06 March, 2007

Avoiding stress: buying clothes for children

Life is too short to spend time forcing difficult toddlers to try on clothes in shops. So very soon in my new "career" as a mother, I decided to buy the kids' clothes on-line. And I soon worked out that if you have a stock of stuff in your drawers ready for when they grow into them, then you avoid making quick, hasty and expensive rushes to shops. Also you avoid the whole "I don't like that, can I have this one" scene. My kids don't really know about shops but they do know about the drawer with all the new stuff. I buy a season ahead in the sales which means I can afford to put the children in mostly Boden.

Mini-Boden. A cliche amongst middle class parents. You see the stuff everywhere in Stoke Newington. But also children's clothes - not underage Lolita stuff - and lovely colours, also hard wearing. Charlotte is currently mostly kitted out in Emilia's Boden clothes and they are still going strong. Definitely worth buying online and watch out for the sales as the stuff shifts very fast.

Otherwise, I've used La Redoute occasionally but their deliveries can be very erratic. Also Next, Marks and Spencer and Adams for school uniform. But not for other stuff as the colours are hideous. And why is it that the British seem incapable of considering colours other than pink for girls, and blue for boys. Definitely worth looking at French clothes as they come in a much greater variety of colours.

When Emilia started school I had a tough time finding her uniform as she is very young for her year and also very skinny. No point in visiting shops as they often don't have stock. I had to find clothes with adjustable waistbands or all the skirts and trousers would have just fallen off. We test clothes in our house by having Emilia jump around until the clothes drop to her ankles. Adams turned out to be the saviours. M&S covered the shirts and jumpers and Next did the sportswear.

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