When baby boy was first born we were given a huge box and numerous bags of hand me downs from friends and family. It was brilliant! The clothes ranged from newborn up to 2 years. I spent a couple of hours one afternoon sorting them into piles. There were absolutely loads of the smaller clothes. The piles got smaller as the sizes got bigger but that didn’t matter, it was just amazing to have so many clothes and I was touched by the generosity. Between those and the outfits he was bought as gifts we didn’t have to buy a single newborn or 0-3 outfit.
Once he outgrew his 0-3 I realised that I actually had to buy a few outfits to fill out the clothes that we had been given in the 3-6 age range. I looked at what we already had and decided that a pack of sleepsuits and a couple of complete outfits was all we needed to buy. I went to George at Asda (I had seen some really cute outfits) and although the clothes were very reasonably priced it still came to a lot more than I had expected. This clothing a child malarkey is an expensive business!
When it came to his 6-9 month clothes I was prepared therefore. I once again checked what clothes we had and this time knew that I needed to buy quite a few bits. I knew where I was going to shop this time – eBay! I logged on with my list ready and to my absolute delight I discovered bundles. People were selling big bundles of clothes with starting prices of 99p. I couldn’t believe it. I looked carefully and managed to buy everything I needed plus more (included in the bundles) for £35 including postage. The bonus was that every single item was from Next! I was extremely impressed. I excitedly told people of my bargain. Some people were amazed by my purchases whereas some turned their noses up at the thought of second hand.
Baby boy is still wearing his 6-9 month clothes but I am already prepared for the next stage and this time I have only spent £25 (including a very cute elf outfit ready for Christmas). Some people don’t like the idea of second hand clothes but I say they are brilliant. Children only fit in them for such a short time and so why pay a fortune. Now baby boys clothes will be passed on to his new little cousin as he grows out of them and so even more use will be gotten out of them.
I absolutely love hand me downs and second hand bargains. If the quality is good then why not make use of them!
Do you buy second hand?
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Not So Perfect Parent Blog 
The bigger they get, the harder it is to buy second hand (with boys, not a problem with girls). Because boys wreck a lot of the clothes they wear, especially pants and shoes. But we always except hand-me-downs from friends and buy second hand when we can find what we need. (My boys are 8 and 10 now).
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I can definitely see that he will wreck clothes as be gets older. He is already rubbing the knees out on some of his trousers with all the crawling he is doing!
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My little one has loads of second hand clothes! They go through them so quickly that I would have begrudged paying full price for things that only got worn a handful of times! So long as it’s in a decent state I think second hand is great! X
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I fully agree. I think baby boy even had a couple of newborn things that were never even worn! His new cousin is making the most of them now though.
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I have joined the local Facebook page where people sell second hand clothes for children and buy and sell all the time. Lots of them then become third hand but no one there seems to mind as long as they are in good condition. I have also managed to get snowsuits for my twins – two of them posted £15 They are from Next and new ones in the shop are £25 each. I am not complaining at all.
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I’ve got every single item of baby boy’s 9-12 month clothing second hand. Everything is excellent condition and will be passed on to my sil for her little boy after we have finished with them. I am convinced that second hand is the way forward! They are just in them for such a short amount of time. Well done on the snowsuits!
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I used to go to the next sales stock up on clothes and then sell them on ebay then use that money to buy again. When my girls were tiny I would buy second hand but they are much harder to track down as they grow.
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Like you say I will probably find it harder to buy second hand as he grows but for now it is my saviour! I like the Next sale idea. Thanks.
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