A Parent’s Guide to Creating your Kids’ Clothing Strategy

Seasonal style changes, combined with a growing need to be sustainable, stylish, and financially conscious, can make clothing your kids seem like a headache. Fret no more, we’ve knocked our heads together, pooled our industry knowledge, and developed the perfect, simple, clothing strategy for dressing your children sustainably, without ever having to compromise.

To do it we’ve exchanged ideas with parents up and down the land: Some who buy entirely new kids’ clothes; some who rent; some who revel in their second-hand hauls, and others who embrace a mixture of all three.

Buying New vs Renting vs Acquiring Second-hand Items

First of all, let’s have a look at the facts:

Is there such a thing as an optimal clothing strategy?

There’s no right or wrong way of clothing your children.  But we think there is a way to combine all of the options so that you minimise the impact of clothing your children on your wallet and the environment.

First of all, rent dresses, dungarees, applique t-shirts, sweaters, cardigans, and coats for weekends, days out, special occasions, trips to the playground, walks in nature...in fact pretty much everything.  Kids clothing rental offers you the choice and style options you need and allows you to access the best quality ethical and sustainable brands for 70% less. Plus you can swap these more expensive and seasonal garments when you need to without any financial or environmental impact. 

Second, use hand-me-downs and second-hand for basics and essentials like pyjamas, vests, layering t-shirts, and leggings. Best for messy-play, skateboarding, mud pie making, and wearing to nursery...anywhere that functionality is more important than style.  You won’t have to worry as much about them getting the odd stain or tear and, because they tend to work across the seasons you don’t need to change them as frequently.  But don’t worry if you’ve not got an easy way to access these clothes.  You can rent them too... at thelittleloop we’ve introduced our ‘well-loved’ collection of playclothes which are especially designed for the rough and tumble of childhood.

Finally, there’s still a place for a few new items. There are so many lovely independent small businesses out there that there’s bound to be the odd thing you just can’t find second-hand or by renting.  We recommend that you save these for birthdays and holidays to minimise the environmental impact. And try to support only those small brands who offer something truly unique, make in non-seasonal small batches, and manufacture close to home for maximum sustainability.  Follow some on instagram…it’s a great way to understand them and their ethos.

What to do next to get your strategy underway...

If you feel like giving this a shot, why not adding rental alongside your children’s existing wardrobe to test it out. By renting clothing, the level of style and substance in any wardrobe is naturally going to improve, and it also works as a season solution for parents who just want a few extra bits when the weather starts changing.  

You can always adapt, edit, and improve your strategy until you find what works for you.