Organizing kids' clothing

chestnut ↓

Sun, Apr 06 2008, 8:49 am

How do you store your kids' clothing - by size, by season?

I have one daughter who is 3. So far, I kept clothing according to the size -bags of 3, 4, etc (I have for a few years ahead, from my friends' children). Last night I took out 3 y. bag to sort it out and hang up in the closet for the spring season and was upset to find out that some skirts/dresses are too short (diaper area is easily seen; I'm not makpid on long skirts for a 3 y. old but those just don't look nice to me). If I looked in that bag in winter, she would have worn some of them then Sad

What are my choices as to organizing these clothes? Still by size and look through two sizes every time I reorganize her wardrobe? Keep them by a season and still keep two sizes in each season (not even sure how ti would work, cause some skirts - curduroy, for example, are good from fall through spring).

I'm very confused, as I don't want to "miss" any clothing. Any advice?

Amital

Sun, Apr 06 2008, 8:54 am

I store by true size. Some of the companies make things much bigger or smaller than normal, so I change the sizes on the appropriate garments and store them like that. Then everything is about the same size, and I take out the 3T bin and remove the right season's clothes and store the rest in their closet. It works for me!

↑ chestnut ↓

Sun, Apr 06 2008, 9:22 am

that might work for experienced mothers Smile

but if I have a bag of size 6 clothing, I have no idea what things from there are true to their size and what are not. So, when she is 5, the only way to go is take that size 6 bag and look through it, just to make sure we don't "miss" it when she is 6 and it's too small then?

Tamiri

Sun, Apr 06 2008, 9:38 am

When I was very organized, I put things away according to season and age. For example: Binyamin winter clothes age 5. So I got a better handle. After Bs brothers came along, and some were bigger, I knew to look at winter age 5 clothes for the next one, age 4.5.
Everything was stored in boxes with labels. When we came to Israel, I put everything in plastic Rubbermaid tubs.
My system isn't perfect but I don't miss too much this way.
If you have clothes coming in that your kids never wore, it's harder. I would put the clothes with a size smaller (for example, but the 6s with 4-5) and go thru it when your child is ready for *your* 4-5 and maybe you can use some small 6s... if you understand what I mean. Look ahead a little, the worst than can happen is that you will have to put the larger clothes away again, but at least this way you don't miss anything.

↑ chestnut ↓

Sun, Apr 06 2008, 9:57 am

Tamiri wrote:

If you have clothes coming in that your kids never wore, it's harder.

that's exactly it - I have only one child! So, I have no idea when those clothes will fit her!

What you are suggesting is, when she is 4, to go through not only 2 sizes together (4-5), but also the 3rd - 6?

Wait, let's talk real. She is 3 now, so I should look through 4 and 5, for spring and summer? And then again through 4 and 5 for fall-winter?

Now, that I remember, I actually have 4+ clothing sorted differently, not one size per bag. I have bags of 4-6 size, and I was actually going to sort them out after Pesach for 4, 5 and 6 separately. I shouldn't do it? Leave as it is and Just go through them every season?

This is so confusing!

shopaholic

Mon, Apr 07 2008, 9:09 am

I store by the size on the clothing. my kids pretty much wear the size of their age - my 3yr old wears 3T now, 5 wears 5, 8 wears 7/8. I write on the container "Boys 4 summer" etc.

BlumaG

Mon, Apr 07 2008, 1:28 pm

I started hanging up all the clothes they will grow into in the sizes for each child. so I have boys 18m, 18-24m, 24m, 2T etc so I can easily go thru them then I have girls 4t, 5t 6t 7t 10t etc.
when DD #1 outgrows her clothes I rehang them for DD #2 when she outgrows her clothes I box them up in the basement n DS clothes too.

GAMZu

Mon, Apr 07 2008, 4:02 pm

Yeah, at the beginning of each season open up the next 2 or 3 sizes of bags.
Whatever fits her now or you see will fit in the next couple of months, take out, wash and put in her closet.
Then separate whatever clothes you can estimate will fit her later on in the season and put them away in an easily accessible box to keep checking throughout the season.
That's what I do, and sometimes the clothes I thought would fit by the end of the cold season were still too big. But I'd rather that than missing an item. So I save it for the beginning of the next fall season, still in that box that is more easily accessible than the main bag.

SingALong

Mon, Apr 07 2008, 4:08 pm

how do you store clothes in bags? I store them in these huge plastic boxes by size. so usually, at that age, clothes from both seasons fit. I put winter coats in their own box. so I take them out by size.

↑ chestnut

Mon, Apr 07 2008, 4:51 pm

GAMZu wrote:

Yeah, at the beginning of each season open up the next 2 or 3 sizes of bags.

yep, that's what will end up happening, most probably. going twice a year through 2-3 sizes of bags.

msycms - in the beginning I was storing them in diaper boxes, but I found that it's better to store in big plastic bags - it's possible to squish them, if needed Smile

and winter coats are stored in a separate bag as well.