Where do you purchase clothes for your spd child?

by Mom
(Canada)

My six-year old was diagnosed two years ago and over the past six months her issues with clothes has increased. We are in OT which is helping, but it seems that "seams" on her pants and tops create too much anxiety for her.




Through this site, I have found links for under garments and socks, but does anyone have favorite places (ideally online) to purchase pants and tops (and ideally seamless!).

Thanks!



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Sep 28, 2016
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starstarstarstarstar 		Canadian
by: Mom

I'm going through this again with my child. Back to school is always the hardest. Living in Canada can get cold in fall obviously, so no socks are not an option. Any Canadian stores carrying these no seam, itch, tantrum items?
Apr 30, 2015
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starstarstarstarstar 		Child with sensory issues/ school uniform
by: Anonymous

My daughter is 8yrs old and getting dressed in the morning is a nightmare. She has to wear a uniform but shirts with collars/socks/ sneakers have always been an issue. I buy old navy collared dresses and they seem to work well. Breaking in new sneakers is such a nightmare I have even started buying her sneakers used. She wears everything a size or two larger than her regular size. I have tried every brand of socks sold at target and walmart. She will turn her socks inside out. Even brushing her makes her cringe. Leggings are worn under her dresses in winter but are very uncomfortable for her. As for a coat a puffer vest with zip up velour jacket underneath was tolerated. The list goes on and on..........
May 02, 2014
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starstarstarstarstar 		Sensory friendly kids clothes
by: Colleen

The clothes from Pineapple Pete are super soft (bamboo) and also tag-less/flat seams: www.pineapplepete.ca

My son got the bamboo fleece pants and loved them so much we also got the royal blue. So comfy!
Nov 13, 2013
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starstarstarstarstar 		seamless leggings and sundress
by: pink

Hello , i am pink from China i have my own factory we main product seamless leggings and skirt and sundress for kids . if you like it please contact me in anytime . my email adress : pink20111988@msn.cn
May 30, 2013
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starstarstarstarstar 		help taking care of my sweet hyper grandaughter
by: averi"s grandmother

any help my grandaughter will not wear any kind of underwear she is 7 years old going into 2nd grade next year today its going to be 90 outside and she wearing shorts to school also after any kind of meal she gets very crazy and hyper for aleast 2o min.
Nov 19, 2012
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starstarstarstarstar 		my favorite baby online shopping mall
by: motheradvice

I used to buy my boys and girls cloth from a chinese-run online mall. It is very cheap and the quality can meet my demands.shipping fee is on sellers' account not our buyers account.U can visit this online mall which supplys a wide range of things for baby,kid ,children ,maternity and pet. the website is www.tauramall.com. The online mall is run by a chinese professional factory. It allow us to buy even one item and the shipping is free. It seems that the Shipping Methods include DHL TNT EMS UPS FedEx China Air Parcel
Oct 27, 2012
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starstarstarstarstar 		Too tight!
by: Anonymous

My son wears shorts 363 days of the year probably because they are the most comfortable thing for him. The 2 days I had him wear jeans last year to school he tightened them so tight that he had bruises on his hip bones. Back to shorts he went. This year as winter approaches I fear what to do if it gets cold. (Mild winters here fortunately.) He now won't wear any pants or shorts that have any way of tightening them. Elastic sports wear that don't adjust seem to be our only option at the moment. Unfortunately he loves soccer and baseball which require uniforms that come with adjustable shorts/pants. His cleats we have to tie so tightly that it leaves the laces so long he then has to knot them 7 times as he can't tolerate dangling laces. It's a meltdown everytime he has to get dressed but really wants to be there and he's fine once he gets there. It's just the process of getting everything on.

I'm emotionally broken watching him go through this.
Time to go back to OT.
Sep 24, 2012
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starstarstarstarstar 		only wants to wear long sleeves/long pants
by: Beth

Children's Place has been the only clothing my son can handle! It's amazing that I can get him dressed with out a fight. I didn't know what the problem was and went thru many days of letting him just wear pj's all day(when he was 2 and 3) i'm not sure if this made the problem worse but then he was a nightmare to get into daytime clothes.

Now the issue we have is that he refused to wear shorts all summer!! We had the hottest summer this year even many days over 100 degrees and he still wore long pants every day. We had a battle with getting him into short sleeves but eventually he did and now I'm worried since it's fall that once he gets into long sleeves again---we will have the battle AGAIN when the weather gets hot---any suggestions for this????
Jun 03, 2012
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starstarstarstarstar 		HannaAnderson clothing
by: Anonymous

Flat seamed..long wearing...well made and classic. Underwear and clothing. I am a mom who used them for years until our daughter outgrew her need for them. Thank goodness for OT, PT and horse therapy and prayer:).
Feb 02, 2012
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starstarstarstarstar 		Walking on the backs of shoes comment
by: Anonymous

To the person who wrote of their child walking on the backs of their shoes: I can relate. We had to give up buying regular tennis shoes. He now wears crocs all year long except when there is snow on the ground (then boots). It has saved us a lot of headache. Hope this helps!
Dec 14, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Clothing Nightmare
by: Anonymous

My child was diagnosed with SPD when she was 2 she is now 6. I just bought some uniform pants from Soft Clothing I am hoping will resolve our uniform issue with the school. If not I have no other resources to satisfy the principals uniform requirement for my child. We will have to sell our home and move. I have resulted to soft material tshirts she should wear a 6 but wears a 9-10 to be comfortable. Socks I have found the cotton/nylon (at Walmart) or polyester (at Target)low profile socks in a Medium she will wear. She should wear a 12 shoe but refuses to tie them and wear them snug. She wears a 1 and leaves the Nike Velco part undone. She will only wear stretch pants or fleece. She normally would wear 6 but wears 7/8. She is tall. Underwear we have always gotten the same kind you can get at walmart, sears, target, etc. they DO NOT have elastic around the legs and they are briefs. She loves them and never complains until she starts outgrowing the size.

She wears a size 10 just a little big but she is comfortable. Up until the start of school she only wore flip flops for shoes. She would cry the entire time she wore an enclosed shoe. Every year I buy her closed in shoes, jeans, etc. to play school in trying to get her used to wearing or feeling other textures. Doc said it is like self therapy. I know she won't wear them all day but she does try and play in them so I figure it is worth the money. She begs for clothes just like her friends and cries trying to wear them. It breaks my heart. Why can't more manufactures get involved. The clothes today are cut so tight and skin fitting I don't know what we are going to do to find her clothes at this rate.
Nov 14, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Shoes
by: Amy

My eight year old son walks on the back of his shoes and ruins all of them. He won't keep them on and when they are on he is walking on the back of them. Help!!
Sep 23, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Therawear socks and Gilligan O'Malley underwear!
by: Anonymous

My son is seven and we're struggling with sensory issues on a daily basis. Last year, it was socks, and we just discovered SmartKnit socks (seamless) by Therawear which have been a true lifesaver. They're pricey, but worth their weight in gold! Now, we're dealing with the underwear issue - I ended up buying him a pair of Gilligan O'Malley seamless underwear designed for women in boyshort style and he loves it. They're available at Target. They are extremely soft, stretchy and completely seamless. I dyed them black and printed little trucks on them using a stamp pad and cloth paint and it seems to be working! :)
Jul 28, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Daughter Underwear Issue
by: Anonymous

My daughter has not been diagnosed with SPD but I am certain she has at least a minor case. Last year it was socks. I think we're mostly past that. Tube socks are still her favorite and knee socks are a tough sell. It's all about the seam. My latest challenge is underwear. She's constantly "picking" and pulling because her underwear bothers her. I have tried so much and so many. I've got to find something because her discomfort is very obvious. Thanks for the leads. Any additional would be appreciated. I really think a tight, longer knit boxer/boy cut would work...but I am struggling to find that in a girls style...just mid thigh. Hanes is too loose and not long enough. While she loves the airiness, it doesn't help the adjusting issue.
Feb 04, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Soft clothing for children with tactile defensiveness
by: Jessica

Hello! I am a special educator from New York, and I recently started a clothing company for children with Sensory Processing Disorder and who experience tactile defensiveness. Our clothing was designed based on the expressed needs of parents and kids with severe dressing issues, and we are continuing to roll out more of our flat seamed, specially treated cotton tagless clothing throughout the year. Please visit our site to give us suggestions and try our sensory friendly clothing!

http://www.softclothing.net
Nov 16, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		Cotton or Polyester is what our daughter likes.
by: Anonymous

Our 5 yr old daughter-not yet diagnosed with SPD-but I am sure she has it. has a very long torso and we put her in extra long shirts (sz 10/12 by downeast-their basic cotton tees are terrific-and are tagless) These are her favorite to wear. They have to be short sleeved as she refuses to wear long sleeves unless it's a jacket/zip up sweater(??? i don't get that one) She Hates dresses because most are made of frilly fabric-she hates silky/satiny textures and say they are itchy. Anything with Tulle is out. So we get the cotton shirt-type dresses and have had some luck with polyester blends. She prefers to wear a plain cotton t-shirt with a polyester skirt-cutting out tags on them. Thankfully she will wear nylons-but it really is a chore to get her ready for church every sunday-as she would rather just wear pants. And prefers shorts over pants every time-we love the summer months. Socks aren't an issue but she has to wear her pants/skirts/shorts under her belly too.
Aug 14, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		satin?
by: noreen

My four year old will only wear satin dresses and nylon tights/leggings. No underwear. Cotton everything is out of the question--and there is no tricking her --as soon as cotton is on her body she cringes! We have spent the whole summer without her in underwear and switch between two satin lined dresses.H&M have nylon (yuck ! in my world but...) socks and leggings that have been my life saver-- she wears the leggings instead of underwear. It seems that the belly is hyper sensitive and therefore the leggings rest under it.
May 25, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		undershirts
by: mo2g

We have struggled through the clothing issues for years--only recently getting diagnosed w/ SID. My 6yo doesn't mind underwear, but everything else is a struggle. I agree w/ the seamless socks, but we get the Children's Place socks that do have a seam but are really soft so she is ok w/ them. The Children's Place tends to carry a lot of soft cotton clothing and much of it is tagless. My daughter, for some strange reason, has always liked their bright, loud colors and patterns.

For shoes, maybe try sandals? Or big, floppy rainboots in bright colors? Might be worth a shot. We have to have slip-on shoes or velcro, it seems. We usu. get Sketchers.

One trick I found a couple years ago was to get soft cotton undershirts from Hanes. The ones we have don't have sleeves at all, just little straps. Amazingly, even tags don't bother her when she wears the undershirts--even though the undershirts don't cover the tags!

One question is how important are underwear at this age? As long as her pants (yoga, pj, whatever) cover everything and aren't see-through, I wouldn't fight the underwear fight. Just let her go w/out them--esp. around the house. Also, I've never tried them, but it might be worth it to check out the Children's Place for underwear, too.
May 20, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		loose clothes for my daughter
by: leigh-ann

My 5yr old daughter has this disorder, and tonight, after a long day of being prisoner in my own house, I bought her some lose pajama shorts, and some long flowy skirts to hide them... so she can use them as underwear. There's no way she'd wear boys boxers, and this is the closest I can get to girls boxers. The skirts are fine because they're long enough, and loose enough that nothing touches her. I'm thankful it's spring, and this will do fine for now... but I'm worried about winter/fall. She's also wearing those water shoes, without socks, and that's okay for spring/summer. I have no idea how to get her into regular socks again, if ever, and regular underwear is just not happening. She begins her OT soon, so I'm looking forward to progress, and am hopeful we'll overcome this together.
May 18, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		seamless socks
by: Anonymous

I have found seamless socks in the kid's section at Khol's department stores. It works very well for my daughter. Now if we can just get over the shoe issue we will be in business.
May 13, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		Thanks
by: Anonymous

Thanks - my daughter has the yoga pants from Children's Place and manages with them. They do itch but she can cope. I find blow drying her body with my hair dryer before and after she puts on her clothes helps.

I'm presently seeking bamboo clothes for I have heard that they are soft.

Ultimately it's the stitching that drives her crazy! It breaks my heart.

As hard as it is to watch our kids go through this it's nice to know that you're not alone when it can take an hour (or more) to get a pair of pants and a top on your child!
May 11, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		clothing
by: Anonymous

My daughter has MAJOR issue with clothing and we are currently in OT to try and help eliminate her nightmare of getting dressed every morning. It truly is awful b/c you can't get around wearing clothes! For her, sundresses have been much better, but we live in a state that is cold much of the year so I have brought every possible style of panties, pants and socks to see which works better for her.

Panties: I have found that the hipster style with minimal elastic work (I found some at Old Navy, but went back to get more and they were gone :(. ) I have also heard boys underwear work well for girls, but she wasn't interested.

Pants: by far the best for us have been the yoga style pants with the roll over band on top (she actually rolls it up instead of down). I have found these at Children's Place and Gymboree, but I have found them cheaper on eBay or Once Upon a Child. Socks are tricky, I know there are seamless ones out there, but it was a process of elimination for us - she finally settled on Hanes tube socks.....we also have tried the lycra/spandex pants/shorts at Target.

It is quite frustrating and I feel your pain - it takes everything I have in me to be patient and understanding of her situation. Some kids with SPD prefer tighter clothing, others prefer looser. I would determine what it is she likes and pursue that. I was also told to bring her to the store with me and actually have her try clothes on (even if you don't plan to buy them). It helps her discuss the issue and what she likes/dislikes and at the same time it is a type of therapy for her to "practice" wearing all types of clothes. I wish you the best and hope this info helped!

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