Anonymous wrote:Oh good lord.

OP, I recommend you say something like, "Thank you for noticing what brand of clothing my DC is wearing! I'm totally obsessed with what others think, so let me assure you, since I infer you are judging me and/or esteeming my taste and/or estimating my discretionary income, that these items were purchased on sale. I am both financially responsible and compelled to dress my children fashionably, which I hope this short and probably unwelcome explanation has made clear."

"And you can read more about it on DCUM"

Anonymous wrote:My boys are last in a very long line of nephews, grandsons, etc. They have more clothes than I know what to do with due to all the fabulous hand-me downs (some like brand new) and the things I get on occasion. The things that were kept for them were all the fantastic things--lacoste, polo, burberry toggle coats, special things bought in europe, navy blazers, oxfords, etc. They could literally wipe their a**ses everyday with an outfit and we still wouldn't run out.

Do you know what they spend the majority of their time in (4 and 6.5)? It's gap outlet, target and children's place t-shirts(star wars, mcqueen, etc). The little one wears the 2 for $10 sweat shorts from children's place everyday since he is at a very active play-based preschool where they get filthy and it is easy for him to pull them up and down.

NOW---IF it Holidays, traveling, visiting friends we haven't seen, etc....we pull out the good stuff and they look fantastic. Day-to-day basis---they can be comfortable and creative. I draw the line at sweatpants or athletic shorts for elem. school--but I have gone lax on letting them wear nicer graphic t-shirts (non-cheesy).

These are the best!!

I don't see why they could not get dirty in the expensive clothes? Most of it washes pretty well.

I feel this way because DS has some very nice expensive hand me downs from his cousins that he pretty much stained beyond repair after 2-3 wearings. Again, maybe he's just especially messy.

My MIL is like this (can't visualize how to decorate a room). She just spent a lot of $$ on all new furniture (the whole matched set, of course) and it's all oversized and super-plus, and looks silly in her living room. I am like, "Why did you just spend all this money on furniture which is too big for your room and why is it the whole entire set; why did you not mix it up a little?"

Anonymous wrote:

But when it comes to children's clothing, $20 is all of a sudden a fortune?? I have HHI of about 200k and I can definitively afford an occasional, say, Burberry, for my child. I just don't get it.

I could afford some high end clothers for my kid, but my personal opinion is that high end clothes for kids are a complete waste of money. I feel that kids should be having fun and getting dirty, not worrying about their clothes. Maybe my kid is just a slob, but his clothes are always getting paint, dirt, food etc. on them. If someone else wants to spend their money on that, fine, it just doesn't seem like a good idea to me, just as organic apples may not seem like a good use of money to someone else. To each their own.

I agree with you but I don't see why they could not get dirty in the expensive clothes? Most of it washes pretty well.

Don't worry, folks, I am creative and artistic and find it a snap to "see" the whole picture and pull things together (outfits, rooms, furniture, etc.) But with that artistic bent hasnt' come a very lucrative career. So, that's why, I suppose I (like most of us?) undervalue my talent and the perceived difficulty of it to others, and think it's a snap to pull something together, and just am scratching my head why people would pay good $$ to pay others to do this. Since you've said that it CAN be hard to do this on your own, I feel bad and won't think of it that way anymore. But do know, to those of us who ARE creative or artistic, we may not have as much $$ so dont' go around flautning, "My DD only wears J&J," or "We just did DD's room all in PP line xyz," because folks like me may not have the $$ to do this, but can pull a creatiave look together with mixed and matched cast-offs, hand-me-downs, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This. I would find it very. . .unimaginative?. . . to have my child only wear one line of clothing. That's kind of boring to me!!! That's like people who cannot decorate their house because they do not have good taste or a good sense of fashion, so they just buy the whole matching set of sofa-loveseat-chair-chair-end table-end table-coffeetable-coordinating lamps. I like mixing and matching high-what DD wears. . I don't really like matchy-matchy. So, yes, I suppose I would sort of secretly be wondering why a mom would stick to one line of clothing, for this same reason. I'd think she had more $$ than creativity, probably!

And sadly, that's the case for some of us. I've posted in the Women's Fashion forum before because I have always struggled with knowing how to assemble outfits. If I don't see the mannequen (sp?) wearing it, I can't pull tops and bottoms and jewelry from various racks and assemble outfits, either for me or my daughter.

I can't afford J&J, but do tend to buy things that you might consider matchy-matchy since at least you'll laught at my child for being too put together, instead of laughing at her for looking ridiculous.

My best friend is a stylist and I learned a lot from her. There are plenty of good books on style out there. This is one of my favorites: http://www.amazon.com/Does-This-Make-Look-Fat/dp/0812967658. Check it out, if you don't know anything you will learn a lot from reading just one book.

p.s. and that's the reason that stores like Gymboree or Ann Taylor or Pottery Barn do so well. Some of us don't have the innate artistic eye to do it ourselves, or the money to hire decorators and stylists.

My boys are last in a very long line of nephews, grandsons, etc. They have more clothes than I know what to do with due to all the fabulous hand-me downs (some like brand new) and the things I get on occasion. The things that were kept for them were all the fantastic things--lacoste, polo, burberry toggle coats, special things bought in europe, navy blazers, oxfords, etc. They could literally wipe their a**ses everyday with an outfit and we still wouldn't run out.

Do you know what they spend the majority of their time in (4 and 6.5)? It's gap outlet, target and children's place t-shirts(star wars, mcqueen, etc). The little one wears the 2 for $10 sweat shorts from children's place everyday since he is at a very active play-based preschool where they get filthy and it is easy for him to pull them up and down.

NOW---IF it Holidays, traveling, visiting friends we haven't seen, etc....we pull out the good stuff and they look fantastic. Day-to-day basis---they can be comfortable and creative. I draw the line at sweatpants or athletic shorts for elem. school--but I have gone lax on letting them wear nicer graphic t-shirts (non-cheesy).

But when it comes to children's clothing, $20 is all of a sudden a fortune?? I have HHI of about 200k and I can definitively afford an occasional, say, Burberry, for my child. I just don't get it.

I could afford some high end clothers for my kid, but my personal opinion is that high end clothes for kids are a complete waste of money. I feel that kids should be having fun and getting dirty, not worrying about their clothes. Maybe my kid is just a slob, but his clothes are always getting paint, dirt, food etc. on them. If someone else wants to spend their money on that, fine, it just doesn't seem like a good idea to me, just as organic apples may not seem like a good use of money to someone else. To each their own.

Anonymous wrote:This. I would find it very. . .unimaginative?. . . to have my child only wear one line of clothing. That's kind of boring to me!!! That's like people who cannot decorate their house because they do not have good taste or a good sense of fashion, so they just buy the whole matching set of sofa-loveseat-chair-chair-end table-end table-coffeetable-coordinating lamps. I like mixing and matching high-what DD wears. . I don't really like matchy-matchy. So, yes, I suppose I would sort of secretly be wondering why a mom would stick to one line of clothing, for this same reason. I'd think she had more $$ than creativity, probably!

And sadly, that's the case for some of us. I've posted in the Women's Fashion forum before because I have always struggled with knowing how to assemble outfits. If I don't see the mannequen (sp?) wearing it, I can't pull tops and bottoms and jewelry from various racks and assemble outfits, either for me or my daughter.

I can't afford J&J, but do tend to buy things that you might consider matchy-matchy since at least you'll laught at my child for being too put together, instead of laughing at her for looking ridiculous.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Really? Janie and Jack? Meh, there stuff is ok and I guess I can understand with kids that young it's probably easier to just buy it all in one place.

The moms are commenting because they see your kid decked out head to toe in the matching outfits from the store and that your kids look like walking advertisements and think "who does that?". They are basically mocking you in a passive agressive way and taking a dig at you. They do not care how much it costs. They do not care if you have or don't have money. They don't think it's cute. They don't think you are cute. The best way to respond is not to respond at all as long as you are comfortable with your choices.

personally, there was a whole world of cute baby clothes out there so I bought from any store any brand when I thought something was cute, etc so I couldn't see sticking to all one store. But then again, I only had one baby to worry about and could take time to shop.

This. I would find it very. . .unimaginative?. . . to have my child only wear one line of clothing. That's kind of boring to me!!! That's like people who cannot decorate their house because they do not have good taste or a good sense of fashion, so they just buy the whole matching set of sofa-loveseat-chair-chair-end table-end table-coffeetable-coordinating lamps. I like mixing and matching high-what DD wears. . I don't really like matchy-matchy. So, yes, I suppose I would sort of secretly be wondering why a mom would stick to one line of clothing, for this same reason. I'd think she had more $$ than creativity, probably!

PPs are both jealous. Sad. Why would you feel the need to criticize a mom over the way she dresses her kids?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Janie and Jack is very bourgeois - as is spending a fortune (even when it's on "sale") on kids clothes and then talking about it and how much it costs.

I don't think paying $10 for an outfit is a fortune. And thinking you'll get money back when you sell it makes me wonder how much each of you spend on your kids' clothes.

Every time I go to the store to consign their stuff I come back with $80-100 that I spend on their clothes for the next season and we're good to go. I think I spent $100 when they were born and I keep getting it back with selling it and spending more or less the same $100 for the next season.

The only thing I really spend money on are shoes. Even those I try to get on sale but still it will be around $25 per pair. I can definitely sell it because some people don't mind buying used shoes.

This is what baffles me. Many people here have HHI over 200k; almost everyone is ready to pay $10 for two pounds of organic apples. But when it comes to children's clothing, $20 is all of a sudden a fortune?? I have HHI of about 200k and I can definitively afford an occasional, say, Burberry, for my child. I just don't get it. Janie and Jack is a mid-range clothing - there is definitively clothing out there that is several times more expensive. If I really liked something at J&J I wouldn't think twice about buying it. It's just that I don't like it that much; it's overdone, too much matchy-matchy.

It's the matchy-matchy thing. It's no different from the kids who had to wear an Izod shirt every day back in the 70's. Nobody should be a slave to a brand, whether it is an expensive brand or not.

I understand with that and I agree with the attitude. DD wears everything from Carter's to Gucci's. There are nice things at all price points and it's fun to combine them into outfits.

But there were many comments where people (who, in many case, make a lot of money) are outraged at the sheer expense of the J&J. That part I just don't get. How many times am I going to have a little girl? Why not spend some money on the clothing.

Right! Like wouldn't we think it was odd if a coworker wore alllllll Ann Taylor? Totally odd.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Janie and Jack is very bourgeois - as is spending a fortune (even when it's on "sale") on kids clothes and then talking about it and how much it costs.

I don't think paying $10 for an outfit is a fortune. And thinking you'll get money back when you sell it makes me wonder how much each of you spend on your kids' clothes.

Every time I go to the store to consign their stuff I come back with $80-100 that I spend on their clothes for the next season and we're good to go. I think I spent $100 when they were born and I keep getting it back with selling it and spending more or less the same $100 for the next season.

The only thing I really spend money on are shoes. Even those I try to get on sale but still it will be around $25 per pair. I can definitely sell it because some people don't mind buying used shoes.

This is what baffles me. Many people here have HHI over 200k; almost everyone is ready to pay $10 for two pounds of organic apples. But when it comes to children's clothing, $20 is all of a sudden a fortune?? I have HHI of about 200k and I can definitively afford an occasional, say, Burberry, for my child. I just don't get it. Janie and Jack is a mid-range clothing - there is definitively clothing out there that is several times more expensive. If I really liked something at J&J I wouldn't think twice about buying it. It's just that I don't like it that much; it's overdone, too much matchy-matchy.

It's the matchy-matchy thing. It's no different from the kids who had to wear an Izod shirt every day back in the 70's. Nobody should be a slave to a brand, whether it is an expensive brand or not.