Consignment Shopping.
It's the most awesome thing I've discovered since the Nosefrida & dry shampoo.
Since becoming a mom, I've become so incredibly cheap frugal. It's quite sad, really.
See, the the thing is, I love to shop. Especially for my little lady, but I have a hard time justifying spending $15.00-$20.00 on an outfit when I know she'll wear it a handful of times before outgrowing it.
This is embarrassing to admit, but I don't buy anything for Claire {or myself for that matter} that isn't on sale. $10 for a teeny shirt? Psh, I can wait a while & it will go on sale for $5 & I will feel much better about buying it.
I've never bought anything at Baby Gap or Children's Place. I know, I know. Slap my wrists for committing such a crime, but I just can't get myself to do it...but I digress.
Saturday, I decided I wanted to go consignment shopping. I kept seeing commercials for Kid-to-Kid, a store that buys & sells gently used children's clothes, toys, nursery gear, etc.
My mom used to take us there all the time when my brother, sister & I were young. We'd sell our old stuff & walk out with "new" stuff.
And we never knew the difference!
Hubs, Claire & I walked in on Saturday, and I was instantly addicted. There were racks & racks of adorable {hardly worn} baby girl clothes. I think I had 10 things in my hands within the first 5 minutes of being there!
I got Claire spring & summer clothes all for under $100.00
Her great-grandma had given us $50.00 to go buy her "something pretty", so we used that & ended up spending $49 out of our own pockets.
The most expensive thing we bought was a {brand new, with tags} Baby Gap teeny yellow bikini for $6.99
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| The CUTENESS! I DIE! |
Dresses & shirts & jackets OH MY!
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| Check out the loot! Who needs the fancy schmancy baby stores, when you can get 50 things for the price of 3?! Not me! Needless to say, I'm hooked. And my husband is too. I got his stamp of approval at this shopping place for sure! What about you all? Where do you like to shop for your little one's? Also, THANK YOU so much for letting me know I am NOT alone in comparing myself & Claire to other mommas & their babes! So glad to know it's "normal". :) |
It is good to be frugal & I am a bargain bitty myself!!!
ReplyDeleteSmart mama! Although I don't have a wee one, whenever we need clothing/stuff for our apartment, I always check Goodwill first.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's just me, but when you have to dig through thrift stores, it's more fun & more rewarding : )
Great deals! Love it! I usually shop online and buy for the year ahead. One of my favorites is Gymboree. I ONLY look at the items that are on sale or clearance, so that I'm not tempted by the non-sale items. I pretty much place one large order each season for the following year. So like this past fall when the summer clothes were on sale, I bought a full wardrobe for my daughter in a size 18-24 months for her to wear this summer. And over the winter I did the same thing but bought the sale fall/winter clothes in a size 2 for next fall.
ReplyDeleteOld Navy has great deals too. But their clothes run a bit small and don't wash very well.
I love consignment shopping! Depends though, some of the places I have been are overpriced. I also sell Liv's clothes to the consignment shops. The ones I have found in Calgary pay cash so I can't turn that down.
ReplyDeleteI also like to shop sales at target, canadian superstore, and old navy. I think they have the BEST clearance!
I love that store!! I don't have kids but I always go to that store to get stuff for my niece and nephews. There are several things that are new with tags! :) Also, did you sign up for their email? Sometimes they send out like $10 off $50 coupons and such. AND if you go towards the end of a season, you can get things for like 99 cents! Just get claire's size for that next season! So glad you got all of that cute loot for cheap! LOVE the teeny bikini!!
ReplyDeleteWe dont have that here but Im also a bargain hunter....i love baby gap but I only shop during sales or with coupons......except for jeans ......because they are the only ones that gfit my daughter perfect.....Anywho ....my addiction is Century 21 .......even though some stuff can still be expensive you can find $100 diesel sneakers (i know thats crazy for a kid) for $20. Crazy 8 is good too for baby stuff ...they are owned by gymboree and janie and jack and have great sales!
ReplyDeleteI love Kid to Kid! I just got 3 pairs of shorts and 2 pairs of pants for my lil man there for only $20. Consignment rules! I also LOVE the Kohl's brand (Jumping beans) its always on sale, usually around $4 or $5 per item, and its super cute!
ReplyDeleteGymboree, Gap kids, von maur all have excellent sales racks (I usualy go around the switching of seasons). We walked out of Gap with 3 items for $16.99 once, I swoon over good deals I never pay full price!
ReplyDeleteYou are a girl after my own heart! I am SO cheap! I can't stand to spend money, anymore, being on this budget. We LOVE Kohl's- they have their baby clothes 50% most all the time, AND they send those 15% coupons if you're on their email list. I also like to shop at the end of the season for the upcoming year because those are some seriously good bargains. Um yes, being cheap rocks.
ReplyDeleteI just also discovered "Crazy 8" which is owned by the same company that owns Gymboree, but it's a lower price point and looks EXACTLY the same! Google and see if you have one and shop the clearance racks!!
I'm not a mom yet but there is NOTHING wrong with buying baby clothes from a consignment shop! Like you said- babies wear things so few times before they outgrow them that you are pretty much buying a brand new outfit without the tags at a consignment shop! One place I find has really cute things for not very expensive prices is the Carter stores. Sometimes there are even carter outlets. I am so excited that you found so many cute and wonderful things! Claire is going to be stylin! Love the little bikini! So adorable!
ReplyDeleteLove and Hugs,
Erin
I love Kid to Kid! They always have great boutique baby clothes for a heck of a lot cheaper! That is where I plan on getting Grayson's spring and summer clothes too. We also bought his exersaucer there for $35 when it is $99 at babies r us:) I'm like you...having a baby makes me frugal!
ReplyDeleteI don't think there is ANYTHING wrong with bargain shopping! Clothes are expensive enough as it is, let alone for a child that is going to outgrow them after such a short time! Good for you! Can't wait to find out my babys gender so I can start shopping at our local consignment shops too!
ReplyDeleteI love Kid to Kid! Make sure to sign up for their book club and you get one free book a month for an entire year! Kohls is always great for scoring deals and you can also hit up the local mom's groups or church consignment sales!
ReplyDeleteGetting so called "second hand" clothing is awesome! You know that whoever had it first only wore it a few times since babies grow at lightening speed and you can just throw it in the washing machine and it's good as new! I think it's pretty absurd to pay top dollar for kids clothes under say, 10 (or more) years old. Number one, they grow like a weed and number two, they make a huge mess every day! At least my boys do. The good thing for me with having two boys 2 years apart is that I only have to buy one set of clothing...little brother gets all the hand me downs!
ReplyDeleteDude, I am a HUGE fan of consignment shopping. Though it is a little bit harder with a boy, because no matter what, the selection is always smaller, new or used. I don't know if they have this chain in your area, but I LURVE Children's Orchard.
ReplyDeleteAnother way of consignment shopping is if there are any "Parents of Multiples" tag sales or something like that. Granted, its not regulated like a store is, but those are often great for getting toys and stuff like that.
Such a great post! I just got into consignment shopping and I LOVE it too!!
ReplyDeleteI also LOVE some Gap clearance! I got the best deals last week there and at the Gap outlet - pants for $1.97 and tops for $2.97 - I was SO excited. I also shop at TJ Maxx and Target a lot!
That swimming suit is the CUTEST thing I've ever seen!
ReplyDeleteWhen we first had children, my hubby turned his nose up to "used clothing"...or used anything. Um...I think he's realizing after THREE KIDS...there's NOTHING wrong with it. As for sales...it's the ONLY way I shop.
ReplyDeleteI think you've just inspired me to seek out a good consignment shop around here. Unfortunately, I've never really found any. Must look again.
And the bathing suit - ridiculously cute.
I'm so with you on this! I just went two weeks ago and got so much stuff! THEN a friend gave me totes and totes full of old clothing... beats spending the money on it and it's all cute! And that swimsuit?! Can't wait to see pics of her in it!
ReplyDeleteLove the yellow swim suit...was literally saying "I dieee" in my head before seeing your comment! :) Wish we had a Kid-to-Kid around here, I remember going there when I was younger. You did inspire me to go to Marshall's on my lunch break yesterday after reading this post and I got 3 little girl outfits by Polo Ralph Lauren for super cheap! Thanks for the shoping inspiration!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE LOVE LOVE my local consignment shop! I always check there first before I go to a 'regular' store. :)
ReplyDeleteHeck ya! I almost NEVER buy A anything new... we have the best resale shop nearby (Once Upon a Child) and I get everything there! You got tons of cute stuff! And I love my (gently used) Children's place pjs for A because he is long and lean... they are the best ;-)
ReplyDeleteLOVE Kid 2 Kid. I shop there all the time! You dont live in Nashville do you?
ReplyDelete