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

[wdwobsessed]

Thanks for all the replies.

My youngest really needs clothes. He does not like to wear shorts and certainly will not wear them to school. He is very particular about the way his jeans fit and feel but oddly enough we found some $18 ones at Target that he liked.

Right now he only has 3 pairs of jeans that fit and that is all he will wear to school. His sneaks were also coming apart so I bought him a pair last night at Target for $27 (on my dime) as they were severely needed. I got him a few new shirts before we went to Disney and he wears those over and over again. He will dig into the dirty clothes before he will put on something he does not like.

The issue is that he went from "child" to "preteen" very quickly. He no longer wants to wear the target graphic t's with football players and basketball pictures on them that I would stock up on at clearance time. I got away with lots of hand me downs and clearance steals until now. Now he wants to dress like all the other kids dress. BTW 11 = middle school.


The reason I want to give him a budget is because he needs to understand if you choose the more expensive stores you will get less. Last night when we bought his two pairs of jeans at Target he asked "how much do I have left now?" It is making him think about it.

I decided to go with $300 including shoes. He wants to pick out his OWN clothes and I see nothing wrong with that. I don't drag him out shopping all the time so he is not with me to pick up things here and there. He is even insisting his friend comes so he can get an opinion. LOL.

It is the area I live in. I'ts important.

Thanks again for the input.

WDWO

 

[kirstenb1]

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.

this is us. We live in Virginia, so we don't even need to buy jeans till Oct/Nov. Our dd's also grow kind of slowly, so often last years clothes still fit.

But if I can find clearance at Aber and Hollister, I'm okay with it.

 

[NotUrsula]

I do buy DS13's uniforms at the beginning of the year because that is when they are available at decent prices -- rest of the year they are tough to find and I have to pay a premium to get his size because he is thin.

I spent $160. Five prs. of shorts, three more polos and three pr. trousers. He already has 2 leftover prs of trousers from last spring, which I had to pay full-price for because he wasn't going to make it to April 1st (when shorts are allowed again.) His shorts were getting to the point that he was skirting close to a uniform violation on the length, so he got a whole new set this fall. They are all a full size too long and I'll hem them temporarily until he grows into the length. Also sneakers and a pr. of dress shoes for music performances, since he just passed DH' shoe size, so he can't borrow Dad's anymore.

His weekend clothes have been mostly from thrift stores until recently, when I've started having to buy pants retail because I just can't find his size in thrift stores in decent condition. Oh, well, I knew the day would come -- I always figured that I would stick with thrift stores for as long as I could, and then would have to pay up -- I still saved quite a lot over the years. I've also carefully packed away and saved all of his unisex-looking items like plain tees, plaid buttondowns, pajamas, and children's jeans. His sister will get some use out of them as she grows.

PS: For those of you with boys in men's shoe sizes, try Marshall's. We got DS some very comfortable Fila's for $25; they had several styles.

 

[aceys_h0ney]

This is my first year not buying school clothes. Simply put my children have way too many clothes. We buy them stuff all year long during good sales. They still have some stuff with tags from the last sale a few months ago. I am having a hard time not buying for them because it is what we always do but we are trying to save money and cut back on the amount of stuff we own. I did have to buy my son 2 uniform shirts because he ruined 2 last year.

Typically though I would spend about $100 per kid. However we got stuff on really good markdowns like aroudn 80%. The kids so far have no problems with not shopping right now so I am really proud of them. They don't know it yet but the money we are saving is taking us to Disney for a weekend trip in Sept.

 

[An_Island_Girl]

Ha! This thread makes me wonder what I am doing wrong. Our DD6 is going into 1st grade, and we just spent about $850 just yesterday in school cloths.
Between Hanna Anderson, Gymboree, and a few others, I didn't really get her all that much, but I do spend way more on her cloths than on my own.

Oh how I wish I could budget shop better. At least she'll look cute.

 

[swilshire]

I bought the 16yo and 11yo socks and underwear. That's it.

Sheila

 

[kinntj]

I bought the 16yo and 11yo socks and underwear. That's it.

Sheila

WooHoo! My kids don't get new underwear, because those I buy year round, but they do get 2 packages of new socks. Those are always getting holes in the toes.

 

[NotUrsula]

Ha! This thread makes me wonder what I am doing wrong. Our DD6 is going into 1st grade, and we just spent about $850 just yesterday in school cloths.
Between Hanna Anderson, Gymboree, and a few others, I didn't really get her all that much, but I do spend way more on her cloths than on my own.

Oh how I wish I could budget shop better. At least she'll look cute.

Simple answer? You're buying Hanna Andersen and Gymboree at retail. The only time my DD gets those brands is when I find them at OUAC, and even then I consider them a splurge.

 

[DawnM]

Fairness is really based on what YOU feel comfortable with.

My boys don't care at all about clothing, so I am able to still buy 80% of their stuff from thrift stores and yard sales and stock up when I find new to almost new items in their sizes.

I can't find jeans as easily that are in mint condition, so I do buy them each 2 or 3 pairs of jeans each year, usually around October when it gets a bit colder. My boys will wear shorts and a hoodie before they wear pants though! Hoodies can be found at the thrift store as well and I have a huge stash right now. They come in handy when they A.) lose them, B.) have friends over who need one to use or wear home.

For us, we budget about $75/mo. for all 5 of us for clothing. We spend when necessary and not every month or at specific times.

Dawn

 

[StitchBuddy]

OMG!!!! I just added up what I have spent over the last month $335!!! She (DD 13) is done! But, in all fairness, she has out grown all of her stuff, even her summer clothing. But, I didn't realize how much I've spent. I still have to buy athletic uniforms. Yikes!!! I guess I shouldn't complain. My sister had to shell out $1800 for uniforms for her son, because he is going to be in the Corp at Texas A&M. Gig'em Aggies! Whoop!

 

[2TxAgs]

My sister had to shell out $1800 for uniforms for her son, because he is going to be in the Corp at Texas A&M. Gig'em Aggies! Whoop!

Gig 'em!

 

[Belle5]

My sister had to shell out $1800 for uniforms for her son, because he is going to be in the Corp at Texas A&M. Gig'em Aggies! Whoop!

Awesome! My second oldest son is graduating from that fantastic school this Friday! My oldest will graduate from there next spring.

 

[wdwobsessed]

OK so I have my DS age 11 a $300 budget. It took him about 3 hours for us to get our shopping done.

We shopped at Zumies, American Eagle, Gap, Target and Aeoropostale.

He got:
1 pair of shoes
2 Hoodies
4 Jeans
1 button up shirt
5 t-shirts
1 Backpack with Matching lunch bag

Ok so we didn't really buy anything that expensive. The biggest splurge was the shoes for $60. We got a lot of 50% off at Aeoropostale.

I am glad I gave him a budget.

WDWO

 

[tschales]

My daughters are both at the University school in our town and I spent roughly $600 on uniforms that they share. They are (fortunately) both very near the same size since one uniform skirt is $42. Jumpers are even higher. Add in shoes, shorts, and shirts and the price goes up pretty high. I don't buy long pants until we need them and my youngest daughter won't wear them at all; she puts tights under a skirt and is happy with that for winter wear.

 

[Liberty Belle]

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.

My son is 7 and he cares! Of course he has a 17 year old brother, so maybe that is why. Really, though, my oldest son was very particular from first grade on. He always wanted to be casual-dressy (button downs, khakis, etc) and he's still kind of that way.

 

[Shleedogg]

My mom used to give me $150. That was about 10 yrs ago. OMG I feel so old saying that. I cannot believe I graduated 9 yrs ago. Ridiculous.

But I digress, lol. I would say $200-$250 per kid. But if they can wait, I'd suggest waiting a couple weeks into the school year so you can catch some sales.

 

[KKB]

Why anyone is buying sweaters & hoodies, even jeans in August?
We won't need any of those items until October...plenty of time to keep an eye on the sales...
We buy all year round...sales as much as possible...even when items are needed, we watch for sales at Kohls, Target, Aero. I currently have $50 gift cards at each GAP, Aero, AE & Banana (Discover rewards)--the kids LIKE AE, but when we go in, they say they can get the same things at Aero for lots less! Way to go kiddos!
The big issue for us is our cruise in Oct...actually we did some evaluating, and DS15 just needs some khakis (maybe we can get Homecoming out of those, too...) He has polos--fine for dinner most nights. But he wants button up shirts...naw...he'll never wear them again!

 

[StitchBuddy]

Why do kids need jeans and hoodies in Aug. in Texas? But that being said, I did buy some jeans. My daughter had outgrown everything and I mean everything. How does a child's foot go up 1 1/2 sizes in just 6 months?? I mean really! Plus, even last year when her shorts were brand new she had one of the coaches telling her they were to short. Hey, I'm a teacher and watch that like a hawk! But, the coach said it wasn't that the shorts were really to short by school standards, just that her legs are to long to wear shorts to school. So, we just went ahead and bought jeans, DD says it is cold in the classrooms anyway. I think it secretly makes me happy too! This way the boys won't be looking at those long legs!

 

[marcyinPA]

Well, I just bought my DS15 two pair of jeans and two pair of khaki pants from American Eagle on-line, and it cost me almost $150 with free shipping. He wears a difficult size - 30 x 34 - and I'd probably pay double what I paid just to get the right size for him! Of all the brands out there, AE fits him the best, so we go with it. He grew about 6 inches over the last year, and probably another 1 or so this summer. He outgrew EVERYTHING.

As for shirts, though, I usually pick stuff up on clearance for him. And shoes? Forget it. He's in a 12 wide. (mens of course!)...there is no buying cheap shoes! Well, the pair I just bought him were $50 on sale at Kohl's...so not bad...but he's going to need some casual dress shoes too.

DS11 is easier...still in a 10 boys. I bought him a couple of XS's from Aero and he's happy. Otherwise, just entering 6th grade, he doesn't care too much yet. He wears a lot of DS15's hand-me-downs too, so that makes it a little more budget friendly. He also doesn't grow fast, so most of his shirts, at least, he has been wearing for at least one season, if not two. I'll buy him one new outfit to start school, but won't buy him anything else until he really needs it. He does need new sneakers though, and black shoes for marching band.

 

[TOTMGMWDW]

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.

My 8 year old son cares for sure and has been like that since first grade. He likes what he likes and will only wear that. He wears athletic Nike type shorts and shirts most of the time. This year he asked for a pair of skinny jeans. I didn't even know he knew what those were. Each child is given 100.00 to start with to buy shoes, socks, undies, backpack, and a new outfit. Then we buy the rest on sale throughout the year as needed.

As far as buying jeans and hoodies now..it may be hot outside but in my dd classrooms it is very cold. They keep some of those classrooms as like 68. I work in the same school my dd attends and even the office is cold. I keep my heater on some days under my desk. So, yes, we bought jeans at Aero for 9.99 on clearance and hoodies as well.