Thank goodness my DD is in a charter/private school where they wear uniform, so I will be ordering a couple of items early next month and the only I have to worry about is shoes and her gigantic list of school supplies.

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Shatema
mom to Destiny and Daija divas in training

Not really...I shop all year round...

Every year I buy Most of my Kids Late summer /fall clothes at the GREAT clearence prices That are going on right now.

Then right before school I buy them new Shoes....

Then They get lots of clothes for Birthdays and Christmas .... And We do more Clearence shopping after christmas Sales.

My kids have tons of clothes and I rarely have bought anything on NON clearence -

I actually feel kind of like a Fool buying anything that is Outragously Overpriced.- cause I know the Clothing Markup is Ridiculous and I Know that The item will be on sale VERY VERY soon....

I just shopped Gymborees Big sales this past week and -
I bought so many things for my kids....
Bathing suits- reg. 32.50 - For 11.50
Pjs'( long sleeve!!) For 5.99 reg. 24.50
Boxer breifs for DS- Reg.5.00 - I paid .99 each

Etc. etc.
Prices were GREAT

Gap kids is another Great Clearence place -
Last Week I found my son 3 pr. jeans in the Next size up for only 7.99 each!! Reg.24.50
Cheaper than Walmart!!

I generally buy clothes as needed. One of my daughter's friends is a size larger than her, so her mom happily hands down nice clothing to us. My tomboy is slimmer and pickier than her sister. Right now, she prefers to wear boy's clothes and plain girl's jeans (no flowers, glitter, etc.). For the brand name preferences, we look for the clearance sales. We do try to buy better quality shoes on sale.

I have one daughter (age 9). She hates shopping. I only take her if necessary.

I buy her backpack for the next year in approximately Feb. for the next school year. She has hates shopping and anything pink will make her happy. I have purchased approximately $25 backpacks for $6-$7 two years in a row.

I buy school supplies through the summer as they go on sale (taking inventory of what we already have at home first.)

I take her to buy pants in late summer as needed. I inventory what she already has and needs first. (My mother buys her things on sale and mails boxes of clothes about 3 times a year. My daughter is my mother's only grandchild.)

I am on the coast in Oregon. Sweatshirts are worn about 9 months of the year here or long-sleeved T's at least. Short sleeved T's are only needed a few months a year. Luckily, my mother has purchased a bunch of sweatshirts she got on clearance.

I buy her a new coat either at the beginning of the season when our local Fred Meyer marks them 50% off or in Feb/March when they go on clearance. I got her an $80 coat for $6.50 two years ago. It lasted until she outgrew it and I had to buy her a new one this Dec. I could only get 50% off in Dec. but she had to have it, I couldn't wait until the clearance in Feb./March.

Shoes, I have to buy as needed. She wears a 6 1/2 in womens and is only nine. Her feet have been perpetually in growth mode since birth. (I was the same as a child, but stopped at size 10 in 7th grade.) I try to buy her shoes on sale or hit the Wal-Mart (an hour away) whenever we are near it. I look first in the sale shoes and have usually found something.

I have been lucky because my little girl doesn't like to shop and is only now starting to have a few preferences. We are in a small town in which 70% of the kids qualify for free or reduced price school lunch are are a Title 1 school. Most of the kids don't have much (it's very sad), but because of that there is not a lot of pressure to dress a certain way or to have certain things in elementary school.

I am in a small town with limited shopping and shop around the sales year round. It is rare for me to ever buy anything that is not on sale. Back to school sales generally don't offer enough of a percentage off (at least 50%) for me to justify buying then.

I am finished with my dd back to school clothes shopping. I evaluate what she will need once school is out. She grew so tall this spring that all of her jeans needed to be replaced. I hit Goody’s and found jeans for $7.44 and she picked out 4 pair that she wanted. I also found 2 pair of Abercrombie jeans NWT at a local consignment shop for $4 each and several Limited 2, Abercrombie and Areopostle shirts for $2 each. I found 2 Limited 2 hoodies at TJ Maxx for $1.49 each. I found her a pair of Sketchers NWT last week on Ebay for $6.50. Once school starts she will get a school t-shirt and sweatshirt.

My ds is working out a lot this summer so I will evaluate what he needs closer to the beginning of school.

I normally buy clothes for school and then resupply at Christmas.

Last year was my son's first year in preschool and I went a little crazy buying him clothes. He's 4 and just had another growth spurt so I've been picking up jeans & shirts on clearance. His birthday is in May and he gets lots of gift cards so I actually put a couple aside to help with back to school shopping. My mom thinks it's mean, but come on, he doesn't need dozens of outfits for the summer. We live in New England and the cooler months last longer than the warmer months. I'd rather stock up on jeans, pants, and some nice shirts and a jacket for the fall/winter.

My kids wear uniforms for school so we try to buy 2pants 2shirts per student and then fill
in as weather needs change.

I remember DS was in 6th grade and there was great sale on Dockers so bought him 6 pr. and 2 months later he had huge growth spurt and they were all too short.

This year DS is in college and he is responsible for 75% of his clothing costs.

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I do get a bunch of stuff at one or two select stores, when they have their big sales. I live in So. Cal; so we can wear shorts almost year round. It does get cold in Feb and March and guess what? There are no warm clothes left! So I buy jeans and sweatshirts in July and my shorts and bathing suits in February. Of course, I cherry pick the clearance sections at Target, Old Navy and Gap thoughout the year to supplement.
I'm pretty brand loyal having been burned by cheaper things just not lasting. I'd rather pay $20 for one pair of shorts that lasts over one year than $5 for something that only makes it through a couple of washings.

A funny aside, my MIL loves to give the kids an outfit for Christmas. She usually just looks at my stash and buys something off of me. So my spending for school clothes is even less!

Luckily my kids are not brand specific, but they are picky about what they want to look like!

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