How much to dress a six year old girl?

balletshoes

I'm maybe misunderstanding the OP, but I thought that this was the budget for a whole year for the 6-year old, and so would incorporate a clothes/shoe size change at least once in the year? So really, the child only has half the amount of clothes OP has budgeted for at a time in her wardrobe/drawers etc.

michaels

Thanks everyone for your input - I have probably overestimated on some quantities and prices. The school shoes we did very well this year buying large sizes 'out of season' but we may not be so lucky every time.

Yes this is 1 year and some items will last 2 years - eg we will have 1 school sweatshirt for each day but will buy 3 per year and make each one last 2 years.

I think they have about 8 sets of PJs each.

DD 2 gets much less as she gets hand downs

And yes we do struggle for cupboard space despite having more wardrobes than you could shaek a stick at - we are thinking of extending to more than double the current house size to make room...

Supplementary question - how can I persuade DW that they could manage with slightly less? (I once counted knickers in two DDs draws but stopped at 120...)

lostinrates

michaels wrote: »

Supplementary question - how can I persuade DW that they could manage with slightly less? (I once counted knickers in two DDs draws but stopped at 120...)

one: let her read this and see how she's over providing, two: suggest you meet in the middle my going up a brand but down in quantity (e.g. my neices wore lots of Rachel Reilly and similar....but the littler neice only got one or two new dresses a year after hand me downs, and the eldest probably got the same, rather than 8 dresses from nice high street stores) three: suggest she could have more if they had less four: suggest a percentage of the budget cut goes into the other stuff you have planned at home and some into a fund for the kids further education in years to come. five: suggest the short term benefit to the kids is outweighed by potential negative long term lessons you are teaching them about self worth through acquisition, budgeting and perhaps being lovingly over indulged!

pigpen

I don't think you can be that specific.

My 6 y/o has

6 schools polo tops (2x pk 3)
6 cardies (3x pk 2)
6 pairs school trousers .. think they were about £4 a pair I got them 4 or 5 summer school dresses too at about £2 each I think..
Mine each have 30 pairs socks and about 20 pairs knix.. and we still run out.. I think they hide them or eat them or something! They have about 6 vests each.

They have a summer jacket and a winter coat

Shoes.. They have 1 pair at a time and we are currently looking at £120 a pair for 2 of the children.. but if they had proper shoes they would be about £30-£40 a pair.. and they would do them until they were outgrown. A pair of trainers for PE.

Out of school stuff they each have maybe 4 or 5 pairs of trousers/skirts, about 10 t shirts because they get grotty and about 8 jumpers/cardies

A dressing gown and maybe 8 pairs of pjs each for the younger 3 girls the older ones have 5 or 6 pairs.. and slippers

I think there is way way too much on that list so you are being more than generous... however are these cheapest crappy clothes prices so the stuff is naff and needs replacing after 2 washes or good quality nice item prices where the stuff last longer and can actually be ebayed after use and the money you get back can be used to replace the outgrown stuff?

I tend to go for better quality stuff so it can be handed down through my children rather than binned after a couple of weeks.. maybe your wife thinks the same?

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

michaels wrote: »

T

And yes we do struggle for cupboard space despite having more wardrobes than you could shaek a stick at - we are thinking of extending to more than double the current house size to make room...

Supplementary question - how can I persuade DW that they could manage with slightly less? (I once counted knickers in two DDs draws but stopped at 120...)

:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Let's try explaining it to her - those additional clothes are going to cost the family (around £50,000 - £120,000?) for a massive extension. Or it's a choice between the clothes/the extension or a paid off mortgage, a smaller extension at a higher standard and preserving some more of the garden for the children, brand new luxury bathroom, a month long all expenses paid trip to the Bahamas, all three children's University education....

lostinrates

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Let's try explaining it to her - those additional clothes are going to cost the family (around £50,000 - £120,000?) for a massive extension. Or it's a choice between the clothes/the extension or a paid off mortgage, a smaller extension at a higher standard and preserving some more of the garden for the children, brand new luxury bathroom, a month long all expenses paid trip to the Bahamas, all three children's University education....

Actually, Michaels, it might be worth showing how quickly the saving could mean a trip to visit family.

Spendless

A few years ago, due to space restrictions in DDs bedroom I decided on a max number of outfits. She'd have been 5 or 6 at the time.

I had
10 x pants
10 x socks/tights

5 bottoms (skirts/trousers/leggings)
8 tops (that co-ordinated with above)
1 'party' dress
1 cardi/fleece top
1 swimming costume
3-4 shorts

5 x school uniform (polo shirts; jumpers; pinafores/skirts/trousers any combo)
1 PE kit

Any specific clothing

eg
brownies uniform or clothes for cheerleading afterschool etc.

As seasons changed I would swap the 8 tops from short-sleeved ones, to long sleeved ones or get rid of the shorts and add another couple of jumpers.

Any

She might spend £300 every Next sale, but those are only 4x a year (so not £300 a month as some people suggest).

So really it comes to £100 per month, for 3 kids. I don't find that that completely unreasonable (as to justify to the amount of screeming faces on here). But if you need to cut down, must is must and not difficult from this amount.

However if she shops also elsewhere and you can count 120 pairs of knickers, there is a problem. Especially with changed circumstances!!! I have to say though, when I was little we had full spare room covered in clothes (my parents weren't at home much, 3 children) and we never had anything to wear - because we outgrown it all and the clothes was never sieved through for usability. Are you sure that is not the case with the knickers?

ciderwithrosie_2

I'm amazed at people's quantities of school uniform, gets expensive especially when you have to buy the logo items.

All three of my boys managed perfectly fine with:

a pack of 3 shirts
1 tie
1 jumper
2 pairs of trousers/shorts in summer
1 PE kit

They were always clean and presentable, jumper would get washed midweek (unless mucky) dried easily overnight, trousers 2 days (unless mucky, a few mud splashes can be sponged off) clean shirt, pants and socks everyday. I know some kids attract dirt like a magnet, my neighbour's daughter was like that (bit better now she's older) but luckily mine weren't too bad and they changed as soon as they got home, got a thing about kids playing out in school uniform.

michaels

You are right of course - time to encourage her to spend more on clothes :rotfl:

lostinrates wrote: »

Actually, Michaels, it might be worth showing how quickly the saving could mean a trip to visit family.