by Pajama Girl

Created on: August 22, 2009   Last Updated: August 23, 2009

When it comes to children's clothing you can have a ball dressing them in all the latest fashions. The depressing thing is looking at the price tags and having to narrow down to a few little items. In the meantime you can shop on a budget and make your children happy at the same time! Here are a bunch of tips that I have for this area of expertise:

1. Garage Sales are great for finding brand name clothing for your children and you can always by a size bigger for the next season to. I remember I looked for a few weekends and then found this one house with children close in age to all mine. With under $30 I had brand name clothing (some still with tags) that were just adorable for my little ones for the whole next year!

2. Gently used brand name clothing stores like once upon a child are great for the parent that is really into labels. You can get brand name items for just the fraction on the cost.

3. Thrift Stores. Some of you still think of a thrift store as where you can only find tie dye t shirts and pants that up over your stomach and up to your chest. I guess some stores somewhere out there may still be like that today but most all have come into the same century. I have found cute items even for my self from Forever 21, Banana Republic, New York & Co., Bebe, and others. Crazy thing is I have even occasionally find items there still with tags on them! I found a nice lace tank the other day that still had tags on it for $25.99 and I got it for $1.50 in perfect condition and never worn. My favorite thrift store to go to is Salvation Army. I find great finds for my children here like Carter's, Baby Gap, Polo, Nike, and others. Sometime you can also find great buys on shoes! A rule of thumb, Don't get frustrated if you don't find anything at first. If you go on different days you will see that there are better deals and also if you go to one chain store check out the others in your area because they are all going to carry different items. One store that is close to me I find everything I need and the other that is about 5 minutes further is a less cleanly one and not as much to choose from.

4. Your children may be old enough to want to fit in with all the new styles out there. A great way to do this on a budget is to buy only a few key items that are "HOT" like a new style shirt, belt, hat, or accessories. That way you still get a great bargain, your children can mix and match with used and the in-style items and you both are happy. I have made my children's whole wardrobe this way and they still look cute and fashionable and I hardly spent anything.

Good Luck!

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