A guide for parents
Nativity costumes and Christmas jumpers, without buying anything new
The tea towel still works. So does the pillowcase. And the charity behind Christmas Jumper Day would rather you didn't buy one.
What's in here
- The worst value clothes you'll ever buy
- Nativity costumes, in order of effort
- What each part actually needs
- Christmas Jumper Day
- The party outfit
It's late November, there's a letter in the book bag, and your four-year-old is a shepherd. You have two days.
Before you order anything, it's worth knowing what these things actually cost you.
The worst value clothes you'll ever buy
We've worked out cost per wear on a lot of children's clothes, and nothing comes close to Christmas.
| Item | Price | Times worn | Per wear |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nativity costume | £8 | 1, maybe 2 | £4.00 |
| Party dress | £20 | ~2 | £10.00 |
| Christmas jumper | £15 | ~4 | £3.75 |
| An ordinary jumper, for comparison | £12 | ~100 | 12p |
Which is not an argument for your child missing the nativity. It's an argument for not paying for it.
Nativity costumes, in order of effort
Ask the school first
Most have a box of costumes from previous years and they'd far rather lend you one than have thirty parents panic-buying. Nobody asks, because nobody knows the box exists.
Ask the class group
Parts get handed round by year group, so somebody a year above had exactly this part last December and it's in their loft. Post in the class WhatsApp and you'll have three offers by teatime.
Make it out of things you own
A pillowcase, a tea towel and some cord will do most of the cast. There's a well-known blog where a mum made a full shepherd's outfit for £2.49 out of a brown pillowcase, some ribbon and a bit of Velcro, specifically to beat the £8 one in Asda.
Then buy, if you must
Six to ten pounds for most parts. Buy the size up if there's a younger sibling coming through, since that's the only way it ever gets a second wear.
What each part actually needs
| Part | What you need |
|---|---|
| Shepherd | Dressing gown or a brown pillowcase, tea towel, cord round the middle. Timeless. |
| Angel | White dress or nightie, tinsel halo on a headband, wings if you can borrow some |
| Wise man | Any bright tunic, a cardboard crown painted gold, something shiny to carry |
| Mary | Blue dress or a blue sheet as a tunic, white or cream headscarf |
| Joseph | Same as a shepherd, in a different colour |
| Sheep | Anything white, cotton wool balls glued on, ears on a headband |
| Donkey | Grey joggers, grey top, novelty ears |
| Star | Anything gold or yellow, and a cardboard star |
The headband trick
A novelty headband turns any plain outfit into a costume. Ears, antlers, a halo, whatever. It's about three pounds, it takes ten seconds, and it does more work than the rest of the outfit put together.
Christmas Jumper Day
Here's the bit that surprised us.
Save the Children run it, and they'd rather you didn't buy a jumper. Their own guidance is to wear one you already have, find a vintage one, decorate a jumper you own, or knit your own if you're that way inclined.
So a plain red jumper with some tinsel safety-pinned on is not cutting corners. It's what the charity is actually asking for, and the two pounds goes where it was always meant to.
And it's the same swap problem as the nativity: a jumper worn four times in December is a size too small by the following one.
The party outfit
Worn twice, photographed heavily, and outgrown by Easter.
The honest advice is to buy it secondhand, because party clothes are the single best thing to buy used. They've been worn twice by somebody else too, so they're effectively new. Where to look is here.
Or skip it. A four-year-old at a Christmas party does not know or care whether the outfit is new, and will have jam on it within eleven minutes regardless.
I panic-bought a shepherd costume at eleven at night for next-day delivery and paid extra for the postage. The school had a box of them. Nobody had thought to mention it and I hadn't thought to ask.
🌱 And in January, when it's all in a bag
The jumper, the party outfit, the costume. All barely worn, all a size too small by next Christmas, and all sitting in a bag because binning them feels wasteful.
Swapaboo is a clothes swap. You photograph what they've grown out of, we check and value each piece, and it becomes credits you spend on the next size from another family.
Somebody else's four-year-old is a shepherd next year. The clothes cost nothing, you just pay to have them moved.
We're opening a few families at a time and it's invitation only just now.
Common questions
How do you make a nativity costume without buying one?
A brown pillowcase with holes cut for the head and arms, tied at the waist with cord, covers shepherds, Joseph and wise men with a change of colour. A tea towel held on with a headband makes the headdress. Cotton wool on a white top makes a sheep, and a cardboard crown makes a wise man. One parent documented making a full shepherd's outfit for around £2.49.
Where can I get a nativity costume for free?
Ask the school first, as most keep a box of costumes from previous years. Then ask the class group chat, since parts tend to be assigned by year group and a parent from the year above will have last year's costume in a loft. Both are quicker than ordering one.
What do you need for a shepherd costume?
A brown or striped dressing gown, or a plain tunic made from a pillowcase or sheet, tied at the waist with cord or a belt. A checked tea towel held on with a headband or elastic makes the headdress. Sandals if the weather allows, and a stick if the school wants a crook.
Do you have to buy a Christmas jumper for Christmas Jumper Day?
No. Save the Children, who organise the day, encourage people to wear a jumper they already own, buy one secondhand, decorate an existing jumper, or knit their own. The suggested donation of around £2 is the purpose of the day rather than the jumper itself.
Are Christmas clothes worth buying for children?
They are the poorest value in a child's wardrobe by cost per wear. A nativity costume is typically worn once, a party outfit twice and a Christmas jumper a handful of times in December, by which point the following year's is a size larger. Borrowing, making or buying secondhand makes far more sense than buying new.
What can you do with Christmas clothes afterwards?
Pass them on, since they are almost always barely worn and somebody else's child will be that size next December. Class groups and local parent groups clear festive clothes quickly in January, and clothes swaps are well suited to items worn once or twice.