Kids Hand-me-down Challenge

This is what I got at recent trip to the Children's Orchard. The total came to $7, but I had a gift card so I technically didn't pay anything.

I have a small confession to make: I bought 2 pairs of girls shorts at Target. I know one of my rules was NOT to buy anything new, but I couldn't find shorts at any resale shops under $5. Target was having a sale on shorts for only $3 each. I figured in a case like this it was okay.

Now I have gone threw all my kids clothes and I'm happy to say that I am pretty much done shopping for spring/summer clothing. Right now until my kids have a growth spurt, there is nothing they need. If they do grow I may need a pair or two of PJ's, my son a pair of sandals, and my daughter a bathing suit by the end of the summer, but, again we'll wait and see.

Ready for the grand total? I've added up everything I've spent on clothing and my out of pocket expense to clothe 2 children for two seasons was $49.50! That's it! That's only $24.75 per kid! Or to look at it a different way it's $12.37 per kid, per season! Awesome!

I did more shopping....

I hit 2 children's resale shops and a rummage sale this weekend. I'm happy that I purchased more clothes for my kids. This is what I got:

• 2 boys T-shirts (one of them is Old Navy, the other is Gymboree)
• 2 girls tops (one is Old Navy and the other is Baby Gap)
• and a cute girls outfit (I've never heard of this brand)

My grand total for all this: $13.50 (that's only about $2.70 an item) I think I got some good deals! I wish it was this easy for me to buy clothes for myself.

Hand-me-downs

I had some time to go threw the clothes that were given to me a few months ago. I’m very happy with what I have for my daughter, I don’t have much more to buy for her. My son on the other hand, well, I have some shopping to do. This is what I have:

Plenty of shorts, need to start matching tops :)

A couple of outfits, dresses, and sandals :)

Not going to get threw the summer with just this :( I'll have to do some bargain shopping :)

Don’t be afraid to ask friends and family for their kids outgrown clothes. You can even offer to pay them to take the clothes off their hands or give the clothes back when your child is done with them. This is also a great way to reduce, reuse, and recycle!

Shopping trip to Children's Orchard

I went to the Children’s Orchard to buy some clothes for this upcoming summer (and to get a gift card for half my purchase back) I was very pleased with what I got. All of it looks like it’s brand new from the store. I ended up spending $30 dollars, but I got a $15 dollar gift card to use towards my future purchases. This is what I got:

• 2 girls longs sleeve tops for next winter ($1 dollar each)
• 2 boys long sleeve tops for next winter ($1 dollar each)
• 2 boys t-shirts for this summer (one $3 dollars, other $4 dollars)
• A baby gap girls top for this summer ($4 dollars)
• A carter’s dress for this summer ($4 dollars)
• Girls pj’s for this summer ($3 dollars)
• And a gymboree girls outfit for this summer ($8 dollars)

I normally wouldn’t spend $8 dollars on a single outfit, but I thought it was super cute, and I was getting a gift card, so I didn’t mind that much. Later that day, a got a pleasant surprise. My mother-in-law went to the Children’s Orchard to buy clothes to keep at her house for my kids and she got a gift card for $13 dollars, which she gave to me. Now I have $28 dollars worth of gift cards to spend at the Children’s Orchard. I really feel like I only spent $2 dollars today. Like I said, I’m VERY pleased.

Children's Orchard Sale

The Children's Orchard has to be one of my favorite children's resale shops. It's a nation wide chain and you can check here :http://www.childrensorchard.com/ to see if you have one in your neck of the woods.

Every so often Children's Orchard has one of my favorite sale, and from March 14-27 they are having this sale again. If you spend at least $25 dollars they will give you back half of your purchase price in the form of a gift card to use at a later date. So if you spend $30 dollars, you'll get a $15 dollar gift card.

I think this sale is awesome, because you can practically buy your child's entire seasons wardrobe for $25 bucks. I'll be making my list of what my kids need for the upcoming spring/summer season, and hitting this store this weekend. Can't wait!

Tips for Kids hand-me-down challenge

Buying every article of clothing second hand for an entire year may sound a bit tricky. I was wondering of all the different places where I will be getting all these clothes and this is what I came up with.
~Hand me downs. If you know a few people that have kids older than yours ask them if they wouldn’t mind giving you their kids out grown clothes.
~ebay. Stay away from the top auctions that have “70+ name brand items”. They tend not to be to much of a bargain. Best bet is to find auctions that will be ending soon that are being sold by a single person instead of an ebay store.
~craigslist.org. There are usually people trying to sell their kids old clothes.
~Freecycle. Best thing about this website is people are giving the clothes away for free.
~Resale shops. This includes stores like The Salvation Army. There are a ton of kids resale shops in my area that I will be visiting.
~Yard sales. Items usually go for around $1 an item. If not, you can always try to talk the seller down.

Kid's clothing challenge

I'm giving myself a challenge when it comes to buying clothes for my 2 kids. I vow to NOT buy and new clothes for my kids for the next year. I am doing this for two main reasons, 1) Buying clothes at resale shops (or yard sales) is a lot cheaper than buying them new in the store, and 2) I do try to live my life green the best I can and I'm sure this falls into the "reduce, reuse, recycle" motto.

I think I'll call it Kids hand-me-down challenge

I've always picked up a few things here and there at resale shops, but now I will buy everything there. The only thing I will buy new will be footwear and underwear, because I'm picky about those things. I was fortunate this winter to have my mother spoil my kids with clothes for Christmas. I swear she bought them enough outfits to last two weeks without having to do a single load of laundry. But spring is coming, and my little ones have been growing. I will be posting what I buy and how much I spend once I start shopping.