Wanna see our new Schoola duds? (plus I have a 30% off code for you!)
I get an awful lot of pitches in my email inbox, and sometimes, the constant barrage is a little exhausting.
But every now and then, I get an email letting me know about a product/shop/service that I end up really, really loving.
I can safely say that Schoola falls into that category.
(You can read more about Schoola in my first post about 'em.)
Why do I love Schoola?
Well, they have great second-hand clothes at totally affordable prices, and not only that, 40% of the purchase price goes right back to the school that donated each item.
It's kind of like shopping at a really nice Goodwill, all from the comfort of your home.
My girls are also quite enthusiastic about Schoola because really, who doesn't do a happy dance when boxes of clothes arrive in the mail??
Sonia and Zoe liked our first order so much, I hopped on Schoola again and ordered another box of clothes (and this time I found some for Lisey too!).
I haven't managed to catch all of the clothes with my camera yet, so this post is a mish-mash of just a few items from our two orders.
(I'll show you the rest of our Schoola goodies in a future post, once I photograph them!)
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First up, here's Zoe in a Gymboree shirt ($5.69) with an Old Navy skirt ($4.20).
(Please don't mind the cluttered counter behind Zoe in the upper right. Unfortunately, we live in a house, not a photo studio. So, you know...real life. Also: distracted photographer. Ha.)
Both items were in brand new shape. In fact, I don't think the skirt had even been washed, because the bottom edges frayed in the wash just like a brand new skirt does the first time you wash it.
Sonia put together a similar outfit...a $4.50 Old Navy skirt (again, in brand new shape!), an already-owned Children's Place shirt (got it on clearance a few years ago), and an Abercrombie sweater ($8.88 after coupon code).
If I bought that cardigan for Lisey, it would never see the light of day, but it SCREAMS Sonia and she wears it allll the time.
I've never actually shopped at Abercrombie for my kiddos, but I'm pretty positive their clothing would normally be out of my price range.
(I don't exactly want to give my money to Abercrombie anyway, so this is perfect. Cute sweater, and my money went to a school.)
Speaking of slightly expensive brands, Zoe's rockin' a Mini Boden shirt here. ($5.90 after coupon code))
I just noticed that her shirt coordinates with her scissors. Nice.
This owl sweater ($4.48 after coupon code) was a much-coveted item from the time it arrived in our first Schoola box. And handily enough, it fits both Sonia and Zoe, who like to wear it with black leggings.
Because the owl sweater was so loved, when I placed my second Schoola order, I purposely looked for owls. That's how I found the Gymboree tee at the top of this post, and also how I came across this Children's Place shirt for $3.88.
So the girls are quite set in the owl department now.
Get 30% off (and support schools)!
When I placed my first order, I used a 25% off code for new customers, but I've got something even better for you today! I got an email from Schoola this week with a 30% coupon code just for Frugal Girl readers.
Yay!
Visit Schoola, hunt down some goodies, and then use code TFGHOLIDAY to get 30% off your order. This is only good through 12/19, so don't put it off.
Oh! And Schoola is also offering free shipping right now.
They made me a handy-dandy graphic, which I'll put over in my sidebar from now until the 19th so you don't forget to use the code.
Even with the 30% coupon, 40% of your purchase price goes right back to the school that donated the clothes, so every purchase helps support schools.
(Which is unarguably awesome.)
Disclosure: This post is not sponsored by Schoola. I paid for my two Schoola orders out of my own pocket. Schoola links in this post are my affiliate links, which means if you purchase through these links, you'll help to enable my Schoola habit. Ahem.
Please know that my enthusiasm for Schoola is 100% authentic, though, and I'm sharing about the site because I really am a big fan! I love that you can shop second hand and save money while supporting schools.
I noticed the owl trend! Cute! Glad you found some good deals. I live close to our town's main shopping area (including the mall) and I can find similarly-priced items new at the stores. I head straight to the clearance rack and shop off-season (and buy big for my kids to grow into). Not everyone lives close to a shopping district (or enjoys shopping), so it's nice that you have shared your frugal shopping resource with everyone.
I do that too! I always check out the clearance rack of whatever store I happen to be in on the off chance that I can find something for a kid to grow into.
My kids are usually clothed in a combo of hand-me-downs, second-hand-purchased items, and clearance-purchased items. And it all works out somehow!
Yay! Thanks for the Schoola coupon code! After your first mention of the site, I found my granddaughter's beautiful, classic, red plaid Christmas dress there, and several other things for her and my grandson. I'll definitely use that coupon!
They have some great holiday attire, which is such a great thing to buy second hand (how many times will you wear a Christmas plaid dress? You'd hate to pay $50 for it!)
Yes, and that's also the reason they are nearly always in pretty much brand-new condition at resale shops!
Hey Kristen! Can't wait to give this a try. Just wanted to give you a heads up though, the links in your post are broken. Hope you and your family have a very Merry Christmas!
Ack! I forgot the http. Oops.
Thank you so much for letting me know! They should all be fixed now.
Schoola has no love for Canada. 🙁
Oh, bummer! Hopefully as they grow, they'll expand to Canada as well.
Your girls look so cute in their Schoola clothes! Nice finds and great prices! And a new coupon!
The one thing that makes me uncomfortable about this as a fundraiser is that wealthy schools (with the best clothing being donated) will be the ones able to raise the most money. I would love to see a way for poorer areas to benefit.
Hmm, that's an interesting thought. Obviously people are motivated to bring in their clothing because it will raise cash for their particular school, and I wonder if this business model would work if Schoola just randomly chose schools to donate to.
Not sure - although children tend to be incredibly generous when given the chance. If it was promoted as children helping children, I think it could work.
That's true. Then the other dilemma is that Schoola would have to figure out how to distribute the money. I wonder how you could choose which schools to send the money to because there are SO many!
Such fashionable outfits again! It's really good to know it's possible on a budget. I'm afraid searching might be hard/take too long, but I'll give it a try. I would rather not shop at some of the clothing stores either, so that's another plus.
If you click on the curated collections or search for a particular brand or style, it helps to narrow things down a LOT! Otherwise you are right-it's overwhelming!
I used schoola the first time you wrote about it (I might have even commented, I forget). I bought our four preschool girls used coats for about $55, total (and I forgot to use the coupon). I wasn't excited about how long it took to ship, but other than that we loved the coats. One coat was not in the great condition that they indicated, and schoola sent me an email (I did not contact them) and mentioned that they noticed that, and refunded the money for that coat, but it was ours to keep. It is a minor flaw, and we will wear the coat anyway, and are very pleased with their customer service. Thanks for all the great frugal ideas, we went from 0 to 4 kids in the last 6 months, and are all about saving money where it counts. 🙂
Oh wow! That's so lovely that they noticed the error and took it upon themselves to correct it.
thanks for the resource. I'm eager to find a replacement for eBay. I hate to shop and online shopping is the lesser of two evils.
Totally! Plus, it's like having 5 thrift stores in one spot.
Hi Kristen!
Just wanted to say thanks so much for this post! It was very timely for me. My just-turned-6-year-old daughter pretty much refuses to wear pants or jeans...she only wants to wear dresses and occasionally skirts. I've been looking for cute denim skirts to replace the 5t she's pretty much grown out of, only to find that my usual standby store for this item, Old Navy, had nothing similar in the 'big kid' sizes, anywhere, even on line. I prefer second hand, both for my own finances and for our planet, but I was about to drop some pretty serious cash at an online store to buy a skirt for her. Glad I checked your post first! The skirts your daughters are wearing are EXACTLY what I was looking for! I hopped on Schoola, found 4(!) similar skirts in a few different sizes and made an account. The only bummer was that I couldn't use your 30% off code...as a new account holder Schoola gave me an automatic 25% off. But I'm not complaining! 4 skirts, all for less than the one I was going to purchase. Light on the earth, supports schools, and keeping my girl comfortably and happily attired. Thank you!!