Boden newbie here. Their kids' ranges are fucking gorgeous!

[claudeekishi]

First time making a Boden purchase and I wanted EVERYTHING in the children's range! Got some lovely little bits for new DN and a navy Breton for myself (cos I'm original like that).

Boden has some good bits in with all the bad bits for sure, aibu?

No you're right, it has some great stuff, and I think the kids' ranges are the best and most consistent, and great quality. We have kids t-shirts that have lasted years and years, been handed down in our family then on to someone else still in good condition.

I don't get much from their because it's still expensive, but when I do a Boden order once or twice a year, I let the DC choose one thing each from the catalogue.

We all love to laugh at Boden but they do get some things right.

I've always loved the kids ranges, and usually buy something in the sales. Having tall boys, it's nice to buy clothes which are age appropriate, and not too teenager-ish at a young age.

Just bought some Boden jeans and a top for myself also.

(Boden sells well on ebay once your dcs have grown out of the clothing also)

Oh yes it's very expensive. But much nicer for baby/child gifts than other supermarket fare I think. There's 20% certain stuff at the mo and 10% off everything else. Still very dear though. I was at a wedding last year where the little flower girl was in a plain ivory/cream Boden dress and it was such a beautiful dress - very old-fashioned in good way.

I had my eye on a pair of leopard-print and red pointy slingbacks but they seem to have gone. :(

Some of the women's stuff is a bit unflattering and ageing though I think.

Aarrrggh there

Yes some things are nice.
The children's things are good.

I have to laugh at the catalogue when it comes though.
All those men dressed like grown up toddlers!

I think the children's range is good quality and as my daughter is 7 I don't want her wearing something that looks like it came from the little hooker range.
you can get some good deals in the sale there is a decent second hand market.

ebay is your friend claudeekishi. End-of-line boden stuff and resale in good condition often ends up there.

The Mini Boden stuff is, mostly, lovely. I find some of the appliqué t-shirts a bit over-jolly, but it all washes well, and can be passed on. We gets its of hand me downs, for which I am very grateful!

I find the cut of the adult stuff to be largely frumptastic, so even if I find something that I think I might like, it turns out to be a non-starter.

I find the trousers really long (DS is short, but they are longer than any other make), and I get a bit irritated by the "boys make noise, girls have fairy sleepovers" catalogue and ranges. One recent t-shirt set suggested that only girls paint, make stuff, or cook.

But I do stalk buy stuff from Ebay.

I've started buying from there more often for dd1 (7). Now she's at school, she's wearing a uniform most of the time, so we need less stuff, and I can spend a bit more. Plus she's growing less rapidly, so it's now worth buying stuff that lasts.

The 3yo however is still a muck magnet, and seems to grow out of her entire wardrobe three times each year, so we get tend to get cheaper stuff from sainsbos for her.

I love the children's wear. I have 2 dd's aged 7 and 4 and its fab for them, especially the 7yr old as she's now in older girl ranges most places and too grown up for her. DS2 is 12 this week ad progressed to the Johnnie B range, which again is good quality and better than being branded superdry or Hollister/abercrombi etc (although he does like jack wills as it often just says wills and that's his name)

I get the odd thing for myself, I like the leggings, shoes, scarves are good, and also plainer tops and dresses. I do like the printed wrap dresses though, fab for office wear, where I need to be smart but not suits etc.

I am disappointed that they have changed the sizing for the Baby Boden range, so it now only goes up to 2-3 years. I have a big almost 3 year old who needs size 3-4 but most of the prints in the boys' range are too old for him. I've started using Frugi instead because of this.

brightoncheery I find quite a few prints in the older children's range that are suitable in the 18-24 month or 2-3 year size for my DS (just 2) but you often have to look in the girls' range.

I have asked them to do unisex clothing and they say "ooh great idea" but nothing...

The boys' trousers are completely useless for this age (too tight over nappies) but the girls' leggings are sometimes OK.

Welcome to the Boden world OP. While you have to choose carefully what suits you, I find their quality and customer service fantastic.Nothing cheers my day like the arrival of a spotty bag (slight over exaggeration).

drspouse, that's a good idea about the girls' range but my DS2 is quite girly looking already so I think that people would assume that he was a girl if I did that! Luckily I have lots of hand me downs from DS1 from Boden Baby in age 3-4, so haven't tried trousers for that age from the very recent range.

Love boden, it really does last for ages. The shoes are really comfy too!

An order I made arrived today and it's lovely and the kids like it. Dd doesn't mind rainbows and cupcakes but I think it's a wee bit sexist that the boys get science andmusic themed tshirts but the girls get cutesy animals and glittery stuff.

Absolutely love Boden for DS7 - mainly the trousers/combat short type things. I always buy slightly big. It always lasts 2 years before he outgrows it. Then I give it to friends who get at least another 2-3 years out of it (or you could sell it on e-bay). Washes well. I used to like their cardigans - but they've got a bit too girly for me now - too many nips, tucks and pleats! I'd love to have a reason to buy the little girls clothes though - so very, very cute!

I don't care if people think DS is a girl - but I agree about the sexist logos

Oh the children's range is lovely, and it washes very well.

In the grown up ranges, I really rate their jeans, not too expensive, cut for an adult woman (not a teenager) and again, wash well/last. They do some crazy colours though, try not to be temped and stick to the plain ones, it's unlikely anyone over a size 6 and over 30 can carry off brightly patterned jeans.

I'm not sure about the sizing. DS is 6 mo and is wearing 12-18 Boden trousers. He's big, but I didn't think he was that big. High street/supermarket stuff he's just going into 9-12. However tshirts and dresses I've bought for my DNs have fit fine.

Hm, not great to hear about the stereotyping logos, down with that sort of thing! Still waiting on my package (am outside the uk so it takes longer). The customer service seems decent so far and they're down with their cool fonts in the marketing material :)

Take a look at Frugi as well. Slightly less stereotypical appliques and as good if not better quality than Boden. DD is 7 and her wardrobe is mainly Boden, Frugi with a bit of gap and m&s. dd2's is mainly dd1's hand me downs with a couple of new items thrown in.