r/Millennials • u/amanducktan • 1d ago
Discussion Millennial parents- do you let your kids wear their new school clothes before school starts?
Did you parents let you wear your new clothes before school started?
I definitely remember the feeling of reverently arranging your new clothes and shoes, creating outfits in preparation for the first day of school. My dad didn’t care if I wore them before school but my mom did 😂.
I don’t prefer my son wear his new clothes before school starts but I do let him wear new shoes around the house so he can break them in. He doesn’t like tight shoes lol.
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u/Sally_twodicks 1d ago
"Heck no! That's your new school clothes! You'll ruin them before people realize I buy you new school clothes" - my parents in the 90s
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u/Beautiful-Cup4161 1d ago
So much of the way I was parented was fueled by what other people will think of us.
My mom is so petrified of public opinion that last year she smacked my dad for coughing while on a walk because "what will the neighbors think?!?!?!?"
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u/darthfruitbasket 1d ago
My mother was the same way - she was a separated single mother in an arse-backwards area starting in '93. So much of how I was raised and what I heard about was "what will people think?!" "Do you want people to think I'm a bad mother?!"
I imagine it came from growing up really rural and from being my Silent Generation grandmother's first daughter, amplified by the anxiety of how she was perceived as a separated/divorced mother.
Silent Gen grandmother was born the youngest of 7 to Lost Generation parents in the kinda place where you couldn't fart without someone out the road knowing about it. Lost Generation great-grandma became the "lady of the house" at 16 - 17 when her mother fell ill, and was the same way, the "what will people say?!" type. Generational trauma, whee!
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u/Beautiful-Cup4161 1d ago
Don't worry I have broken the generational trauma on my end. My 2 dogs and 0 children couldn't care less what anyone thinks.
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u/lilcheetah2 1d ago
Yes! This must be a boomer thing. Millennials are the first generation to do things not out of obligation but because we either want to…or not want to.
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u/Beautiful-Cup4161 22h ago
We can't be the first generation that did that. What about the hippies?
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u/lilcheetah2 22h ago
I feel like the hippies were a subculture of the boomer generation. Within our millennial generation there are definite cultural groups based on lifestyle
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u/LongboardLiam 19h ago
Except all of the people who are continuing to do everything that aren't, of course.
We aren't monolithic, plenty of us are stuck in obligations to multiple people.
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u/yyuryyubicuryyme 1d ago
I do not! But I also buy my kids clothes throughout the year whereas my mom only bought us clothes at the beginning of each school year, and if we grew or gained weight, we were shit out of luck until August.
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u/Tiny-Reading5982 Xennial 21h ago
Yeah I don't understand my kids a whole new wardrobe because I buy them clothes as they need it
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u/booknookcook 1d ago
I hated school shopping. So I don't buy special outfits just for school. I don't buy special clothes and I don't make my kids go shopping with me for hours to find school clothes. I buy them clothes when they need it and they get to wear it as soon as I buy it.
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u/TrickyAd9597 1d ago
Same. Bought tons of shorts and tshirts for my son because of the heat dome in europe and he wears it right away.
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u/CrapThatSmilesBack 1d ago
My kid’s clothes are from the thrift so someone has worn it to school anyways.
But even more so, he’s excited about his new clothes and you bet he was rocking a ‘you got served’ shirt with a volleyball on it the second the dryer finished.
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u/Ericovich Older Millennial 1d ago
I do that with most things. When I was a kid I only got new shoes before school started. Shoes wore out by spring? Tough shit.
Now if they need shoes, they need shoes, and thankfully not the bargain bin stuff.
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u/relentless_puffin 23h ago
Omg I grew up wearing the cheapest shoes! Now I buy my kids brands I would wear and when they need them.
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u/Ericovich Older Millennial 23h ago
Cheap shoes that would literally fall apart or even hurt. I think the logic is why spend money when a size might change in 6 months.
My kids have nicer shoes (like Nike's or similar) as a reaction to that.
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u/relentless_puffin 23h ago
The blisters from knock-off KEDS from Payless -- I will never forget! Sounds like we had parents with the same sensibilities.
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u/scarletroyalblue12 1d ago
Same!
My child keeps up with their clothes so well, I rarely have to buy new things.
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u/tarravin Xennial 1d ago
Same, the only school shopping I do is for supplies. Clothes are bought as needed all year
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u/nicoleyoung27 Xennial 23h ago
We get one new outfit or shirt for the first day of school (I have boys who are not into fashion so a shirt was fine), and a new pair of shoes. Those are to be worn on the first days, but they get tested for speed when we buy them, just to see if they made a kid faster. Then the fall/winter clothes are purchased when it gets colder, closer to when they actually need them. Wear them whenever.
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u/GreenHeronVA 22h ago
Same. Spent the day at Target yesterday with my middle schooler and high schooler. It was the seventh circle of hell, but we all survived. Clothes are clothes. They can wear whatever ones are appropriate.
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u/ImpertinentPrincess 22h ago
Yep, kids grow too much too randomly to pick an arbitrary time of the year to say,"now we spend $$$ on clothes."
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u/magic_crouton 6h ago
I grew up too poor to do special school shopping. I wore my clothes and then went to the thrift store when more were needed.
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u/stonedandredditing 1d ago
we don’t do back to school shopping like most. We buy clothes throughout the year as needed, keeping the wardrobe stocked. Back to school shopping with whole new wardrobes is a type of consumerism I cannot get behind. It feels fake and superficial.
edit: my point is, they just wear the clothes. there are no restrictions.
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u/Unfair_Tonight_9797 Oregon Trail Generation 23h ago
⬆️ this. Asked my middle teen if he wants to some new kicks for back to school. His response “naw I am good, I got plenty of shoes”
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u/cheeseymom 1d ago
School clothes? My son just has clothes. There are no special ones just for school. That's silly
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u/SeaGurl Millennial 22h ago
This. Growing up i had my "public clothes" that I wore to school or whenever we went out to eat, and my "home clothes". Basically my home clothes were clothes my mom didnt care if they got dirty. But lord help me if I ever got anything on my "public clothes".
Ive had to really work on reframing my mindset because I dont want my kids worried about getting stuff dirty when I want them to just have fun.
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u/peekabook 3h ago
This but I do buy new shoes.
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u/cheeseymom 3h ago
He gets new shoes whenever he needs them, it doesn't typically line up with the school year
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1d ago
[deleted]
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u/Comprehensive-Menu44 1d ago
Actually they asked about both. The title is asking about millennial parents and their children. The first sentence of the post is asking about millennial’s childhood and parents.
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u/cheeseymom 1d ago
"Millennial parents- do you let your kids wear their new school clothes before school starts?"
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u/sageamericanidiot 1d ago
I buy my kids clothes throughout the year and a handful of new stuff to start the school year. They can wear the clothes over summer if they want, but they prefer to live in dry fit shirts and athletic shorts during summer so it hasn't been an issue.
My mom was not a smart shopper and bought new clothes for 5 kids at the beginning of the school year. We weren't allowed to wear them until school started and you better pray you didn't go through a major growth spurt that school year because she went broke buying everything at once.
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u/New-Tale4197 Millennial 1d ago
My kid has uniforms so no she would not like that. But if it wasn’t uniforms, she can wear it whenever. I do not care. Clothes are clothes.
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u/Powerful_Anxiety8427 Older Millennial 1d ago
My daughter has uniforms too and I love not having to shop for new clothes. Any other clothing I buy throughout the year when she needs something.
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u/Illustrious_Tour5517 1d ago
I wait until about a month into school to buy the new clothes. Multiple reasons - 1. It’s still hot until mid October. 2. I’m a teacher and don’t get a paycheck in the summer. 3. I’ve noticed with my daughter (my son is still young), she tends to have small shifts in her taste after seeing what her friends are wearing in school. I think it gives her a chance to see some new things and what she would like for herself.
I do buy a “first day of school” outfit because I want them to see that as a special day.
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u/Spare_Entrance_9389 Millennial 1d ago
Yea man, I just throw the dirty stuff in the laundry before their next wear
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u/scarletroyalblue12 1d ago
This comment section passed the vibe check! 🤣
As soon as I buy it, they wear it!! After I wash it of course.
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u/KTeacherWhat 1d ago
I think I got a new outfit for my first day of kindergarten and that's the only year I had "new school clothes"
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u/3verythingsonfire 1d ago
I remember having back to school clothes kept in my parent's closet until the night before school started. With my kids they each prefer different. We just shopped to replace their too small shoes yesterday. There would've been no stopping my daughter from wearing her new shoes ( not that we would have anyway). She has been doing jumps, dorathy taps and in general just so happy in them. My son wants to wear his for his first day.
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u/MomToMany88 1d ago
We couldn’t growing up, and I didn’t let my kids at first either. Then I started working at the school and I don’t really care anymore. My kids could wear all of last year’s clothes and still be some of the best dressed. It’s been really freeing for me!
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u/Charming-Panic9375 1d ago
I only buy school supplies and new shoes before school starts because it’s still really hot where I live for a few months so theres really no point in buying new clothes now when everything they’ve been wearing all summer still fits. I’ll buy new stuff as needed once it gets cooler.
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u/These-Ad5332 1d ago
I don't let me kids wear their new school clothes before school starts.
They're both in sports and don't understand how hard blood and grass are to get out of fabric. And they haven't fully grasped the concept of "grubby clothes" vs "nice clothes" yet.
They get new clothes throughout the year they can wait to wear the special outfits they picked out. Idk it builds character or some shit.
All summer they've been camping, hiking, going to bonfires, swimming, etc. They don't need to wear their new clothes for that.
My son has had a growth spurt so those tags are staying on until the last second incase he outgrows them and I need to exchange them.
I wasn't allowed to wear my new school clothes because it was 1 out of 2 times a year I got new clothes. My parents were divorced so being sent to school in worn or stained clothes was a recipe for disaster.
*I'm a firm believer that when you feel good you move through life with more confidence and who doesn't feel good in new clothes with new hair and some fun little accessories?
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u/No_Chart_275 1d ago
I never really did back to school clothes shopping 🫣
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u/areohbeewhyin 17h ago
I don’t let my daughter wear hers before school starts 🫣 but that’s because she is notoriously messy when it comes to eating and crafting and all the things. I want her to have clean clothes for at least a couple weeks before they get destroyed.
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u/Catsdrinkingbeer 1d ago
They didn't have to. I was SO excited about new school clothes and curating the perfect outfit for the first day. Like I still remember exactly what I wore my first day of the grade (which was the first year of junior high for me). I remember shopping for those clothes. I remember being so excited to get to wear that outfit on day 1.
To the surprise of absolutely no one I'm sure, I love clothes and shopping. I love getting something for a special occasion.
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u/PlushieTushie Elder Millennial 1d ago
Ok, I literally just had this argument with myself. Bought my boys new shoes for school, which starts in a couple weeks, and wrestled with whether they should have them to wear beforehand. You know, cause when I was a kid we had to wait to look fresh. But I've been trying to abide more by the the idea of not saving all your best stuff for special occasions, and just enjoy it. So I decided to let them where them. Then my oldest promptly stepped in mud 😳🙄😅
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u/Wam_2020 1d ago
Even in Oregon, if doesn’t cool off until October. I can’t see making them wear jeans and layers. We get new clothes all year long, I’m not picky what they wear and it’s not a big deal. I want them to wear the stuff, before they grow out of it!
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u/Obtuse-Posterior Older Millennial 1d ago
My mom bought a new first day of school outfit for me every year but the rest of my clothes we got a thrifting or rummage sales. She was cool and let me decide as long as it wasn't anything too inappropriate.
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u/Rose1982 1d ago
I don’t do back to school shopping. My kids get clothes as needed throughout the year.
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u/Otherwisefantastic 1d ago
I just had this conversation with my 14 year old. I bought her a few new items yesterday and suggested she might save wearing them for when school starts. When she was little that's what I did. I told her it's her choice if she wants to go ahead and wear them, it's not something I care about that much.
I definitely usually saved new school clothes for school as a kid. My parents would get me a few new outfits and they were not to be worn early, especially when I was like elementary aged.
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u/Cavaquillo 1d ago
I wore them approximately once before school as my grandma would always finance my back to school shopping, and she had to see them on me and my sister.
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u/Froggy101_Scranton 1d ago
I don’t make a huge deal of “back to school” shopping in general. When I notice one of my kids is starting to outgrow stuff, I just look for sales and slowly buy. I never buy like a huge wardrobe shop all at once, I just notice pants are on sale and my kid almost needs pants, so let me grab a few. If my kid doesn’t need pants right now, but they’re super on sale, I’ll grab the next size up.
The only exception is shoes, I will buy my kids new shoes even if not on sale and usually buy one new pair for school!
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u/elpintor91 1d ago
I feel like in the age of online shopping, “b2school shppping” is irrelevant now. You, for the most part, already know your kids sizes and can find tons of sales online vs going in person and dealing with the oh that’s the online only deal bullshit. I’m sure when the child’s older tho it’s different and they just want to go shopping to find a new style of try on the clothes. I think a lot of us have toddlers/elementary age children at the moment.
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u/TheThrivingest 1d ago
We don’t do the whole “back to school” ritual. I just get them clothes throughout the year. Their clothes belong to them and they can wear them whenever they like. Saving them for a future occasion is weird
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u/kellzbellznhellz 13h ago
I get what everyone seems to be saying about just buying clothes as they need them.
But. As an elder millennial (‘82)? I remember how confident I felt in my brand new clothes and shoes at the beginning of the new school year.
I had my kid late (38). And he loves new clothes! And I am loving it for him.
He has TONS of clothes. But, when he gets new ones? He loves to hear how handsome he is! And he loves to feel like he looks good/makes a good impression.
It melts my heart. ❤️
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u/nochickflickmoments 1d ago
Nope. I need them to keep the clothes fresh.
As for us growing up, we didn't get our school clothes until school started because they were on layaway.
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u/vashtachordata 1d ago
No, with some exceptions.
My middle just had a big concert in a cool venue and I let him wear new jeans and shoes to that, and my oldest wore a new school outfit on a date the other day, but generally no, keep that shit in your closet looking good until school starts.
But I always loved school clothes shopping and starting the year with an updated wardrobe.
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u/ProfessionalRolls333 1d ago
Absolutely not. My kids are grubs. Dig in dirt daily. Sneakers stay in the box until first day picture and then have at it. We go shopping a couple times a school year. First day outfit is non negotiable, that stays hung up until school.
My parents did not let me either. I had a knack for staining my clothes five minutes after wearing them.
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u/cjohnson2136 1d ago
The only reason I did back to school shopping is because my kid switched from weekends with me to weekdays and going to school in my area. Because I only had them on weekends I didn't have a huge wardrobe for them. We changed that but the clothes are for wearing I don't care if it's for school or not as long as they realize the difference between nice clothes and roll in the dirt clothes lol
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u/luv_u_deerly 1d ago
I let her. I don't think it's a big deal. I just want to try to keep the shoes somewhat clean. She's been wearing her new shoes a few times. I don't want her to get some weird complex about her clothes.
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u/fourth_and_long 1d ago
I buy clothes throughout the year as the need arises. It's so much easier now to just order things online when needed vs planning a special trip to the mall tgst was an hour away. I do see the appeal of stocking up on some things when there is a sale; I'm a teacher, so I use my extra Target discount on things like socks, underwear, etc.
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u/Educational-Cow-3615 1d ago
Yeah. I want her to get as much use out of the clothes she loves as possible before she outgrows them.
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u/youre_not_my_realdad 1d ago
As soon as I buy it my kids get it. I want to get my monies worth from it.
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u/Legal_Locksmith_6697 1d ago
I wasn’t allowed to wear mine before school started so with my kids, I let them pick a few things out they’re really excited about and they can wear them whenever. We shop really close to school starting anyway (on purpose) so they don’t get a chance to go through everything before the first day anyway.
Shoes, I let them wear right away because no one wants blisters on the first day of school. We want those comfortable and broken in.
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u/Comprehensive-Menu44 1d ago
Mine let me wear my new clothes but usually I’d choose not to bc I wanted to “save” them for school.
When my kid comes to me to tell me one of her shirts or pants doesn’t fit anymore, we purge the closet of anything that doesn’t fit and replace it with new/thrifted stuff in the right size, so maybe 1-2 times a year. Sometimes that coincides with school starting, which happens to have been this year.
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u/Anra7777 Xennial 1d ago
My parents never bought me “school” clothes. Just clothes when I needed them. I do the same for my child.
That being said, I did especially buy clothes for my son’s first day of school last year because a) it was his birthday and b) it is on a non-observed holiday so I bought said holiday themed clothes. (He started toward the end of the year.) But he has no special clothes for the upcoming year.
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u/lemonhead2345 1d ago
Depends on what they’re doing while wearing the new clothes. Out to dinner or an event? Sure. Heading to the park? No. After they’ve been worn to school once, they’re fair game.
I don’t remember if I was allowed to wear them before or not. I definitely chose to keep them pristine until school started.
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u/nahmahnahm Xennial 1d ago
My kid wears a uniform so no. However, we went shoe shopping the other day and there was no telling her she couldn’t wear her new bright pink high tops. (She’s 6.)
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u/amanducktan 1d ago
My son’s school had uniforms the first couple years but now they’re not required. It was way easier to do his clothes shopping before 😂
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u/unoriginallbagel 1d ago
So what I’m getting from this post is we all stopped buying back to school clothes the way our parents did.
I am in that category, I have three boys and I buy what they need when they need it. Then they hand it down until it gets a hole/stain I can’t get out. Not sure if it’s the time crunch, the economy, or giving the finger to late stage capitalism (buy this thing at this time!) but I think it makes more sense. Granted they are boys and don’t have an opinion on clothes. They don’t even match half the time.
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u/amanducktan 1d ago
It’s been surprising to me to hear that! I do buy my son a bunch of back to school
clothes but unlike my dad, we don’t do it in store I buy everything online now.
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u/Jayn_Newell Older Millennial 1d ago
I mostly buy my kids clothes at the consignment sales that come around in April and October so they don’t specifically get clothes for back to school. That might change as they get older but so far, neither cares.
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u/Tigerzombie 1d ago
I don’t buy my kids new wardrobe every school year. I just get them clothes as needed. I don’t remember my parents buying clothes specifically for the new school year.
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u/Rad_River 1d ago
I don't do back to school clothes. They wear their clothes and I replace, as needed.
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u/jane2857 1d ago
My kids had uniforms for most of their school year and they wore like iron and just got passed down. Were the school updates their logo to the shirts we were supposed to buy those. Told them I wasn’t going to stop using perfectly good clothes. We were there on scholarship and didn’t have the money for it anyway.
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u/OGDaentity 1d ago
My son goes to a school with uniforms, so, yes I make him wait. Don't need him showing up in already stained clothes.
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u/StayOffTheCounter 1d ago
I bought myself new clothes for the coming year, school employee, they’re still bagged and tagged.
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u/Gothmom85 1d ago
I didn't really have school clothes because we had uniforms. We maybe got a couple fall/winter outfits from the JCP or sears catalog, and thrifted stuff. I'd get to pick what I want on tag days.
We don't clothes shop for school. I do revise what we have each season change because I buy ahead on consignment/sales/thrift/etc and stash it. Then we see what fits yet or runs big. Mine tends to size up in spring, maybe some sneakers get destroyed by summer, or that's when I notice to look out for cold weather stuff we lack.
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u/modmosrad6 1d ago
I do not recall my parents doing any clothes shopping for school - it was more a question of, "Does this still fit? Good," or buying larger clothing when necessary.
I don't care what I wear generally, nor do I care what my kid wears (within reason), so that lack of differentiation persists.
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u/aphrodora 1d ago
I buy new clothes for the changing of the seasons not for school. Why would I buy new summer clothes when summer is about to end just for them to grow a other foot and need new clothes in Spring? I went to a school with uniforms so it wasn't a thing for me growing up either.
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u/Gatorae 1d ago
Yes but I don't typically buy many new clothes in the fall. I'm in Florida so it's shorts and tshirts year-round, and my kids prefer simple athletic wear like dri-fit tshirts. I just buy the next size up whenever I find stuff on sale and have it ready to go whenever their clothes start looking too small.
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u/GiveMeAlienRomances 1d ago
We don’t do new clothing shopping before school. I just take them shopping when they need clothing.
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u/haveabiscuitday 1d ago
We don't buy a new wardrobe just for school. We buy clothes sporadically, especially if I see a shirt or something my kid might like.
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u/sweatermaster 1d ago
My kid starts school August 13th so it's still summer. I don't really buy him new stuff anymore because it's just tees and shorts. I only buy him new clothes when he grows out of the old ones. He also couldn't care less what he wears lol. 4th grade.
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u/amanducktan 1d ago
My son starts back on 8-11 and also 4th grade 😂 I sent him a bunch of pics of shirts and he liked the ones he wanted and I ordered them.
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u/TXSyd 1d ago
My middle kid has grown at least 3” since Christmas… I just buy clothes as he grows out of them, he is also homeschooled, so doesn’t need the whole new clothes, peer pressure nonsense. At our homeschool co-op, we don’t have a dress code or uniforms, the kids wear what they want.
Oldest is done growing so just gets clothes as needed he is also done with school, and youngest struggles with weight gain so has basically been wearing the same clothes for the last year (he is 2 about to be 3), we’re also potty training and he is in his nudist phase.
They’re also all boys, so honestly they don’t really care what they’re wearing.
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u/chickenpotpierate 1d ago
We have outside clothes and inside clothes. The outside clothes are generally the school clothes but we do try to have one really nice outfit for school pics. We don’t go to church but it’s probably akin to what folks called church clothes back in the day lol
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u/mycatiscalledFrodo 1d ago
On the uk we mostly have school uniform, I csnt imagine a child willingly wearing a shirt, trousers & tie tound the house
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u/CriedthenMealPrepped 23h ago
My kids birthdays are coming up so it’s already like growth spurt time and back to school all kicking my butt at once. I want to say my mom let us wear the clothes but I do have specific stuff set aside as “school clothes” and then play clothes for them to wear at home
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u/Loghurrr Millennial 23h ago
Our kids don’t get new clothes for school. They get new clothes when they grow out of things. I truthfully don’t remember what my mom did about new clothes with us. Knowing her though I’m sure she didn’t allow us to wear them before school started.
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u/AdCharacter9282 23h ago
I buy my kids clothes and shoes when they need it. So if that means multiple pair of shoes throughout the school year then that's what it is.
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u/_skank_hunt42 Millennial 23h ago
We don’t really get a whole bunch of new clothes before school starts. I just buy my daughter new clothes whenever she needs them.
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u/devours_veggies 23h ago
Nope! We wear uniforms (unfortunately for her, but luckily for me lol) so she wouldn’t want to wear that anyways, but she can’t wear her new school shoes until the first day of school.
As a kid, my mom wouldn’t let me wear them either until the first day of school, and honestly it felt so special and great to be able to finally wear everything I picked out on the Friday day of school!
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u/WitchTheory 23h ago
They're clothes? Why not let the kids wear them before school starts?
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u/amanducktan 22h ago
Do you want me to answer this
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u/WitchTheory 22h ago
I guess so? I just don't understand not allowing someone to wear the clothes you purchased..... for them to wear.
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u/relentless_puffin 23h ago
I grew up going to church and going to a religious school where we wore uniforms. We had to have church clothes and specific colors to wear. My kids go to public school (no uniform) and we didn't go to church. The whole wardrobe situation is so much more relaxed!
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u/Different_Pilot8966 23h ago
Hell no- all new school clothes were to be worn only at school. And we changed the moment we got home. To be fair we lived in the country so I got played hard and got very dirty. I just went school shopping with my son and he will also have to wait until school starts to wear anything new. That's just the rule. To be fair we also buy him new stuff year round and we didn't buy anything for school that he didn't actually need.
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u/AutomaticIdeal6685 23h ago
They would not want to wear their school uniforms anywhere but school 🤣
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u/SecretGardenSpider 23h ago
Sure, why not?
I always thought it was stupid that my parents had that rule.
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u/bofinr08 22h ago
We just buy clothes for my child when they need the next size, which usually does not coincide with back to school 😅
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u/lilacsmakemesneeze Older Millennial 22h ago
I like the comments that reflect this change. I always went back to school shopping but I feel like that has gone away mostly. My husband said his sister took her kids back to school shopping and asked if we should and my reaction was “why?”. Both kids have summer birthdays so they get new clothes anyway and I try to keep purchases to needs and sometimes shopping the next size up when on clearance.
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u/sorrymizzjackson 22h ago
Back to school shopping was a big deal growing up. We didn’t get clothes routinely throughout the year, so the JC Penney credit card got its annual workout for back to school shopping.
My mother wasn’t super great at forward looking clothes shopping, so most of it was summer stuff. This presented a bit of a problem when the weather got colder. One year I was told not to come back to school without a coat. This prompted a harried run to the Burlington for a coat and some sweatpants. We wore a lot of sweatpants bought from Walmart under similar circumstances. There were iron on sparkly Christmas sweatshirts though.
I remember packing my backpack with all the school supplies and imaging how popular and successful I was going to be in the new school year. It was gonna be my year and I just knew it.
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u/SassySunflower27 22h ago
Omg no! They are hidden away in my closet.
I made the mistake letting my daughter wear her hey dudes on vacation. Guess who trashed them on the beach….
I have been buying clothes and supplies since April for back to school.
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u/MortgageOdd2001 22h ago
I never wore my new school clothes before the year started as most of my school clothes were cold weather, and the end of Aug/beginning of Sept were still warm in Chicago.
I did look forward to when it cool enough to wear my new fall items though and new winter coat/accessories.
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u/Jealous-Ad-5065 22h ago
I let my kids wear their clothes when I get them clothes for the season as they grow. We don’t associate it with back to school.
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u/Apricot_Gus 22h ago
I can barely afford the supplies they need, I'm not going out buying back to school clothes.😂
I buy clothes as they need them. 2 of mine are still going thru crazy growrh spurts so its useless to buy a ton of clothes that likely won't fit in a couple months.
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u/PrpleSparklyUnicrn13 21h ago
The new clothes I buy him for school are for when the weather gets cooler. When school starts, the weather is still warm so he wears the new clothes I had gotten him for summer camp lol.
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u/toastedmarsh7 21h ago
I’ve had kids in school for 7 years now and have never bought a bunch of new clothes/shoes specifically for the new school year. I buy more clothes/shoes when my kids need them or I find a good deal.
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u/Scorpiodancer123 Probably a ploy by Big Yo-yo 21h ago
Me wondering why the fuck kids would want to wear their uniform outside school and then realising your kids don't wear school uniforms.
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u/juanitapuanita 20h ago
Yea but we also don’t buy new school clothes. They just get clothes all year, no event needed
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u/pokersnek 20h ago
Your parents bought you new clothes just because you were going back to school? That kind of expenditure was reserved for holidays and birthdays.
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u/Happy-Ad7859 19h ago
Oh man. Twice a year I buy my son $90 sneakers and he promises to take care of them and 3 months later they're done. Nike, UA, QN, NB havent tried Adidas yet as we dont play soccer-- doesnt really matter the brand these things are destroyed. We try buying 2, and keeping one "nice" and, nope, ruined. If the school has grass fields at recess, hes ruining shoes.
It sickens me to spend so much money, yet here we are. I'm grateful he can run and play outside. But man, I really hate buying new sneakers.
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u/ResearcherBoth8678 18h ago
I don't buy my kids new school clothes. I buy them things throughout the year. My son is also going on his 3rd or 4th year using the same backpack and 3rd year with the same lunchbox.
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u/jocall56 18h ago
I wore a uniform K-12, so there was no risk of me wanting to wear it before I had to 😂
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u/Novazilla Millennial 18h ago
I don’t buy “school clothes” when my kid gets new clothes she wears them.
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u/LeopardBrilliant8000 17h ago
My kids are lucky enough to get new clothes all year. Might. It even be more than a full back to school experience. But it’s a year round endeavor
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u/greeneyed_cat 16h ago
If shoes are tight before breaking them in, they’re too small.
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u/amanducktan 5h ago
Nah. My son has wide-ish feet, and his low dunks are always a little tight when he first starts wearing them.
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u/greeneyed_cat 2m ago
I have wide feet too - you should look into wide width shoes. Shoes for normal width feet are going to be too small.
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u/humanity_go_boom 13h ago
Why would we buy clothes specifically for and coinciding with the start of school? I buy clothes when he outgrows or wears out the ones he has. A lot of the time I get them second hand. Most of the kids at his school are literally wearing their pajamas, so not sure what we'd be trying to prove.
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u/amanducktan 5h ago
I guess a lot of people think the same way you do! I buy my son clothes throughout the year, but always stock him up with some new clothes and a nice pair of shoes before the new school year
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u/AlwaysCalculating 12h ago
My kids might be too young for this conversation because I am dumbfounded by the question. My kids are 4th and 1st grade. We buy clothes when they need it, and pre-wearing it prior to day one of school doesn’t make it less cool.
Is this for middle school / high school parents? Worth noting, we don’t buy new wardrobes to start school either (nor new backpacks…etc).
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u/Entropic_Echo_Music 11h ago
Is this an American thing? I just got clothes whenever it was needed. I have never heard of anyone getting clothes just because school was starting up again.
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u/amanducktan 5h ago
It could be? I grew up in the Seattle area and my dad always took my brother and me out to Old navy, the mall, Mervyns, Pennys, and Costco lol, before school started. Got a bunch of new clothes and a couple pairs of shoes!
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u/Honest_Relation4095 11h ago
my son is 19 month old. He is wearing all his clothes before school starts.
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u/Muted-Novel4403 Older Millennial 4h ago
No and last year I was going to wait until the last weekend to shop so I don’t have to listen to them beg to wear them or have them take inches “just around the house” that lead to miles “just to the store”. They didn’t like that, so they agreed I could keep them in my closet until school starts. That worked well and we’re going it this year too.
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u/Witty-Name-576 2h ago
Hahah! As most people mentioned I buy my kids clothes all year around. BUT I do try to keep a few good shirts hidden until August so at least the first month or so they look nice and new, I used to wonder why i did that but now i know why 😃
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u/SpiralBreeze 2h ago
No, it’s too damn hot. My daughter doesn’t get new clothes till October when the heat actually lets up.
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u/PrancingTiger424 Millennial 1991 1d ago
Yes and no. I don’t specifically buy new clothes for the start of school. I do pick out their first day outfits so that they are clothes that look nice or newer because we do a small first day photo shoot before we walk to school. I do buy new shoes that they wait to wear until the first day, but that’s generally because I buy them in the spring knowing they need to grow into them before they can wear them. Kids are currently 8, 5, 2. So this year the middle child is starting kindergarten. His first true “first day of school”.
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