She doesn't strike me as the kind of person who wears couture for herself, just her job. I'd be willing to bet that on a regular basis her clothes are more normal. Plus it's not like she's buying him clothes, but refusing to spend much, she's just using what's already around. My daughter wore all my and my sister's baby clothes, in addition to some hand-me-downs from friends. It's been fantastic, I've only bought a couple of things. Babies are expensive enough!

I don't see any problem with it. Kids are constantly growing, so if you have sizes available, why not use them? It's a lot less wasteful too, IMO.

hand me downs are awesome, kids grow so fast. Plus why is "new" necessarily better?

i agree with mini_pixie. she seems pretty down to earth, yes sometimes she wears couture is required to, based on who she's playing. but kids don't really need couture. they're constantly growing and it's such an unnecessary waste of money.

I had a few hand me downs from relatives for my daughter, but not my son...nobody had a boy yet. I have bought from a consignment shop once and my husband threw a fit about it!! He had a rough childhood filled with hand me downs, foster homes, and child services and doesn't feel right with our kids wearing stuff we haven't bought them brand new. I know its extreme, but I respect how he feels. That said...I wouldn't be shopping at Neiman Marcus and buying my kid stuff from WalMart. I think couture for kids is kind of ridiculous unless its a really special ocasion like a wedding that was super formal. As for SJP and her kid...I don't like her style at all so I don't pay attention to what brands it looks like she wears. And her son doesn't ever seem to match. Most of the time he looks pretty much like a rag-a-muffin...no offense, he is a cute kid, I just would dress him better...or at least in matching colors.

I don't wear couture myself, but my kids wear plenty of hand me downs and clothes from consignment/2nd hand shops.

who says hand me downs can't be designer too??

What does a small child need to wear designer duds for? When he grows up, learns the value of money and makes some of his own, then he can sport haute couture.

Of course I would be comfortable with that. If people spent money on those clothes and didn't wear them out, isn't it pretty silly to pass up the opportunity to use them?

if im gonna look good i'd want my ids to look good as well

I am not trying to be too critical, but most of the time her son's clothes look really strange to me. But if that is what she likes then that is fine.

Personally, I do not distinguish between what I buy for myself and my daughter. She gets stuff just as nice as I do.

Yes, I think it's OK, because kids grow out of their clothes so fast. Most of the time they don't appreciate what they have on, they just want to be kids, have fun and get dirty.
But I still think she should buy him stuff once in a while for a special event, like a holiday or birthday. For someone who loves clothes so much how can she resist all the cute kid's clothes out there?

Our little ducklings' duds are almost exclusively hand-me-downs and consignment shop finds.

Just because the clothes were previously worn does not mean that they are ugly, filthy or unsuitable for further use. Not only is it an economical choice, but reusing these resources is environmentally friendly.

explains why he always looks so freakin weird. it really does bother me when parents do this. why doesn't sjp wear stuff from the second hand store?

I think kids don't care whether they wear hands me down on new clothes.

A lot of times my kids' hand-me-downs are way nicer than my new stuff. I don't get why on earth that would bother anyone. Unless I tell them, there's no way you can even tell it's secondhand.

I wouldn't put my kids in anything they disliked unless it was required, like a school uniform or the dress code required for occasions like First Communion. Although my son loved what he had to wear for First Communion. *lol* But as it turns out, hand-me-downs give them a ton of stuff they like. What a horrible parent I am.

I think her son always looks weird because SJP has a horrible sense of style and puts the oddest crap together, not because of the items themselves.

As long as my kid's clothes are clean and in good repair, I don't care if they're new or hand-me-downs. And they don't care either.

I don't see anything wrong with it.

I don't care how much money you have, there is really no reason for a kid to be running around in designer clothes. My kids can ruin a brand new outfit in 2 seconds. Just because you have money doesn't mean you need to blow it on unnecessary things.

The first time a kid gets a name brand piece of clothing (when they are a little older) they get all excited and I think it teaches them to appreciate things more.

Well, if I already owned the clothes, then no, I wouldn't feel uncomfortable for wearing designer clothes.

But I'm not going out and spending hundred of dollars now on clothes when I have a baby at home to take care of. My son comes before me.

And there's absolutely nothing wrong with hand-me-downs. My best friend's twins are 2.5 years old, my other friend's son is 1.5 years old, my son is 6 months and my other friends son is 3 months. The clothes go right on down the line.

I see nothing wrong with it. Kids grow so fast. And she only wear couture to fashion show and screenings. Not in her everyday life.

Don't see a problem with it. I am shocked that she wouldn't buy a few extravagant things but I am sure her nephews are dressed nicely too.

It's ridiculous to spend money on something that is already available to you for free. It's doubly ridiculous to spend money on very expensive, designer children's clothing, since the child will outgrow it in two months, assuming they don't cover it in popsicle first.

it's nice to buy your kids name brand clothing and all, but they grow too damn fast to be trying to buy them designer cloths everytime they need something. give it up for the blessed hand me downs!

There's a big difference there. Kids grow and they grow fast. Boys (and some little girls) are always getting dirty and ruining clothes. I have a four year old and while he doesn't have a great amount of hand-me-down clothing now, he has had some in the past. As long as its in good condition and not outdated who cares?

God no! I'd dress my kids in the fiercest duds a la Suri Cruise.

Armani Junior all the way! Ha!

That's like asking if it's ok for mom to wear diamond jewelry while the kids just have colorful beads. I don't even understand the comparison.

When I went to Harrod's for the first time I saw Couture clothing like Dior for kids. What the hell do they know about Couture? My rule has always been when the child is born they get something memorable like their first pair of adidas and that is it. I would definitely not buy them name brands. That is how kids get so spoiled and start carrying cell phones at the age of 10.

it's more irritating when parents spend so much money on clothes the kids are going to grow out of anyways!

I totally agree with Aphrosette!

I'm okay with it

Whatever works for her!

If I buy couture, I pretty much keep it forever and get a lot of use out of it. Kids grow so fast, you are lucky if they wear something more than a handful of times - it would be a waste of money to buy them that kind of stuff. Besides, I have also noticed that she wears her (very) inexpensive Bitten line a lot, too!

I think it's totally fine. Kids grow too fast and spending extraordinary amounts of money on their clothing is a waste, even if you have the money to spend.

Hand-me-downs are the best for children! They're great to receive and to give away. I give my son's clothes to a neighbor, when her son out grows them she sends them to her nephew in Mexico.

I don't think I could but I totally respect her decision. I just don't like to be in something that belonged to someone else, I don't even wear vintage. I like the style but I can't get past the fact that someone else has put use to it.

i think it is fine because he is so young but when he gets older i am sure like most kids he will want updated/instyle clothes, that fit his personal style.

I think it's a good sensibility to inculcate in their kid. Besides kids grow up fast and hand-me-downs are a practical solution to that. But kids do deserve some new clothes now and then.

Hell I've grown up wearing handme downs being the youngest of 3 girls and just had a daughter myself. I thank God for all the family and friends that have given me baby clothes from their girls because majority of it all was practically brand new because kids grow so fast and will go through it in a matter of a month or less. With being a single mom and working full time and covering all expenses I can't stand paying more than $10 on a shirt and it better be a really nice shirt and no more than $30 for a full outfit. Even if I was making the kind of money the hollywood ladies make I'd shoot myself in the foot paying designer prices, you'd see me at the mall on the clearance rack. I'd be spending my money on a cost effective home, hybrid car and a trust fund/collage fund for my child then the seperate account for outragous gas prices!

Kids don't care if they wear hand-me-downs. But when James gets to be a 'tween' or teen, he damn sure is gonna care if he's wearing hand-me-downs. He's not gonna take wearing crappy clothes while his classmates wear designer duds lying down, and quite frankly he shouldn't. When the time comes, SJP is just gonna hafta bite the bullet and spend more money on her son's clothes or there will be heck to pay. lol, but it's true. If you have the capacity to keep your kid up-to-date like the other kids, you should(although to a lesser extent than most parents do these days). it's hard being a kid these days, what with all the crap that's out there. He just won't fit into his upper-class world without those clothes.

Ya he doesn't care so don't see the big deal. That's stupid to buy them 500 dollar outfits and he throws it down, messes it up, rips holes in it. Now when his older he should make his own decisions but a 5 year old!