Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Should I save my hand me downs for 5 years

35 replies

NicolaDunsire · 21/04/2021 08:54

My sister has had a baby, my DD is 5 years older. She’s asked me to save all their clothes to pass on to her baby. I was taken aback because saving clothes for 5 years just seems daft, I would rather pass them on to my neighbour’s child who is a year younger. My DD just has ordinary supermarket clothes, things from charity shops, clothes that have been handed down to her... I thought I could save anything particularly nice for my sister, but still pass on the bog standard stuff. I do have space to save bags of clothes I guess but I would rather have it out of my house when I’m done with it... am I being mean?

OP posts:
nimbuscloud · 21/04/2021 08:56

Give them to your sister now. Let her store them.

OuiOuiKitty · 21/04/2021 08:57

If your sister wants them just give them to her when your daughter is done with them.

ImaginaryCat · 21/04/2021 08:58

Yup storage not your problem, pass to her straight away. Although I agree it's a bit wasteful if they sit in storage for 5 years while another child in between the ages could make use of them.

Original poster
NicolaDunsire · 21/04/2021 08:58

We only see her about once a year, that’s why the storage bugs me!

OP posts:
Thehawki · 21/04/2021 08:58

Tell her you want rid of it but you can bag it up for her and she can take it if she wants it. Is there a reason it can’t be stored at hers?

Motherofmonsters · 21/04/2021 09:00

My sister's children are older, I take whatever she passed down and store it myself. My SIL is going to be taking my stuff shortly and they're not even trying for a baby just yet

Sirzy · 21/04/2021 09:02

I would tell her when you have done a sort out and let her decide if she wants to come and collect them within the next week otherwise pass them on elsewhere

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 21/04/2021 09:17

My first thought would be, have you got plenty of space to store them?

If not, let her store them, or pass to someone else.

I think of space first, since my dd is given masses of nice hand me downs (for future wear) that she just doesn’t have room for, so I keep a lot of them for her.

Storage space is a big consideration for many people.

BluePheasant · 21/04/2021 09:17

Just say sorry you haven't got the storage space unless she can collect stuff within the next couple of months. She's being quite cheeky.

Aprilshowersandhail · 21/04/2021 09:18

6 year gap between youngest dc here.. I have kept a few select items. Haven't kept the whole lot though!

Thefaceofboe · 21/04/2021 09:21

I would just save the nice pieces and cute outfits

JackieWeaverFever · 21/04/2021 09:21

Give her any hand me downs you are happy to give away as soon as your daughter is done with them.

Tell her and give her 1 month to collect.

Let her store them.

pepperaunt · 21/04/2021 09:25

My DSis (enormous loft) stored her kids clothes for us for us (flat) for 4 years. So grateful!

AfternoonToffee · 21/04/2021 09:27

There is 5/6 years between by youngest DD and my eldest DD and my neice. My sister does pass the old clothes onto me and I keep some of my eldest's. However dd2 has wildly different tastes in clothes, for example she will only wear leggings and has done so from being a toddler, so skirts, jeans etc she doesn't want. Fashion's change even in that short period.

I have just gone through a box for dd2 and she liked very little, maybe just keep hold of nightwear, basic tops, beachwear and then the odd jumper or so.

Pottedpalm · 21/04/2021 09:31

What have you been doing with the five years’ worth of clothes she has worn so far? Stored them?

JosephineBaker · 21/04/2021 09:34

It’s madness, you don’t have to store all that for her. If she wants it and your happy for her to have it, she can store it.

Cocomarine · 21/04/2021 09:37

How many clothes does you child have that the storage for one year would be an issue?!
I’d hand over once a year - but then, my sister and I are close (if physically nowhere near each other!)

Not close enough to store for 5 years though 😏

Original poster
NicolaDunsire · 21/04/2021 09:37

@Pottedpalm

What have you been doing with the five years’ worth of clothes she has worn so far? Stored them?
Got rid as she grew out of them as I knew we weren’t having any more! So my hand me down wardrobe for my niece only would begin age 5.

I think I just feel irritated by the faff - at the moment I just pop round with things next door in dribs & drabs as I notice they are outgrown, I don’t have a storage system for saving them in bundles - and it seems a lot of effort for very very ordinary clothes. And my sister can afford to buy clothes, I would feel more like there was a point to it if she were broke! But it isn’t a big deal really I guess.

OP posts:
autumnboys · 21/04/2021 09:40

I would keep one or two of the nicer bits and get ride of the rest. Given that she’s going to need to buy for the first five years as you have (very sensibly!) not been hanging onto clothes she may not be quite so enamoured of hand me downs. By the time mine were 5 a lot of their clothes weren’t really hand downable because they wore them for longer and they were rattier.

Hankunamatata · 21/04/2021 09:44

Send them to her.

Rainallnight · 21/04/2021 09:44

Five years is much two long! My niece is two years younger than DD and I barely keep anything for her.

She wants them, she can store them. And five year olds - as you’ll know - have Opinions about what they’ll wear, so your DD’s clothes might not work for her anyway.

Rainallnight · 21/04/2021 09:45

too 😬

MoreWater · 21/04/2021 09:45

Hi Sis. I'm sorting out DC's clothes at the weekend. I'll take some pictures and if there's anything you want, just transfer the money to me for postage and I will send them to you to keep. Don't worry though, anything you don't want I can pass to my friend so it won't be going to waste. Love Nicola x

Thatisnotwhatisaid · 21/04/2021 09:46

I’d tell her you don’t have the space to store all of her clothes for years so if she wants them, she’s welcome to store them at hers. I agree with you, also think it’s wasteful to leave them in storage for years when someone else could be wearing them.

TheLovleyChebbyMcGee · 21/04/2021 09:47

Yep, if she want them, she can store them. We get hand me downs from my SIL, very useful and we're grateful for them. Her child has just turned 6 and ours is 2.5, so not quite as long as your situation, but she gives them to us as soon as her DS has outgrown them, we store until needed.