I sort of have a recipe for cute boy outfits now. Thank goodness considering I do have three little guys to dress now.
The key I feel is pattern. It’s very hard to work into boys clothing but I feel like it makes an outfit. And I figured that since I had to explain this to Jeremy (who votes that blue should be the only color in any wardrobe), I would take the time to explain my theory here as well.
First…there is the pattern on the bottom option. It’s self explanatory. Choose patterned pants or shorts or overalls. Plaid, striped, or graphics all work well. Then pair it with a plain tshirt (craft stores sometimes have them for $1, Walmart has them for $3, Old Navy for $5) or polo or a simple graphic tee…we go for more vintage looking tees or something with superheros because they don’t age as quickly. Superman is still 24.
The next option is pattern on the top. Also self-explanatory. You grab a striped tee, a plaid button down or a printed tank and put it with some plain shorts. We like buying most of our button downs during sales and we have everything from buffalo plaid to blue ticking in every single size. You can score them for cheap during clearance sales or when you have extra % off coupons so we always sign up for the emails.
Okay…now here is where it gets a little tricksy. This is the third acceptable combo when it comes to dressing boys….the pattern on pattern.
It’s a hard thing to grasp at first but once you figure out what shirts work with what pants, it looks really cute for photos and makes for a really casual but put-together look. Both the top and the bottom have some sort of pattern but they differ to make them ‘go’. Take for instance this striped shirt and the plaid shorts. Since the scale is super small on the shirt, it reads more like a solid…and since the color picks up some of the light blues in the shorts, it works.
Mixing patterns can also be with the same colors but totally different patterns…like striped shirts and sharky shorts. Since the colors match and they both have a nautical vibe, they play nice together.
Lastly is the outfit that has a degree of separation…like a graphic tee. Again…vintage I love (see what I did there?)…extra points for Star Wars. So in order to make the striped shorts work with the plaid top, it helps to have a tee shirt separate them and so for the top and bottom to be in the same color scheme but different scale.
See how all that pattern works hard to make the little guys look adorable? The other good news is that pattern helps hide dirt. With boys, that is priceless. So how do you dress your little ones? Do you make it easy and buy the whole outfit at once? Or do you mix and match? Or perhaps you have a ‘recipe for success’ like my patterned one? Hit me with it.
And because I know I will get asked…in general, we find a lot of clothing at thrift stores and at consignment sales…we also hit up the sales rack at Gap during their extra 40% off sale, sign up for The Children’s Place coupons and find great deals by googling coupons for any shopping we do.
Your little guys are going to have such great style! If I ever have a son I’ll have to keep this in mind, though because I live in England, there is only a very small window in the summer where it’s warm enough for cute little shorts!
It’s seriously like looking into my 2 1/2 year old and 10 month old boys’ wardrobes! Especially the plaid short/solid polo combo. We also do tank tops in the summer. All. the. time. There is nothing cuter IMO than a little guy in tank top, shorts and sandals! =D
Love all of these combos, but I have to add my absolute favorite boys clothing store, mini Boden. As a mom of 3 boys I can attest that they have the cutest and most durable boys clothes. I only buy during their sales as they can be pricey $. But all 3 of my boys can wear those clothes and then I can still resell them for close to what I paid for them. Also, it is easy to find cute boy clothes at most stores up to age 5 for a fairly decent price. Once they cross that threshold it isn’t as easy or cheap unfortunately 🙁
Very cute outfit choices!
Liz @ http://www.shoppingmycloset.com
Weekly Style Me Wednesday link-up
Cute! Now go ahead and have a girl so I can get your tips there, too. 😉
I think it is neat you have three kids of the same gender and close in age. So much easier to get a lot of use out of every piece of clothing you buy. We are expecting our first and everything I buy I think “will this get used for just a few months then be useless? Probably.”
Such cute outfits!
I find the best deals shopping at the very end of the season and off season for the next year. It can be even better prices than consignment stores. And Nordstrom Rack has awesome last call sales, I’ve got toddler girls clothes for $1 from there!
Darling outfits! I always had so much fun dressing our three children-one boy and two girls. Your boys are just so darling. I just looked over at your little one with all the hair. So so cute with all those curls! Don’t cut any of your boys hair–I just love little boys with some longer hair–I think they look so cute! Our one daughter will get so mad at her husband–he will take our grandson to the stylist and she will tell him Do not cut off all his curls! And what does he do–has the stylist cut them off. She feels so sad when they are gone–so Daddy can no longer take him for his trims! Any length–darling boys…
Haha! I love LJ’s locks so no worries…he will probably look like a wig model before I ever consider cutting it 🙂
xo – kb
I’m so glad you appreciate how cute little boys can be! I never have a clue what in wearing but I love styling my 9 month old. Like a little man. I love your choices here 🙂
Thank you so much! I have a little guy and have had the hardest time figuring out what to put him in! I bought a lot of baby clothes off of eBay (helloo0o savings), and it came with a whole bunch of plaid shorts — it took me a while to figure out what he could wear with them up top!
This post is helpful for me on a lot of levels. 🙂
Did you know you can shop on IG? I’m not kidding. I buy so much of my daughter’s adorable clothes second hand on IG. I also like supporting handmade shops (also usually found on etsy). I love dressing both my kids. I’m lucky they are such good sports.
-Lindsey (lindseylyonsphoto on IG)
Love how dress your boys!
In my opinion there are way too many mini-hipsters out there. It’s so over the top.
We love camo shorts and vintage Ts. Two patterns that work together.
Love this post. I actually just emailed the link to my hubby so he can read it. I dress my son in this same style of clothes but I’ve never thought of why I like certain things with other things. Ha! I just choose stuff which drives my hubby crazy because if I’m not around he can never pick out an outfit for our son. (Even thought he’s an awesome dresser for himself.) Hopefully your guide will help him understand how to choose outfits:)
I always buy up a lot of playwear at kohls, during a night owl, early bird event for my nephew, the price is always the deepest then, and they wear nicely. I like that you mix it up too!
These outfits are adorable. The pattern mixing has me wanting to step it up a notch for my 13 month old. Thanks for the inspiration!
Does this apply to grown men as well? My little boys are easy to dress; it’s my husband that I look at like, ‘huh?’ Maybe I should make a Pinterest style board for him.
Prior to having a son, I’d heard dressing boys in cute outfits was much harder than girls but I couldn’t disagree more! Nothing delights me more than dressing my 7 month old little boy. We have a Carter’s store near our house and I find the best deals on their clearance racks. Just yesterday I bought 20 different outfits, shorts and shirts for $67 and even scored a Fourth of July onesie for $.47.
Love your method for dressing your kiddos. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for breaking it down. I have 2 daughters, and it’s easy picking out girl clothes. But I’m always stumped when it comes to my nephews.
YES! I actually stalk hashtags like #shopmycloset
xo – kb
Hmph, I see. Boy clothes can be cute too. Who knew? Around here we have a veerrrry complex formula of pink, tulle, sequins, feathers, sparkly shoes and jewelry. Yes, I finally got my girl.
Having two older (much older) boys, I can tell you the shoes are not nearly as cute when they get to be a size 13 (mens!). I wonder if those shark-shorts come in a 32 long?
When I was pregnant I bought all “little man clothes” then when I had him, my mommy heart began singing and I could only imagine him in tiny baby clothes, so now it is ALL about the smocking…bubbles, jon jons, peter pan collars, heirloom…I can’t get enough!
My son (aged 2 1/2) usually insists on choosing his own clothes. We joke that he dresses like an eye test- the more bright colors and patterns, the better. His favorite outfit is this red Hawaiian shirt with manatees on it (gift from Florida grandparents) with plaid shorts, 1 striped sock, 1 dinosaur sock and sandals.
So diverse! Love it 🙂
xo – kb