School Uniforms at French Toast - Retail Round Up Series

French Toast Official School Wear™ proclaims they are "America's leading brand of school uniform." Founded in 1958, the mission of the company is to provide families with quality children’s wear and boys and girls school uniforms at great prices."  If your school is considering implementing a school uniform program, their Partnership For Education Program™ offers assistance and an educator's toolkit is available for download. 

According to their website, they carry over 1500 items in their official School Uniform Wear line. Sizes include grouping Toddler (2T - 4T), Girls (4 -14), Junior (3 - 13) and Young Women (10-20). Several styles of pants are available in the slim fit. They carry a plus fit for many types of items.  Their website for on-line shopping makes it easy to find items by gender, size and category for items. If your school has registered their dress code with French Toast, you can use the Find Your School Code feature on the retail website which will then filter the selection to show only items that meet your school's uniform dress code.

Their return policy allows returns within 30 days with a receipt for any reason, except embroidered items unless the product is defective. French Toast uniforms can be found at retailers across the nation. You can likely find French Toast brand items at your local JC Penney or Kmart, or use their retail locator to find a store near you.

Normally for the Retail Round Up series posts, I list the items available in the current school uniform collection by gender and clothing type. French Toast offers too many items to list.  Instead, I'll link you to the major groupings and featured product lines:

ISO Feedback on School Uniform Fundraiser Programs

So naturally, I'm curious to hear feedback from schools that participate in school uniform fundraising programs.  Do parents take the time to enter the school code in their online orders, and if so what kind of royalty does the school receive for their efforts?

If your school has promoted a school uniform fundraising program in the past year and are involved with the administration of the program, I'd like to hear from you.  Please complete the survey below.  If you participate in programs with several brands, please feel free to complete this brief 4 question survey multiple times.

If you weren't involved with the program but you know who was, please forward this link to them so they can complete the survey.

Based on the feedback collected, I'll plan to share the feedback in a future post.

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey , the world's leading questionnaire tool.

Myself Belts, a great addition to the School Uniform Wardrobe

A sample product was gifted from MyselfBelts for this post. Opinions expressed here are my own.

I recently posted the question, "Should belts be required for Kindee Kids?" They are required as part of the uniform dress code at my daughter's school, but I have found that they haven't enforced it, at least with her classmates of Kindergartners. Because traditional belts can be a challenge for the younger kids, I was curious if other schools include belts as part of the required dress code and if so, at what age they begin enforcement.

Then I connected with Myself Belts on Twitter and learned about their product. It's a company founded by two sisters Talia Bahr Goldfarb and Danielle Bahr Eason, after Talia's son had a problem with his pants staying up during potty training. Together they invented Myself Belts TM, the belt kids can fasten themselves. As I read about the company, I couldn't help being impressed with how they have made a successful business and product with such a simple idea. Other Moms have given it rave reviews online, and the product has won several awards.

The belts come in a variety of fun colors and patterns. Most are fabric, and a few are leather. The school uniform belts are offered in the following colors and styles: Solid Navy Canvas, Solid Brown Canvas, Khaki Corduroy Distressed Brown Leather, Brown Leather, and Black Leather. They retail for between 16.95 and 18.95.

Skool-Kit.com, a UK based classifieds for school uniforms

It's like Craigslist for school uniforms, sporting goods, instruments and and other items kids use. Skool-kit.com is a site based in the UK that helps match buyers and sellers.

Sellers can place an ad for £1 which includes option to upload an image of the item. Ads are listed for 30-180 days. To have your item "featured" is an extra 50p. The site suggests a pricing model based on the original cost and the current condition of the item. It also offers suggestions to make your listing descriptive. Buyers and sellers are encouraged to work out payment options and shipping costs amongst themselves. Sellers that multiple items to list can purchase a membership for 6 months for £10 to list up to 15 items.

Items for sale are organized into the following categories:

• School Uniforms 
• Musical Instruments 
• Sports Equipment 
• Sports Clothing/Footwear 
• Books 
• Dressing Up Items 
• Out of School Clubs (Scouts, Brownies) 
• Other Items (Holiday /Ski Accessories) 

Check out the site at skool-kit.com or follow them on Twitter at @skoolkit

Lands' End School Uniforms in the Retail Round Up Series

Lands' End was founded in 1963 as a sailboat company which expanded into clothing and home furnishings. Traditionally they were primarily a mail catalog company, later expanding to include an online business with a few retail locations in the Midwest. The brand built its reputation on its guarantee policy, which allows for returns or exchanges at any time and for any reason. In 2009, the company was bought by Sears which now offers the Lands' End clothing line in many of its retail locations in the US.

The brand proclaims to be "America's premier school uniform provider". Lands' End school uniform catalog is one of the most expansive collections available. As I read about schools researching and developing a uniform dress code, I'll often see references that the school worked with Lands' End to develop their policies. They even have a administrators portal website dedicated to supporting school administrators with their uniform programs. The site states that they are supporting over 4500 schools and outfitting over 1.5 million students.

Why Non Uniform Days as Fundraisers are a Bad Idea

School Boards implement uniform dress codes for a variety of reasons. One of the most commonly cited reasons is nicely stated by the Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five (SC) to "to reduce stereotyping based on apparel and build unity across social and economic lines". So I applaud Susan Gleaton, a trustee in that school district, for questioning why principles are allowed to declare dress down days that allow students to pay cash to be exempt from the school's uniform policy for the day as reported in the Times and Democrat. Via Twitter, I see evidence of these types of fundraisers used at schools in the US and the UK. I encourage other school boards to examine if this type of activity is occurring in their schools and decide if it is a practice consistent with the goals they set forth when implementing uniform dress code for the students.

These "fundraisers" teach kids that you can buy your way out of following the rules. It promotes a perceived benefit for those with the ability to pay. Aren't we trying to teach kids that socioeconomic status is irrelevant to ones ability to succeed in school, both academically and socially. If your child attends a school with a uniform policy or uniform dress code, you are likely well aware of the both sides of the uniform debate.

So instead of recounting that debate, lets take a look at what students themselves are saying about the specific issue of non uniform days:

Cherokee School Uniform Scooter, a Review

I purchased the Cherokee girls school uniform scooter for my daughter early last fall. I liked it because it was longer than most other uniform scooters hitting at the knee. As a scooter, it has knit shorts built in underneath. The front has pleats and pockets.  My daughter likes it because it is easy to get on and off due to the elastic waist. She calls it her pull-up skirt.

It has held up well. It faded a bit after the initial washing, but has held its color since. It looks fine straight out of the dryer, but could benefit from a quick touch of the iron for a crisp look. It is available through Target in navy and khaki in sizes XS - XL. It retails for $14. It is currently available on clearance for $7.48.

Disclosure – Affiliate Links in Use
Thanks for supporting Uniform Mom!

Related Posts:

• Izod Flat Front Uniform Skirt, a review
• Lands End Girls Uniform Pleated Twill Skort, a review