Anonymous wrote:My son has a navy suit a pair of khaki pants from Burlington Coat factory (about $100), 2 dress shirts and 2 ties. This is all he needs for college events (he is in business school). Then he has about 4 pairs of jeans, 4 pair shorts, 10 t-shirts, 2 polo shirts, 4 sweatshirts, 2 sweaters, some workout synthetic shirts/shorts, sweatpants, a puffer jacket, a raincoat, 2 sneakers, 1 dress shoes, 1 pair sperry. This is all he really needs. He tells us when he needs something new due to growing out of it or it's worn out and we get it for him. We don't have an "allowance" but we do pay for his clothes when he asks.

It is impressive to me that you can itemize your child's wardrobe!

My son has a navy suit a pair of khaki pants from Burlington Coat factory (about $100), 2 dress shirts and 2 ties. This is all he needs for college events (he is in business school). Then he has about 4 pairs of jeans, 4 pair shorts, 10 t-shirts, 2 polo shirts, 4 sweatshirts, 2 sweaters, some workout synthetic shirts/shorts, sweatpants, a puffer jacket, a raincoat, 2 sneakers, 1 dress shoes, 1 pair sperry. This is all he really needs. He tells us when he needs something new due to growing out of it or it's worn out and we get it for him. We don't have an "allowance" but we do pay for his clothes when he asks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What would be a fair amount to give a freshman for clothes for the entire year?

New business casual clothes, dress loafers, boots and winter coat is easily over $1,000. That's not even taking into account everyday clothes. So $2,000 for the year?

Why would a freshman need business casual clothes? Doesn’t he already have a coat? If not, buy one. Like most people I just bought clothes I needed out of my part-time job earnings as I needed them. They don’t have room to store a lot of stuff.

Umm, class presentations, F500 meet & greets, recruiting & career fair, student org events, Greek life date parties, etc.

They can wear the same khakis and blue button down to each of those things.

The ^^PP makes a fair point. Business casual clothes are necessary. Plus we've found that there are a lot of formal wear activities as well as dress clothes for school events, dinners with parents (friends, roommates) or other events.

We also are trying keep an eye on the future. It seems prudent to help the kids build a base wardrobe so that when they graduate they have sufficient clothing, business casual and casual, so that they only need to focus on supplementing. For our boys that means we're buying nice trousers at Jos A Banks or Brooks Brothers or Nordstroms. And blazers, of course. For the girls that means a mix of skirts, trousers, blouses and sweaters. For both boys and girls, winter coats, trench coats, shoes and boots.

Sigh.
Do any of you realize that you are in the 1%? Please remember that these are NOT essentials. These are "nice to haves".
The rest of us cannot afford this for ourselves, let alone our kids. MOST children on campus will not have such a wardrobe. If your children's friends all have that stuff, it's a sign their circle is too restricted.
Please accept this fact and move forward in your life with a little more circumspection, otherwise you come off as very entitled and insensitive.

Anonymous wrote:What would be a fair amount to give a freshman for clothes for the entire year?

New business casual clothes, dress loafers, boots and winter coat is easily over $1,000. That's not even taking into account everyday clothes. So $2,000 for the year?

The budget so much depends on the price point that a family can afford. I think what's more relevant is a laundry list of what could be needed. In our case, most of the clothing was purchased before freshman orientation as part of getting ready for college. I started him out with a heavy coat and a light weight rain jacket and a few half zips. Still wearing same three years later. Besides business/dress clothes it's mostly been minor $$s since replacing the stuff that is outgrown like jeans and what's getting destroyed in the wash...button downs, underwear, socks. For business clothes he has a nice suit, wool blazer, slacks and shirts. We also purchased summer internship clothing in lightweight fabrics...blazer, white/blue shirts, ties but those have been used for two summers and good for a third. I invested in the nice business clothing so he wouldn't be perpetually wrinkled for interviews. The everyday summer stuff was preppy nice but not a keeper for life quality (although it's held up surprisingly well). In terms of budget, I didn't bother as he's not a shopper. In the infrequent times it's been necessary, he just tells us so we expect it on the credit card.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What would be a fair amount to give a freshman for clothes for the entire year?

New business casual clothes, dress loafers, boots and winter coat is easily over $1,000. That's not even taking into account everyday clothes. So $2,000 for the year?

Why would a freshman need business casual clothes? Doesn’t he already have a coat? If not, buy one. Like most people I just bought clothes I needed out of my part-time job earnings as I needed them. They don’t have room to store a lot of stuff.

Umm, class presentations, F500 meet & greets, recruiting & career fair, student org events, Greek life date parties, etc.

They can wear the same khakis and blue button down to each of those things.

The ^^PP makes a fair point. Business casual clothes are necessary. Plus we've found that there are a lot of formal wear activities as well as dress clothes for school events, dinners with parents (friends, roommates) or other events.

We also are trying keep an eye on the future. It seems prudent to help the kids build a base wardrobe so that when they graduate they have sufficient clothing, business casual and casual, so that they only need to focus on supplementing. For our boys that means we're buying nice trousers at Jos A Banks or Brooks Brothers or Nordstroms. And blazers, of course. For the girls that means a mix of skirts, trousers, blouses and sweaters. For both boys and girls, winter coats, trench coats, shoes and boots.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What would be a fair amount to give a freshman for clothes for the entire year?

New business casual clothes, dress loafers, boots and winter coat is easily over $1,000. That's not even taking into account everyday clothes. So $2,000 for the year?

Why would a freshman need business casual clothes? Doesn’t he already have a coat? If not, buy one. Like most people I just bought clothes I needed out of my part-time job earnings as I needed them. They don’t have room to store a lot of stuff.

Umm, class presentations, F500 meet & greets, recruiting & career fair, student org events, Greek life date parties, etc.

They can wear the same khakis and blue button down to each of those things.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What would be a fair amount to give a freshman for clothes for the entire year?

New business casual clothes, dress loafers, boots and winter coat is easily over $1,000. That's not even taking into account everyday clothes. So $2,000 for the year?

Why would a freshman need business casual clothes? Doesn’t he already have a coat? If not, buy one. Like most people I just bought clothes I needed out of my part-time job earnings as I needed them. They don’t have room to store a lot of stuff.

Umm, class presentations, F500 meet & greets, recruiting & career fair, student org events, Greek life date parties, etc.

Anonymous wrote:What would be a fair amount to give a freshman for clothes for the entire year?

New business casual clothes, dress loafers, boots and winter coat is easily over $1,000. That's not even taking into account everyday clothes. So $2,000 for the year?

Why would a freshman need business casual clothes? Doesn’t he already have a coat? If not, buy one. Like most people I just bought clothes I needed out of my part-time job earnings as I needed them. They don’t have room to store a lot of stuff.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We did contribute money to their business professional wardrobe, but not for wear-to-class and going out clothes. They had summer jobs for stuff like that.

If their winter coat was in bad shape I'm sure we'd contribute...but otherwise, why does a kid need new jeans/vests/etc. every 1-3 years? Seems very wasteful.

I need new jeans every year or so. Clothes don’t last long anymore.

OP, does he need new clothes? Probably. If he’s wearing clothes that are three years old that means they’re from 10th grade. Hasn’t he grown?

If he doesn’t have a job then yeah he might need money for them.

Are you buying your jeans for $12 at Forever 21..?

No, I usually wear Kut from the Kloth denim. But i have a somewhat physical job and wear jeans every day, like a college student probably does. They don’t get work out of you only wear them on weekends like many professionals.

What would be a fair amount to give a freshman for clothes for the entire year?

New business casual clothes, dress loafers, boots and winter coat is easily over $1,000. That's not even taking into account everyday clothes. So $2,000 for the year?

Anonymous wrote:If they put on weight or get taller, they are going to need new clothes.

+1 especially with boys the growth can continue through college. I have the kids from another thread that seems to only wear free give away T-shirts daily. However there is a need to replace pants and button downs. Plus clothing appropriate for interviews and faculty events is very important. No matter who is paying, there are legitimate expenses that arise. New clothing needs does not all fall into the "spoiled kid" category. IMO this is even more true at the elite schools where networking is one of the advantages. Luckily most days the kids are truly sweat clothes casual but some social events have dress codes.

Anonymous wrote:I went to college with no one I knew, so all of my clothes were “new”.

ha! this was funny. thanks, PP

Yes, from the wages of their part-time job.

If they put on weight or get taller, they are going to need new clothes.

If you can't afford it, you can't afford it, OP. If you can, yes, give your kid a clothing allowance. I think of clothing as an investment in their future, just as I think the same about test prep.