Ever since my first baby was born, I have felt a strong need to provide extra care & nurturing for my children. I can imagine that this is probably the case for almost every mother & mother to be.
This need expressed itself in many different ways including; eating healthy foods, creating a calm, natural & peaceful environment and putting lots of organic goodness on and around him. This includes skin care products, nappies, bedding, toys, and of course clothes.
Back then we didn’t have a lot of money to spend, so we prioritised quality and feel rather than quantity. Organic products were (and still are) a huge part of our natural lifestyle choice and one of our top priorities as a family.
However, when you don’t have a lot of money it can be hard to pursue a healthy lifestyle. It is not impossible though, you just need to get creative and come up with ideas to make an organic lifestyle affordable!
Generally organic baby clothing is a little more expensive
Some of this is because it costs organic cotton farmers more to produce organically (about 10% more), and organic fabric dyers more to use fewer chemicals and ensure the wastewater is not toxic (another 10%).
The added expense also comes about because there are now requirements for those who produce certified organic cotton fabric & clothing to treat workers more ethically (which costs more).
Another reason that organic baby clothes can be more expensive is because the market is smaller – there are fewer clothes being produced, which means production is more expensive (economies of scale and all that).
The remainder of the cost is because organic baby clothes are a better quality product (the garment makers spend longer cutting and constructing) and some of the cost is just because …well organic baby clothes are viewed as a luxury product and there is a premium associated with that.
So how can you afford organic baby clothes online?
1. Internet Shopping
I was always a great lover of Internet shopping. It meant that I could literally do the shopping whenever I had a moment throughout the day. Not being dependant on shop opening hours is a great plus, especially when you have a newborn baby and you live in a remote area.
Internet shopping also provided me with a much wider range to choose from, which is another great plus. It’s great because you can take your time and do your research, especially when you have a very clear idea about what you are looking for and how much you can spend. Or on the other hand, you may have no idea and need some inspiration.
You can also take a moment to think about your transaction, without feeling pressured by sales assistants, children or time. I could always come back later and finalise my purchase.
During my ‘shopping research’, I also discovered the world of EBay, where I initially started to buy second-hand clothes and then later on (as bubby outgrew his clothes), started to sell clothes, furniture, toys, bedding, etc.
In doing that I was able to afford some brand new, beautiful organic baby clothes, which are generally much better quality. Organic clothes are made to last and even stains seem to come out more easily.
Buying better quality organic clothes meant that by the time my babies (and now children) had outgrown their outfits, I was still able to get a good price for them, as they still were in very good conditions.
Now, having my own online business in Australia, my daily researches have lead me to another great website, that specializes in selling second hand ethical organic clothes - http://mukakids.com/shop/
Muka kids help make genuine ethical, organic & sustainable clothing more affordable. You can buy & sell preloved clothing that meets the ethical & environmental criteria on Mukakids- shop.
2. Sign up to the newsletters & social media of organic baby clothes brands you love
Internet shopping, as mentioned before, is a great way to find exactly what you are looking for and quite often at a discounted rate, as there are so many promotional offers, discount codes for signing up to newsletters and sales.
When you sign up you usually get a discount code up front. In addition, web shops will often let you know early about any organic baby clothes sale, and if you follow them on Facebook you can often pick up one day sales and deals on their organic baby clothes online.
3. Help your parents & loved ones to sign up to newsletters & social media for organic baby clothes brands you love
Lets face it, a lot of our new kids clothes come as gifts. If your parents, grandparents and other chief gift givers also get alerts and discounts straight to their inbox from brands that you trust and feel comfortable with, chances are you will end up with new organic cotton baby clothing.
With all these discounts on new organic baby clothing, alongside the ease of buying and selling pre-loved organic baby clothing online, buying organic cotton baby clothing this way may actually be CHEAPER than conventional clothing.
You can dress your baby and children in modern organic clothes in a way that is affordable.
My personal experience with loud+proud and many of the other brands such as; DUNS, Ubang and Leela Cotton has been outstanding.
It is far from impossible to get affordable, high quality, organic baby clothes online.
Enjoy!