Another s/o: What constitutes expensive and/or name brand clothing?

[Wabi Sabi]

Many people in the modesty thread mentioned that they didn't want their children to desire expensive or name brand clothing. Since that thread already has so many tangents I thought I'd ask this separately as to not add yet another topic to that particular discussion.

 

So, what do you consider expensive or name brand? Where do you draw the line, if there is one at all, for your family? At what point do pricier articles of clothing go from being just a necessary expense to excessive?

[justamouse]

Brand Names = more than I can easily afford. :D

 

There's need, there's want, and there's gluttoney.

 

Needs met, blessed with some wants and let's not go there.

 

ALL of that depends on the gratitude of the child. If I see they expect things because they think that the world bows to their whims, then they get needs only. Gratitude is a cultivated virtue.

Edited July 18, 2011 by justamouse

[WishboneDawn]

I have NO idea. I'll talk to folks who say they got such-and-such a brand for a great price or scored such-and-such at the thrift store and I have no idea what they're talking about.

 

I suspect the brands who's price REALLY reflects their quality are priced out of my reach. I also tend to think that there are only a few very basic wardrobe staples are worth that kind of money because fashion and how something fits tend to change and often before you wear even a cheaper item out.

 

But right now I'm wearing worn out sweatpants and a "Canada" t-shirt I got for free from a cereal box offer so what do I know? :D

[Audrey]

I think expensive is entirely relative. You will find people on here who think Boden is inexpensive, some who think it is very pricey. There will be those who think Old Navy is inexpensive and those who will say that's still too much. You will even find people for whom thrift store prices are out of their budget.

 

As far as "brand names" go.... those are only important to me when I find them at thrift stores and they fit. :D That's exciting (especially the fitting me part) because I would never buy them otherwise. Generally, when shopping for clothes, I don't look at the name on the label. I look for quality (as much as I can afford), fit and style. I don't like the trend of labels "branding" me, either. For example, I covet a fine handbag, but I think the ones with the logos all over them are beyond tacky. If I could afford that bag, I surely wouldn't try to so hard to make sure everyone knew it. Same goes for my jeans, or t-shirts. I really don't care to be a brand's billboard.

[whitestavern]

A little OT, but I'm finding the older my kids get, the more money I have to spend to find good quality, classic styled clothing. When they were little I shopped mostly in consignment shops, but once my dd outgrew a size 8 or so, the clothing options went downhill. I don't find much of anything I like in big box stores (Walmart, etc.) or department stores (Macy's, Sears, etc.) So I'm "stuck" in a sense shopping at Lands End, LL Bean, Gap (selective here cause it can be trendy), Nordstrom type places. My dc are fairly clueless about fashion...dd tends to be more label conscious, but she really doesn't care where we shop for her. DS can be picky about clothes (what he likes/dislikes) but again, doesn't care where we shop for them. At this point they're pretty clueless about price too.

[Birdwinglips]

My kids have been hand me down/ thrift store/ clearance rack kids their entire lives. They LOVED the Goodwill back in our last state. They LOVE the base thrift store now. Maybe being homeschooled helps some because they know not, nor care not about name brands since their friends are all homeschoolers for the most part too, whose moms promote modesty and care not about name brands.

 

NOW that being said, oldest DD is 9 and does care about fashion. She likes to dress matchy matchy, likes cute hats, shoes, scarves, etc. But she doesn't care about brands or labels. She knows to look for sale tags, clearance racks, etc. She has also learned she can get more bang for the buck if she shops smart. She'd prefer to get 2 shirts for $2 and know she can get something else later, rather than a $20 shirt at Justice.

 

Another HS friend of ours in our last state actually had a husband who was very brand conscious. He did not like his kids in anything BUT name brands. She being a farm girl and budget minded would find name brands at the Goodwill to keep him happy and keep her from going broke.

 

I would say for littler kids Gymboree and Gap Kids and such would be 'label' brands but I know there are other brands that are crazy expensive.

 

Tweens love Justice whose tags look almost exactly like those at Kohl's. I think they are made by the same folks. All of which are flimsy and cheaply made.

 

Neighbor's girl loved Aeropostle, Abecrombie, North Face, and Hollister. Again I often found these at the Goodwill so couldn't imagine paying full price.

Edited July 18, 2011 by Birdwinglips

[Shelly in IL]

my son thinks they are so cool! WE just went today and got 2 clearance tees for him for $5 ea. Very affordable. Got him a pair of AE clearance shorts, also.

[joannqn]

When I was a kid my mom accused me of shopping by price tag...at JC Penny...and she was serious. I never even looked at the tags. Once I hit junior high, I really wanted to fit in with the Guess jeans, bag, and shoes and waited a year for the shoes. Usually, I didn't get what was in style until it was out of style.

 

My kids are almost completely unaware of style, name brands, etc. All of my kids like hand-me-downs, though we don't get them often (think 3-4 times in 11 years). My four year old loves to wear big brother's clothes.

 

My daughter is starting to hit the age of caring about fashion. I'm having to spend more money on her. It was really hard for me to buy her that $40 fashionable, lacy, knee-length sweater she wanted. I didn't see the point because it wasn't practical, but I also don't want her to stand out at youth group because of her clothing either, or to resent mom for not letting her have nice clothing.

 

Typically, I spend $4-5 a piece for toddlers/preschoolers. $5-$10 a piece for children. I mostly wear $10-$35 jeans (depending on how desperately I need a pair) and $10 solid color t-shirts. Anything above that feels expensive.

[Tarreymere]

For us, expensive clothes are clothes that cost more than I usually spend and are coveted only for the brand name or to impress someone. I will, however, if I have the money spend more on clothing like LLBean, because those clothing items are of a higher quality and a lot more durable than most brands. I also agree with the previous poster who said she didn't want to be a billboard for advertising products, so clothing or items that have the brand name in large or prominent lettering are out also. I don't want my kids to want to dress in certain brands of clothing so that they can be snobby to other kids who don't dress in those brands.

[jennynd]

my kids do wear "name brand" However. I got most my kids stuff on eBay. so they turn out cheaper than target/Kmart. and I sometimes sale them back on eBay and get most my money back.

[Dustybug]

Brand names aren't important to me. I don't spend inordinate time teaching my children to not desire "brand name" or expensive clothing BUT I do want to teach them to be thankful for what they have, to not be jealous of what someone else has and to be good stewards with their resources. Also, I want them to learn that their worth has nothing to do with what they wear. When I was young, we were dirt poor. I was lucky to get new (which translated hand me down) clothes every couple of years. I had a very small selection of clothes and was made fun of for not wearing the "right" brands.

 

We made a ton of sacrifices in order to afford me being at home and homeschooling, so this is an area where I spend as little money for as decent a quality as I can get. I do most of my shopping at thrift and consignment stores for all of us. You'd be surprised at the deals and even brands you can find, if that is what you are looking for. (My children own a ton of The Children's Place and Gymboree clothing and I have NEVER bought anything new from those stores. :)) For the things that I don't buy "used," I shop around for sales and clearance racks. I bought a $30 skirt with the tag still on it at Goodwill a few weeks back for $3. I won't just buy anything because it's cheap. It has to be good enough quality to not fall apart after three washes. If it is used, it has to not look like it's been worn a million times, have holes, etc. Sometimes I get more bang for my buck by consigning the (used/thrift store) clothes(as long as they are still in good shape) after my child outgrows them, and using the credits earned to get MORE clothes in the next size up!

[Ginevra]

I am not willing to buy brands in which being expensive *is* the point. If it's pricier, but it's well-constructed, classically styled and will last for ages, then I have no issue with brands. (Think L.L. Bean, Timberland, etc.) I personally would never buy a purse, or jeans, or shoes that cost hundreds of dollars just to say, "Oh, it's a Coach," or "See? Prada!" It makes no sense to me.

 

I remember one time my MIL gave me a hunk of cash as a gift and I determined that I was going to buy a fancy purse. I wandered around Nordstroms for an hour looking at purses. At some point, I came to my senses. I just have no interest in blowing a pile of dough on a purse. I am a really big fan of Vera Bradley bags, so I'm sure there are some who would put that in the same category as Coach or Prada. But I don't find them to be way too expensive and I use a particular bag for a year or more.

[RahRah]

To me it doesn't matter much if something is a brand-name or not, what I look for is quality and value for the price.

 

For the kids, I'll spend a lot sometimes in big chunks, like when Hartstrings Kids Outlet has a coupon mailer that offers 30% off the total purchase when you spend $400 or more. While that seems like a lot, the offer includes clearance and sale items, so when I do it (usually once a year), I'll buy clearance items for the next couple of seasons (if I can guess size approximately), buy some soon to wear items on sale and do some shopping for my kids, neice and nephew for Christmas and any babies I might need gifts for in the next six months or so.

 

I usually do it in the fall since the summer items are much easier to mis-guess a bit on than something like pants, where length matters!

 

My last purchase there (fall 2010) totaled $420, so I had $126 off, so that brought it down to $294.....which netted us:

 

8 pairs of pants for DS

4 sweaters for DS

4 turtlenecks for DS

1 buttondown for DS

2 swimsuits for DS

6 shorts for DS

8 summer polo-style shirts for DS

1 spring jacket for DS

1 sweater for nephew

1 pants for newphew

1 L/S button-down shirt for nephew

1 skirt for neice

1 sweater for neice

1 turtleneck for neice

1 socks for neice

1 headband for neice

3 winter baby outfits for baby-DS (I was expecting)

9 summer baby outfits for baby-DS

 

$294 divided by 51 items = $5.76 each

(I didn't count the headband or socks)

 

Considering their sweaters alone can go for $60+ when not on sale and no coupon, I thought I did pretty darn good! And for both DS and baby-DS, I didn't have to buy really anything this summer for clothes for them other than some onsies for the baby (I kept a lot of baby clothes from DS, which helped too)

Edited July 18, 2011 by RahRah

[Mom22ns]

My dd loves Aeropostle clothes right now. However, that doesn't mean she spends a lot of money. She only buys from the sale racks and usually gets them for between $2-$5 per item. She couldn't do better at Wal-Mart.

[Parrothead]

For me it depends on the brand and the quality. I only buy Levi's for dh and myself. Dd is just fine with the Penney's store brand. Our jeans will last several years because Levi is a better quality. Dd's will last a season because she is still growing.

 

I mostly buy my clothes at the higher end department stores because I find that what I buy lasts longer. If I buy a shirt at Walmart it fits and looks good before I wash it. Once it is washed it tends to be mis-happened an ill-fitting. So that ends up being $7-10 out the window. By adding (on sale, only on sale) $3-5 to the budget for a shirt, I get a shirt that lasts several years.

 

I don't go out looking to buy specifically Calvin Klein or Ralph Lauren only. No way am I paying $50 for a shirt. I've scored great deals on them though. I got a great pair of Ann Klein sandals last Sunday at Macy's for $34. They will last years as opposed to a pair of sandals from Walmart.

[WishboneDawn]

I mostly buy my clothes at the higher end department stores because I find that what I buy lasts longer. If I buy a shirt at Walmart it fits and looks good before I wash it. Once it is washed it tends to be mis-happened an ill-fitting. So that ends up being $7-10 out the window. By adding (on sale, only on sale) $3-5 to the budget for a shirt, I get a shirt that lasts several years.

 

 

That's a great point.

[Colleen in NS]

So, what do you consider expensive or name brand? Where do you draw the line, if there is one at all, for your family?

 

For us, expensive = non-thrift store/non-yard-sale/non-free. We buy socks, underwear, and the occasional leggings/tights at Wal-Mart, and that is it. Everything else comes from thrift stores or for free.

 

Although I will say that I have figured out that a few brand names are better made, so when I find them at thrift stores, I'm thrilled. As long as the logo isn't on them. I hate advertising on clothing. :lol: Just give me designs and colour and patterns and durability.

[Crimson Wife]

To me "brand name" = designer. I don't consider regular mall stores to be "brand name", even though they may be too expensive for my own personal budget (Gymboree, Banana Republic, Abercrombie & Fitch, etc.) Unless we're talking Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, or Nordstrom's, which do stock designer brands.

[UnsinkableKristen]

I am not willing to buy brands in which being expensive *is* the point. If it's pricier, but it's well-constructed, classically styled and will last for ages, then I have no issue with brands.

 

 

:iagree: I buy the kids clothing from stores that are cheaper because I know they will grow out of them before the clothing wears out. However, as DD gets older, this is becoming less true and I need to buy things for her that are of better quality so I don't have to purchase them as often.

 

For my husband and myself, we spend more money on the things we wear the most. I will happily pay upwards of $60 for a pair of jeans that fit well, look nice, and last through years of everyday wear. I will not pay $10 for a pair that fit poorly, look passable, and last a year. To me, it feels like wasted money.