Sentry Page Protection
Handling Hand-Me-Downs
Hannah was about six years old when she told us exactly how she felt about hand-me-downs. We were going through a huge, black garbage bag of clothing that a mum from school had handed to us that afternoon. "Jacqueline must really love me Mum" she said. "Because she's giving her favourite clothes to me." I was so proud of her. She didn't see any of the clothes as hand-me-downs or secondhand. She saw them as a gift of love and was thrilled to bits to possess them. And it turns out Jacqueline does love Hannah, a few years on and they are good friends.
Even as a teenager she still loves hand-me-downs and often prefers them to brand new, bought clothes. Pre-loved clothing is already broken in according to our kids. The jeans are soft and comfy, the jumpers are already worn in and the t-shirts are stretched just to just the right shape.
I'm not entirely sure when hand-me-downs become socially unacceptable. I know it's perfectly fine to dress a baby in hand-me-downs (all three of mine were dressed in hand-me-downs) and when it comes to dressing toddlers and pre-schoolers hand-me-downs are generally accepted gratefully (they were by me). So does society attach a stigma to hand-me-downs after children start school? Or perhaps it's when family income reaches a particular level? Whenever, the trend is slowly, slowly turning back. Have you seen the prices in op shops and trash-n-treasure markets these days? Pre-loved clothing has suddenly become extremely fashionable and is being recognised as a valuable commodity, something I've known for years.
We are often given boxes or bags of clothes for the kids (and sometimes us). Sometimes the whole lot is just what we need or are looking for, sometimes we only keep one or two things and pass the rest on to other families. Often the clothes are too big or for the wrong season and so they go into storage until they are needed.
This is where the clothing plan comes into play. For each child I have an index card that is updated twice a year. On the front are their current measurements - height, chest, waist, hip, arm length, inside leg, and shoe size and either navy, black or grey. That is the base colour for their clothes for the season. Everything has to either co-ordinate or mix-n-match with the base colour. I keep a copy of everyone's measurements on a Family Size Chart in my purse for easy reference when I'm out shopping. (Print Family Size Chart)
On the back of the card are 6 columns: shirts, trousers, jumpers, coats, shorts, pyjamas and shoes. This is the list of clothing required for the coming season. I put a tick in each column for the number of garments needed i.e. In Tom's shirt column there are 4 ticks, in the trouser column there are 2 ticks and in the jumper column there are 3 ticks. I will know at a glance that he needs 4 shirts, 2 pairs of trousers and 2 jumpers to round out his winter wardrobe. When I find each garment I'll cross off a tick. This way I never buy more than I need to (unless it's to put away in the attic - see below) for the kids.
In our attic (yes, we really do have one) there are rows of lidded boxes, with index cards stuck to the ends. Each box contains a particular item of clothing in a particular size. There is a box for boys jeans size 16, another for boys jeans size 87cm, one for boys windcheaters size 16, girls jeans size 12, another for size 14 and so on. There are boxes for t-shirts, school shirts, shorts, pyjamas, slippers, shoes, snow clothes, gloves, beanies and scarves and so on.
To keep things in order and save my sanity, each box has a laminated index card taped to the front of it. Written (in whiteboard marker so I can re-use them) on the index card on each box is a list of exactly what treasures it holds. For example on one of the jeans boxes the card reads:
Boys Jeans - size 16
Dark denim - 16
Black denim - 16
Lee light denim - 16
When I take something out of the box, I just rub out the corresponding note (that's why I use whiteboard marker - I can just rub it off with a fingertip if necessary). Then when something is added to the box, I quickly note it on the card. This way I can glance at the front of each box and know what's in it, saving a lot of time at the beginning of a new season. I can just climb up into the attic and do a quick "shop" through the boxes to re-stock the kids' wardrobes.
In our house hand-me-downs are pounced upon and fought over. They are jealously guarded and proudly worn. A bag of new clothes is so exciting, everything has to be tried on and modelled, all the while the kids are planning where garments can be worn and what they can be teamed with.
Even as a teenager she still loves hand-me-downs and often prefers them to brand new, bought clothes. Pre-loved clothing is already broken in according to our kids. The jeans are soft and comfy, the jumpers are already worn in and the t-shirts are stretched just to just the right shape.
I'm not entirely sure when hand-me-downs become socially unacceptable. I know it's perfectly fine to dress a baby in hand-me-downs (all three of mine were dressed in hand-me-downs) and when it comes to dressing toddlers and pre-schoolers hand-me-downs are generally accepted gratefully (they were by me). So does society attach a stigma to hand-me-downs after children start school? Or perhaps it's when family income reaches a particular level? Whenever, the trend is slowly, slowly turning back. Have you seen the prices in op shops and trash-n-treasure markets these days? Pre-loved clothing has suddenly become extremely fashionable and is being recognised as a valuable commodity, something I've known for years.
We are often given boxes or bags of clothes for the kids (and sometimes us). Sometimes the whole lot is just what we need or are looking for, sometimes we only keep one or two things and pass the rest on to other families. Often the clothes are too big or for the wrong season and so they go into storage until they are needed.
This is where the clothing plan comes into play. For each child I have an index card that is updated twice a year. On the front are their current measurements - height, chest, waist, hip, arm length, inside leg, and shoe size and either navy, black or grey. That is the base colour for their clothes for the season. Everything has to either co-ordinate or mix-n-match with the base colour. I keep a copy of everyone's measurements on a Family Size Chart in my purse for easy reference when I'm out shopping. (Print Family Size Chart)
On the back of the card are 6 columns: shirts, trousers, jumpers, coats, shorts, pyjamas and shoes. This is the list of clothing required for the coming season. I put a tick in each column for the number of garments needed i.e. In Tom's shirt column there are 4 ticks, in the trouser column there are 2 ticks and in the jumper column there are 3 ticks. I will know at a glance that he needs 4 shirts, 2 pairs of trousers and 2 jumpers to round out his winter wardrobe. When I find each garment I'll cross off a tick. This way I never buy more than I need to (unless it's to put away in the attic - see below) for the kids.
In our attic (yes, we really do have one) there are rows of lidded boxes, with index cards stuck to the ends. Each box contains a particular item of clothing in a particular size. There is a box for boys jeans size 16, another for boys jeans size 87cm, one for boys windcheaters size 16, girls jeans size 12, another for size 14 and so on. There are boxes for t-shirts, school shirts, shorts, pyjamas, slippers, shoes, snow clothes, gloves, beanies and scarves and so on.
To keep things in order and save my sanity, each box has a laminated index card taped to the front of it. Written (in whiteboard marker so I can re-use them) on the index card on each box is a list of exactly what treasures it holds. For example on one of the jeans boxes the card reads:
Boys Jeans - size 16
Dark denim - 16
Black denim - 16
Lee light denim - 16
When I take something out of the box, I just rub out the corresponding note (that's why I use whiteboard marker - I can just rub it off with a fingertip if necessary). Then when something is added to the box, I quickly note it on the card. This way I can glance at the front of each box and know what's in it, saving a lot of time at the beginning of a new season. I can just climb up into the attic and do a quick "shop" through the boxes to re-stock the kids' wardrobes.
In our house hand-me-downs are pounced upon and fought over. They are jealously guarded and proudly worn. A bag of new clothes is so exciting, everything has to be tried on and modelled, all the while the kids are planning where garments can be worn and what they can be teamed with.