I promised myself in June that I would salvage an otherwise swag-deficient year by submitting one article each month for publication on websites that pay writers and have much larger audiences than my own. Here’s the first, published by The Billfold: “The Cost To Clothe A Minimalist Family of Five.” It’s about hand-me-downs, washing Chuck Taylors, and saving money on work clothes by wearing only a skull cap and bathrobe. You can read a preview below; hit the link for the rest. If you don’t see me talking about a new publication next month, that means my ass got rejected.
A common misconception that comes with being a frugal family is that people think we’re poor. Well-meaning friends offer us bags of used kids’ clothes, and extended family gift us hip clothing fit for the coolest preschool Instagram models. We donate a lot of what we’re given, and the clothing we keep is shared among our three boys, ages 4 to 6. Otherwise, we try to keep our clothing expenses minimal and our kids looking somewhat presentable. As for us parents, we buy the clothing we need and some of what we want.
Over the past year, we have spent just under $400 on kids’ clothes. Our biggest expense was $97 for three winter coats from Target, which we had to buy after leaving Southern California for the face-freezing weather of Ohio. We expect the coats to last at least another year, maybe longer if you count the hand-me-down bonus. READ THE REST AT THE BILLFOLD…
-Dewan Gibson