Hand me down clothing made acceptable

Hand me down clothing was a part of my family growing up. I didn't really have to wear my sisters clothes, simply because I am kid number 8 and they are kids number 3 and 4. I still had to wear hand me downs though because our friendly neighbors were always giving away their girl clothes and I just happened to be a lucky recipient.

I wasn't really given a choice on the matter of whether or not I wanted to wear these clothes, simply because new clothing purchases in our household rarely ever happened. You can help your child realize that wearing their big brother or sisters clothes can be cool and unique, and the finished product will look totally different than what their sibling had. Please join me after the break for some neat ideas.

1. Shoes: Cover up scratches, smudges, and stains on tennis shoes with glitter fabric paint. Paint the new owners name on them, or hearts, swirls, stripes or stars; whatever their little heart desires. String pretty charms or beads on the shoe laces for a cool effect.
2. Jeans: Turn those old jeans into shorts. Sew some cool fabric patches on the knees or back pockets. Dye them a different color, or bleach them.
3. Coats: Iron on patches of their favorite cartoon character or animal. Add beads to the hood strings. Trim the cuffs with faux fur. Dress up a zipper by adding small beads or a tassel with a paper clip.
4. Shirts: If there is a shirt your child doesn't like at all, have them help you tie dye it. Give the cuffs and the bottom of the shirt new life by trimming with colorful fringe. Sew on new colorful buttons of any design your child chooses.

With these ideas, maybe the hand me down issues won't be a problem. Get your child involved in the decision of how their clothing should look. Make the projects fun. Wearing clothing previously owned by someone else doesn't have to be a bad thing, and can save tons of money. It can actually be quite fun to come up with cool ideas and your child will be unique. After all, no one else will be wearing that shirt and those destroyed jeans!