[Tamara]

Our school has just issued a survey regarding the new school uniform for next year. They have a dress listed and they suggest a fabric of grey/ white check with a yellow stripe. I haven’t seen samples of this yet, just photocopied images of what they propose. They also have school shorts similar to the sketchbook pattern which is great as at least I’ll be able to save a few bob and make these – and add the second pleat in each side. They are proposing either grey or white shirts which in our very red country will quickly discolour – I am suggesting a pinstripe fabric instead just so it isn’t all one colour and then it can be unisex.

Even though I don’t know the source of supply for the fabric the school is going through, I know that alot of you make your children’s school uniforms. Would there be places that would sell online retail (apart from ebay)? Would you know of any?

I like to be prepared and this is the primary reason why I haven’t made anymore uniforms for the kids because I knew they were changing it. Yet I would still like to make their uniforms whilst I can because the school shop charges and arm and a leg for them and I’d rather sew them anyway.

I may go and talk to the school tomorrow and see if I can get some information out of them as to the prospective supplier and state my case – they may turn me down but it is worth a shot as I am very determined!

[Reeni]

I hear you, my son’s school requires a sport shirt with embroidered logo as an everyday uniform… it peeves me to pay the price for them but it is what it is!!

You didn’t say where you are, but http://www.bluedesertco.com/shipping-fabrics.html is out of California… depending on the fabric, fabric.com can also be a great resouce because they have very reasonable shipping.

[with love Heidi]

I suspect I’m going to be in a simular boat in a few months time. A friend has asked me to help her make school uniforms for her daughter who starts school next year (in Feb, we’re in Australia). Her daughter is very small, at nearly 4 is still wearing size 2’s mostly and we’ve heard the dresses start at a size 4 and it’t a LARGE size 4. I think the fabric is a green and while check with a bit of yellow. I was thinking of just buying some larger second hand dresses to use the fabric, but that won’t help you justsewit as yours are new fabric. 🙁

The idea of white shirts in red dust country is a bit ludicrous.

Nicole, where did you get the fabric for Liddy’s school uniforms you made a while ago?

[Nicole]

Ebay,Heidi.

I was extremely pleased.

http://myworld.ebay.com.au/joelle6526/&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2754

[meleliza]

The store our school sends us too has only nasty polyester stuff. I only bought the ties therem as they have to be a specific plaid for our Catholic school. Everything else I bought at regular shops – mainly LandsEnd – and had it embroidered at the sports shop. They do all the schools. Kids wearing poly junk from the uniform store are already pilling but P is wearing his sweaters for a second year and they still look nice. I wouldn’t make him pants or shirts. It wouldn’t save much money and would be quite time consuming and dull to sew. Of course when my daughter starts, I won’t have a choice with the jumpers, the plaid is quite specific. Still, you can get nice cotton shirts and Lands End for a highly reasonable price, especially if you wait for a sale. More and more schools seem to be requiring a dress code. That wasn’t the case when I was young. More and more stores are selling uniform basics here.

[Tamara]

The thing I am most pleased about is the fact that my daughter can actually wear dresses to school. Unfortunately the skirt they chose is just black – so very boring but at least I will be able to make them. I want to suggest they do a summer skirt version also out of the same fabric as the dress because I think girls should have the option. What I am most concerned about though is they haven’t specified what is to go under them – as we currently have skorts aswell as shorts and skirts for girls, they don’t like showing their underwear but will they have to wear bike pants under them – I’ll be asking questions about this.

The shirt is a “2 way banded” shirt whatever that means but they have given the option of either grey or white and like I said before it just isn’t practical – and I think a pinstripe would look more unisex and better. I plan to take a small sample of what I mean in when I go and talk to the school so that at least they can picture what I am on about and not dismiss it.

A plain colour for the dress would have been better as far as accessibiity is concerned but I quite like their suggestion in terms of pattern of fabric and the style is very similar to the jumprope dress.

This is where I start imploring Liesl to please consider an update version of this pattern to include larger sizes.

I am very wary about the sizing structure of the school uniforms and eventhough my kids aren’t going to be here past primary school, they will be needing sizes that a high schooler would probably wear – the survey sheet tells me that the styles will be for k-12 yet I don’t see girls in high school wearing dresses over the skirt preference.

Thankfully the ties are not included – we are only doing the “Independent public school” thing so we can leave the ties for the private schools

Being quite visual I need to see the prints to visualise what it would look like and then go from there.

Nicole thanks for the link – I was under the impression you sourced your fabrics elsewhere but as soon as we get fast internet back, I’ll jump on and maybe will have a bit of luck!

Reeni I’m in Western Australia – midwest , close to the desert but not quite and very much a farming community. I do welcome online things though that can ship to me as often I get a better deal.

Tamara

[with love Heidi]

Tamara, What is an ‘independent public school”?

I’ve noticed a significant difference in what high school and late primary school girls wear in Tassie compared to WA. In WA I noticed few (to very few) late primary school girls wearing school dresses (unless they were private schools), and I think very few public schools (at least when I was there) even had a dress option available. In contrast in Tassie a large proportion of the public school girls (including high school) wear summer dresses. It was quite off putting at first as I thought almost everyone was going to a private school until I worked it out. I still haven’t worked out why the difference.

Thanks for the link Nicole.

Tamara did someone enlarge the jumprope dress at some point??

[Tamara]

wth love Heidi that was me who enlarged the jumprope dress and I have two cut out ready to sew for spring/ summer this year – I just hope I used the right sleeve pattern as it looks different.

And Idependend public school is a government school that is privately run – in a nutshell the current WA government is trying to offload some “liabilities” and hence is encouraging all government schools to go down this path so they don’t have to fully fund our very valuable education of ou children.

The principal is constantly away this year “learning” the ropes. There have been calls for nominations to form a “School board”. It means we can hire and fire teachers and have more of a say as to how the school is run. This is both good and bad! I fear it will also mean less financial support from the government to help us raise our standards with the tools we need.

So because we are changing structure, the uniform gets a change also – which is about time because I really don’t like those ghastly gold shirts!

This will make us “feel” private which I think is what they are trying to achieve. So yes school ties are on the list (over the page). I asked N would he like to wear a tie to school and he said he would feel very special in one (for a day I say to myself). Granted they do look smart but I am thinking that aesthetics of a school tie won’t bring up the standards of what is actually being taught and learned – only I guess keep school pride.

Time will tell I guess.

Yes the high schools only have skirt/ top options in government schools over here – straight or pleated you pick! It was like that when I went also. Because year 7’s in alot of schools are still in primary school, these girls get to wear the dresses if that is their uniform but for the private schools over here year 7 has been in secondary for a while now and even the private schools in high school have the skirt/ top option. I think they find it easier to fit the changing maturing body of a yound woman this way maybe …

[with love Heidi]

Grr, I don’t like this privatise, privatise privatise. How is privatising a ‘liability’ going to work?.

No need to really answer, just standing on a soapbox.

[Tamara]

I quite agree with you Heidi. it is not my idea of lifting the standards of teaching and education in our little school at all. I think they will find that the numbers in high school will not change just because we opt to wear blazers, ties and school scarves (in our region and weather we would look really out of place). A lot of the kids go to either Perth or Geraldton for high school.

I don’t have faith in this system and I don’t think it will benefit the children of our town. I think we won’t see any change for the better at all. And I really think it incredible how the government think this is will bring us into the 21st century. I think they will see a decrease in students doing teaching degrees myself and that spells trouble for our educational future. It will make it more difficult for teachers to move around the state and it will allow some to stay forever and ever – and if the board decides a shonky teacher is good enough, they get to stay….

I don’t see a great outcome at all… Thanks for sharing the soapbox.