so tell me what is so great about Hanna Andersson...(update post #42 :)

please enlighten me. :) it seems like many on this board love HA babies/kids' clothing items, so i just wanna know what is so great about them, and what makes it worth the $$$? and, do they have anything good for boys (it seems like almost all of the HA items i hear about are leggings, dresses, etc).

the thing is for me, i dont live anywhere near an HA outlet and the closest store is 45 minute drive, so i've never really gotten a chance to walk around in a store and check their stuff out. i did just go to their website to browse for holiday clothes for my son, but even in the sale section prices seem a bit steep (e.g. i have a hard time putting down $25 for a holiday vest my infant son will likely only wear a few times). i don't know, i guess if i had a girl it would be different...i must admit their girl stuff is pretty cute looking, and i'd be willing to pay $$ to dress up my little one in those outfits just for pics! :)

the other thing is, i've gotten somewhat addicted to Gymboree, since i live close to several stores plus an outlet, so i can browse around which i like to do. and yes, Gymbo clothes are expensive too, though i often find sweet deals in the sale section (e.g. shorts or shirts for $4 or $5 that were once $20-$25) and plus i always get tons of coupons & gymbucks so in the end it doesn't even come out to be that expensive. so does HA have major sales/promotions as well that i am missing? (i saw there was a thread on big HA outlet sale, but there is no outlet in my state).

thanx in advance for any info!

I'm not a huge Hanna fan, sorry to those who adore them. In general, my experience has been the Lands End quality is the same or better for less money. I've had Hanna sweats wear through and fade so fast it wasn't even funny--Target stuff held up better!

But a few Hanna items are true stand outs in my opinion. The underwear. It lasts forever. And it is very soft, nice with the elastic covered for comfort. The deck pants. Adorable and wear like iron. Plus with the fit they can be worn for a very long time. We've gotten three full summers out of them then passed them on. The holiday lines. This is more about style. I really like that things coordinate rather than match and I really like the looks.

And I've never had one, but the baby fleece jackets are just beyond adorable, IMO.

Catherine

Oh how do I count the ways! :love-retry:

It last forever (quality wise). Clothes that my first DS wore 8 years ago still are in excellent condition and my 3rd child is now wearing them. All the other brands I have bought look much more worn, and often don't get saved; I donate them or throw them out/yard sale them. But the Hannah's always get saved for another child or two :)

They shrink very little, don't fade or pill.

Many of them come with grow cuffs on the pants and shirts, so they add about an extra size to them.

They are uber soft (they used to be all organic cotton, now they carry about 50% of their items in organic cotton, the rest is eco-cotton, which is still quite soft).

The seams are flat-locked so they don't rub against baby's tender skin (or a child like mine who has sensory issues).

They clothes look like clothes for a CHILD (imagine that ;)) and not a miniature adult. Which seems harder and harder to find nowdays.

They can be expensive but 1) they last forever, so you certainly get your money's worth out of them. 2) You can get them on sale or 3) Ebay is a great place for them if you don't have an outlet nearby.

Oh I forgot, the pants are made roomier in the tushie area to fit over cloth diapers. Love that!

I love the bright colors and minimal graphics and the fact that these clothes LAST!!! Before I learned to do phone orders from the outlets, I bought a bunch second hand from various swap boards I am on and the clothing still looks great on the second (sometimes 3rd child) wearing them.

Definitely get to the store and check out the clothes in person and then call an outlet. Another thing that I like (since I order over the phone) is that outlet stuff can be returned to the regular store and they don't have a return time limit. So I have bought stuff ahead and if the sizes don't work I just returned it to the store and didn't have to pay to ship back.

They're nice but not fab IMO. I have some colorful sweaters for my boys from Hanna and some cute shorts. I prefer Mini Boden and Polo for my boys if I am spending more $$$.

The quality is great but I find most of the colors and patterns too much for our taste. We have many of the undies but they are made a bit big for my DD so we have some exposure problems with them. But they last forever and they are nice and soft.

Well I first became a Hanna fan when I only had a son. I will admit many many hours were spent drooling over the girls' section of the catalog, but what I did like is that they ALSO had a lot of nice clothing for boys. I wasn't a big fan of trucks, bugs, monsters, etc. There were very few Gymbo lines that would appeal to me. I liked the solids or stripes of Hanna. Initially Ds was in cloth diapers so the fact that they ran a bit wide and loose was a huge plus. My second was a much thinner baby & toddler so there were some Hanna styles which flat out did not look good on her, but many that did. Also a lot of their clothing, at least used to be, styled for longer wear. The Wiggle pants (or Playdresses and Leggings) with their cuffs so your baby could wear them cuffed up, then cuffed down when they grew. The two rows of snaps on the onesies is another example. I think a lot of their girls' dresses look good at full length and then over leggings another year. I also liked that they had matching outfits for Mommy and SON, not just daughter. Yes, I'm one of those moms. ;) We'd wear our matching Hanna pants to play group. LOL.

They also wash very well. If you don't end up needing them for another child, resale is good (unless you take them to a consignment store, those places always seem to give a pittance, regardless of how pricey and good clothing is!).

Watch this board for when people say the EOS is coming (it's usually the week before Christmas) and then go to your store. Or better yet call a day or two early to see if they've already started their markdowns. Especially with an infant I would think you will find a good selection still available. Then a few weeks later in January they will often do an additional discount off of the clearance prices. Once you become more familiar with the clothing styles (or if you're just on board already and feeling brave), you can call the outlets and have them shop for you over the phone during their great sales. You can return the outlet merchandise to your local store.

For an infant I highly recommend the Zippers, Wiggle Pants, Moccasins and Pilot Caps. :thumbsup:

I could go on and on... I didn't even talk about the underwear!:rotflmao:

ETA: And if you have a bad experience with quality - they will TAKE THEM BACK! Your zipper breaks 6 months later. They take it back. The snap busts after a year. They take it back.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by daisymommy

Oh how do I count the ways! :love-retry:

It last forever (quality wise). Clothes that my first DS wore 8 years ago still are in excellent condition and my 3rd child is now wearing them. All the other brands I have bought look much more worn, and often don't get saved; I donate them or throw them out/yard sale them. But the Hannah's always get saved for another child or two :)

They shrink very little, don't fade or pill.

Many of them come with grow cuffs on the pants and shirts, so they add about an extra size to them.

They are uber soft (they used to be all organic cotton, now they carry about 50% of their items in organic cotton, the rest is eco-cotton, which is still quite soft).

The seams are flat-locked so they don't rub against baby's tender skin (or a child like mine who has sensory issues).

They clothes look like clothes for a CHILD (imagine that ;)) and not a miniature adult. Which seems harder and harder to find nowdays.

They can be expensive but 1) they last forever, so you certainly get your money's worth out of them. 2) You can get them on sale or 3) Ebay is a great place for them if you don't have an outlet nearby.

Oh I forgot, the pants are made roomier in the tushie area to fit over cloth diapers. Love that!

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:yeahthat:

But I would NEVER pay retail for them or anything. I don't live anywhere near an outlet but I plan my summer trip to my parents (who are 3 hours each way from an outlet) around the outlet summer sale. Maybe it tells you how tough this year has been for me but honestly, the summer sale was one of the highlights of my year. Granted, I don't get much for DS. If you have a skinny boy their options are quite limited. They do a lot of "husky" this and "boxy" that that won't work on a slim boy.

Like another PP said I don't do skulls, monsters, trucks, etc. so Gymboree isn't always an option for us. And while I do buy Gymbo, if you look for a deal on both HA and Gymbo they aren't that far apart. For example I got DD and DS matching Christmas outfits from Gymbo- DD's dress with Gymbucks was $26. But the HA version on sale would have been $32. And honestly, the Gymbucks do have a cost associated with them because you are buying stuff to get them. Had I not had them I would have def got the HA dress because I know it wears nicer.

Basically HA makes my life easier. Clothes that don't wear out before the kids outgrow them. They wash well. They always look classic and I don't have to "think" I can just dress the kids and go.

I've come around a bit, but I still don't get it either. I think a lot may be regional, I'd never heard of them in California, it's more popular here.

It seems like they've toned down some of the graphics combos, they were too clown like IMHO. I couldn't look at them, let alone buy them. I do really like their holiday dresses though. They are adorable. And their tights and their PJs are definitely a step above.

To me, the quality is the same as LE and mini-Boden, a bit ahead of Baby Gap. But I also don't have to pass on hand me downs. (As an aside, last year Gap had adorable applique tops and bright colors. Someone needs to tell them to get a grip this year with the black, gray and white palette. I get what PP said about dressing kids like kids, not mini adults.)

I often like there girl clothes, but I have a boy and I'm not a fan of their boy clothes. The only HA I consistently get are the moccasins. When I am going to spend $$ like that, I prefer Boden or Tea.