Buying second hand clothes for DC

[KatnissMellark]

I have bought a large bundle of second hand clothes for my son at each age group to be the bulk of his wardrobe. It means he has many many everyday clothes so I don't have to stress about washing, it's also much cheaper and better for the environment (I hate the idea of something being worn for just a few months then discarded).

We don't need to do this, could afford new but choose to buy second hand due to the environmental reasons more than anything else. A couple of people (friends and family) have mentioned that they find this odd, not really provided any reason why, other than we could afford not to. I do buy him new bits and bobs if I particularly like them or he needs something for a special occasion.

I would (and occasionally do) buy second hand for myself, but tend to have more new things, but do wear them til they wear out completely, so IMO not as wasteful as buying new and discarding after a few months as you have to with a child due to growth.

When he is older and growing more slowly, so getting more use out of things, of course we'll buy more new.

I think second hand is fine for now, AIBU?

Why/how does anybody know where his clothes came from?

I didn’t get hand me downs with ds as he was the first baby in our set of friends and first grandchild. I used to buy from eBay as that meant I could afford better quality than buying brand new and I also re sold stuff, I got him a lovely warm wool ted baker coat for £7 resold 6 months later for £11 😁

When bil and sil had their first 18 months after ds was as born I packed everything up for them. About a week later I got a phone call saying they had been through it and got the bits they wanted, could we pick up the rest!!! Now I know it’s not all going to be to your taste when you get hand me downs but I was always taught to be thankful! They dress both of their head to toe in brands and next (also have 100ish presents at bdays and xmas) and wonder why they can’t save for a house deposit.

I have never given them anything else, it goes to one of my husbands friends (split from his gf) and it’s lovely to see their ds wearing bits and bobs, they are grateful for it as they don’t earn loads and obviously don’t live together.

Not a thing to worry about. The quality of charity shops clothes have vastly improved over the past few years. You just have to be more proactive in hunting out the great finds to be had. I'm a real charity shop lover and now hardly buy anything new for myself also. I have no shame in admitting yesterday's ' gems ' - a pack of 5 (unopened ) M & S pants £12 ( £2.50 ) and a trilogy of books I've been hunting down, good condition, each book £7.99 on the back ,cost to moi 99p a book.

DS is dressed mostly in hand me downs. Huge amounts passed on from my nephews. I buy some things new. And when he has outgrown everything I pass all the non ruined clothes to my friend for her DS.

My DD hasn't benefited from hand me downs and I don't have time or desire to trawl eBay or gum tree or charity shops for her and she is now an age where she wants to choose her clothes. I'm fine with that. Her outgrown clothes are passed on to another friend, a friend's clothing charity or charity shop. I tried selling her clothes on Facebook and gumtree but people were rude and I couldn't spare the time to deal with it.

I have no problem with second hand or hand me downs. And don't judge anyone who uses them or buys new.

I prefer not to buy huge amounts of clothes because it is wasteful, but passing on appeased some of my envirobmebtal concerns. And i would rather clothes stay used.

I am buying/ being given everything for baby second hand, except for mattress which will be new (car seat from trusted NDN). I am on a limited budget as only get Maternity Allowance. DM has given me £1k to buy baby stuff and get a few jobs done around the house ready for babies arrival, I am confident it will cover everything needed for first year (including all cloth nappies).

The main problem I have with baby clothes at the moment, is the sheer quantity that is being offloaded onto me (for which I am very grateful). It helps that best friend has got 3 girls (I'm having a DD) and also a clothes shopping addicted wealthy DM!!! I keep looking at cute outfits and rompers that I like, but can't really justify buying, as they aren't needed (All I need up to 3 months is socks).

I am partly doing it for financial reasons, but mainly for environmental reasons, DH wouldn't have it any other way (he is very environmentally conscientious).

Ebay is amazing, with a little patience I can get pretty much exactly what I want in great condition, so I don't even feel like I'm compromising, and generally for less than half the original price (including P&P). I am grateful for everyone that does buy new, as it would be impossible otherwise :-)

orangealien I've answered that question three (ish?) times now. RTFT.

I used to buy everything new for my DD. Then I discovered Scandi brands (polarn e pyret, smafolk, papu, maxomorra, molo etc). They're very expensive new so I usually buy secondhand from selling sites. I only buy ones listed as good or excellent condition. A coat that's £90 new is around £20-30 secondhand and far superior to anything I've seen on the high street. The quality is lovely, they're beautifully designed, warm, soft, colourful and really comfortable.
Most tops and trousers are organic cotton or velour. I still buy some things new from next, M&S, boots, Debenhams etc but find they go out of shape/fade quickly. They often have itchy seams or are made of sweaty synthetic fabric.

I've had a few bad experiences buying secondhand (things with marks, smell or not washed) but most stuff seems almost new. I sell them on when she outgrows and get most of what I paid back. Much more cost effective and better for environment than buying new.

I don't think it's fair to judge people who only buy new though. There's something lovely about a brand new pristine item, that you've chosen from a wide range.

I'd never buy shoes secondhand as toddlers feet have soft bones. Shoes mold to the shape of the foot so a shoe worn by somebody else could cause foot problems later. Plus the hygiene issue as you can't wash them. I also buy underwear new as I wouldn't want to wear secondhand socks, vests or knickers!

I've looked in my local charity shops but everything seems really worn and poor quality, or grubby with scuffed cuffs and bobbles. I think charity shops vary a lot depending on area.

Second hand is great! I loved it when DS was small, partly because I could afford it, but also because it had all been well worn-in and was soft!

(And if you pass it on after you are done, either by reselling on ebay or at an NCT sale, or by just giving it to the next preg friend you know, you will make a lot of other mothers and babies very happy, too!)

You also help other mums by buying the clothes they sell. Some people do struggle financially. I have given away for free many stuff I intended to sell including clothes. I have bought so many second hand toys, high chair, playpen...saved so much. You never know whether baby will like something. Buying new can be an awful waist of money.

We buy second hand in this house. Always have. I don't think we particularly spend any less these days, but we do buy much better quality.
When DS was small it was definitely to save money though.

I do. We cloth nappy and she is a big toddler so I need clothes cut for cloth. I find second and third hand Frugi is affordable with lots of life in it.

The clothes are adorable, and I feel so incredibly virtuous not to buy new. I buy some new, but mostly used.

I grew up wearing hand me downs from older sisters that were originally from friends and family. Started grammar school totally in second hand and gradually bought new as I grew. I can still feel that pride of buying new clothes with my first ever (Saturday job) pay packet.
Nowadays I wouldn't dream of wearing second hand myself (I tend to buy cheap and cheerful from supermarkets) but I have accepted many bags of second hand clothing for my DDs even though we could afford to buy all new. I also buy good quality second hand from a local FB page, but wouldn't ever think about buying from a shop.

Working class people waste the most money on stuff for kids. They have a horror of second hand for some reason.

Ditto with inappropriate cars on hire plans.

And people wonder why consumer debt us out of control in the uk.

I buy a mixture of second hand and new stuff for my 5 month old DD. There is so much stuff on eBay which has hardly been worn or has never been worn. I’ve only been disappointed once with the condition of an item in 5 months. The new clothes I buy are a mixture of full price and sale.

No problem with it at all! I get a lot of 5yo DS's stuff on Facebook selling groups or eBay and when he was a baby I got plenty of stuff from a local nearly new clothing sale that happened monthly. I think I've only ever bought him one brand new coat tbh. This year's winter coat is Boden, in immaculate condition, off Facebook for less than half what it would be new. The charity shops near me don't ever seem to have much in the way of children's clothes but I definitely have no problem buying preloved in general. I do buy a mixture of new and second hand though - it's not always easy to get boy's trousers in decent condition.

I see absolutely no problem with this, me and my husband both have good jobs but save money where we can because we both appreciate the value of money/love a bargin. We were given loads of clothes for our LO and I go to nearly new sales/jumble sales too you get some really good stuff second hand. Nearly all of LO toys this Christmas will be second hand with a few new toys thrown in (she will only be 4 months old so does not know the difference anyway). As a child I was the youngest of three girls so nearly all my clothes were hand downs and most of our toys were second hand it didn't make any difference to me, my husband was he same he is the youngest of 4! You are just being sensible and saving money where you can. Plus they are in them for such a short time when small why spend loads of money on clothes they may only wear for a week or so!! rant over 😊

We still do it if we can, I'm encouraging my DD to check out charity shops for her fast fashion choices. I used to attend a second hand baby clothes equipment sale in the locality and there were always a few celebs buying for their kids too.

Buy second hand clothes all the time for my son. Sometimes I go to charity shops I have picked up some great bargains. I have designer second hand clothes that I would have never been able to afford if they were new.

I buy gorgeous second hand Boden! I'm actually a bit addicted. My kids are so well dressed (I wish I was!) and I really struggle to buy full priced items in shops now!
I'd rather spend my money on fun stuff like days out. Plus supermarket/Next/high street clothing is often so grown up.
YANBU... it's better for the environment too!

I always had hand me down clothes I had no issue with the exception of my first bra that didn't fit!
I was a tom boy and spent my life in the trees you don't need to be well dressed for that.
I do think it has been a good thing, I am no overtly conscious of fashion, have my own style and am relaxed about clothes

Ps second hand clothes are not a class or mopey issue. You can buy very cheap clothes these days, so it is a choice for most people these days

Mopey / money