{We now have our own computer back home after almost 3 weeks in the shop....posts will now be back on at least a semi-regular basis, considering we do have a little one due any day! Will be posting as often as possible!}
The photo above is my 0-3 month age clothing for my little guy due to be born any day now. I was taking inventory of what I had, making sure we have all we need for our wee little man, then washing it up to be ready for him. You might think that because this is my 5th child, (3rd boy with one residing in heaven), that I had all the clothing I needed long before I was even pregnant. Well, that wasn't exactly the case. My last child was a little girl, and my last boy was unfortunately stillborn from a knot in the cord four years ago. I have had many friends in those years who needed some little boy clothes, and I freely gave it to them. No sense just sitting in a box in my home, when I could be blessing another family witht them. I did write my initials in the clothing, and said if they could to give them back, but if they didn't, I certainly wasn't fretting over it.
So, do you know what I ended up paying for all of the clothing pictured up above? Nada, nothing. Here's how I did it, and it worked well for our family. We know of a couple of consignment shops that are within a 10-15 minute drive of our home. And believe me, we live out in the boonies. If we can find a couple consignment shops close by, I'm sure there are some where you are as well.
We have been faithfully bringing our used clothing, DVD's and books in to these two consignment shops, and therefore earning money to spend there or to take home as cash. One of the shops is more upscale than the other, and my two teenage daughters get a lot if their clothing there. Our rule is that whenever we go shop, we bring a bin of clothing in with us. In this way, we almost always have some money there ready to spend. Every time we have gone, I would buy an outfit, onesie or something to add to the babies layette. I would use about $5 of our credit at the stores at a time, and now that the pregnancy is almost done, I have all I need for the first 3 months plus much more. And, I paid nothing out of pocket whatsoever!
What we would do is take a couple of bins worth of clothing, etc... to the upscale shop first. What they didn't take, I drove down the road about a mile to another shop which was less picky about what they consigned. After that point, if I had anything left, (which was unusual), I took those items to the goodwill dropoff point across the street. I was rid of all my items, and would make money from it as well!
Benefits of buying gently used clothing for our little ones:
- less cost
- chemicals from when manufactured should be washed out
Where to find used clothing:
- Goodwill/Salvation Army
- Consignment shops
- Rummage/Garage Sales
- Friends!
- Host a clothing swap
- Craigslist.com
Do you have any tips to add about how you save on clothes for you little ones? Your comments are welcome!
Continuing parts of this series in the days to come will include:
-making your own moby wrap--no sewing required!
-homemade diapers and wipes
-what to spend money on and not buy used
-homemade diaper creme
-homemade remedies to have on hand for baby
That works for me!
-To see Part 2 of this series....how to make homemade diaper cream, nipple cream, and even homemade aftershave lotion for your man....click here.
Joy
Great job! I too hope to have more children, but gave away all my daughter's clothes to a maternity resource center and am doing the same with my son's clothes as he outgrows them. Like you said, no reason for things to sit in a box for years meanwhile people in need can put them to use. I like to shop at rummage sales.
Posted by: jessica | 12/06/2010 at 08:01 AM
Jessica,
Thanks for the comment! Yes, I'd rather be blessing others than cluttering my home with more things...with 4 kiddos and one due any day I have enough "stuff" already. Also, it is so fun to give....our children watch as we are blessing others and hopefully will do the same! Have a wonderful day!
Joy
Posted by: Joy Y. | 12/06/2010 at 11:22 AM
you are right you can prepare for a baby on a low budget I did it and now my daughter is doing it as well
Posted by: angie | 12/08/2010 at 01:34 PM
I'm sure your daughter is grateful to have learned from her mama how to enjoy her baby without going broke, Angie! Thanks for stopping by!
Joy
Posted by: Joy Y. | 12/08/2010 at 02:15 PM