3 new ways to shop stylishly for kids

1. Sue, mother of a "trendy 4-year-old" boy writes in with a clothing source for XYs:

"I have found a great new website www.guycollection.co.uk  What a refreshing change to find something different for boys! The polo shirts are as good as they look on the site, and the 'jumping hoddie' washes beautifully and indeed does look fab with the red shorts! My son will no longer look like everyone else in his class, with the Next and Gap collection!"

 

2. Cowley Manor, the cool family-friendly hotel near Cirencester, has a new boutique, and unlike so many hotel gift shops, this one is worth visiting. For adults, they have items such as Ernest Sewn jeans, funky necklaces, felted saddlebags in grape and gorgeous design books about luxury travel. But the kids' corner is amazing. In addition to adorable clothes, they have groovy design-led items from all over. There are Areaware Fauna silkscreened stuffed animals from New York City (£21.50 for a blue boxer dog), Douce France stickers you colour yourself of iconic French images (Tour Eiffel, mais oui, but also a waiter, students sleeping on a bench and little cups of espresso) (£3.95), and my favourite - the Wu and Wu Dumpling Dynasty kits.

These are beautifully decorated little kits made of tin that hold sewing items, first aid supplies or pigtail accessories. The Hove-based designer was inspired by trawling through the flea markets of Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. I got the pigtail one for my daughter's birthday (£15).

3. The Littlebabycompany.com isn't so very new (started in 2007) but has stylish items for everything from feeding time to playtime to bathtime. The site carries classics like the Mary Jane socks (£16.95 for 6 pairs) and amusing items like the crochet tea set (£35) but my favourite section is decor & interiors, with the race-track decals (£39) and birdhouse lamp (£110). What is it about countries like Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands that they turn out such great design for kids?

Comments

[Patricia]

Humm the only time my children get gap clothes is teeshirts when they are in the sale.

Comfortable, warm and clean are priorities here ! I also like my kids to have clothes that we don't have to worry about if they get dirty, torn or lost.

[Sho]

Actually when I think about it, Gipsy, a friend of mine did a similar thing for her mum. The mum worked at home sewing clothes for some company - and if there were belts or things that had to be turned the right way, my friend and her brother did it.

I was there a few times in the evening and turned a few too. But we worked for dessert. So for me, at age 10, it was a pretty good deal. These days I guess 10 year olds would let their agents handle the payment side of things!

[Gipsy]

Well Sho, my mum did piece work for a factory that relatives worked at. The factory manufactured plastic items, including toothpaste tubes. There were two pieces that needed to be clipped together to go into the tube. My dad would come home with bags of tops and bags of caps, and my mum had old ice cream containers out. The rule was, while watching TV you had to be clipping these together. You didn't have to clip them together - but then you didn't get to watch TV.

[mumoftwo]

OMG, you used to wear ClothKits too!!! Although cute, it was not de rigeur at my tough state primary...

[Lucy]

Thanks MumofTwo, good thought about the jeans. I like! Might have stopped me ripping through so much clothkits stuff climbing trees.

[j]

I vote for charity shops. My ma who works in one says there are tons of high quality childrens clothes she never even puts out as there is no space. Ask the nice granny behind the desk what else there is.

And we can do a Gok Wan and add our own details to basics to get a more stylish look. TBH I was a FTM for the first 7 years and Child B first got actual new clothes on a regular basis when she was , oh, about 12 I think. Apart from presents.

[mumoftwo]

Lucy, my girls wear cute dresses a lot, you can put them over leggings or jeans in the autumn/winter to take the edge of the cuteness. You don't have to go the whole hog and have matching frilly skirts and collars, but mine prefer skirts/dresses, so I've just gone with that and, at 2 1/2 and 4 1/2 I don't think they look untrendy!

[j]

Mr Potato- agree. A payrise for the little girl, or some free schooling to go with her job, would have been nice, though.

[Sho]

We don't have a huge amount of charity shops here (yet, I suspect they will come) so I don't have that option. But I do use eBay where I tend to stick to the branded goods (they last longer, generally because the fabrics are higher quality).

I also suspect that it makes little difference if I buy my daugthers Esprit/Gap clothes or if I buy a cheaper version (struggling to find a German equivalent of Primark that I'd actually go into - Takko I guess) because I am convinced that all suppliers are using the same factories.

And as we know, just because we are buying clothes from a shop that has fair trade practices, how do we know where their buttons, thread, elastic etc comes from?

The simple fact is that there is huge inequality in the world and that's what keeps it going. It's not if we should "allow" 11 year old girls to work for a pittance - it's how can we find some way of educating them and their families so they can at least try to drag themselves out of their poverty?

And once poverty is eradicated - who is going to sew the clothes, footballs, sneakers? More importantly, how are we going to afford them?

That's a depressing digression.
I make a lot of clothes for my daughters. We go to fabric markets in Holland once or twice a year and they pick out what they like. I then use pattern blocks (that I've made and cannibalised over the years) and do what deeply embarassed me when my mum did it - we go shopping to try things on then sketch them so I can make a home "equivalent"

As a result they get what they want in the colour/fabric they want. I get to do something apart from hang around the computer all day - and now I'm being asked to make things for other people. Pretty soon I'll be able to pay my daughters a pittance to sew buttons on...

[Mr Potarto]

The problem with trying to avoid child exploitation, is the unintended consequences.

Have a look at this story in the Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jun/22/india.humanrights

The headline fact is that a Primark supplier was using child labour in India, but once Panorama found out, Primark fired the supplier.

The human interest element describes an eleven year-old girl called Mantheesh who had been orphaned, bombed and marooned at sea before finally finding herself working long hours for 60p a day making Primark clothes.

The question the article doesn't ask is what will Mantheesh do now that Primark have put her out of a job? A goverment relief package is mentioned that would pay Mantheesh £3 a month, but the author doesn't seem to realise she was earning quadruple that in the factory.

If she can't get work sewing what do you think she will do? Go to school on £3 a month, or find a more unpleasant job for even less money? What other jobs might be available for a young girl?

200 years ago we sent children up chimneys and down mines. They worked at looms and in factories. It wasn't nice, but they did it because it was better than the alternative. With time our country moved through that phase, we grew more prosperous until we could afford not to send children to work.

If by our actions we actually make orphans poorer and drive them into more dangerous work - how are poor countries ever going to grow richer.

How did Primark help Mantheesh by firing her?

[Kim]

I KNEW someone would take me up on the child exploitation thing.

But - ha! - I don't shop at Primark or Tesco. M&S or Next for me every time. Of course, for all I know they may be just as bad.

[Lazy Mummy]

I suppose it is a bit pretentious to dress your child like a 1950s child model but on the other hand, smock dresses are adorable and a good shape for little girls and far more tasteful than some of the alternatives (I'm thinking of crop tops with "Hello Daddy" type slogans, not regular jeans & t-shirts). I certainly wore dresses as a child & was able to run around without them getting in the way (though I argued for trousers at a fairly young age - no jeans allowed in our house until I was about 8 as they were considered "common", this was the early 70s though & that was normal, at least around our way. Polyester, somehow, was acceptable back then though).

My daughter is mostly a jeans/tshirt type (my influence no doubt) but has recently started wearing dresses/skirts some of the time (easier in the warm weather & easier now she's potty-trained than when she had to wear nappies & tights). The dresses she has are mostly smock-type or just lightweight sundresses, more for practical reasons than style.

[Lucy]

Lazy Mummy - fair do's, was just a thought. I'm cash poor/time rich atm, so it's what works for me.

Speaking of childrens' clothes (as we weren't), what do people think about those old-fasioned 'little girl' dresses - you know, not frills and spills, but cotton frocks of the Noel Streatfield type? On the one hand, I can see that they actually look nice and are probably very good for promoting good taste in later life, but maybe there's something slightly pretentious about putting your children in something so ostentatiously un-trendy? I quite want my mum to teach me how to smock (she does it beautifully) so I can make little dresses, but maybe that's just indulging my sentimental side. Any thoughts?

[Lazy Mummy]

Gipsy - I was wondering the same thing about SM; think she must be.

[Lazy Mummy]

Lucy -

I could try that, but to be honest, the effort it would take is probably more than I'm willing to expend at this point in my life. I went through a phase a while back of checking out the second-hand places here & they're largely too youthful or too unhip for me. For myself I tend to buy from about 3 different designers/brands, some of which are made in the US/UK, some of which aren't, but that's not my deciding factor in buying them - I buy from them because I've found they work for me, most of the time, and I don't have the time to spend browsing for clothes. I do spend more on my own clothes - but like Ann, I can afford it, and I buy things that I wear for years & years not just a season.

OTOH, I do usually spend more to get local food. That's something we've been doing for years, actually, but it's something that's very easy to do in Seattle, because we have a mild, good climate for farming & it's a hippy town at heart (like California only with more rain) where local produce is readily available and there's a demand-led market for it.

[Gipsy]

It is a struggle full stop. I just don't have the time on the weekends to do more than go into the charity shops I pass on the way to the supermarket - which, incidentally I walk to and before I had the convenience of the buggy I used a granny shopping trolley (you get over the embarrassment after a while). Otherwise there is no time for me to spend browsing charity shops to get second hand clothes and toys. I do use ebay, but you don't always find what you want, and I can't buy clothes for myself from there as I'm an odd size too.

I just try to balance things. I don't have time to check up on all the stores. I have to rely to a certain extent on their stated 'eco' policies. I can't afford to avoid Primark and only buy from fair trade. The same with food. I buy organic and fair trade (preferably both) when I can, but I have to balance what I want with what I need - I want to be ethical, I need to stick within a budget.

There seems to be a belief that people buy from places like Primark and expect cheap food because they're intent on spending as little as possible, presumably so that they can spend the excess on more Primark clothes and cheap food. I suspect that the reality is closer to my own experience. I spend my money at Primark and on cheap food because there is no excess. I try where ever possible to get the Farm Assured chicken, at #1.50 more than the bog standard stuff, for example. But those pounds and fifty pence bits add up. Over a total shopping basket it could add on 20 or 30% to the total amount. And that's just something that many people can't afford.

(mmmm that reminds me. Is Supermother on her hols?)

[Rachel]

we had a fairtrade clothing expert come and talk to our WI meeting. She said that (a) all high streets clothes are made in approx the same factories so it mostly doesn't matter which one you shop in, that (b) M&S are marginally better than other HS shops with their plan A campaign and that (c) we should continue shopping but complain about the low standards in the factories and demand better rights/fair pay for workers.

I struggle with this issue and yes, I do shop on the HS but I also try to shop in charity and vintage shops as much as possible. This is what I plan to do for my wedding dress as well. I know it takes time but I think it is worth it.

[Lucy]

Yay, Rachel, charity shops! I work in one so am a little biased. Lazy Mummy, it obviously doesn't solve the whole problem, but if you can get on good terms with local charity shops you may find they'll be prepared to keep certain things back for you that you know are more likely to fit than the rest of the stock (eg. Size x from brand y). Would depend a lot on the particular shops around where you live, though ...

Btw, I struggle with the money vs. ethics of clothes buying too ... depressingly, I've heard it said that paying more money doesn't necessarily mean you're less likely to be funding sweatshops, but I don't really know the truth of it.

[Ann]

(I did say not the above website for clothes) - I like Adili but I also live in london so it is easy to find stuff in Camden and Spitalfields (realise not nearly so easy elswhere).

I struggle mainly finding clothes for me. I work in the city as a lawyer and the majority of the fair trade clothes are not really suitable and a little too 'hippy' for a conservative environment. It does end up with me having to spend quite a lot to go to high end fashion where the clothes are made in the UK but then I can afford to do this (realise not same for everyone).

Its the time thing that I struggle with most, clothes and food I can generally work with due to fair trade etc. but branded items, household items etc. can be difficult.

I agree that it needs to be looked at on a global level but currently apart from various charities there is no-one really speaking up. I take the view that individual action can eventually put pressure (although I accept this is more than a little idealistic). How do other people approach this?

[Lazy Mummy]

Ann makes a really good point about cheap clothes & 3rd world exploitation, but unfortunately I don't think it's as simple as that. For one thing, I didn't see anything that says these websites listed here are selling fair trade clothes - the branding was about trendiness/exclusivity of the product not the ethics.

For another thing, without a sea change in the industry/culture of consumerism, I don't see how most of us will be able to get access to quality clothes at affordable prices most of the time. Yes, I know all about the green movement and recycling clothing and mending, buying second-hand, making your own, paying a little extra for something made without exploitation, but those sort of changes are hard to make. I'm happy to shop at 2nd hand places & have found things that work for my child there, but I never (rarely) find things that work for me (I'm a weird size) and the time expended just isn't worth the effort. Of course, I mend things & alter them (occasionally myself, sometimes I pay a tailor) but I don't have the time to make clothes from scratch the way my mother & grandmother did (and not the same level of skills, though I can do most things at a pinch) and frankly, when I look at fabric /wool prices in the city I live in, things are rarely cheaper if I make myself here (honestly). (Though I do knit occasionally, for pleasure not for thrift).

Now I'm sounding wholly defeatist (which I'm not really) but I think this needs thinking through on a global as well as an individual scale. Does anyone else struggle with these issues/have any good ideas about how to handle them?

[Rachel]

why not just buy your child's clothes from charity shops - you benefit & the charity benefits.

[Ann]

"I think the comment "My son will no longer look like everyone else in his class, with the Next and Gap collection!" says it all - amongst the mums I know, it's more likely to be Primark and Asda! Why pay £22 for a pair of shorts for a four year old when you could pay £3?"

Sorry (and trying not to sound too guilt trippy) but the reason I would pay £22 (not at this particular shop) rather than buy clothes at Primark is that I don't want my children wearing something which has probably been made by children their age working 12 hour days in terrible conditions for little or no pay. ( http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jun/22/india.humanrights)

I buy less but I buy fair trade/ European made.

[Gipsy]

I don't know about anyone else, but to my eye even the 'different' boys clothes look like, well, all the other boys clothes. The same green, khaki, beige, navy mix of colours. Like someone said, I can't really see any difference between this stuff, and what's on the racks at M&S, Gap, or Next, or any of the half dozen catalogues I get through the door. And I'm afraid that Pumpkin Patch is only just slightly different, if at all.

Anyways, my son is really now quite definite 100 percent on what he is wearing (on Sunday he colour co-ordinated his outfit with the wrapping paper on the birthday present for the party we went to). I can't dictate to him what is 'trendy' or not - he simply won't wear clothes that he doesn't like.

[liza]

For Next type pricing, but something a little different, try Pumpkin Patch, a Kiwi company with stores here in the UK. They often have good sales and the quality wears well (they'll grow out of it before it wears out!). I often buy my 'New Baby' gifts from there, and they've always been well received. That said, I agree with the 'so long as they're warm and covered' comments. Most kids, if interested at all in what they are wearing, are more interested in the colour than the label - especially little girls and their fascination for pink everything!

[Lucy]

'The original email does read an awful lot like marketing puff.'

Agree, no way is that a genuine email. What a horrible idea, trendy four year olds. I think I was still wearing smock dresses and my brothers' hand-me-downs at that age, thank goodness. How cringe-worthy will the photos of little Johnny in 2008's hot trend look in ten years' time?

Ikk.