To think nice girls clothes are v. difficult to find?

[littlemissbumshine]

Or very very expensive for something that'll quickly get ruined/grown out of?

Admittedly I like old fashioned looking clothes, e.g. nice dresses perhaps with some embroidery and a pretty collar. Nothing over the top.

However, I'm not prepared to pay £80 for something so simple! Zara occasionally has some nice things, but generally high-street shops insist on stupid graphics, slogans and largely come in sickly shades of pink.

I'm genuinely considering buying some old patterns and sewing them myself

I agree OP. I prefer more traditional clothes for my two daughters, and usually buy from Jo Jo, Boden (when there's a sale on!) or John Lewis. Next used to do some lovely bits but not so much these days. M&Co were great for traditional style baby clothes, but I always found the older styles a bit hit and miss.

I have just ordered DD(4) lots of smock style tops and pretty skirts from Jo Jo, which are perfect for the weather at the moment. Both of mine used to live in dresses and tops with Peter Pan collars but once the children hit school age it's much harder to find these things without paying through the nose for them.

As an aside, many places aren't delivering at the moment - namely Next and M&Co. Good luck!

I sewed lots for my DD as a preschooler, I recommend this if you like traditional, woven clothes for children.

Yep, loads of stuff in Boden, Joules, Polarn o Pyret, Vertbaudet, M&S, John Lewis, Next and Gap for not much money. I have also found some nice stuff in Matalan. For girls look at Boden hotchpotch dresses- they are lovely for the summer. Also Boden and Joules stuff has a good second hand resale value if your child doesn’t destroy clothes! I get stuff off eBay too in non-corona times.

Bread and Jam is lovely. The dresses are spendy but they are fabulous and the design means they last for years.

Powell Craft have lots of lovely more traditional baby clothes. Can’t wait until my DD is big enough to wear their gorgeous nighties.

Jojo Maman Bebe have lots of "old fashioned" type dresses. On the expensive side but certainly not £80. They have good sales

I feel the same. I really struggle to find clothes I like dc. Assuming you mean for your children? I like more traditional clothes, not old fashioned but classic I guess. My daughter is 5 and some of the clothes I see around would not suit her.

I really like the baby and toddler range from
M&co but Dd is too big for it now. Their older range isn’t great. I like to shop in shop in Sainsburys for her. Some nice bits. Asda is rubbish. Quite like boots clothes. Verdbaudet is nice too but expensive and odd sizing on
Some things. It’s the same with shoes. I like more traditional shoes!

Try Bows and Bespoke. The dresses are lovely, handmade and reasonably priced

Totally agree. I really had to look around a lot of places to find nice things when my daughter was younger and once she was past 5-6 it got even harder. Sometimes Next, M and S, Trotters sale (they have absolutely beautiful ones but I couldn't afford full price there), and Debenhams had the kind of thing you want, that's how I always used to dress DD. Now Debenhams is about the only place I can get anything really nice and they're supposed to be going into administration

Totally agree. Most high street girls clothes are awful. That’s why I stared sewing my own for dd, it’s now a hobby I love. Not sure whether it’s really saved money in the long run with my fabric buying addiction but the clothes last several years. She’s still in dresses I made for her when she was two which are now blouses. Very satisfying.

A good option if you're on a budget is to buy the plainer things from cheaper stores and sew pretty buttons and ribbons on. My DSis has made some very nice things for me by doing that. She bought a supermarket t shirt and sewed ribbon rosebuds along the neckline and replaced the buttons on a Tesco baby cardigan with lovely little giraffe buttons

Check out Trotters. Lovely stuff!

I warn you, though, it only gets worse. Early teens have to exist in leggings & sweat shirts if you want to avoid the mini-hooker look!

If someone could recommend some with decent pockets that would be great.

Eddie & Bee do some beautiful dresses, as do lots of other handmade companies on instagram. It's worth having a look, they're pricier than high street but definitely worth it, especially if you adopt the motto of 'pay more but buy less'.

Try Etsy.

I've seen quite a few classic dresses around, even one in Morrison's the other day.
Boys clothes are much harder to find.

Oh dear. I appear to have accidentally ordered my daughter a couple of dresses from ILoveBreadandJam.

Cyrillus have some nice things but they are closed ATM during lockdown. Order one size up (French sizing is small) and look at sizing/measurements carefully.

If you’re willing to do a bit of filtering, I’ve found some gems on second hand/preloved sites like sweetpeapreloved and Loopster, as well as some specific brand groups on Facebook (e.g. Frugi, Boden, Little Bird etc. preloved). Keep seeing a lot from Dollywears too but not sure on quality.

To be honest I’ve relaxed my standards. DD is 21 months, goes through several outfits a day! Loves Peppa Pig and Unicorns. Refuses to wear anything frilly, or those stiff cotton dresses with collars.

I do have some lovely Joules outfits but she’s mostly in h and m dresses.

I was that person who bought silly frilly rompers when she was a newborn, she had reflux and lived in babygrows. Since then I love to find cute outfits but mostly just want her to feel comfortable and accepted that she likes the typical kids clothes. It all gets covered in mud (or wee since we are now potty training!).

Can't stop buying my daughters clothes 🙈
Think I may have a problem!

I get that the more old fashioned styles can be harder, I have one who suits old fashioned/classic and one very modern. For the old fashioned I would go M&S/Monsoon/JoJo.

There's loads around, hm, Zara, Debenhams, M and S, la redoute, next, matalan then the higher priced stores like drugs, Boden etc.

Nearly all the shops do some of what you are talking about. It not all casual stuff and tops with slogans.

Drugs= frugi

I’ve spent a fortune in JoJo and can recognise it a mile-off. Any baby or toddler group is full of it (and Boden) as are national trust properties. I’ve picked up nice bits from Sainsbury’s, John Lewis, m&s, monsoon and next. There is loads of choice for girls in the under 3 ranges including the supermarkets. I found it much harder once they outgrew the baby ranges.

Boys' clothes are a nightmare too.

Try Newbie, they are lovely quality and might be what you're looking for.
newbiestore.com/