What clothes do your kids (or the kids you love) knock around in all summer? Over the years, we’ve found some great mix-and-match basics, and I’m curious to hear yours…
What run-around clothes do you swear by? It’s funny because I see my kids wearing the clothes above in all their old pics! (We also love these shoes for trips.)
(Top photo of belly-forward toddlers by Claire Guarry for Mabo.)
Gone are the days when their clothing was controlled by me! My little girl is really specific on how things feel and hates underwear (wedgies, ya know), so she exclusively wears these Old Navy athletic shorts with built in briefs. Plus knee socks (ticks!) and Crocs. And, usually, a Mini Boden pointelle long-sleeve shirt (https://www.bodenusa.com/en-us/supersoft-pointelle-t-shirt-ivory-multi-little-star/sty-g2892-col?cat=C1_S13_G18)- they are really soft and lovely.
And my son, who’s seven, is also super into the quick dry stuff- anything really lightweight with sun protection for his super pale skin. The Primary activewear line is awesome (https://www.primary.com/products/the-performance-classic-tee?ref=plp_pdp_g1_1&variant=39884382076987&color=sunshine&size=4-5) .
I’ll be the 1,000th commenter to shout about how awesome Kidizen is for 2nd hand children’s clothing. In summer, I’m always looking for Teva waterproof sandals, Birkenstocks, Crewcuts shorts, Boden t-shirts with appliqué animals, and Hanna Andersson anything. There are also the fast fashion brands like Cat and Jack, Zara, Gap, etc… which are cute and good, and if you buy them second hand, you can avoid the issue of, uh, literal slave labor and ecological destruction.
Hanna Andersson (my kids wear their PJs exclusively – they last so well that they become hand me downs), Tea, Matilda Jane (both of which I usually find second hand on consignment or in BST groups), Old Navy and Target.
My toddler is 1.5 yrs old so we are still doing onesies daily (I like Honest Co- he’s outgrown many brands that stop onesies in smaller sizes). Generally I love the quality of Pact, Primary and H&M for summer stuff in our short history of summer clothes! I’m loving the chore jacket. But what I need for him more than anything is a good sun hat. Hannah Andersson has a great one with a neck flap that we’ve bought in numerous sizes that is soft, protective and comfortable!
I love Boden for my girls! They’re six and two.
Short are sooooooo challenging for a larger-bodied kid. I have a 4’5″ 6 yo son with the build of a linebacker (but the heart of a drama nerd). An older kid at his height/size would have longer limbs, but because he still has the proportions of a kindergartener, if not the diminutive size, if I size up to accommodate his waist, his shorts are always too long – because all the shorts are “board short” length, these days!
Long story short, thanks for linking to a short-er short!
For our summer lifestyle (we live in suburbs of DC with a LOT of nature play and trips to lake and beach) my kids (age 2 and almost 5) live in Keen Seacamp sandals, quick dry sun shirts (our favorites are the Patagonia Capilene Cool, Primary Stay Cool tee, and Hanna Andersson UV Sunblock tee), and quick dry shorts. I want them to always be ready to get wet and dirty and have adventures! This way, the kids are always comfortable and happy and I never stress about their clothes. Puddles, dirt pits, sprinklers, spilled ice cream/drinks, etc are always welcome! :-D
(We really only wear cotton in the evenings or on a day where we KNOW we won’t be getting messy – like at a museum or something)
I’m fascinated by the comments here–my boys are 8 and 11 and refuse to wear anything other than athletic-type clothing from brands like Nike and Under Armour. The younger one wears lots of hand-me-downs from the older one, though not pants because those always get holes in the knees!
Same same.
Yep! Starting around 2nd grade and even now as a freshman in high school: uniform = basketball shorts, Nike shirts
Yes, my boys too (4 & 7). Once grandma bought them a few athletic shirts/pants/shorts, they refused to wear jeans, button downs, cotton shirts.
With my first I was SO resistant to spending any money on shoes because their feet grow so fast those first few years. By the time I had my second I realized the extra $15-20 for sturdy shoes was more than worth it. Anyway, we love Keen sandals once it gets warm. Some styles are pretty bulky and heavy but the Stingrays are perfect and last the whole summer. Other than that it’s all Target and Old Navy and hand-me-downs over here :)
Does anyone have good online resources for secondhand baby and little tot clothes? I am expecting my first and trying to avoid fast fashion even for my littles but don’t really have the time to sift through Goodwill for hours.
Poshmark, Thredup are my go-tos.
I think the best thing you can do is be upfront with people you know with kids that you’d love some hand-me-downs. In my experience, most people are happy to know someone who will take their outgrown things. I’d also recommend asking around about consignment events. We had one near us called something like “Kid Kraze” every spring and fall. Each item was checked for stains/tears before it went out on the floor and arranged by size. It was much more of a sure thing than cruising the goodwill–though, cruising the goodwill is a great little outing with a baby. It was always my go-to place when I was feeling cooped up. The morale boost that came with finding $.99 Hanna Anderssen PJs got me through some looong days, that’s for sure. In theory, I like the idea of online second-hand shopping, but the shipping always gives me such sticker shock! Unless you are looking for something super specific, in person is where the magic happens!
Do you have a Buy Nothing group in your neighborhood? It’s been such a wonderful platform for gifting/receiving items and connecting with neighbors. Children’s shoes, clothes and toys are recirculated with abundance on mine. Unfortunately it seems to only be hosted through Facebook, but I heard they may transition to an app.
Kidizen and ThredUp are my favorite sources for secondhand kid clothes. Poshmark sometimes, too.
I LOVE Kidizen. You can message the seller directly to negotiate pricing or bundle pricing. I’ve gotten so many favorites for my son on that app!
I highly recommend joining your neighborhood Buy Nothing group. We’ve gifted and been gifted so many kids items over the years. It’s fantastic!
Livi, I also love buying second hand! I luckily have a great kids consignment shop in my area so check if you have one. My other favorite way to buy is join BST (buy/sell/trade) groups on Facebook and shop there. Just search the brand name you like and BST afterward (ex. “Hanna Andersson BST) and join the groups! My kids have so many excellent clothes from that! I also search for what I am looking for on Mercari and FB marketplace (so for example, I will search “LL Bean” and select my kids size on mercari and see what comes up).
Thank you all! This is so helpful!
The Kidizen app! You can save a “profile” with your child’s size, what condition of clothing you’re looking for (NWT, play), and lots of sellers do free shipping.
I also follow several children’s consignment shops on Instagram, some local (Parachute in Brooklyn) and some not (Mother Goose consignment). They usually have very reasonable shipping costs or local pick up.
Wow I second everything KAFF said! Yes, tell any friend/neighbor/relative that you’d like first dibs on their hand-me-downs. It’s not weird!
Do you have a Once Upon a Child near you? That’s where I buy 90% of the “new” clothes I need for my baby. I mostly dress him in rompers and it’s sooo nice to only $4.50 for something that he’s only going to wear for a few months.
Love all the below recs, but want to add that if you’re on FB the marketplace and local parent groups can be an amazing resource. I have bought, sold, gifted and been gifted some truly wonderful stuff secondhand. Congrats and best of luck to you!
On a whim many years ago I bought my toddler wooden-soled purple clogs. It was all she wore, so I stalked eBay to get the next size up. And then the next size. And the next. She’s now 8 and she is known for those shoes. I love them. You can always find her in stores b/c of their loud clip-clop. And we have just one size left to grow into!
I had a pair of hanna Anderson wooden clogs when I was in first grade, I LOVED clopping around in the hallways at school. I made me feel like a very important little 7 yo.
My oldest asked for a pair of silver clogs for her birthday and wore them everywhere. Then her sister wore them everywhere. I had them in a bag to go to goodwill with a bunch of other things they’d outgrown, but in a last-minute panic, I snatched them back. So much little girl sweetness is in those shoes! I wasn’t ready to let them go!
Had no idea that link would publish as a big photo of Jane’s clogs!! ha. sorry :)
I like to sew my kids some summer clothes – so fun for us! But also rely heavily on thrift store clothes and hand me downs that my friends and I all pass around. Because I want my kids to be able to play hard and not worry about keeping play clothes nice. I usually buy Lands End swimsuits every summer, though, and also Saltwater Sandals which are incredibly durable and look nice for play or fancy.
We just got our first ever Hanna Andersson order in last week, and my dress loving nearly four year old is over the moon! The quality is gorgeous and the bright florals are just the most fun.
For my 1.5 year old son, we love Parade Organics tank rompers. He needs a one-piece outfit or suddenly I find things in his diaper that ought not to be there (hello, fingers and Cheeriors) or, more troubling, I find things outside of his diaper that ought to be inside of it (hello, penis!)
I dream of my children wearing Babaa sweaters, but they both have many opinions about their clothing and I’m not sure I can commit to spending the money in case they refuse to wear it – particularly since I can’t squeeze into toddler sizes. Maybe when they’re teens and we can “share”?
My daughter has only worn dresses for about three years now. About once a year I will buy a collection of dresses from Hanna Andersson and Mini Boden in a range of styles and sizes. They are such great quality they last for years despite weekly washing.
You can also find these on ThredUp! We just search Tea (our favorite), Hanna Anderson, Mini Boden. About half or more off!
We had one summer during which my daughter wore t-shirt dresses which she accessorized with a lacey apron and a spiderman swim mask every day, everywhere.
Heather – that is amazing!
Crocs (easy on, easy off – great if you want to jump on the trampoline or dip your feet in the water), unisex cotton shorts from Uniqlo (wide shape with an elastic waist in basic colours), and a denim jacket each for cooler evenings.
Boden, Tea, Alice & Ames, and Hanna Andersson are our favorites. I also splurge on Pink Chicken dresses for my daughter from time to time. My son is turning seven in September and has started acting “too cool” for the cute shirts I pick out. I’m not ready for this! 😭
I love Australia’s Cotton:On clothing.
Their end of the summer sales are just in time for our spring.
The cotton and the patterns are adorable and unique.
Oh, and so affordable – even with shipping
Haha!i made a photo album for my father in law’s birthday last week. As I sifted through the photos of my children (many memories…) There are a lot of naked kids in the garden! One of my daughters loved a pair of aigle rubber boots (any color, but there seem to be slightly more red) and nothing else! She totally remembers LOVING the rubber boots as an outfit:.
Another super cute, recurring « outfit » that showed up in the hundreds, is a very French thing I think: little cotton liberty of London bottoms.for the beach. They usually have either a smocked waistband, a ruffle waistband or little ties on the sides (or all of the above!)and it’s so much nicer than synthetic fabric all day playing at the beach! They wore these without a top until ten years or so. My youngest just turned 11and has some tiny breasts that have started, and told me she wants a top this summer I would usually buy three per girl/per summer, then there were the hand me down as well. We had a little basket full of them! That time is coming to an end…
https://www.emileetida.com/products/culotte-u001_rouge
https://www.mariepuce.com/fr/vetements-enfants/9640/maillot-en-liberty-smocke.html?r=L2ZyL3ZldGVtZW50cy1lbmZhbnRzLzU0NzIvbWFpbGxvdC1kZS1iYWluLWJpa2luaS5odG1s
https://www.bonpoint.com/fr/s02gsswo0202-522c-culotte-de-bain-fille.html
When my daughter was little, she was an all dresses all the time kid. I like to sew so I’d make her simple sundresses in cute prints to wear over undershorts. So easy to sew and I loved using cute fabric–like miniboden without the price tag! Now she’s 9 and her summer uniform is either tank tops and athletic running shorts from Target or the maxi dresses she still lets me make for her.
Ohmygosh that is so sweet that you made her little clothes! When she gets older she’s going to cherish them SO much!
My 6-year-old has always loved getting dressed and creating crazy outfits, but lately she’s been so hard on herself and even saying, “I’m fat.” She doesn’t feel comfortable in a lot of her clothes (even her underwear!) and getting dressed is now pretty fraught sometimes. Anyone else ever go through this? Thankfully it’s not every day and seems to correspond with her feeling exhausted or other uncomfortable emotions, but it’s still really hard. It’s heartbreaking to watch kids enter into the age of self-consciousness after such wild freedom in their bodies when they are toddlers and preschoolers.
I would recommend checking out the substack newsletter Burnt Toast. The writer has been writing about the pervasiveness of diet culture and fat phobia and often writes about its impact on kids. It’s a good entry way into noticing how this messaging is everywhere. I’ve found her writing really informative and helpful.
This is my worst fear because I WAS that little girl. I remember feeling fat in elementary school. I was thin by today’s standards, but chubby by the standards of the early 80s. It took me years to shake off the mind-f*** society did to me, and I still haven’t, really. So when I had my kids we made sure we watch no commercial TV; no magazines for women; nothing with advertising that could subversively give those messages. We have no scale. And we talk about food as sometimes foods and all the time foods. I make sure I treat myself well and exercise and talk about how strong I am. I send positive messages. My daughter is only 4 (my older kids are all boys), but I am hoping, hoping, hoping that the messages I send ring louder than any she might be getting from society.
A teeny-tiny yellow tee that says CAVE CREEK SCHOOL and has a little green cactus on it made its way from my husband (who wore it in Arizona in the ’80s) down through my niece and two of my nephews, all of whom wore it as summer run-around clothes in California. I wish you could see the look on his face when he sees it pop up like a dandelion flower in one of my sisters’ photos of their kids.
My summer plan is to stock up on a week’s worth of my daughter’s favorite Primary undershorts in her favorite color–RED–to go with a variety of short-sleeved dresses from the local consignment store! https://www.primary.com/products/the-under-short?ref=plp_pdp_g6_1&variant=39319353884731&color=cherry&size=2-3 Last summer she would only wear the one red pair day after day which led to either dirty shorts or much washing or an unhappy kiddo. So this is our RED summer!
Love the phrase, “run-around clothes
Is that Midwest because I feel connected to it from my youth (Ohio influenced), but I live in eastern PA and I’m not sure we say it here.
We definitely used that phrase in Colorado/Nebraska.
as soon as it is warm enough and as long as it stays that way, my four year old swears by bathing suits. she wears them like leotards, and it’s made for many impromptu trips to the splash pad/pool. she even wore one on her first day of preschool! we have so many, but i deeply love the old navy ones that are cheap and cheerful.
My four-year-old does this too! And then proclaims nearly every morning she’s going to “the beach,” and packs a play suitcase full of clothes to lug to the sofa. Apparently for her it’s the closest thing we have to a beach in landlocked Middle America!
In other news, this is off topic, but could we ever have an article about those of us who have babies in our forties? I’m pregnant with my third kiddo, the second of which to be born in my forties. I sometimes feel insane. And alone. And old. But this is how it worked out for us. And, the mental health issues of the first trimester? Everyone talks about nausea and tiredness. But this time, I felt like a dark person, a different person, one who did not actually enjoy being a mom. Thankfully, that feeling is lifting. But it’s a lonely place, the first trimester. Thanks for considering . . .
We’d love to talk about this, thank you for bringing it up and sharing how you felt! Sending you hugs and I’m so glad you’re starting to feel more like yourself <3
I had my first (and only) at 41. I don’t have much to compare it to – I’ve only ever been a mom at this age. It has been physically hard but fabulous too. I think we appreciate it in a different way. And you are not alone! I joined an over-40 mom group in my area that is sixty members strong! And my mother-in-law – who is 95 – has my husband at 41! Women have had babies well into their 40s for all of human history! Birth control has allowed us to have some say in where those babies might fall in our fertility window.
I’m an older mom too. I started on my late thirties and continued in my early 40s. It can feel lonely because so many of our friends are well past this stage. In some ways, it can feel harder, more tiring. But one benefit I’ve noticed as an older mom? You give less fucks. You’re more laid back. Less likely to panic about all the details. Im not sure if this comes from the confidence that naturally comes with being older or we’re just too damn tired to give more fucks, but I think it’s one of the advantages of older parenthood and I take it as a win!
My boys are adults, but when they were little they lived in rubber knee hi slip on boots! Rain or shine.
My son is nearly 3 and this is my life…everyday his hunter red rainboots! I felt annoyed at first but now feels genius because they’re great for all of his occasions.
Yes! We’re big on rain boots at anytime over here. It saved me having to bend over when I was pregnant with our second ☺️☔️
We live in the Middle East, today it’s 107 deg, and my 3yo is in his rubber wellies without socks on. How will I ever wrench them off his feet?!
When I found out I was having a little boy I found my way to the Boden website out of frustration that all the other cute stuff seemed to be for little girls, not boys. I used to scroll the site looking at little smocked sleepers and soft cashmere jumpers – none of which my son actually wears. But their bright cotton stuff? *chefs kiss* so soft, easy to wear and looks great wash after wash. We are at the museum today so naturally my kid is in his Boden dinosaur top.
Also Patagonia, also washes beautifully and there’s something just so cute about a little boy in outdoorsy stuff.
So sweet! My kids take a real “work hard, play hard” approach to their clothes, so I’ve developed a corresponding “nothing is precious” mantra. It means I acquire few nice new clothing items for them, and prioritize hand-me-downs. I LOVE the idea of some of these workhorse staples—but will there come a time when my kids’ clothes aren’t immediately stained? Or do others just have better stain remover (tolerance for stains?) than me? Teach me your ways :)
As far as stains go, I recently just learned about product called Fels-Naptha. I’m probably really late to the game on this (I missed this age old mom secret somewhere!) but wow, it is amazing stuff! At the risk of sounding dramatic, life changing even. :) I bought it to use on my sons’s white baseball pants, but have used it on everything. Makes me think perhaps I can start buying a few nice things, but like you, I love good hand-me downs. Not only do they make me happy because I’ve saved loads of $$, I’ve found that it makes the donor happy to see my littles give the things their children wore a second lease on life. I have experienced that when I’ve handed things down to, its a good feeling to stroll down memory lane and remember what your kiddo did in those clothes. :)
Hahah same. My girls are almost 6&8 and our clothes are pretty much immediately intiated. We take the get-them-used, wear-them-to-death, textile-recycling route. Then I’m not sad they’re ruined and we’re basically a net zero.
Best stain remover, never fails me (even got out acrylic paint once!)– mix dish soap, hydrogen peroxide and baking soda into a paste, work it into the stain with a toothbrush. Let it sit as long as possible, was with the hottest water your clothes allow. The peroxide isn’t strong enough to bleach dark clothes. You can’t pre mix it and store it, but it’s eas enough to mix up a single batch– I just eyeball the proportions.
I second this, Fels-Naptha recently came into my life and it managed to get a stain from the liquid from a glow stick out of a white shirt! Miraculous stuff!
Agreed with Ragon on using a mixture of dish soap, hydrogen peroxide and baking soda scrubbed on with a toothbrush. It’s the only thing I’ve ever gotten to take out yellow armpit stains on my shirts (I sweat a lot) and I’ll bet it works on kid stains too.
I do love Fels Naptha, but even more I love OxyClean for organic stains. I will soak clothes in it for DAYS and then hang to dry in the sun. The sun bleaches a lot, in fact! If a stain is really obvious and we’re not ready to cut up the item for rags, I cover it with a cute patch. Sometimes I add a few patches just for fun.
I don’t have any stain removal genius tips, but I struggle with this too. Mostly because we are trying to raise our kids in an eco-conscious fashion and we want them to understand that it’s important to take good care of your things. That said, they are small children and if they are happily painting in mud in the garden in their pajamas, shouldn’t I just let them be kids and enjoy that, rather than nagging them about getting muddy?! I was nagged at a lot as a kid and I don’t want to repeat that.
My solution – like many others – is to prioritize quality cotton items that will withstand a LOT of washing and oxyclean (Primary sale items for the win!) and consignment store and hand-me-downs from generous cousins. We then pass along anything that’s in good condition or send to ThreadUp, since we know they will recycle responsibly what they cannot sell.
Who needs summer clothes? My kids motto is “sun’s out, buns out!”
😂. I’m going to use this moving forward!
At least 75% of my pictures of my kids in the summer are just them in underwear.
May we all have a moment of silence for our last slice of "breakfast pie.”
When I was 41, my youngest kid started kindergarten...
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