Smart school shopping when the kids are still growing

Kelly Giles has nearly 15 storage bins in her north Wilmington basement that should take care of her son's wardrobe for the next three years.

The stacks of pants, shorts, T-shirts and jammies were purchased at Carrcroft Elementary School secondhand sales. Giles volunteers there, so she gets first dibs on the gently used brands. Nolan is starting preschool this year, so stained and snug items won't hack it.

"I'm hoping he doesn't grow much before the sale in October," his mother says.

All across America, parents are pinning their back-to-school hopes on a delayed growth spurt. Or they're buying baggy to stretch their dollars further, dodging horrified looks from traditionalists.

A recent Staples survey found that most parents (66 percent) look forward to back-to-school shopping as a time to bond with their teenagers. (We're not sure these people really exist.)

Second only to winter holiday spending, back-to-school total spending is expected to dip slightly this year to $26.5 billion, because of fewer school-aged students in households surveyed by the National Retail Federation. Factor in college student spending and that number balloons to $75 billion.

Parents of K-12 students are expected to spend slightly more on back-to-school apparel, shoes, electronics and classroom supplies this year – $669 compared to $635 last year. About 1 in 5 people started shopping this month, according to the survey, and clothing purchases constitute more than one-third of spending per household.

Peddling skater skirts to skinny sweatpants, retailers try to persuade parents to keep up with the latest fall trends by spending liberally each summer.

But stockpiling can be expensive when children ages 6 to 10 can grow leaps and bounds each season. A cotton T-shirt can shrink as much as 10 percent. Tight shoes can cause blisters and other foot problems.

Instead, consumer experts recommend shopping summer clearance items now and waiting until Labor Day or Columbus Day to fill out a fall wardrobe. Like Black Friday, the August back-to-school frenzy has been muted in recent years during the slow economic recovery as online competitors advertise sales year-round.

Monica McLain, of Newark, doesn't buy into the hype. Her 7-year-old daughter Alyssa gets a new school uniform each year – polo shirts and skorts – for St. Elizabeth.

The skorts fit, but McLain buys her daughter a size up in the shirts to make them last longer.

For non-school items, McLain hits the secondhand sales at Gauger-Cobbs and Gunning Bedford Middle Schools, held multiple times a year. She drops less than $100 for an entire season's wardrobe, and often recoups her investment by reselling the clothes when Alyssa outgrows them.

New items, such as her daughter's prized maxi skirts and kitten heels, are purchased at Justice during seasonal sales or at Target or Wal-Mart.

"I can't imagine going out and spending $200 on something she's not going to be in for a long time," says McLain, a work program coordinator for the state.

Sizing up works for children who are already on the edge, says Kara Hebert, owner of Two Sisters tween and teen boutique in Greenville.

But parents run into problems, Hebert says, when they try to go up two or more sizes, assuming the child will want to recycle the outfit indefinitely.

"If something's ill-fitting, it looks sloppy and it's not cool," Hebert says. "By the time it fits her, it's old news."

Similarly, Joan Bernard, who owns Barbizon Modeling and Acting Center in Trolley Square, is appalled by the number of aspiring child models who arrive swimming in their clothes. The agency works with 70 students, from 3-year-olds to senior citizens.

Bernard estimates that roughly half the children she sees wear their clothes too big.

"When they grow into it, it's stained, it's torn and tattered," says the grandmother of two. "The reality is this never looks good."

But she admits that might be preferable to the alternative – children who grow up too fast by trying to imitate cutout mini-dresses on runway.

For moms on a budget, Bernard recommends scouring the sales rack and asking stores if they have any coupons behind the counter. Sears, for instance, now carries a Seventeen Magazine collection of boho, preppy and sporty styles that are affordably priced.

Parents should approach their child's wardrobe as they would a professional wardrobe, Bernard says. Pull together three outfits with classic mix-and-match pieces, such as sweaters, sweatshirts and jeans that don't have loud prints or cutesy sayings. Or have an older sibling's clothes altered if they're worth upcycling.

Hebert carries Ragdoll & Rockets denim ($42), which have multiple buttons inside elastic waistbands for better sizing. Tractr and Splendid pull-on stretchy pants are also a hit.

Giles gets Nolan's shoes at a steep discount because her husband works for Clarks. She also shops Kohl's sales and has joined local Facebook groups like Consignment Kids' Clothing and Maternity Wear, where moms post pictures of the items they want to sell. Recently, Giles traded $80 worth of Nolan's old clothes for a stroller. With nearly 5,000 fans, the group requires that new members be referred by an existing member.

When Nolan gets older, Giles plans to supplement his secondhand steals with trendier, affordable pieces.

In the end, he will learn the glories of financial restraint as he shops his mom's basement bins.

Contact Margie Fishman at (302) 324-2882 or mfishman@delawareonline.com.

WHAT WE SPEND

The average family with children in grades K-12 will spend $669 on back to school apparel, classroom supplies and electronics this year, up from $635 last year. Here's the breakdown:

• Apparel: $231

• Electronics: $212

• Shoes: $124

• Classroom supplies: $102

WHAT'S HOT FOR BACK TO SCHOOL

• Whether you're punk, preppy, flirty or boho, rest easy this back-to-school season. In fact, Seventeen Magazine recently launched an exclusive collection at Sears that incorporates all these looks.

• Rocker-inspired fashion continues with motorcycle jackets, tartan pants, fringe bracelets and safety pin earrings. Pull-on skinny denim pants by Tractr and Splendid are a hit at Two Sisters tween and teen boutique in Greenville. Wild graphic prints and sweatshirts with catchphrases reign for now, but for how much longer?

• Prepsters will prefer stacked heel loafers, floral shirtwaist dresses, knit cardigans and plaid frocks.

• Protect those footsies with fabulous flats in colorful prints.

• Channel '90s fashion with scrunchies, slim-fit overalls and turtlenecks (do those look good on anyone besides a ballerina?)