Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional Clothes for sensitive kids

One of the biggest challenges I had when i was raising my oldest was finding clothes she would wear. I read an article in our local news this morning about a woman who has created a line of clothing made especially for kids who have tactile sensitivities - no seams, tags, etc. I'm not promoting her clothes and don't know a thing about her other than the article, but I wanted to share the resource here because I wish there had been something like this for my kiddo when she was younger.

Here is the link to her online store: http://tereskids.com/

And here is a link to the story: http://krqe.m0bl.net/r/187b17

Thanks for the link, Lisa. Our DD also is extremely picky about clothes--and has gotten more so over time. She used to happily wear (stretchy) T-shirts, shorts, and pants, but now insists on wearing very loose dresses unless absolutely necessary. She also decided she doesn't like sleeves. Fortunately we live in the South so she can wear loose sleeveless dresses a lot of the time. I tried expensive athletic-wear-type dresses (e.g., from Athleta) but they're still too big on her even in the smallest sizes so I had to take up the shoulders and then she complained about those seams. I'm hoping she'll like them in a couple of years so that the money was not a total waste. What has worked very well for the last year or so is to get Lands' End long-sleeve A-line knit dresses and then take the sleeves off (and of course re-hem the sleeves, which isn't hard but takes more time than I expected). These have some seams but I guess the fabric is soft enough they don't bother her. For gym days she wears shorts (from Athleta) underneath. And then for shoes she wears Crocs when possible and also Merrells (which are also expensive, but after going through five pairs of other shoes that she decided weren't comfortable enough, it was worth it). I know this may not work for other people but wanted to post about it in case it is helpful--I spent a lot of time and money trying to figure out what to get her and was happy when I finally got it right (for now!)

My younger DD is now willing to wear jeans and other typical clothes on occasion, but for a long time she would only wear loose dresses and loose pants that had pockets but no buttons/snaps/zippers. I ended up having to make most of her clothes for a few years.

Tangent: For the fine motor delayed, some kinds of Lands End blue jeans in the "little kid" sizes (4-7) come with a button on the outside but a hidden hook closure on the inside (the button is non-functional). Some kids who can't work a button at young ages do well in these.

Most kid-size shirts at Kohl's seem to come now with printing inside instead of tags-- very useful.

DeeDee

Dbat, I think it's so interesting that you mentioned the Crocs! My youngest dd is extremely sensory and picky about her clothes, but I'd never thought beyond the dresses/pants/shirts/socks etc. re sensory issues. She doesn't wear socks. Period.

Anyway, she has *always* insisted she wear her Crocs everywhere and I thought it was just a fashion-thing (and it drove me nuts!). I don't know why, but it never occured to me it could be a sensory issue with shoes too.

Thanks for posting the link ABQMom!

polarbear

Because of the fine motor and sensory issues, my youngest only wears the pull-on pants from Target (the sports kind) for school. For church, he will wear jeans or dress pants but never unzips them - just pulls them up without unzipping. And he squirms the entire time until they're off. He also never unbuttons his dress shirts - only the top one or two to get them over his head, and I have looked down during church more than once to realize he is sitting there with his shirt on inside-out.