Can we all agree our kids have too many clothes? Okay, good. I bought way too much stuff when Casper was a baby and young toddler because I didn’t have a system or any frame of reference for how many pieces of clothing a kid realistically goes through. Whenever he grew out of a size I would find so many things he never wore (because it was impractical, fit weird, too niche of an item, etc) and felt so guilty. I noticed I was putting him in the same three or four outfits on rotation and ignoring everything else. So I decided to use that and create a little “capsule” closet for him. Now I feel like I’ve got a pretty good system that means I’m not drowning in laundry and my kid doesn’t have more clothing than he needs or can realistically wear in a season. This is what I do when I’m prepping for a new season or size:
First I take everything out, assess it for quality and size, and put aside anything that’s definitely outgrown but still in good shape to store for baby R. (If I notice something has made it six months without leaving the drawer more than once or twice, I can usually admit to myself the next kid won’t wear it either and then I donate or sell it. I only want to keep things that were loved.) I put back everything that still fits and will work for the coming season. (We live in a mild climate so still need t-shirts sometimes in the winter and long-sleeve shirts sometimes in the summer.) I was inspired by The Mayes to create a very nerdy spreadsheet to keep track of what he has and what he needs going forward. This may feel like overkill but it was actually a game-changer when I started shopping this fall; I was super laser-focused on only the things he actually needed and wasn’t filling my cart on a whim! I knew he would wear all of the pieces I bought. Such a good way to save money, stick to a budget and feel intentional.
(Disclaimer: this works for us! It may not work for your family and that’s of course fine. I’d love to hear what does work for you though!)
These are the numbers I came up with based on how often I do laundry and how messy Casper generally is (not overly). My friend Elle often talks about having clothes for one week and that was a helpful framework. Once I filled out the spreadsheet I could easily see Casper needed a few more pairs of underwear (still have to get those), 4 new long-sleeve shirts, a sweater, one pair of pajamas, a button-up shirt and winter hats.
Long-sleeve shirts are hands-down the type of clothing Casper wears the most during all seasons except summer, so those were my priority. I’ve found he doesn’t wear hoodies or sweaters much so I don’t go looking for those. I think one toque would be plenty for most kids, but because he goes to an outdoor preschool he needs a back-up. So, with that list of specific necessities in mind, I began looking around (online, who has time to go to loads of actual stores with their kid?) at places with good basics. Some of my favourites to check are:
For the last couple years I’ve gotten most of his shirts at Old Navy because there’s always sales and they hold up really well, surprisingly. Never jeans from there though. H&M shirts and pants haven’t worked for us past the baby sizes, but I check anyway. I really love Cat & Jack basics from Target but since we’re not American I have to make a special trip to go there which isn’t practical. And Zara is my go-to for stretchy denim pants/jeans. They are the best. Casper has been wearing the same yellow pair (in size 18-24 months) since he was 12 months old! They’re stretchy and comfy and have an adjustable waistband on the inside—so good. In the past I found their shirts too thin/boxy and preferred the fit of Old Navy but this year I found everything at Zara. (I’m pretty sure of his size but stopped by a Zara store while I was downtown one day to double check before I ordered.)
So here’s the thing. I would love to not have to shop at places like Old Navy and Zara. I know fast fashion is incredibly wasteful and polluting and employs people in less-than-ideal environments. I would LOVE to buy everything from companies like Mini Mioche and Petits Vilains and Misha and Puff and Faire Child and procure his underwear only from Arq, etc. I would love nothing more. But here’s the reality: we are a single-income family living in the most expensive city in Canada, where the housing market is the second least-affordable in the world. I refuse to go into debt to outfit my kids. I am a regular person who doesn’t get free stuff from companies and I can count on one hand the amount of times Andy and I have bought new clothes for ourselves in the last 3 years. For maternity clothes and the new baby’s clothing especially I have been scouring Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, swap groups and consignment stores like it’s a paying job because buying used is definitely the most sustainable option. I do my best but sometimes Old Navy is what I’m left with. With that said, when you’ve been really intentional with the amount of clothing you’re allowing into your home, sometimes that leaves a little more money to purchase from more sustainable and conscientious companies. I love supporting local companies, so I watch for sales at Parade and Petits Vilains and buy one or two quality things once a year in a size up so that they will last extra long.
This is what I found at Zara that will take Casper into the summer next year and beyond:
(The little grey hat is for baby boy.)
I used the colour palette of the shirts in the 3-pack as a reference for everything else, making sure that all of the pants he has will coordinate with everything else—highly recommend doing this! I love muted reds and maroons and pinks on boys so I was pleased to see so many lovely offerings at Zara this season. He only needed one button-up but we had to get the blue one with the Peanuts gang on the back for our hardcore Charlie Brown fan.
He has 4 main pairs of pants now, a pair of sweats and some fleece pants for outdoor preschool. Besides the new pink harems from Zara his pants are from Target (red ones, I love these pants), Zara (black stretchy jeans, from last year) and Haven (green joggers). He ripped the knee of his yellow Zara jeans I love so much :( but I’m going to try to mend them. His 2 other long-sleeves are from Target and there’s one extra in the drawer for playwear that I think I’ll actually just donate upon second thought. I’ll keep these 2 short sleeves for layering and put away the rest of his summer clothes.
His grandparents so generously got him a pair of Simply Merino long johns for forest school that will do double duty as warm pjs! I also got him a Simply Merino toque. (His other toque is from Zara.) His green pajamas are from Parade and they are the best pajamas, honestly. I bought them last fall in size 4T (when he was 2). He has worn them every night since then and they look new! When I was at Target recently I found the grey stripe Burt’s Bees pair on clearance as a back-up but way prefer Parade.
His undies are from Costco and this amount works for us right now but I need to go and grab another set.
This is how everything is stored! Top row is his summer clothes: 4 tank tops, 6 t-shirts.
Long sleeves in the bottom row. Undies and long johns to the right.
Shorts on the left, sweats/fleece and soft pants in the left organizer, jeans in the middle, socks on the right.
He has 4 pairs of crew socks, 4 ankle socks for summer, and 2 wool socks.
I also keep shoes to a minimum. He has 1 pair of shoes (velcro Vans), 1 pair of heavy-duty wool-lined rain boots for school and 1 pair of casual (waterproof) winter ankle boots (and he had 1 pair of Keen sandals for the summer). He has 1 pair of waterproof gloves, 1 pair of swim shorts and rash guard and 1 hat.
To summarize: consider your numbers before buying, try to coordinate everything so it’s easy to make lots of outfits out of a smaller number of clothing(!), and challenge yourself to buy less than you think you need. Also challenge yourself to look on local swap groups or thrift stores before buying new.
Also! I didn’t come up with this ‘system’ out of thin air. Some of my big inspirations for minimal closets/living small with less in general are:
I hope you found some of these tips helpful! Please share what works for you if it’s different so we can all learn from each other!