I have never been “into” clothes. I buy for comfort, fit and price. HS and Mr. B are much the same.
BD, on the other hand, is all about style and labels.
We have had many a battle about what’s appropriate, how much I’m willing to spend, and which stores I will shop in. Those that advertise clothing to young people by showing young people without benefit of clothing are not on my list.
After a roof-raising fight back in May, we decided to give BD a clothing allowance. While I still have veto rights over anything I consider onjectionable, she can pick her own clothing. This includes shoes, swimsuits, etc. I did spring for new cleats, putting those in the “sports” section of the budget.
The entire May budget went to a pair of a jeans and a polo shirt. June went to underwear (she must have two dozen pairs at least) and a couple of tops. July’s money bought two tops, a sweatshirt, and pair of $14.50 flip flops. Interestingly, I have not gone along on a single one of the shopping trips.
I could have bought her three times as many items for the price she’s paid (actually, 7 times as many pairs of flip flops, as Old Navy had them on sale 2 pairs/$4).
But you know what? We’re not arguing about clothes any more, so this is A Good Thing.
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Happily my boys aren’t all that interested in fashion. Wait, I take that back, I caved and bought a $58 pair of plaid shorts for Nick at Macy’s. He caught me offguard. I do insist that he wear them at least 4 out of 7 days, though.
Chalk one up for MOM!!!! You GO!!
I dread the day my son cares what he wears….
I walked in and out of a bunch of outlet stores yesterday because I thought they were too expensive!
When my son and daughter were teenagers, we would go shopping and they would ask to buy this or that. I tried to keep things equal, but it was hard. Friends told us that they gave their children a “clothing allowance.” It was so much a month and they had to buy everything out of it–shoes, underwear, clothes. But not purses (for my daughter!). They could accumulate their money, but but if we didn’t have the money in our bank account, they didn’t have it either. Both of them learned to look for sales and good deals. They weren’t into fashion very much. But they could save up their allowance if they wanted something designer. That was their decision. Oh, you could take the label off the designer clothing and sew it onto the generic brand! Hha, hah, ha.
I lucked out on this problem. My girls are all about how much they can get for their buck! They love Target and Kohl’s and Old Navy. They love Payless, but unfortunately, Morgan has these long skinny feet with super slim heels, so she can’t get away with getting shoes at Payless (unless they’re flip-flops). And I’m always simply amazed at what they *won’t* buy when it’s their own money….way more picky on the price when Mom’s not buying!
You’re making me glad that our country just passed a dress code for public schools! Not much to argue there…just polo shirts and solid khaki, navy or black bottoms.
Of course, there are the accessories…