Honestly I swear kids grow at the rate of knots. It seemed like only five minutes ago I was replenishing Hector’s wardrobe (in November no less) and already the majority of his clothes are defunct because they’re simply too small for him. Since I always buy clothes on the large size (what’s a rolled up jumper sleeve here or a turned up trouser leg there) I expected a little bit more wear out of them than just three months but given that Spring is on the way it seems right to start thinking about a few pieces for when the days get warmer.

I have to say that I’m really impressed with what I’ve seen so far on the UK High Street for S/S 2016 – there’s so much choice for boys and girls and now that Hector is bigger I’m looking forward to seeing him sport shorts for the first time. Come and take a look…

John Lewis

John Lewis is by far and away the brand to watch this season (well in my humble opinion). From experience clothes from John Lewis always wear, wash and fit incredibly well and often by the time he’s grown out of something it looks like it’s barely been worn. I’ve packed lots of clothes from the label away for future babes because I know there’s tonnes of wear left in them yet. It’s all about cost per wear people!

I love the dinosaur and brights theme they’ve got going on this year. Whilst Hector isn’t quite able to appreciate the prints just yet (despite loving Dinopaws on TV, second only to Bing of course) they’re fun without being too gimmicky. This year will be the first year that Hector will truly be able to appreciate shorts so I’m going all out with this bone motif pair and this pastel blue set which are both available in sizes up to three years. And because I can’t quite relinquish the baby short dungarees that Hector crawled around in all last summer just yet I’ve decided to invest in a pair made of red ticking stripes which would look so cute with this lion long-sleeved tee.

I’ll be supplementing the red t-shirt with this yellow baby dinosaurs sweatshirt (loving the buttons!) and this cute ‘walkies’ mustard number. I just love sunshine yellow on little people!

Boden

Last year my mum purchased a grey cardigan complete with an embroidered dog on one side and a kennel on the other from Boden and it was a surefire hit both with me and with the little man himself since he adores anything puppy-related.

This year they’ve produced a variation on last year’s theme with this blue boating beauty that I’ve purchased as a strong outfit contender for my sister’s wedding. I do love a boy in a cardi…

You can’t go wrong with a pair of stripy dungarees either and their slouchy fit is perfect for active kids. Roll them up for warmer days or layer over and under them for when there’s a nip in the air. Handily the dungarees come with inside leg popper fastenings on sizes up to and including 18-24m which saves a whole load of faffing about when it comes to nappy changes.

And if you’re super quick then you can take advantage of their 20% discount offer but hurry as it only lasts for another 48 hours; just enter 9J9G at the checkout.

The White Company

Last summer Hector spent the majority of his days wearing a similar take on this thin knit stripy jumper from The White Company. In fact it was pretty much identical except the colours were reversed (it was a blue stripe with red cuffs) and so I’m sorely tempted to buy another for him now that he’s outgrown the former. I found it was perfect for slightly cooler summer days and handy for layering under dungarees/Spring coats too since the knit was so fine.

Whilst we’re on the topic of jumpers I had to sneak in this cable knitted cardigan as well. Since the biggest size is 18-24 months there’s a part of me that feels as if I’ve got to get in on the action before Hector gets too big to wear anything like this again. Sob! Granted it is white but since it’s 100% cotton like the jumper above it can just be chucked in the wash without any need for special hand washes.

I’m currently on the lookout for a Spring jacket for when the weather gets a bit warmer and this checked version is the one I like the most so far. Lined with soft jersey inside for that added touch of warmth on breezy days and designed with a hood for April showers, the coat covers all eventualities. I’m waiting for a 20% off day to splurge and am still dithering about which size to go for – bigger is best isn’t it…

COS

My sister gets married next month so I’ve been on the hunt for an outfit that Hector will be comfortable in and which isn’t too far removed from his usual wardrobe but is a little bit smarter for the wedding photos. COS actually do a small but lovely range for both boys and girls from age one year upwards and is excellent quality too.

I spotted this cactus themed t-shirt and this grey grandad patterned shirt whilst on my travels recently and have been very tempted to snap both up. The shirt would look fantastic paired with a cardi and a pair of leggings and since cacti are apparently the new pineapples it makes sense to add this beauty to Hector’s wardrobe 😉

Zara

As always Zara is my go-to for pretty much all of Hector’s basics. The leggings fit like a dream although I should caveat this by saying that he’s currently between sizes so the next size up are slightly baggy on him at present. We have both the ‘xo’ green and navy blue joggers included in the slider at the top there and I really wish they did them in more colours as they’re super cosy and can easily be adjusted at the waist to fit more securely.

We’re also Zara denim shirt fanatics here but I do find the sizing slightly off – Hector is already in 18-24 months and he’s only 16 months and I’m not really sure if we have much longer growth-wise in it. Has anyone else found that?

Animals are all go in this house so we have this cat t-shirt and this exotic animal beauty and I really want this lion sweatshirt too. It’s so CUTE!

Joules

Usually there’s a fair few things that I want to get for Hector from Joules but there doesn’t seem to be a huge amount of choice at the moment. Perhaps it’s still early in the season and not a lot has come into the shops – I’ve found that to be the case across the board actually and not just for kids clothes…

That said I’ve still managed to find this grey marl Taxi sweatshirt and this London Bus top and trousers set which would probably fall under the ‘loungewear’ category if there was one for kids. Both look cosy and flexible – perfect for those gloomier days when he’s charging around the house whilst the rain pours outside.

Have any of you got your eye on anything for your littles this season? What’s your favourite trend of the moment? Perhaps it’s stars and stripes or maybe even animal safari which Charlotte covered on the blog last week…

We’d love to hear all your thoughts. Why not tell us in the contents box below…

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