Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Style and beauty

Looking for style advice? Chat all about it here. For the latest discounts on fashion and beauty, sign up for Mumsnet Moneysaver emails.

Original poster

S&B Wardrobe for a 2 year old?!!

29 replies

OhCobblers · 14/02/2011 22:31

DC2 will be 2 in a couple of months so all the lovely spring gear will be out in full force.
i have bought very few clothes for 2-3 years and wonder what wardrobe of clothing i should buy and how much for the next 9 months or so (will worry about Winter when it happens)?

I'm not good at buy LOTS of stuff - but do want clothes that survive heaps of washing.

Got a couple of summer party dresses already from Trotters in last year's sale Grin.

Any ideas? TIA.

OP posts:
PukeyMummy · 15/02/2011 08:48

Unfortunately H&M has gone 'Hello Kitty' crazy this year in their girls' toddler clothing. Hmm

But for basics (leggings, tops and t-shirts in various colours) I find H&M a good place to start. When I last bought from them, leggings were around £3.99 each. And their sizes are 2-4 years so you might get a bit more wear out of them.

You can then always stick a skirt or dress over the leggings to make it look more girly if needed.

As for quantity, I imagine you will be entering potty training territory soon, so you want leggings or pull-up trousers without buttons/zips. And lots of them! And forget the bodysuits with poppers. Probably worth buying (lots of) knickers too - cheap ones from Tesco because you will be throwing some away.

Denim shorts (Gap) are also good for a girl. In this weather you can add tights and in summer leave them off.

My DD is 2.6 and most of the time wants to get dressed by herself, so bear that in mind as well - lots of buttons and poppers are probably best avoided.

HTH and Happy Shopping!

PukeyMummy · 15/02/2011 10:21

Sorry, realise this isn't really a "S&B" answer, more practical than you probably wanted! But this is a tricky age to buy for, given the potty training/independence issues. And I have had to chuck away trousers as well as knickers, so anything too expensive really is a no-no.

One other thing, my DD is also now insisting on choosing her own outfits...so you may want to stick to coordinating colours. My DD comes up with some very bizarre combinations at the moment - am trying to teach her about "matching" colours, to no avail...

(Love Trotter's too BTW)

What colour palette do you like? Brights or pastels?

crazybutterflylady · 15/02/2011 10:24

I would recommend M&S - they seem to have really upped their game for toddlers lately and I find myself buying loads in there, especially as gifts. Although they also have a penchant for Hello Kitty Hmm

StarlightPrincess · 15/02/2011 10:34

Errmmm...could someone tell me what's wrong with Hello Kitty? Confused

crazybutterflylady · 15/02/2011 10:37

Ph, nothing SP, my niece loves it and I have bought her some stuff from H&M. It's just that it's everywhere and unless the kid is into HK, it sort of restricts the choice somewhat.

StarlightPrincess · 15/02/2011 10:43

Ahhh right, I see, I thought I might be an evil mummy for adorning my daughter in loads of Hello Kitty clothing! Grin

BurningBuntingFlipFlop · 15/02/2011 10:44

My dd is 21 months and in aged 2 now. I wad shopping yesterday and got a bit depressed because gap and h&m where I shop alot for her has beautiful things in the 0-18m section but because it then goes to 1-8y the stuff that fit her all seemed a bit "old" for her. I didn't have this with my ds boys are pretty much in the same stuff from 1-10 (jeans and tees)
Has anyone else found this?

StarlightPrincess · 15/02/2011 10:46

My DD is 23 months, and I love H&M for her I think their summer range this year is gorgeous. But that's just me!

crazybutterflylady · 15/02/2011 10:49

this is stunning in the flesh... doesn;t look like much on the site but is really pretty.

CeliaFate · 15/02/2011 10:51

Asda clothing is good for that age group. Not brilliant quality, but it won't be worn for long. I'm in two minds about shopping there as the clothes are SO cheap I feel guilty about exploiting third world workers Confused. Depends on your budget though.

CeliaFate · 15/02/2011 10:52

That butterfly dress from Gap is GORGEOUS!

StarlightPrincess · 15/02/2011 10:58

I get all my DC's pyjamas, socks and house clothes from Asda, it's fantastic value.

PukeyMummy · 15/02/2011 12:18

I did see a few things in the new Mothercare collection I liked for DD - they have a nice range of brights this season - but because they have the awkward cross-over ages for their clothes I couldn't find anything in the 2-3 size.

Hello Kitty is okay in moderation, I suppose, Hmm but my DD really isn't a girly-girl and it would look daft on her. I'm a bit wary of the commercialisation and try to steer clear of characters on clothing in general.

She also has very strong opinions on such things at the moment (this morning she didn't want to wear pink - that came from her, not me, she has lots of pink clothes as well as other colours).

CarolinaRua · 15/02/2011 12:28

Debenhams have good quality clothes that withstand a lot of washing.
Next can be good for basics

Jo Jo Maman Bebe have pretty summer dresses/tops

Obaibi have adorable french type outfits
Primark have really cute cardis and skinny jeans for very little
Zara have pretty things but dont expect them to last/
I would think you need the following to get you through spring summer

2 pairs jeans
2 pairs of coloured trousers - pedal pushers
6 t-shirts - 3 good quality, 3 cheap ones
3 pretty tops
3 cardis - one white, one navy, one colour
Raincoat
Spring coat
playsuit for beach, really warm weather
2 skirts that will match with tshirts/tops
1 pretty dress
2 harder wearing play dresses

StarlightPrincess · 15/02/2011 13:37

Jesus, I buy twice/three times that! Blush

I panic and think that they won't have enough clothes for some stupid reason. Or it could be that I just love to shop! I'm going to try to rein it in this year though because half the clothes I bought my DD she hardly wore!

PukeyMummy · 15/02/2011 13:44

I buy loads more than that too! DD's wardrobe is bursting at the seams!

DD goes to nursery 3 days a week and has to have a few changes of clothing in her bag anyway in case of accidents/food fallout. I guess I could get away with fewer clothes if she were with me all day getting 1:1 care. Not as if nursery staff on a 1:4 ratio can keep an eye on every child as they eat.

I do also think that you need more clothes during the potty-training phase anyway. No way we could get away with that few. I'd have to be doing laundry every day (and that ain't happening!).

StarlightPrincess · 15/02/2011 13:48

I'd have to be doing laundry every day (and that ain't happening!)

My washing machine has been broken since Wednesday and if it wasn't for the amount of clothes I have bought my DC's they'd have no clean clothes! So I'm glad I do really! Grin

CarolinaRua · 15/02/2011 15:21

Starlight and Pukey
TBH so do I but that would be a basis for a spring summer wardrobe.
For instance this winter my DD had 8 Shock knitted dresses! 3 of which I shrunk to oblivion.

vesela · 15/02/2011 21:25

When DD potty-trained it was February, and I think it was summertime before she was good at managing dresses/skirts. And no buttons.

Since then, though, she's worn dresses or skirts most of the time. Trousers always seem to be too long and then suddenly too short, whereas dresses take growth spurts more easily. The other thing is that a lot of dresses are much harder-wearing than T-shirts in that they don't show food stains half as much (unless they're made of T-shirt material, obviously).

vesela · 15/02/2011 21:34

The other good thing about dresses is that on days when you're not sure of the weather, they can take their leggings off if they get hot and still have a dress and socks on (or you can take leggings along in case it gets cold).

If she's likely to start potty-training soon, I'd say there isn't much point in buying jeans at all, unless they're completely elasticated waist. They also take ages to dry.

CrispyTheCrisp · 15/02/2011 21:40

My 2.5YO will only wear dresses whereas my friend's DD would only wear trousers, so watch out if you have an opinionated one!

I think skirts/dresses are much much easier for potty training

accessorizequeen · 15/02/2011 21:43

Dd is 2.4, I've got a couple of things but I mainly buy 2nd hand tbh. I love her in dresses (got a cute tshirt style one from H&M today) but they seem kind of impractical don't they? I have 3 boys inc her twin and just feel guilty putting her in a dress when they're all wearing jeans! Am I wrong? Was going to buy a few pairs of 3/4 trousers for her anyways. That butterfly dress is so lovely tho!

CrispyTheCrisp · 15/02/2011 22:07

Not at all really. mine have woolen dresses in winter and jersey type ones in the summer. all hardwearing and they can do anything in them

accessorizequeen · 15/02/2011 23:01

Ah, maybe I've not got the hang of girls yet then! A lot of the dresses I see seem not hardwearing at all. I liked the look of the JoJo striped jersey ones and I did get a bargain Katvig one last summer that will fit this.
H&M is full of HK isn't it? hadn't noticed so much before. I just tend not to buy characters for dd, I've had enough of Ben 10 etc and want to avoid the girly ones for as long as poss...I don't think H&M has a great range for toddler girls which is a pity as some of their stuff is colourful, good quality and cheap!

PukeyMummy · 16/02/2011 13:01

I also don't find dresses practical - DD can't pull tights down for going to the potty. But she can dress and undress herself if she's wearing leggings/trousers and a top.

She has a couple of nice dresses for special occasions but barely wears them. And when I ask her what she wants to wear she always goes for the leggings. Most of the girls at her nursery wear trousers/leggings most of the time. More practical for playing outside too, which they do at nursery in all weathers.