Come Christmas morning and your Facebook and Instagram feed gets filled with happy families wearing matching pajamas while opening gifts. It looks wonderful and many families have a tradition of opening one gift on Christmas Eve just to find matching flannel jammies for everyone with reindeer all over them for the next morning. Nice? Yes and no.
It’s a definite yes for families that have nowhere else to spend their abundant money. Let’s calculate: this beautiful tradition with brand new pajamas for just 24 hours would set a family with two kids and a dog back by about $300 every year if they decide to buy from Hanna Anderson, which leads the nation in terms of nice sleepwear. We call it conspicuous consumption and a waste of money.
That’s definitely a no, if you have some budget limitations. This, however, doesn’t mean that you should forgo the beautiful family tradition all together. It just means that there are more affordable ways to go about it. This is our advice to you if you want to save during the time when all kinds of money are already being thrown out on gifts:
Pick one style and be faithful to it
Yes, it would be very nice to have Facebook send you reminders every Christmas about how your family looked in the years prior on Christmas mornings– 2019 Star Wars, 2020 reindeer, 2021 gnomes, and 2022 elf-like pajamas on everyone. But who has all that money to switch things up like that? Our recommendation is to pick a pattern that everybody in the family likes, (which can be hard, granted) and buy yearly only for those who outgrew their pants and tops terribly.
If you employ this strategy, you will look amazing in photos, continue with tradition, but will spend only on toddler and baby clothes every year. And you know what? – Nobody pays attention if you are wearing reindeer one year and Star Wars the next. One last argument – your closet will thank you too for not hoarding tons of holiday themed PJs.
Invest up front for a long run
If you go with the same print for multiple years, make sure you fall in love with a print that will be available year after year in different sizes. You don’t want to get Rudolph pajamas in 2020 only to discover that they are not available in 2021 when your baby is a potty-trained toddler and needs two piece set of said ‘Rudolph’s’.
Target is better than Amazon in this regard, but even it is new to this matching pajamas trend and thus can be unreliable. And then there is an issue of quality…
Hanna Anderson comes to mind if you want something that last long and has zero risk that you won’t find the same pattern next year. You will pay for the peace of mind, but it is well worth it. The company has a great track record and PJs that are available all year long.
- 40% OFF Pajamas
- 15% OFF Your First Order with code BRIGHT15
- Free Shipping on Orders $100+
Our suggestion is to pick a classic print and stick with it, think red and white stripes. This way you can mix and match easier if need be.
No matter where you are buying from, the first year will be expensive if you include adult size pajamas in the order. You will have to just swallow it and be happy that all other years you will spend at the most $50, sometimes $25.
Look out for sales
This is the best way to save. If you want to start a tradition like that, shop during Black Friday or Cyber Monday for discounts as big as 40%. If your tradition starting can wait, shop after Christmas or at the end of winter for next year and you will also score big savings.
Unveil the pajamas before Christmas Eve
If you follow the trend and open that gift with pajamas inside on Christmas Eve, you are guaranteed to wear those PJs just once. Who wants to continue wearing Santa Claus things after the tree comes down and Valentine’s Day candy is on sale everywhere?
Our suggestion is to wear the pajamas all December long, at least every once in a while. Kids and adults love the anticipation of Christmas, not the aftermath, and even your teenagers will gladly wear them. Many families wear them not only to bed, but while decorating the tree, while baking Christmas cookies, watching The Polar Express, and reading How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
This way you will get more bang for your money and make your holiday season photos a bit more festive. Now find us a parent who wouldn’t appreciate this opportunity to save while keeping up the holiday tradition?
