When you buy clothing for TWO children...

[Allearia]

I have two boys, three years apart. I do hand things down but usually need to buy new pants and socks for my younger son. Also, he ends up getting new things like souvenir t-shirts, gifts from grandma, thrift store or other people giving us clothes so he gets a good amount of different clothes as well.

[cdrumm4448]

I had to vote other because I buy some new and more used clothing for both my kids. I have a boy and a girl so there is very little that could be handed down to the younger one, anyway.

 

I generally have to throw my son's clothing out due to the holes, stains,pilling, etc. He really uses things up.

[MissKNG]

I hand down as much as possible but my big girl was born in May and my small girl in November, so clothes don't always match up.

[kokotg]

I do get your point though, money can be spent in many better and more productive ways, you're absolutely right there. I don't know, maybe it's only my spoiled "only child" mentality (I was an only child, so maybe I'm unconsciously raising my children as if each of them was an only child and totally independent of the other one), but I still think a child is "entitled" to feel somewhat hurt if they feel their parents are trying to spare money on them when there's no economic reason to do that. Of course, that's not to say that each family doesn't have a full right to decide on their budget as they deem the best - they do.

 

I actually feel like there are a lot of reasons aside from budget why it's best to hand down clothes...I try to buy used and reuse stuff as much as possible in general for environmental reasons (and assorted other issues; child labor, et. al.). It's really important to me that my kids don't get the idea that using something that someone has used before is somehow automatically worse than using something brand new. Of course, there's also the issue of having clothing that fits one's individual tastes (WRT to the hand me down issue that is; but not WRT to new vs. used). So far, none of my kids could care less what they wear, so we haven't had any issues with hand-me-downs.

[Veritaserum]

I have five girls, so we definitely hand things down. I do, however, purchase at least some new clothes for each child due to different style preferences, different seasons/ages/sizes, and because I think each child can benefit from something that hasn't already been used by an older sibling. :)

[Desert Rat]

This one's a bit tough. I have 2 boys. I buy quality clothes for the oldest and the youngest gets lots of hand-me-downs. BUT, they both get their own undies, socks and jammies. I tend to buy fun tees for both. And lately, my oldest has been blowing out knees in jeans so I haven't had as many to hand down. For the most part though, my oldest is really gentle on clothes and I've been very lucky to have great neighbors who give me top of the line clothes their children have outgrown.

So I guess mine is a mix of buy new and reuse for #2.

[Matryoshka]

If I could amend the poll, I would add, ESPECIALLY IF you have two children of the same gender...

 

 

Heh... I've got 3 children of the same gender, all within 2 1/2 years in age. The oldest two are twins, and used to be the exact same size, but then one got bigger, and for a while they were stair-step. That was great...

 

For a long time, I got about 90% of their clothes hand-me-down from a friend with a dd 2 yrs older, then they got passed down to each dd in turn. Almost nothing new!

 

Now, my larger twin is larger than the friend's dd. :glare: She gets new stuff - but pants can't get passed down because the other two are slims - or extra-slims. I still get the hand-me-downs from the friend for the smaller two - fortunately she's a slim too! The smaller two share a lot these days - they're 2 1/2 years apart, but very close in size.

[sleepymommy]

I buy new or used for ds1 and hand down to ds2. I generally have only bought more higher end brands for ds1 so they will last long enough and still look good on ds2.

 

Because I hand down to ds2, I make sure to try as much as possible to get stains out of ds1's clothes and I line dry his clothes as well to reduce fading and shrinkage.

[KidsHappen]

Ok, I know you only asked for people with two children but I have five girls so I figure my input might help. I buy for each child according to their needs and I also pass down. So each child gets some new clothes, some hand-me downs, some from neighbors and friends, some from thrift stores and lord knows where all else but we end up with entirely too many clothes. And even though all of my girls are totally different sizes, they all miraculously wear many of the same size clothes so there is lots of swapping out and borrowing going on as well (which includes unauthorized borrowing from my closet).

[melissel]

...but I still think a child is "entitled" to feel somewhat hurt if they feel their parents are trying to spare money on them when there's no economic reason to do that.

 

I was an only child and had somewhat the same mentality, but it got me into $35k worth of credit card debt. A few years ago, my mom was in charge of organizing a charity rummage sale, and I gave her boxes and boxes of barely worn clothing (of my own), and I was sick over it :( There's almost always something better to spend money on than new clothes just for the heck of it, even if it's putting the money into savings for college or retirement, and this is what I try to teach my girls. Yes, if you need a new dress for an occasion or you have outgrown your shirts and there are no others to be had, of course new clothing must be purchased. But simply for the honor of possessing new clothes? No, not for us--especially not in these early years when every clean outfit ends up with mud on the knees and seat and food stains on the shirts!

 

I actually feel like there are a lot of reasons aside from budget why it's best to hand down clothes...I try to buy used and reuse stuff as much as possible in general for environmental reasons (and assorted other issues; child labor, et. al.). It's really important to me that my kids don't get the idea that using something that someone has used before is somehow automatically worse than using something brand new. Of course, there's also the issue of having clothing that fits one's individual tastes (WRT to the hand me down issue that is; but not WRT to new vs. used). So far, none of my kids could care less what they wear, so we haven't had any issues with hand-me-downs.

 

:iagree: with kokotg on these additional points as well.

 

And to BikeBookBread, I try to gather as much for my oldest as I can used (hand-me-downs from my BFF, eBay, Freecycle, or thrift, though our thrift stores here are pretty much a waste of time). What I cannot find in those ways, I'll ultimately buy new. DD7 is sensory sensitive, so I have to be cautious when I shop for her, and when I shop for new items, I generally buy with DD4 in mind as well because their birthdays are only four days apart and their stature and growth patterns have run very similarly. I just recently spent $100 at Gap for DD7, and while it hurt to do it, I know that our Gap clothing from previous years has held up incredibly well. Most items had already been through one girl before they got to us, then my oldest wore them, and now my youngest will wear them, and they still look like they were bought just a few months ago. Whenever I have to spend more than I want to accommodate DD7's sensory issues, I comfort myself with knowing that DD4 will get very good use out of the clothes, and then someone else (usually my SIL's niece) will get more use out of them after that.

 

HTH!

[Kidlit]

I have two girls right now (expecting a baby boy in June!), and the girls are 18 months apart. I always save what's in decent condition from dd1's wardrobe for dd2, but dd2 still gets new stuff. I can't help it. I feel guilty if I don't buy her at least a few things.

[sbgrace]

I have twin boys but one is a full size smaller than the other. He always gets his brother's hand me downs. I buy clothes that stand up to roughness well (some old navy particularly do well here and are cheap on sale to boot). My boys are very different in looks (blond/blue eyes w/light skin and brown hair/hazel eyes w/darker skin). So they look nicer in different colors (they could care, but I do care a little). For that reason I always buy their own "nice" clothes. So the smaller kiddo gets his brother's hand me downs for play clothes and he inherits his brother's nice clothes too. He gets his own nice clothes as well. Most of our clothes budget is play clothes though. They each have about four nice shirts and two or three pairs of dress pants (the pants are hand me downs). He gets his own underwear just because. Jammies rarely hold up long enough from one kid to the next so he usually starts out with his brothers but eventually he gets new jammies too.

 

FWIW, I've got two friends with older boys who pass down clothing to us. So smaller kiddo is often on the third wearing of clothes by the time he gets them. The right stuff seems to hold up well really. I pass the stuff down to my sister or friend from there if it's in good enough condition. Usually by that time it's things I've purchased though.

Edited April 14, 2010 by sbgrace

[Brigitte]

I have twin girls. One is bigger than the other, so I could hand clothes down. But, Twin A only wears dresses and Twin B only wears pants. Just my luck! :glare:

 

If they were different ages and had the same taste, I would definitely hand clothes down, but I would also make sure the younger got some new things.

[babysparkler]

I answered for my younger two. Since they are boys only 2 yrs apart, I buy new for the older and hand down to the younger.

 

I get hand-me-downs for my oldest (from my younger brothers) that get worn out by the time he is done with most of them, so I just keep the best for the younger two and toss the rest. My dd gets both h-m-d's and we fill in the gaps with new purchases.

[babysparkler]

I have twin girls. One is bigger than the other, so I could hand clothes down. But, Twin A only wears dresses and Twin B only wears pants. Just my luck! :glare:

 

 

 

LOL... sounds like my sister and I as kids.

[chiguirre]

Anything that survives ds1 gets passed on to ds2. I also buy ds2 t-shirts with his favorite topics (bugs, robots and construction equipment). Honestly, my dss couldn't care less what they wear.

 

Nothing gets passed on to dd. She's a clothes horse. I do shop a local consignment shop and ebay for her. She doesn't mind used clothing as long as it's pretty.

[mcconnellboys]

I buy new for number one and put aside most things to see if number two can/will wear them when he grows to that size. Sometimes it works out, sometimes not. They have totally different body types. So I get to re-use some things, and others just go on to Goodwill, eventually.....

[tatertotschool]

I have two girls that I buy for. I get their clothes at consignment sales and from friends. I rarely buy new, but when I do buy new, or used for that matter, it gets passed to the little sister. When I had Willa, she had a ton of girly clothes to wear from my older twins. When I did get new stuff for her- it was gender neutral stuff. I knew I wanted at least one more child and could pass it on. I'm not using it with my infant.

[Rosie_0801]

My mum actually bought more new clothes for my younger sister than she did for me, for most of our childhood. Nearly all of my clothes were hand-me downs, which then got passed to my sister. If she got invited to a party, though, she got new clothes whereas I had to make do. Not that it bothered me much. I knew why she did it and my sister has always been more materialistic like that.

 

Rosie

[Hockey Mom]

My boys wear the same size. So if one is outgrowing his clothes, it's a good bet that the other one is as well.

 

DS7 used to be slightly taller than DS6. But recently, DS6 has been the same exact height, and slightly heavier than DS7.

 

Not only do I buy them clothing at the same time, but I often buy them the same outfits as well. Not to be cute and match, but to avoid the fighting over who gets to wear which clothes.

[Laura Corin]

I buy new for Calvin, then pass down things that are suitable to Hobbes. Their colour preferences vary, so - as we are not strapped for cash - I don't force Hobbes to wear green and black, which Calvin wears all the time. So things like jeans, underwear and socks get passed on, but Hobbes gets new T-shirts and jackets.

 

Laura