What is a fair back to school clothes budget for teens?

[wdwobsessed]

Hi all,

What is a fair budget for back to school clothes? I have an 11 year old and a 14 year old .. both boys. The 11 year old is actually more "fashion concious" than the 14 year old.

They are now wanting the AEagle and Aeorpostale and Hollister stuff. This budget thing is new to us so be gentle.

What is a reasonable amount to allow them to spend?

Thanks

WDW

 

[princessmom29]

Well, uniforms for DD from the local uniform store were $350 and she is only 6, so I would say at least that much. Her shirts were $14 each and jumpers were $36 plus shoes, socks, uniform jacket, and a couple hairbows. I would think you are looking at about $40 for bottoms and $15-20 for tops without a major sale even without buying the most expensive thing. The msot important thing, morethna giving them a set amount ot spend, I think is to have arealistic idea of what things actually cost. My mom never did and would refuse to buy things that were actually really reasonable.

 

[muscarello4]

I gave mine each $250. I find they shop much smarter with a dollar amount than a "I'll buy you 5 shirts and 4 pair of pants". They really look for things that they liked on sale.

My 13 year old bought several pair of pants, more shirts than I can count, 3 pair of shoes, and a purse.

They will get more around Christmas, but this was enough for back to school.

 

[jacksmom]

I have a 13 yo ds going into 8th grade and we have spent approx $350. for 4 pair of jeans (Levi's on sale), 4 pair of khaki shorts, 7 golf polos (they have to wear polo shirts and he will only wear Nike, or Under Armor), and 1 Nike hoodie! I bought all but 1 polo (Under Armor) and all the shorts on sale at Kohls! We also shopped on tax free days! I think we have done pretty good and do not plan on buying anything else till maybe X-mas!

 

[Pigeon]

We don't really set a budget of a certain amount, and don't do a big back to school shopping. Instead, we pick up stuff year round, mostly on clearance. Aero is a lot cheaper than Hollister and AE because they have very good sales and great clearance, so while my kids like the other brands, I try to steer them to Aero as much as possible.

 

[Liberty Belle]

Hi all,

What is a fair budget for back to school clothes? I have an 11 year old and a 14 year old .. both boys. The 11 year old is actually more "fashion concious" than the 14 year old.

They are now wanting the AEagle and Aeorpostale and Hollister stuff. This budget thing is new to us so be gentle.

What is a reasonable amount to allow them to spend?

Thanks

WDW

Hard to say without knowing exactly what they have and what they need. Each of those stores have online shops, though where you can see prices. Is your 14 year old in men's sizes yet? If so, it will be more expensive, at least at Abercrombie.

You can find things on clearance at all the stores (and Aeropostale is definitely way less expensive than the others, especially A & F) and that will help your budget.

We don't set a budget for our sons' clothes. I have a 17 year old and a 7 year old and I spend a fraction on the 7 year old that I spend on the 17 year old.

Unfortunately you just missed some really good sales at A & F. I found t shirts for 7 bucks and polos for around the same! That was for my 7 year old. The clearance prices for my older son were a lot higher.

 

[buzz5985]

We don't really set a budget of a certain amount, and don't do a big back to school shopping. Instead, we pick up stuff year round, mostly on clearance. Aero is a lot cheaper than Hollister and AE because they have very good sales and great clearance, so while my kids like the other brands, I try to steer them to Aero as much as possible.

I don't do school shopping either. He will wear his shorts, etc until probably October anyway. The end of September will have great sales, getting ready for Christmas.

 

[Darcy03231]

First, I go through all of their clothes with them to see what they really need. We live in the Northeast and they can start school in what they've been wearing all summer. I will usually get them one or two outfits for the start of school and that's it.

Also, like a PP we shop year round when the stores are having sales, so we don't to "back to school" shopping. I find the sales in my area are better in late September/early November anyway.

As long as they don't need winter coats and shoes, I would say around $200 per child.

 

[Diabolicdesire]

My dd is going into 7th grade and she has a 100.00 limit. We just went through all of her clothes and she is not really in "NEED" of anything. That is plenty for her to get something cute for the first day and a few other wants. DD can buy what ever she wants but I do remind her that the more an item costs the less she can buy. That really helps her search out a good sale.

 

[AlbertZeroK]

We spent $270 on our DD15. Mostly bought at JC Penney with a combination of coupons (15% off plus $15 off $75). We save at least half off the sticker price of all the cloths and pay comparable prices to Wal-Mart for what we think is higher quality cloths.

 

[eliza61]

Hi all,

What is a fair budget for back to school clothes? I have an 11 year old and a 14 year old .. both boys. The 11 year old is actually more "fashion concious" than the 14 year old.

They are now wanting the AEagle and Aeorpostale and Hollister stuff. This budget thing is new to us so be gentle.

What is a reasonable amount to allow them to spend?

Thanks

WDW

Question? what do they NEED? I think many family's get caught up in the "Back to school" shopping hysteria. Like a new school year is a major celebration that nees an entire new wardrobe.

I'm in NJ so the first month of school, the weather is hot, my kids will be wearing their summer gear. Their short sleeve shirts are absolutely fine. I may pick up a pair of new jeans.
I see you're in Maryland so it's going to be hot for a while, if you're on a budget why can't they make do with their summer gear? They probably need new backpacks.


I would simply make a list of what outfits they have and fill in the blanks. I'm just not into buying clothes simply because it's groundhog day, or it's back to school.

I would probably do as a previous poster mentioned. give them $100 bucks which is enough for a nice jean/shirt combo at hollister and a new backpack.

 

[pyrxtc]

I spend about $200 on clothes for each of my kids. But, this year I don't have the money like that so I am buying them each something for the first day back and after that, they will have to wear what they have in their closet. I buy them clothes year round as they need them. The sizes change so fast that I can't keep up most of the time.

As far as brands, none of my kids have a favorite. We get most of their clothes at TJ Maxx or Marshall's including shoes. My youngest likes DC's and my teen DD like Converse.

 

[ICF]

I find it interesting that an 11 year old BOY really cares about his school clothes.

I have a 10 1/2 yr old getting ready to start 5th grade and he couldnt care less.

He might say that he doesn't like a certain shirt or such item but he's never once said..."I want to go to XYZ store and look for clothes". He's generally more than willing to wear we (his parents) pick out for him...mostly from Kohls, JC Penneys or Target.

He's never sat foot in an American Eagle or Aeorpostale.

 

[Stacy9402]

I just wanted to add that we went into Hollister yesterday and they gave us a 20% off coupon that is good til 9/6 (wish I had bought something and then bought the rest with the coupon but alas I didn't know about it..) But in reality it would have only saved me $5 because it does not work on clearance items and we usually only buy clearanced items in there.

Yesterday I spent $250 for my soon to be 3rd grader but she needed a new wardrobe as she can still wear clothes she had in Kindergarten. So we got jeans, t-shirts, sweater, skirts, dress, Long sleeve shirts. So I think I done pretty good.

My 3 year old got a couple things -- still need to get her a few dresses. She starts preschool.

My soon to be Junior (11th grade) got 7 items (mostly shirts of some sort and a pair of shorts) at Hollister for $100 and $2 bras on sale at JCP with coupon for $20 total and I am done with her cause she really didn't need much but wanted a few things to freshen up her wardrobe.


I will probably get them all a pair of shoes though..

 

[czycropper]

My DD12 & I went and for a 1st day of school outfit (total $54) at Hollister when they had the 20% off coupon and my DD10 wants something from either Justice or Aero and then they'll get more stuff for Christmas. I pick up things throughout the year so they have plenty of clothes....any way it seems like they wear the same things over & over again

 

[LuvOrlando]

I guess $200 is a good number to give the kids as a way out if the bills start to creep up, although I don't know if I stick to it. But I do have a system.

Right now places like Wal-mart have great deals on school supplies so I usually end up spending about $75 on an entire years worth of pens, pencils, folders, notebooks, markers ect. I keep the extra stuff away in a bag and have the kids bring me home their supplies every 3-4 months so i can go through and replace what needs replacing ect. This time of year I also buy them their back packs and shoes. I don't do back to school clothes shopping yet because I am tired of them coming home and telling me they have the wrong sneakers ect. I try to make them wait until a week after school actually starts before wearing their new shoes so I can return what they picked in case it's not what they really want, which is what everyone else has. Shoes usually run about $75 each kid and backpacks about $30-$50 each, depending on quality. I wait until October to do jeans because it's too hot to need them just yet and, again, I want them to see what their friends are doing before I buy and I get about 4 each kid. Also, come October all the sales start up so yay for me there too. Another thing to consider is growth spurts, the closer I can get to the actual season they needs jean the less likely they will be busting out of them before it's over. Personally, I like to spread out the expenses across a longer period of time so that I can take advantage of the stores sale cycles.

 

[rszdtrvl]

We will probably spend around $250 for our son. He is in 8th grade, and needed jeans! And his jeans are very hard to find - 27" waist and 32" inseam. The only place I found a pair even close to that was American Eagle - 28"x32" but luckily I found a sale.

We hit Aeropostale outlet mall and found a bazillion shirts - I think we got 7 or 8 for less than $50.

We will finish shopping on Wednesday.

He just needs shoes, socks, underwear. I am going to have him go through his closet today too, and pick out stuff he knows he won't wear so we can donate it. I tend to pick up a lot of crazy shirts at yard sales for him.

He is one of those kids who wants to wear what is in style and cares what brand they are. I know what it is like to want to wear what is in style and fit in. At 13, if I can make him feel self-confident and have him fit in with his peers, I will do it.

 

[mamaLori05]

I find it interesting that an 11 year old BOY really cares about his school clothes.

I have a 10 1/2 yr old getting ready to start 5th grade and he couldnt care less.

He might say that he doesn't like a certain shirt or such item but he's never once said..."I want to go to XYZ store and look for clothes". He's generally more than willing to wear we (his parents) pick out for him...mostly from Kohls, JC Penneys or Target.

He's never sat foot in an American Eagle or Aeorpostale.

Your son may not care, but TRUST ME there are SEVERAL boys that age that do care! Yes, they do actually request to buy their clothing from those stores. This is coming from a former teacher who regularly worked in the 5th grade classroom!

 

[pigletto]

My kids are set for summer stuff and the weather won't require warmer clothes (which they still have a lot of ) until October. So I bought all the supplies we needed and we'll wait until our trip to Lake Placid in the Fall to hit outlets for clothes shopping. I don't really have a budget per say.. we'll just get what they need. But I can't see spending more that $300.00 on my 13 yr old, and probably under a hundred on my 6 year old. I bought a ton of things when they went on sale last year for him to use this season.

 

[Zoemakes5]

I made a deal with my boys a few years ago that I would buy the shirts they wanted (***********, Billabong, O'Neil, etc.) but they would live with whatever brand shorts or pants I saw fit to purchase. It has worked out great. My biggest challenge is that my younger son is a 29x32, which is challegning to find. Old Navy is a good resource. Any special requests were their own money or requested as xmas or whatever. It has kept our budget lower.

As for back to school in particular. I buy school supplies and a back pack, then I typically load up on "essentials" during the back to school sales. Underwear and socks are on that list. I always get a new pair of tennis shoes. Typically also get a couple of pairs of jeans and tshirts. I've also started a tradition of getting them one "first day of school" outfit, which they typically wear for pictures that year. Other than that I don't typically do a huge back to school push. I will augment what they are missing, and if they have gone through a major growth spurt, I'll see about taking advantage of the sales to restock. It's kinda easy here, as we're in southern CA and don't have a major temperature change in Sept/Oct.