Time to Clothe the Kids Again

May 14, 2008 By Tisha (Kulak) Tolar

With summer on the way, kids will no doubt be in need of a change of their whole wardrobe, especially those growing faster than a family budget can keep up with. There are ways to save money each season and still provide great clothes for your kids.

Don’t Snub the Thrift Stores

Younger kids are just plain tough of clothing but often grow out of clothes before they have a chance to cause real damage. Thrift stores are a great place to find jeans and denim shorts for really good prices. If you have never checked out the local thrift store, you would be surprised at the items for sale that still have the original tags. People often donate items when they clean out their closets so many things are still in great condition.

Check Out Resale Stores

There are often resale stores that specialize in children’s items and clothing. Items found at these stores usually are new or very close to new and are available for reasonable prices.

Ebay

Lots of parents turn to the internet to sell items year round instead of waiting for nice yard sale weather. Oftentimes there are sellers who sell clothing in lots by size and gender. For example, you could bid on a whole wardrobe of girl’s clothes size 6X. Most sellers post pictures and descriptions of the items.

Sears Kid Advantage

The retail giant Sears offers a special program called Kid Advantage that is free to consumers who purchase kids clothing. Kid Advantage allows you to replace torn or worn out clothing. The only condition is that you must replace it with the same size, same or similar brand, and same price. Remember to always keep your receipts in an easy-to-find location so that exchanges are simple.

Stick to the Basics

While marketing to kids is a huge and mostly unavoidable industry, you can save a whopping amount of money by skipping the Hannah Montana t-shirt aisle and buying basic t-shirts and shorts and more reasonable prices. Buy solid colors that can be mixed and matched with each other. Avoid patterns that are hard to match with everything else. Buy character clothing for special occasions or only when on clearance.

Buy More than One

When you find a good bargain on summer clothing that fits and looks great, buy more than one while you have the chance so you don’t regret it later. You may also consider buying the next size up for the next summer season.

Learn to Say No Without Guilt

Again, with the high impact of kid-friendly marketing, kids will beg and plead for the latest, “coolest” clothing. To sustain your budget, you have to stand firm with your decisions. But you can also consider some compromises. For instance, you can’t really afford to buy that Tinkerbelle sun dress but the Tinkerbelle socks may be more affordable.

Posted in budgeting, children, family, free stuff, lifestyle, money, online savings, parenting, personal finance perspectives, saving money

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