I shop ahead / up 1-2 sizes at specific annual rummage sales and thrift stores that I’ve predetermined to be excellent for kids clothes. I store the size-up (or 2 sizes up) clothes in bins organized by size and season.

Then, I go through current clothes systematically with the change in season twice a year at least (spring to summer, fall to winter at least) and pull stuff out that’s too small. At the same time I pull out the next seasons stuff (summer shorts and swimsuits) in the right size. A good activity to keep busy during listen-in work calls.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm surprised none of you who keep next size up bins have yet experienced that fun moment where your kid skips a size.

I stopped buying in advance after the first time that happened with my oldest.

Mine are 6 and 8 and this has never happened. Is it more common near puberty? We have skipped shoe sizes but not clothes.

PP here. I think the first time DD skipped a size was size 8, probably when she was ending 2nd grade? And she's done it since then (now 12).

Anonymous wrote:I'm surprised none of you who keep next size up bins have yet experienced that fun moment where your kid skips a size.

I stopped buying in advance after the first time that happened with my oldest.

Mine are 6 and 8 and this has never happened. Is it more common near puberty? We have skipped shoe sizes but not clothes.

I have a plastic bin (not super huge) in the closet where I put clothes that are "in purgatory". I also keep a bag "for donation to immediately put things in good condition that we are done with.

In purgatory means they are most likely too small, but might come in useful so I don't get rid of it until a new item is available. It could also mean I *think* it's going to be too small for next that season next time, but I'm not sure, so I'll save it until the start of next year to be sure before shopping.

Then, at the start of the season (coming up: fall) I'll have them try on the pants from last year that I tucked away. I've already culled the obviously way too small and the things with stains or holes. So I'm left with some favorites that might fit, or might not. We try those on. If they fit, great. If they are on the edge of not fitting, we wear those while we find some new things to replace them. Then once the old things are definitely too small, we already have made some purchases.

But yes, it's a constant thing. I also occasionally weed out items that have been languishing in a drawer. So if they have a ton of t-shirts and there are 5 they aren't wearing, I take those out the drawer, even if they still fit. They sit in the puragtory bin in the closet until the kid is ready to part with it officially or I haven't noticed them ask for it.

I'm surprised none of you who keep next size up bins have yet experienced that fun moment where your kid skips a size.

I stopped buying in advance after the first time that happened with my oldest.

Anonymous wrote:I don’t buy clothes for “back to school” because my kids don’t wear pants regularly until October and having pants long enough is the main challenge for my elementary boys.

When it’s almost pants time, I find a pair of pants that fits each kid and I measure them. I pick a Saturday or Sunday afternoon and pull all the pants out for one kid and measure them and toss anything ripped, stained, or too short. I usually do the taller kid first so any hand me downs can be considered.

Other than a twice annual count of shorts and pants, I just buy things as needed for sports, special events, band concert, vacation. My kids seem to acquire so many t-shirts from their school and activities that I rarely buy shirts except for family photos / picture day.

Like others I keep a bin or two of off season or hand me downs to grow into. I have my kids “shop” from the bins before I actually shop. I make an album of pics from websites and let my kids choose from my pre-selected options. I’ve offered to take them to Target or the mall but they have not wanted to yet.

I don’t buy clothes for “back to school” because my kids don’t wear pants regularly until October and having pants long enough is the main challenge for my elementary boys.

When it’s almost pants time, I find a pair of pants that fits each kid and I measure them. I pick a Saturday or Sunday afternoon and pull all the pants out for one kid and measure them and toss anything ripped, stained, or too short. I usually do the taller kid first so any hand me downs can be considered.

Other than a twice annual count of shorts and pants, I just buy things as needed for sports, special events, band concert, vacation. My kids seem to acquire so many t-shirts from their school and activities that I rarely buy shirts except for family photos / picture day.

We have twins and when our kids were in pre-school and ES, we would do the majority of our shopping for them at the multiples club consignment sale. Our club has two sales, on that is Fall/Winter (usually around September) and one that is Spring/Summer (usually around March). I consigned. We would buy the majority of our stuff for each season from the consignment sale with a few trips to Once Upon a Child and then augment from Target/Walmart. Rarely spent a lot of money on clothes that were only worn a few times before they were outgrown. And in preschool and ES, they were growing pretty constantly, so changing sizes on a pretty routine basis. As we cycled through stuff, it went into the next year's consignment sale. We did pretty well. I had one mother who had twins about 2 years younger than ours and she said she always looked for my seller number because I took good care of the clothes and she said she trusted me to have them in nice condition to sell. That was nice to hear.

Now the kids are in middle school and wear clothes much longer, so we skipped last year, but now I have a ton of clothes for the next two sales. It's amazing how fast it builds up if you skip a sale. I often think it would be easier to just donate it, but the club has been so good for us over the years and the consignment sales are their biggest fundraisers for keeping the club afloat and they get a percentage of every sale. So I go through the work to sell, so that it helps the club, but it is a lot of work.

I have a bunch of 70 quart plastic containers. Each one is labeled with a size. Each kid’s current and the next size are stored in the closet in their bedroom. Every time the season changes, I swap out shorts and sweaters or whatever. We try on whatever is being swapped in, and if it’s too small we go to the next size up. Any containers that aren’t a current or next size live in the attic. I mostly shop Old Navy and Target sales for new clothes, but we get a lot of hand me downs. I don’t have time for thrifting and consignment, I’d rather pay a little more and get it sent to my house.

Buy twice a year - spring/summer and fall/winter. Bag for outgrown clothes.

End of season sales in the next size up— those go with the too big hand me downs in the basement.

When the summer clothes get put away in the fall everything that no longer fits gets handed down. When I’m really organized I coordinate with my sister to do my closets when she does her daughters, and tell my hand me down recipients when I’m doing the closets so they make space in theirs at the same time. Too-big hand me downs go in the too-big bin and get reviewed next season.

My kids don't have a ton of clothes - so they can keep their winter and summer items together.
Certain things I'll buy on sale at the end of the season - I'll buy a bunch of leggings.

I used to buy all of my kids clothes at swap.com when they there little, but as they got older, it got harder to find used clothes online. I do go to our local thrift store to find random things to add. We do a lot of ON and Target too.

Under armour has great sales for teachers/first responders, so most of our kids clothes are from there.

Anonymous wrote:I have two plastic bins in the closet - one giant one for things that are too big - stuff i bought on sale, or gifted/hand me downs, and one smaller plastic bin that i put things into when they are too small - when it's filled up i pass it on in the neighborhood.

Similar system. Three bins…too big, too small, out of season.

I have two plastic bins in the closet - one giant one for things that are too big - stuff i bought on sale, or gifted/hand me downs, and one smaller plastic bin that i put things into when they are too small - when it's filled up i pass it on in the neighborhood.

Anonymous wrote:We have an old house and small closets, dressers. The kids only have spring/summer clothes or fall/winter clothes in them- but not at same time. So when the seasons get ready to change I check last years stash in storage and see how many items they have and I eyeball to see if I think it will fit. Then I buy all the new and do the switch out. Old season stuff gets checked through for holes and stains and discarded, donated, or stored for next yr. Then I put the new stuff in their dresser plus lasts years stash for that season. I do this times 3 kids. It’s time consuming and the only part I like is the buying and throwing old stufd away

Same here. My 3 kids are same gender and we've ridden the hand-me-down train for a very long time. Middle is just approaching the tween years and it's going to end at some point, but it hasn't yet. Because I'm handing down twice, I don't tend to worry as much about buying from consignment or thrift, because often that won't last for all my kids.