Okay, let me get this out of the way first. This is NOT a toddler fashion blog. I don’t gel my kid’s hair or dress him in ironic bow ties and suspenders.
I go for cute and comfy. {Which is kind of my theory on grown up fashion and home decorating too.} I don’t really like the clothes to look too “babyish” and prefer stuff that Travis or I would wear, shrunken down to kid size.
Over the past 2 ½ years of Jack in our lives, I have found some favorites that I’d love to share. So, if you’re looking for some clothes to add to your kid’s closet for the Fall, this is my Joules & Jack approved list:
For our favorite tops we keep it pretty simple. I like to always have one or two toddler cape shirts in rotation, because they make for some fantastic pictures… even if you’re just playing around the house or visiting a local petting zoo.
I’m kind of obsessed with contrasting elbow patches right now and love the striped shirt with patches, as well as the Carter’s sweatshirt with camo elbow patches. So freaking cute, right?! I like to include a couple shirts with some of Jack’s current favorites – Jake, Elmo and Mickey are usually represented in some way, as well as some tractors, trucks and construction equipment. Last, I always have a few zip-up hoodies around the house in his size in case I’ve misjudged the weather.
I had the WORST time finding jeans to fit Jack this year. Apparently he hit a growth spurt over the summer, which I didn’t notice because he was wearing shorts. When I took him shopping for new jeans, they all looked either too short or CRAZY baggy on him. Do you remember JNCO jeans?! Yeah, it was totally like a mini version of THAT!
Luckily I did find a couple pairs that worked… one being the straight fit jeans from Old Navy. LOVE these jeans and I picked up a couple pairs to last us until Jack’s next growth spurt. I also bought a pair of super cute camo pants, because as you know I have a weakness for little boys in camouflage. The rest of his wardrobe is pretty much made up of 4 pairs of the pull-on cargo pants from Target and 4 pairs of the cargo sweatpants from Old Navy in assorted colors.
These two styles of pants have been in rotation since Jack was big enough to wear pants and they always hold up incredibly well. Last, I grabbed a couple pairs of the pull-on waist jeans from Target while I was there.
Do you sense a theme? Yup, potty training is coming up soon…
I haven’t bought Jack his new winter coat yet, but I have my eye on this canvas utility jacket from Old Navy. It’s similar to jackets that we’ve gotten there over the years and they always wear really well. Also, the hood is an added bonus for chilly Maryland winters. Add in a cute hat, like the ones shown from Carters or the Gap and I probably won’t be able to contain myself from pinching some kiddo cheeks.
We own the exact pajamas pictured, as well as a few other pairs so that there are always some clean ones in the drawers. Little boy running around in stripped pj pants = so adorable. We also recently bought these sneakers and I’m OBSESSED with them and totally want them in my size! I usually only buy Jack one pair of shoes at a time, but in the winter I try to find some inexpensive boots to use when it’s snowy out. These are from Target, but Old Navy usually comes out with some cute options when the weather starts cooling down.
There are certainly a ton of adorable kid stores out there, but I just don’t see why you would pay a ton of money for clothes that your kid will probably only fit in for one season. I’ve done most of my shopping at Old Navy, Gap, Carters and Target over the past few years and have been perfect happy with the style options and how well they hold up in an active toddler boy’s life. I’ve also found some really cute superhero caped shirts on ebay for a steal… so be sure to do some googling if you’re in the market.
So what do you think, do you have any favorite kid stores for shopping? Are you also in love with those adorable sneakers? Is it annoying the crap out of you that I posted about kiddo fashion?
LOVE this post! My 3 year old boy picks out all his own clothes and I consider him extremely fashionable! I love all the clothes you posted!
Thanks Ashley! =)
I love this post! We must dress our kids similarly – I would put my son in all of these!
Pull-on cargo pants are a must have for us, along with superhero tees. I do most of our shopping at Gap, Target, and Old Navy, though I do splurge on his tees because I just like the look of some of the more expensive ones. I always forget about Carters because there isn’t a store near us, but their toddler stuff is so cute too, along with Osh Kosh!
I totally agree that some of the more expensive t-shirts are totally worth the price. The designs from the Gap do tend to wear better than most of the shirt designs from Old Navy. I usually end up picking up my Carter’s stuff from Kohls when it’s on super sale, but I found myself at a Carter’s outlet over the summer and got a great deal on pj sets for the year!
Love the cape shirts – I was wondering where you got them! I scored a bunch of cute winter clothes from a kids consignment sale last month (having a corduroy obsession) so hoping we get a winter this year in GA.
I love the change of seasons… it’s nice to switch out some of our clothes for layers! AND I love corduroy’s too!
I love it. How did you do those little boxes around all the clothes? So professional! I love H&M for kids clothes. Inexpensive and a lot of organic. They are my go to superstore.
I lay out all my picture collages in photoshop and then use my website design template to include the orange boxes around each image. =) I always forget that H&M has kids clothes!
Oh I remember JNCO jeans. I wore giant pants from the ages of 12-18. This also explains why I had precious few dates during those years…