To spend £600 every time my daughter goes up a clothes size?

[ivebeentotheyear3000]

Every time my daughter goes up a clothes size I end up spending about £600. DH thinks this is a ridiculous amount to spend but I don't really see how I could do it for much cheaper!? I buy from a variety of places but generally Asda, H&M, Tu, Matslan - nowhere really expensive.

Vests £10
Knickers £10
Socks £10
Tights £20
Jeans £30
Leggings £20
Shorts £20
Short sleeved tops £25
Long sleeved tops £25
Dresses £50
Fleece £15
Hoodie £15
Tracksuit £20
Winter coat £25
Summer waterproof £15
Pyjamas £40
Ballet uniform £75
School uniform £75
Trainers, shoes, wellies, sandals, slippers £100
Swimsuit £10

AIBU? How much do others spend and if less, how do you save money?

What age is she? You mention centiles which makes me wonder if she is still very little - if so, it slows down a lot as they get older. But shoes get more expensive if you buy good ones.

I have never bought a whole new wardrobe for DS - he is now 7 and I haven't needed to buy him a coat for years. He is still wearing the shirts and jumpers he started reception, but he is on his 73rd pair of trousers, because he destroys them. His slippers must be years old.

I spend much less than you, and I think you must be disposing of a lot of clothes that still fit and are in good condition? Maybe go through what you have and think what is really needed.

But otherwise your costs seem fairly realistic. Yes, you could get more second hand. You could also very easily spend more on shoes, coats and dresses if, like me, you get tempted by fancier brands (even in the sales).

OP, I've got better at understanding DS clothing needs as he's got older. I still spend a lot of money but I'm a lot cannier about what I buy. I buy stuff in sales and on eBay, buy winter coats out of season so they are reduced etc.

So big investments are a decent winter coat and boots - I spent £50 on a (reduced price) Didrikson last summer. We have got two winters out of it and it is still going strong. I buy basic plain pieces for everyday wear in a colour palette of grey, black, blue with a pop of occasional colour (say a red hoodie) so that everything can be worn with everything else.

I find that a lot of the school wear clothes are actually cheaper and better quality than the more fashionable pieces - eg next t-shirts, m&s unisex jogging bottoms so I buy these. i do buy the odd boden piece in sales or from eBay simply because the quality is so good. I buy much fewer items these days but make sure the quality can withstand lots of washing

I have no idea what I spend. My youngest is 4 sizes below my toddler and we kept all toddler's clothes so it's not a lot as we just get him a few bits so he has some clothes that are just his and not hand-me-downs.
For the toddler I tend to buy a few basics in advance, so we'll already have, say, a coat, few tops and trousers, vests, etc. for when he sizes up, and the rest is bought as and when it's needed. I do pick things up in the sale though, and sites like Vinted often have good quality new/very good condition clothes for next to nothing.

I don’t spend much on clothes but a new pair of jeans and a t-shirt would easily be £50 one month
But OP she shops mainly in cheap places. You can get a pair of jeans and a t-shirt fir about £15 there, a far cry from £50.

Personal I would never ever have spent £50 on these two items for my kids. I don't even for myself!

Coats last 2-3 years, pyjamas usually 2 years, dresses 2 years, shorts have lasted us 5 years. H and m do lovely summer dresses for £3 each. I only buy an occasion dress when an occasion arises, I got caught out buying wedding outfits for May 2020 that never got worn. Mine grow out of things in dribs and drabs, so I buy throughout the year.

Wow, that's a lot! Do you just have one child and only buy new?

Mine wear hand me downs from siblings and neighbours, and I also buy Preloved bundles. It's possible to get loads of great quality clothes cheaply. Buying new is expensive, and terrible environmentally. I only usually buy underwear and shoes new.

Looks like a lot of clothes and a lot of waste where you aren't getting enough wear out of them. Surely you replace items as they outgrow them not everything accordingly to the label.

If you want to buy everything at once, do it in the sales. Or at least when there is an offer like Sainsburys 25% off clothing.

Obviously the ballet uniform and school uniform are adding a big chunk. Do you buy school uniform from the branded supplier. We got it much cheaper by just buying a branded jumper and then cheap t-shirts and pinafores.

But if you can afford it, its not really a problem!

I can see why your husband is annoyed. That's an awful lot of money to spend every year.
I've never known anyone to buy every item a child could possibly need in one go like that.
If you're buying her summer dresses at the same time as her winter coat, how can you know they'll both fit before she grows again?
My little one is 8 months old and I don't think we've spent £600 on all of his clothes (from newborn up to 18-24 we've bought in advance), and obviously he's gone through an awful lot!! We buy most clothes 2nd hand on eBay, Facebook marketplace & at charity shops. We've had some beautiful clothes handed down to us. Some we'll buy new - mainly sale items that I buy throughout the year as I see them. Some we've bought full price if, like packs of sleepsuits, they're rarely on sale.

Things like coats and shoes you buy more than one of, and if they’re from different places your child will likely grow out of them at different times.

[quote apprenticewage]@Mostlyjustrunning so what exactly does your DS wear?? Is it all second hand, hand me downs? If so that's great...but say that because 38 quid is literally A JUMPER! It's impossible to cloth a child for 38 per year [/quote]
£38 was two pairs of school shorts, 4 polo shirts and a pack of boxers and socks. He wears hand me down everything! Some from siblings, some from friends. Christmas present from older siblings were things like cool trainers and a onesie.
He actually has far too many clothes believe it or not!

I never bought clothes for my children like that. All their clothes wouldn't become too small at the same time: much better to buy as needed, unless you see a huge bargain (winter coat in next size available in end-of-season sale, for example).

Why do you buy five coats? Do they need all of them? Also looking in charity shops for new or nearly new stuff saves loads. Mine used to wear top brands I'd bought for a couple of pounds. Also consider buying bigger...Mine is still wearing the winter coat I bought them five years ago. Check to see what fits rather than working by sizes. Leggings can be a bit long or short as can dresses.

When I say hand me down everything he doesn’t actually wear second hand pants!

[quote apprenticewage]@Mostlyjustrunning so what exactly does your DS wear?? Is it all second hand, hand me downs? If so that's great...but say that because 38 quid is literally A JUMPER! It's impossible to cloth a child for 38 per year [/quote]
You spend £38 on one jumper??

This reminds me of the mad thread where a poster bought a whole new wardrobe once her childs age was no longer the same as the clothes size

Buying a whole year's worth at once is a sure fire way to waste money, I'm with your DH on this. Surely you buy a size ahead in the seasonal sales and keep for 6 months rather than paying full price for everything as the same time

Anyone who spends £40 on pyjamas must have money to throw away so I don't really know why you're asking

BTW Mine is also 50th percentile for height and weight. If you buy things as you are you will find some things never get worn. Just buy things as they're needed or outgrown unless you see charity shop finds in the next size up or a sale bargain. Also look for clothes that are 4-5, 6-7 etc rather than 3-4, 5-6 as I found it a good way of getting two years out of things.

I’ve never really considered how much I spend when they go up a size but it may be similar. No ballet costumes but secondary school uniform is about £250 for everything. It’s crazy compared to primary school where most things can be bought cheap and generically.

Be honest- you like shopping.

There is no reason to replace an item until it doesn't fit. Spending £600 in one go is ridiculous unless you have an extremely high disposable income.

Anyone who spends £40 on pyjamas must have money to throw away so I don't really know why you're asking

I read that as £40 on Pjs, rather than on one pair Feasibly this could be 2 x summer pairs, 2 x winter pairs for £10 each? Not especially expensive, although pyjamas would usually last more than 1 year here.

I think it's a bit odd to buy it all at once. I bought the majority of my children's clothes from Boden and their school uniform and underwear from M&S, but I never spent £600 in one go. I tended to stock up during sales and often bought their Boden coats in the next size up so they wore them for two years. Boden tops often span 2 sizes too. Ive always tended to mainly buy online so it's not an onerous job to buy clothes when they need them or there's a good sale/offer. I stock up on their underwear when M&S has Sparks discount codes.

My Dc and I quite enjoy shopping for clothes.
So if we see something nice when we're out, we buy it to add to the wardrobe rather than to replace something already there. I always buy as big as possible to get plenty of wear. I pick up a lot second hand too.

Things only get removed when they are actually outgrown, so sometimes there are loads of clothes, other times it's a bit sparse.

I pack away winter clothes for the summer and vice versa. Then when we get them out again we have a big trying on session. Often lots of it still fits.

If you buy a bit big, things can last a long time, especially if they have short sleeves! My Dd2, aged 10, is still wearing a multipack of 6 t shirts from H&M in age 6-8 that I bought for dd1 when she was 5. We've had 9 years of continuous wear out of them .
I wouldn't expect most things to last that long, but I'd hope for at least a couple of seasons - if I didn't get that, I'd feel i was buying things too small to start off with.

This is mad!

Do you not plan ahead at all??!!

Whenever I'm in the supermarket I check out the child clothes sales racks. I get whatever I like that's the next size up. I buy the seasonal stuff the year before.

I almost never buy full price clothes.

I ask grandparents for things like coats and shoes and sports/ leisure clothes as birthday/ Christmas gifts.

If I'm walking past charity shops I go in and have a rummage.

I swap old clothes with friends.

I keep old clothes of older siblings.

What do you do with all the outgrown stuff? It can't be very worn - do you sell it?

Your dd must have a very large wardrobe!

But loads of stuff doesn't get grown out of anywhere near as quickly as once a year/age size. There's no way you need a whole new load of socks, for example, twice a year. Ditto vests, knickers, t shirts. etc. Even ballet uniform and school uniform. She shouldn't need new jumpers and cardigans in every single size on the way up, for instance, you just buy Age 5 and then she wears it until she's in about Age 7 or 8. So yes, it does seem wasteful to have a whole new wardrobe for every age.

I tend to go through the whole wardrobe twice a year (when getting out winter and summer stuff) and then have a little sort through maybe another twice or three times a year and get rid of what dc have outgrown as and when needed. Some stuff lasts for 3 or 4 years (e.g. loose fitting cardigans), some stuff only last one season (e.g. sleeved dresses).