Hand Me Down Hacks: Sorry Second Kid

Fall is in the air and temperatures are cooling down. Time to retire the shorts and tanks for the season. I wake the girls for school and inform them its pants weather. Reluctantly the girls dig in their drawers. Both emerge five minutes later for breakfast wearing what were at one time well-fitting pants.

Good lord, they look like they are waiting for a flood. Do they care? Nope.

I care. 

Lucky for the little one I am well prepared for this.

That evening I ventured to the garage wall-o-storage and found the Rubbermaid tub neatly labeled with a six. Took it upstairs, opened it up in her room and hit the jackpot. 

Problem solved.

Having two girls means there are plenty of hand-me-downs for the little sister. My girls are three and a half years apart, one born in the fall and the other in the spring.

I was given advice with the first to pack up clothes she outgrew and keep them ready for the next one. I assumed there would be a next one but no guarantees and certainly no guarantees it would be another girl. The Rubbermaid containers stacked up quickly and took up a lot of valuable real estate.

By the time number two came along, I was praying for another girl just to not have to buy all new stuff or figure out what to do with all the clothes sitting in storage.

I also then cursed my former self for the way I just sort of haphazardly threw the clothes and other items into boxes and shoved them into a corner. Nothing labeled, everything halfway folded and bursting so full I could barely even move them.

Now that I have been through several cycles of updating wardrobes I like to think I have learned a thing or two. The bottom line is more prep on the front end makes the process easier leading into the second use.

Hand Me Do’s: Storage 101

How and where to store all the clothes, supplies, and toys kids outgrow is half the battle. It’s tough to know what you will need again and when you will need it.

Airtight container. Invest in plastic containers with lids that lock into place. Handles are great. Clear Rubbermaid storage boxes hold a lot and let you see what you are working with when you stack them up in a closet, basement, attic or garage. The space-saver sealed bags are also a genius idea. You do not want dirt, dust or bugs getting in these.

Not too heavy. Think about where you will store the boxes. Plastic tubs come in all shapes and sizes. Is it more beneficial for you to have fewer, larger bins or more smaller ones? The boxes will get heavy so plan ahead. Carrying them up and down stairs or a ladder will not make for a very fun experience if the boxes are too wide to carry or bursting at the seams.

Label. It doesn’t have to be fancy but make the size of the items visible from both the side and the end. I use a simple notecard or post it with the size written in marker and just slip it down the inside between the side and the clothes to keep it protected. Placing the size info on the inside keeps it easy to read and can travel with the clothes when you need to move them or reuse the container. No tape, no permanent writing on the box.

Sort by season. If you have the time and patience, sorting by season is really helpful. When they are young they go through things so fast that you may not have a lot of one particular size. Once they get older you might have an entire calendar year in the same size. If you live in a climate that experiences multiple seasons, separating the fleece from the tanks can save you some time later.

Keep the parts. When disassembling bigger things like cribs, swings, bouncers having all the pieces will be critical for the next use. Take a small ziplock bag and stick every single nut and bolt inside. Use painter’s tape to stick it right to the piece. If you have the assembly instructions put those in there as well. If not, labeling pieces with the tape is also helpful for later.

Hand Me Dont’s

Hindsight is 20-20 of course. When it’s time to make the change and pack up the drawers, you will want to pack it ALL up. You just never know what you will need for the next kid, right? Wrong. There are some things that just don’t need to be saved.

White onesies. A bay’s wardrobe staple but they just aren’t built for the long haul. They outgrow them quickly but also destroy them. They are also dirt cheap. You will think that they are small so you can fit so many in the box. If you do that now then you will open the box later to a crusted pile.

Torn or stained. You might look at something and say to yourself: that’s just a small tear, I’ll fix it when we need it again. Or that stain isn’t that noticeable. I’m just going to save you the time and tell you the truth now. You won’t fix it later and you will care about that stain.

If it’s something easily replaced later just toss it now. Something special occasion, family heirloom or especially pricey then take the time to treat it immediately. Don’t even pack it up until you have addressed the issue with a needle and thread or some stain remover.

Worn-in shoes. Shoes are designed to mold to feet so if they are well-loved then it’s best to toss. Obviously, babies use them for fashion more than function so the same may not be true for the tiny cloth coverings or even certain seasonal wear for older kids. Use your best judgment on the quality before taking up space in storage.

Socks and underwear. Don’t think I really need to go into much detail here. Just trust me on the fact that every kid deserves fresh socks and underwear.

How To Pass It On

No more hand-me-downs are in your future so now what do you do? Kids come with so much stuff. If you don’t have a sibling to pass it down to there are several alternatives that should be on your radar beyond garage sales and Goodwill. Some involve making a bit of that investment back but there are also many, many agencies and people in your area that would be grateful to have anything you no longer need in your home.

• Consignment. Think of it as using a retail store to sell your used goods. You take everything to the store, the store sells it and then takes a percentage cut of each sale. The prep for you is similar to a garage sale as you need to inventory and price things yourself.  Check out these pro tips and hacks if you want to try your hand at this.
• Buy, sell and trade groups. If you like in a big neighborhood like I do then this might be a great resource to recycle things among friends and neighbors. These groups are typically closed Facebook groups open to only residents or members of a particular network. Often neighborhoods, churches, school districts.
• Facebook marketplace. Similar to buy, sell and trade groups but open and not specific to any one group. Its Facebook’s version of Craig’s List for users. Includes an easy to use search feature and you can determine who sees your posts and how the exchange will happen.
• Give to a friend in need. Be a great friend and pass along the things you have to an expectant mother. Ask if there are things she needs or better yet, offer up a shopping experience for her in your storage bins.
• Donations. Foster care, day cares, women’s shelters and the Red Cross are just some examples of agencies always in need of donations for mothers and their young ones. Many are tax-deductible and the items go into circulation immediately. It’s a great feeling when the items you no longer need can be put to use by someone in desperate need.

With two girls, I do sometimes feel bad for the little one. Hand-me-downs make my life easier but not hers. Granted some of those things have never been worn but it’s still not the same as picking out new clothes. I try hard to balance the amount of new stuff for each of them. As they get older they are also more involved in the process. Big sister likes packing things up and little sister likes telling big sister exactly what she wants to have.

They are also a lot closer in size now which will likely put and end to this sooner rather than later. Can’t wait to get that space back in the garage.

What have you learned about passing on items to siblings? Share your tips and tricks in the comments.