For me, it's fairly simple: I'm fitting into my maternity clothes from last time around, and while I had borrowed some which I later had to return, I have enough pieces to get me through the summer. A couple of exceptions: a swimsuit (no bikinis for me, thanks) and some shorts (I had two pairs, but both were on loan). At Marshalls (like Winners), I found a non-maternity bathing suit with a very stretchy tummy and a tiny ruffle of a skirt, and it was 19.99$. I actually came out of the change room to show Hubby, that's how good I felt! I had been looking at retro-style swimwear like this online, and it's pretty expensive- upwards of 90$. I'm very happy with that purchase. I found maternity jean shorts (knee length) at Burlington Coat Factory (also like Winners) for 14.99$, and they fit great. I also hadn't bought new running shoes in a shamefully long time (I was given my most recent pair by my mom a few years ago- she accidentally bought a size too big for her- and my last pair before that dates back to when my parents still bought my shoes for me). So when we stopped at an outlet centre in Pennsylvania on the way home, I found some Asics that fit the bill. I knew my prices, and although these particular runners weren't the brand I was after, I was happy to pay 35$.
Now for D, the gap in her wardrobe is more substantial. We love hand-me-downs, and we have a few things left from our last haul, but I don't expect other people to clothe my child for free. I went through her things a few weeks ago, weeded out the small/out-of-season clothes, and made a list of what she needed. I didn't want to over-buy, because she already doesn't wear at least a third of the clothes she has for any given stage. Plus we are well-supplied with dresses, thanks to grandmas and aunts. Sadly, she's almost out of the footie pyjama stage, and once she's potty-trained, zip-up jammies will be neither helpful nor welcome. So got her four sets of two-piece pyjamas (one of which has a matching bathrobe), all on clearance at BCF. (No picture available- they're in the wash.) At 6-7$ a piece, that came to under 30$. The picture below shows all the new clothes for her summer wardrobe, excluding dresses.
Top row: three pairs of stretch pants, two of which have coordinating tops, two rompers, and the shrug I knit her for Easter. Each piece or set was 4-5$, except for the BCF denim romper which was 8.99$ and which I guarantee either of my sisters would wear if it came in their size. If last summer is any indication, D will get copious use of her rompers this year. Not shown: a little hoodie with coordinating loud floral stretch pants. Total came to 44$, all from the clearance racks at Carter's outlet or BCF.Bottom row: the plaid outfit was from a free rummage "sale" at a friend's church, and the yellow top with the white shorts were a gift from the lovely in-laws at Christmas in Australia.
Along with a number of onesies and dresses, this makes up the bulk of D's wardrobe. For her feet, we bought 12 new pairs of socks (half unisex white, half fancy, all sized for 2-3 years old) for 8$, and two new pairs of shoes for the late summer/early fall, at 20$ a pair.
Because most of these purchases were made in PA, where they don't charge tax on things deemed to be necessities (like clothes and shoes), and because we were in the States for three days, we didn't have to pay taxes or duty on the way back in. As a result, I ended up spending less than I did on my two previous border shopping excursions, and I know from my prior research that the prices were good. Hubby is keen to do an annual trip where we stay for a weekend, having done our research beforehand, and buy all our clothes and gifts for the year.Total for D: 122$
Total for me: 70$ (actually, 82$- I indulged in a 12$ skein of Berocco Ultra Alpaca to make the beautiful Damask)
Hopefully, this will take us through to the fall and beyond!
No comments:
Post a Comment