am hoping if i iron them down the front they'll llook like school trews??

[GloriaVanderbilt]

LOL at buneary and vet scenario. We too have the pokemon thing. It's terrifying how many there are and how important they seem to be, even the cute fluffy looking ones.

anyway, we digress. Chinos are definitely trousers. I am a bit shocked that this fact is being tampered with. Have they not better things to do than isolate trouser species, do they operate a system of monetary fines for trouser transgression? Is that why they're so picky?

[GloriaVanderbilt]

I mean you could make a fortune at ours. PTFA would be well in.

Chinos: £2 per day
Non polyester anything: £5
Jeans (even if right colour/texture) £7.59

and JOGGERS £20 per HOUR

[twotesttickles]

I would point out that my eldest child was three at the time. THREE YEAR OLDS IN UNIFORMS!!!!

I might have accidentally popped a few pictures of chinos onto a bit of A4 with the words 'MISSING - my favourite TROUSERS' and snuck it onto the school noticeboard.