Wardrobe Planning

When Alice was born I fell in love with Gymboree. She was too tall for normal preemie clothes and too scrawny even for the newborn clothes I shrunk. Gymboree preemie clothes fit her perfectly. Actually, Gymboree is the only line of clothing that has consistently fit Alice well.

Alas, we can't afford to dress her in Gymboree 24/7, and, besides, what fun is that anyway? Why dress her in cute outfits that a bazillion other little girls have when we can sew our own for a fraction of the cost?

Alice has been wearing a 90% home-sewn wardrobe since she was about 3. I've learned a lot about wardrobe planning along the way. At first I didn't plan at all, which resulted in Alice dressing herself in outfits such as a red striped shirt under a purple jumper with orange leggings. It also resulted in too many stressful mornings of not being able to find a single pair of clean leggings that matched any clean top.

Last year I took a page from Gymboree. Everything within a Gymboree line is mix and match. If you stick in the same line it's difficult to make a mistake getting dressed. Simple idea, but it was a revelation to me. Mornings were much, much easier last year. I didn't fret about laundry and Alice was easily able to put together outfits that didn't blind people.

This year my task is daunting. Alice has been wearing a lot of her dresses for three years. She has finally outgrown most of them, and the ones she hasn't outgrown are showing their wear. This year I need to make her more clothes than I've ever made her at one time.

Tomorrow I'll show you how I plan...