How do you define "play clothes"?...

[lctippins]

I took inventory of the clothes I've bought DD for spring/summer over the weekend, and I noticed that there are quite a few things that are very cute but not ideal for outdoor play. She is an active toddler and will be spending lots of time running, climbing, rolling, etc. outdoors once the weather turns warm. I don't want to constantly worry about whether she'll stain or damage her nice clothes, so I'm thinking I need to buy her some things specifically for play.

What I'm wondering is this: do you differentiate between play clothes and other types of clothes (not including dressy clothes intended for special occasions)? If so, what kinds of things do you buy specifically for play, and where do you buy them?

Lisa - Mom to Kendall 6/6/03

[redhookmom]

For me play clothes are cotton, comfortable and can be washed over and over again. For my son it is Hanna shorts and Lands End or Target Ts. For my daughter it is playdresses from Hanna and the same brand of shorts and Ts as my son. (And, any hand me downs we are given)

Most of our clothes are play. Per season 2 "going out" outfits and 1 dressy outfit.

[egoldber]

For me, play cothes are comfy cotton knit clothes that a) I did not pay a lot for and b) I would not miss if they got irreparable stained or damaged. Sometimes inexpensive items may fall into category B for sentimental reasons. :)

I definitely distinguish between play/preschool clothes and clothes not intended for outdoor play, but not necessarily by brand. Her play clothes tend to be from LLBean, NKids brand, Target, and some Gymbo stuff. Her dressier things are usually Hanna and dressier Gymbo. But I don't buy her the Hanna basics, really only the playdresses.

HTH,

[Niki_n_Abby]

My dd is 2.5 and except for her truely dressy dresses for church, everything is considered "play clothes." At 2.5 she is constantly playing and if I put it on her I run the risk of it getting stained/ripped. I don't worry about stains, that is what my washing machine is for LOL! All of dds current clothes for spring/summer come from Hanna or Gap. I prefer cotton pull-on shorts/pants/jeans and t-shirts/tank tops. Basically, if it isn't a dressy dress for church/special occasion, I consider it play clothes.

Niki

[khakismom]

>Basically, if it isn't a dressy dress for church/special
>occasion, I consider it play clothes.

This is pretty much how I categorize play clothes too!

[vpalmer]

I usually define play clothes as soft cotton, no poplin or anything that wrinkles easily. They also must be brightly colored as to resist stains. My favorite daycare/play clothes for summer are bike shorts and tees from Gymboree. I also got some great jersey cotton shorts and tees from Land's End that I plan on using as play clothes. Poplin material clothing, anything with a white background and dresses for the most part of reserved for evenings out or outings with mom and dad.

Veronica
Mom to Eva
Born 6-03

[shishamo]

Since 95% of the clothes we buy are play clothes, I look for:

1) easy to dress on his/her own (no buttons, zippers, etc.). t-shirts and pull-on pants or leggings or pull-on skirts, hanna playdresses, etc. It streamlines the craziness of the morning-getting-ready-for-school, and you can have your child go potty by him/herself.

2)brightly colored and patterned to resist stains

3)soft and stretchy material for comfort. cotton jersey is ideal and in fact, it's all I buy pretty much.


I buy expensive things for play which get worn a lot(Hanna, Mini Boden, etc.) and no-so-expensive brands for special occation (the childrens place always has good special occation dresses and dressy shirts/pants), since the nicer brands hold up better.

[zuzu]

Me three! Luckily, Sarah hasn't been too hard on her clothes (hopefully I haven't just jinxed meself ;)), and she is pretty neat with eating and art projects, so as long as the outfit seems comfortable, I let her wear it for play/daycare. Most of her everyday clothes are cotton knit, but she has some woven cotton and denim bottoms, and wore some velour and corduroy this winter. I've had good luck removing the occasional dirt, paint or marker stains from everything.

Melissa, mom to Sarah (5/03)

[lilycat88]

We mostly have "playclothes" really. Although, we just generally call them "daycare" clothes. She LIVED in the fleece and cotton Carter's "jumpsuit" outfits this winter. I don't know what else to call them. They were one piece outfits that snapped up the front and down both legs. I swear, NOTHING could stain the fleece ones. They are CHEAP and I don't care what happens to them. I've not found a comparable summer item. I was somewhat concerned about her clothes this summer as well since they don't seem as "indestructible" but as I stepped back, I realized that most of the things I get for her are at a super discount or from Marshalls or Target so did it really matter?. We're just getting into the higher priced items but luckily, the Hanna and Gymboree have been gifts.

[parkersmama]

That's me, too, Maureen.

[Kimberly H]

> Basically, if it isn't a dressy dress for church/special occasion, I consider it play clothes.


Same for us. I used to keep "nicer" play clothes separate from daycare clothes and those didn't get worn at all so now we just separate dressy from other. Granted, I won't put her in an all-white outfit on pizza day at daycare, but that's just common sense. Then again, there is the Clorox bleach pen...

[Phoebe]

We have what I call Park Clothes. They are clothes that can (and will) get stained, and I have no emotional attachment to them whatsoever. The kids closets should be filled mostly with these clothes since we go to the park 3 times a week. Also, playing in the backyard usually stains their clothing as well.

I buy the park clothes at Target, Kmart or used. I am always looking for suggestions on where to find more inexpensive clothing for this purpose.

All of the cute gymbo, Hanna, Gap and other boutique clothing is worn to the library, shopping or any other 'clean' outing. Now, it's crazy that *this* type of stuff far outweighs their park clothes, but I just can't stop buying the pretty stuff.

So, when some of you say play clothes, do you really mean your kids can play in the mud and slide down a dirt hill in their Hannas?

Mary
Daisy 4/01
Owen 6/03

[egoldber]

"o you really mean your kids can play in the mud and slide down a dirt hill in their Hannas"

I have to say, I wondered this too. I mean my DD gets FILTHY at the playground and at preschool when they play on the playground. And that ground in dirt does NOT come out. My DD does wear some Gymbo stuff to the park and preschool, but its the bike shorts and basics tees that someone else mentioned. And I got them on super sale, so they were as cheap as Target stuff. Maybe if I got the Hanna stuff that cheap too I wouldn't care, but I've never gotten THAT good a deal on Hanna!

[lctippins]

I'm like you in that I buy many more "clean" outing clothes than "dirty" outing clothes. This worked fine last summer since DD didn't start walking until July and was pretty tentative outside, but this summer will be a completely different story. I really need to pick up some basic things from Target because I'm just not comfortable with the idea of DD playing in the yard or at the park in her pricier clothes.

Lisa - Mom to Kendall 6/6/03

[Niki_n_Abby]

"o you really mean your kids can play in the mud and slide down a dirt hill in their Hannas"

For me yes. If I buy it, she can play in it. I don't care how much it cost or where it came from. Between All, Shout, and Oxyclean, there hasn't been a stain yet that I haven't been able to get out.

Niki

[LucyG]

Like a lot of others have said, I do differentiate between playclothes and nicer "going out" clothes. Playclothes are ones that I won't be sad to see get filthy or possibly ruined. These are usually worn for the park, the yard (if it's a muddy day), daycare, and other outings where I'm sure she will get messy. Nicer "going out" clothes are worn when she's going to be at home, or if we are going shopping, to the library, to visit someone, etc. I also consider church clothes a different category, as these are usually dresses that I would not put her in for regular activities. Our playclothes tend to come from consignment shops, Carter's outlet, Target, Old Navy, and hand-me-downs. Nicer outfits and church clothes are from a variety of places, but they do tend to be more expensive than the playclothes.


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2 years and counting!

[shishamo]

So, when some of you say play clothes, do you really mean your kids can play in the mud and slide down a dirt hill in their Hannas?


Yes. I really do stick to simpler styles, not fancy dresses for Hannas, and I only buy when it's on sale. but playdresses really do get played in quite a bit. The stains do come out, thanks to Oxyclean, and I have been buying Hannas for a while (my DS is 5 year old now!)

[starrynight]

I define it as anything I will not let them outside of the back yard in(meaning not nice enough to be see in public in), anything I don't mind getting stained, dirty or ruined and nothing that cost more than $7. :)

I buy cheap basics on clearance and also anything that once was nice but was ruined somehow (stained etc.) and that gets moved to the play clothes pile. I keep everything else for leaving the house, even if it's just to run to target- I don't want them in anything stained or not so great looking.

I don't buy them in any set store, but mostly target and walmart. But I have bought play clothes just about anywhere if it was cheap enough. Also anything really ugly that was a gift that I can't return becomes play clothes. (my kids' get dirty!!! so nothing nice goes out in the yard!)

[Phoebe]

How do you use Oxyclean? Because I haven't found it to be the wonder stain remover that it claims to be. I must be doing something wrong...

Mary
Daisy 4/01
Owen 6/03

[lisams]

Play clothes for us are comfy and inexpensive and we must have lots of them. Since she can go through 3 outfits in a day between art projects, sprinkler, playing in wet sand/grass, and munching on juicy strawberries they need to be inexpensive (she usually has about 10-14 play outfits). Most of them are from Target and LE overstocks. They are all basics - tees, shorts, tank tops.

For going out clothes it's usually Gymbo or Hanna.

I've had great luck with Target clothes for rough and tumble play (and our Summers are usually from April - October, that's a lot of wear and tear!) They wash great, are soft and usually come in fun summer colors. Only downfall is you usually need to size up since they seem to run kind of small. Oh and I've been disapointed in their bathing suits, but that's it I think!

HTH!
Lisa

[shishamo]

This is what I do......Add a few scoops to the HOT water, swish a few times to disolve the powder, add the garment, leave it there for a while (at least an hour or two...for an old stain, something like my hanna zipper that was stored for 2 years and just being pulled out for my next child, leave it there overnight). Wash with detergent like other regular stuff. Everything comes out.

The only fading that happened with this method is this one babygap tag (the older style, white with navy wording)that faded quite a bit.

[Vajrastorm]

I have stains that have not come out after boiling the water, adding the oxyclean, and letting the clothes soak for 24 hours.

Often times the stains do come out, but not all the time.

[parkersmama]

Hmmm. I guess my kids just don't get that dirty. The boys play on the playground every day at school (wood chips) and often play outside in our backyard at home. The thing that gets the dirtiest is usually socks and shoes! We usually have one or two stains per season that don't come out with a basic washing.