What do you do with your dc's old clothes?

[ThePetiteMummy]

Just wondering what people do with their children's clothes as they outgrow them? Dd has just turned 2, and so far, I've kept every item. We're expecting dc2 in August, so I've just been going through her old clothes, to remind myself what we have. But I'm just overwhelmed with how much stuff there is! It's all in good condition, so I can't bring myself to throw anything away, and obviously I hope to reuse a fair amount for dc2 (we don't know the sex, but a lot of stuff, like vests, is unisex). But where will this end? Shall I continue to keep all her stuff? I've already got more than a chest of drawers full. Do people just keep selected items? It would certainly seem wasteful not to reuse at least some for dc2, and hopefully more dc in future. Also, what about shoes? Do you pass these down too, or is that not recommended? I know all this is rather trivial, but I'm just interested what others do.

I keep the 'special things' from when ds was a baby and give the rest away. I can store it all even if I wanted to, just seems a silly thing to take up so much space. Didn't even cross my mind to keep in case we had another one. I would probably want different stuff anyway. If you keep it all you will have more unused than used eventually taking up space.

I wouldn't pass shoes down though. Always new shoes.

I keep selected things, and give the rest away to friends with smaller children.

Like the others said. I have special things like the first thing he wore, or particularly cute things I couldn't bare to get rid of, everything else went to friends or charity shops.

I take them with me when I go on holiday and leave them for the lovely ladies who work as chambermaids. They always have kids.

Thanks all, looks like I'm a bit strange then! I thought that about the shoes, thanks Sparky. I'll start being more ruthless in future! At the moment, the stuff is all in a couple of chests of drawers in our spare room, but that's about to become dd's room, so there's an incentive to declutter. I do sort of want to get new stuff for dc2, but at the same time, I obviously don't want to spend unnecessarily. I suppose also the sizes & seasons won't necessarily be the same this time, even if we have another girl.

What a lovely idea Suberb!

Reused lots for DS2, then either passed on to my sister, or eBay.
I've also reused shoes - well, early walker/cruising type shoes - but amazingly DS2 has had the same size feet and they were hardly worn really, so I figured it was OK.

I'm keeping pretty much everything, and have bought some of those vacuum storage bags to keep it in until we have another baby. If we have a boy next time, it can go to the charity shop then.

I strongly suspect that there are certain items I'll keep even when I am planning no more babies. There are some clothes that I just love, and seeing how tiny they are makes me smile. (She's only 8 months now, but some of her too-small clothes are just teeny weeny.)

I have always kept things I know I would reuse for the next baby. Plus got rid of stuff to charity shops/friends that I know I wouldn't use again. So selective storing of stuff in the loft.

However, I now have had my last baby so as he is growing out of stuff, unless it is especially cute or special, I have been giving it away. Luckily for me a cousin of mine had a boy 12 months after DS2 so he gets most of it.

I kept all DS1 clothes and reused them for DS2. The season thing was a bit of a problem, one is a Spring baby and the other Autumn. But I got him some long sleeve vests to go under short sleeve tops. The coats are either a bit big or a bit small.We stick it all up in the loft.

I have found as DS1 gets older his clothes get tattier and I am not keeping as much. Most of his age 3 -4 trousers went to recycling.

As DS2 grows out of stuff I am passing it on to a friend.

As I have 2 DDs, by the time DD2 has finished with them, they can be in quite a state.

All the decent stuff I pass on to younger children (I know several that I am able to pass stuff on to).

If its not good enough to be passed on, then I put it out for cloth recycling.

Kept until I knew I had completed my family.Kept the 'going home from hospital outfits' and passed the rest on to family and charity shops.
Stuff past giving away is cut up for cleaning cloths.

Give DDs clothes to other people when she's finished with them. DSs clothes seem to get worn out more often; epecially trousers and so end up going in the clothes bank place at pre school. Have given some of his tops to charity as don't seem to know any suitably younger boys.

I kept everything until no more kids planned (unless it was trashed). I kept it in the loft in boxes marked by age, so I could dig out each box in turn as the new DC grew into the clothes (just to be clear, I only have 3DCs - this paragraph makes us sound like the Von Trapp family).

Once outgrown, they were handed down to friends, given to charity, or sold on eBay, depending on the condition.

Charity shops often re-cycle clothes which I think is a shame. Especially for lovely hardly worn clothes. I put an advert on Gumtree in the Free section. I always get loads of replies. Makes me feel good that the clothes are going to good use and to a family that need them.

Now I've had my last dc I pass them on to friends. I love getting a bag of clothes for ds.

[bushock] lac seriously? I thought I was donating so they could sell them and other people could get a bargain? feel stupid now

charity shops sell what they can, gets more income than the rag man pays. It's the cheaper quality & unsold stuff that goes to ragman (shoddy).

Mine go to quilting projects in addition to other possibilities included here.

i pass most of our stuff on to the local asylum seekers' drop-in session (after DD1 and DD2 have outgrown it). without putting too fine a point on it, these people are a lot less choosy than a charity shop.

i also pass on my DDs' old shoes to them, which i find a bit morally weird - my children's feet are too precious to wear second hand shoes, but yours aren't... but i can afford to be choosy, they can't, so essentially this is true. in my defence, i have started polishing my DDs' shoes now so they last a bit longer and are in better condition to pass on, so perhaps everyone wins [hopeful emoticon].

but i did keep everything from DD1 so DD2 could wear it, then was brutal about getting rid of it once DD2 had finished with it. and a lot of DD1's stuff wasn't new in the first place, and it may not have been new to its previous owner either...

waste not, want not is my motto.

I tried to sift through the months that they break the ages up to - put in attic in case of DD2, gave rest to chairty and FREECYLE!

Freecyle or freegle as it may now be known is brill, people will even take old clothes that cant be worn - they cut them up or use as rags whatever, you can just leave outside front door and arrange for someone to collect.

I gave away good stuff that didnt want and old stuff....whatever was easier.

i might recyle shoes too - if next child has v slim diff feet as well.

Kept all ds' stuff for dc2. Some of my favourites went in his box.

Dd is wearing some of ds' stuff.

Everything is now being kept for when my sister has a baby, then it goes to charity. All of it.

A lot got passed down to dc2 then 3 - as you say, vests and PJs and a lot of stuff is pretty unisex at that age. There was also a lot of handing down / adding and losing stuff between family and friends. People gave me stuff theirs had outgrown, anything that got too worn or stained was thrown out by me and I'd add new things to the bag that mine had had from new and the bag gets passed down to the next new baby. They grow so quickly in the first couple of years, things rarely wear out, and some stuff comes back round for your dc2.
Now, (dcs are 15, 13, and 10) I still pass down to people I know and still receive bags from people. I only seem to know small boys, so the girly stuff goes to charity shops.
Trainers / wellies / sandals / school pumps / wet shoes / walking boots / 'fashion' shoes (boots, pumps) I pass down, but school shoes are usually too worn out. I put them in the shoe banks, working on the principle that if you have no shoes, then scruffy ones are better than no shoes (?)

Glad I'm not the only one who has kept every single item just in case of another DC!

Thanks all! I was beginning to think I was being a bit pfb keeping everything, so thanks Pixie! I guess as they get older, & wear clothes for longer, they will wear out & not be worth keeping.

with four boys i pass stuff down to the next boy and have now given stuff to my sister who has just had a baby boy :)

with no 5, dd i have been giving stuff to friends but also selling some bits like boden, gap, m&s, anything nice etc. i also give loads to charity.

but i have kept some special bits that all 5 of them have worn and a few of dd's first outfits that are just lovely, i will put them in a memory box and am thinking that i may press and frame a little vest/babygrow that all 5 of them have worn, just to remind myself how little they all were :)

i tend to put stuff in bin bags and keep it in my room or the loft until i have time to go through it and give it to friends, sell or pass on to charity shops :)