It’s that time of year: back to school. For kids, this means saying goodbye to their beach days before they’re back to their classrooms. For parents, this means some hectic days of shopping lists, supply gathering, and getting everything in order for the new school year. 

When you’ve got tons on your mind already, you don’t want to have to think about where to buy new clothes or which supplies your kids will want. That’s why we’ve put together an easy little guide to help you with your back-to-school shopping in Charleston and online.

Here are our favorite children’s clothing boutiques in Charleston and some must-have school supplies this year.

Where to buy school clothes

You can go to the chain clothing stores, or you can support a local business and find boutique clothing items that your kids will love. Here are some of Charleston’s favorites.

Kids on King

 

Kids on King offers baby to preteen clothing, making it an easy one-stop shopping trip for parents of multiple kids. Besides their super cute clothing items from brands like Anavini, Le Za Me, Luigi Kids, and more, they also offer backpacks and lunchboxes for school with designs that your kids will love to wear.

Kids on King strives to bring the best customer service, offering one-on-one attention. “The cutest kids store and the most welcoming employees!” said one customer. “Grabbed my kids some cute outfits and I could have easily bought more! The higher-end brands are priced very fair in comparison to other kids’ boutiques nearby and the store is worth a stop!”

Website: https://kidsonking.com/
Location: 310 King St, Charleston, SC 29401, United States

Ellifox

Offering children’s clothing up to size 10, Ellifox offers a variety of clothing styles, including the quintessential Southern look. “Ellifox is my go-to store to dress my 4 kids!” said a reviewer. “Aside from the best embroidery and quality products, Ellifox’s customer service is top-notch. From car seats to bloomers to bonnets, I can find everything I need for my littles and trust that it will be designed with care and delivered quickly. 100% recommend!”

They even have a specific back-to-school section on their website, making school shopping easy. Or, if you’re on a budget, browse their sale items. Custom monogramming is also offered so that you can send your kids off with unique backpacks that they can’t lose.

Besides back-to-school clothing, Ellifox offers special boxes for birthdays, baby showers, and more, which is perfect for those who don’t have kids but need to buy a gift for one.

Can’t find what you’re looking for? Ellifox is partnered with other boutiques in the area and can hunt it down for you, keeping your back-to-school shopping trip short and easy.

Website: https://ellifox.com/
Location: 1662 Savannah Hwy Suite 260, Charleston, SC 29407

Scraps of Magic

 

If you’re like many parents of tween girls, you might struggle to find age-appropriate clothing. Scraps of Magic fills that gap.

Opened by a mom who simply wanted to offer cute clothing that wasn’t too young or too mature, this cute little shop offers the freshest fashion for girls between the ages of 10 and 13. Here, you’ll find brands like Splendid, Ella Moss, and more, and you’ll enjoy offerings like sports bras and bralettes, sleepwear, and even accessories like backpacks and lip gloss.

It’s pretty much anything any tween girl could ask for. “Scraps of Magic provided excellent customer service and a truly personalized experience.  It is so hard to find good quality (and appropriate!) clothing for tweens, and they nailed it!” said a reviewer.

Website: https://scrapsofmagic.com/
Location: 237 King St, Charleston, SC 29401

Once Upon a Child

 

If you’re concerned with the environment, then you may want to consider shopping at a consignment store this year. Fast fashion is one of the worst causes of pollution, and buying lightly used clothing is a solution to that. 

Once Upon a Child offers clothing in baby sizes to 20Y. Here, you’ll find discounted items that are still looking new and fresh, allowing you to save money and the environment. This isn’t a thrift shop; the items here are high quality and well taken care of—the savings are just a bonus.

“I was impressed the moment I entered the store because everything was so clean and organized,” said a customer. “I didn’t have to sift through racks looking for the appropriate clothing size. Everything was organized by size, color, and type of clothing. Oh, how this made my heart happy. The prices were also very reasonable. I will definitely return!”

Website: https://www.onceuponachild.com/locations/north-charleston-sc
Location: 7800 Rivers Ave #1440, North Charleston, SC 29406

Must-have back-to-school items

You might have your school supply list from your child’s school, but sometimes it’s still hard to decide what exactly your child needs in order to thrive. We talked to a couple of teachers to discover the back-to-school items that kids love (and teachers, too). 

Masks

Although the Charleston Department of Education will not be requiring face masks due to a stipulation in the school budget, masks may still be recommended by local authorities, and parents may decide to have their kids wear masks in school. Additionally, masks can help stop the spread of colds and other illnesses, which might not be a bad idea in a kids’ classroom. After all, we all know how messy kids can be.

Make masks fun to wear with these Crayola Kids Reusable Face Masks (linked below). Available in packs of 5, your child can enjoy a new mask for each school day, then you can throw them in the wash over the weekends. They even offer an adjustable band for comfort, a nose clip, and a design that won’t fog up glasses. Check out all sorts of designs that young kids to teenagers will enjoy.

Hand sanitizer

By now, we’re all used to carrying hand sanitizer everywhere and how important it is to keep our hands clean. Unfortunately, hygiene and keeping track of small belongings aren’t two things that kids are great at. Make carrying around hand sanitizer fun and easy with decorative hand sanitizer holders.

The hand sanitizer holders linked below come in packs of 12, so you can have a few on standby. But, your kids will love keeping track of these super cute holders, ensuring that they won’t want to lose them. They may even be more likely to carry and use their hand sanitizer, too.

Post-It notes

Post-It notes come in handy whether or not they’re on your kids’ back-to-school supply list this year. They can be used to organize thoughts, mark places down in their textbooks, as a way to color-code their notes, and more.  

We can encourage the use of school supplies by making them fun to use. The posted notes linked below come in many different fun shapes, ensuring that your child will be excited to pull them out of their backpack. They also come in packs of 12 so that they can be properly supplied all year long.

Binders

We already know that kids usually aren’t great at organization; it’s a learned skill. However, you can help make things easy by giving them plenty of ways to keep things organized. This includes finding a binder with plenty of storage space.

These binders (linked below) have a number of pockets, inside and out, for your child to store their pencils, rulers, erasers, and to properly file worksheets and other homework. “Loved this binder so much when I bought it for my daughter (in pink) a couple years back that I had to see if it was still available for my son,” said a reviewer. “So excited that I not only found it again, but the colors match his backpack perfectly! This is such a durable binder with many pockets, my daughter loved hers, and I know my son will get just as much use out of it!”

Pencil cases

Continuing with some organizational tools, pencil cases are another useful supply to help your kids keep all of their writing utensils in one place. However, you need something that won’t fall apart after daily use (especially with the younger kids). We have a pencil case that addresses both of these issues.

These pencil cases come in a variety of designs perfect for younger students, and they’re specially crafted to withstand the wear and tear of elementary school. “I got the blue monster box for my son last year and it survived! If he didn’t draw all over it, it would have looked brand new still,” said a reviewer. “I’m pretty sure that this would last them till they were in college if they respect their stuff.”

Water bottles

Bringing a water bottle to school is more sustainable, and water bottles now appear on many school supply lists. Metal water bottles are great because they are durable, well-insulated, and brightly colored. You can even get stickers or other art supplies to decorate them.

These metal water bottles come in many different colors suitable for all ages. They also come with a 5-year warranty, double walling to help insulate both hot and cold liquids, and three different size options. “I needed a good water bottle for my toddler for preschool, and he chose the stars,” said a reviewer. “This bottle is perfect and he loves it. He’s been using it every day for almost a month. No issues with leaking or any damage from expected drops and falls.”

Notebooks

From elementary school to high school, composition notebooks are a common requirement. These types of notebooks make journaling, notetaking, and other tasks quite easy. Most of the time, kids are stuck with boring black composition notebooks.

Make sure that your child has a notebook that they can’t wait to use with this super cool wide-ruled dinosaur composition notebook (linked below). Any kid who loves dinosaurs is going to adore the tyrannosaurus rex ripping its way through the front cover of the notebook. Plus no other kid will have the same one, making it difficult for your child to misplace.

First aid kit

When your kids get a paper cut or scrape their knee, don’t leave them without coverage. A first aid kit is an easy thing to carry around in a backpack, and it’s essential when your child or one of their friends gets a little scrape, which is pretty common on the playground.

The adorable first aid kits, linked below, come in a bunch of different styles for a student of any age. Designs include monsters, ice cream, colorful patterns, animal print, and more. “After so much fighting with my 2-year-old to not peel off his bandaids, I have finally found one he actually wants to wear!” said a reviewer. “Not only that but these are actually truly flexible… They are really comfortable, and I’m pretty sure he forgets they’re even there, which is a huge deal for us.”

Locker organizer

When kids get their first lockers, they can quickly become messy and disorganized. Locker hangars can help them to avoid that, especially if their lockers are shared.

These locker hangars come with two levels so that your child can easily organize their books, even if they share their locker with another person. It even has pockets on the sides to easily store their calculators, pencils, and other smaller supplies. Simply put, “Works perfectly for my son’s lockers. Provides excellent storage and still leaves room for a jacket and backpack,” according to a reviewer.

Blue light blocking glasses

Studies are showing that staring at a screen for too long can be bad for yourself and your eyes. Part of this has to do with the blue light of the screen, which may cause eye fatigue, dryness, and headaches among other possible long-term effects. Blue-light-blocking glasses can help with that.

Whether your child is doing online school, working on a school project on the computer, or plays a lot of video games, these glasses can protect their eyes from strain. They also come in many fun colors, encouraging the student to wear them. ” I ordered them for my kids and they were in love with it and don’t want to take them off,” said a reviewer. These glasses come in packs of two so that you can have a backup in case one pair is lost.

Flash drive

Computer skills are something that all ages benefit from, and that includes learning how to save files. Because of this, flash drives appear on back-to-school supply lists for multiple ages. If you have a younger student, you may be understandably concerned about them losing their school flash drives. Help them keep track with a fun flash drive that they love to carry around.

These flash drives come in a variety of cute designs that kids will love to have. They also come in packs of five so that you can give some as gifts or have some extras if one is lost. “My daughter loved this fun assortment of flash drives. She said they fit easily in a pocket on her backpack and aren’t quite small enough to get lost,” claimed a reviewer.

Slime

Not all school supplies need to be about learning. Sometimes, kids need a creative outlet to occupy their minds and hands in between school work. These days, slime is all the rage. Kids love playing with this gooey toy that fosters creativity and encourages students to play, even at the quiet confines of their desks.

Galaxy slime is fun to play with and beautiful to look at. It’s also clean and will keep kids of all ages and interests busy. “This product has a very interesting consistency, beautiful metallic sheen, and is fun to play with! It didn’t stick to anything except paper,” said a reviewer.

Mindfulness coloring pages

Many teachers agree that mindfulness pages offer a great way for kids to keep themselves occupied while there’s some quiet time. The detailed coloring pages require dexterity to color in, improving their hand-eye coordination, and kids will love the creativity that they can exhibit as they choose which colors to use on these intricate designs.

The Secret Garden mindfulness coloring pages are by popular mindfulness coloring pages artist Johanna Basford. It even includes some mazes and other games to add some puzzles to the coloring fun. Kids to adults will find enjoyment within the pages of this coloring book. “I would say this is by far the highest quality coloring book I have. I received it as a Christmas gift last year. The paper is amazing. It’s heavyweight and holds markers and colored pencil well,” said a reviewer.

Self-outlining markers

Many teachers have stated that self-outlining markers are the new must-have among kids of all ages. These markers provide a fun and unique drawing tool that kids can use in their art projects, posters, or other activities. Each metallic-colored marker has a different color outline, creating a clean and pretty look.

These self-outlining marker packs come with 24 different markers that are smudge-free and easy to use. “Bought these for my granddaughters,” said a reviewer. “They absolutely loved them, and spent hours drawing and coloring!” These make great gifts for kids who love visual creativity.

Crayon factory

It’s a common issue: your crayons reach the end of their lives, and they become too short to write with, but it feels like such a waste to throw them away. Luckily, there’s a solution to that.

This toy allows you to recycle your crayons when they get too small to color with. Simply mix two colors together, put them into the mold, and presto! you have a fun Crayon shape to enjoy. Suitable for ages eight and up, the electronic element that it uses shuts off automatically after 10 minutes, ensuring your child’s safety. “This crayon factory is very easy for my 7-year-old to use on her own without assistance or even supervision. Everything is enclosed and there’s no way for a child to burn themselves or spill molten crayon anywhere,” reported a reviewer. Your young student will love the shapes that they can create with their old crayons, and you’ll love the fact that you don’t have to waste the old crayon pieces. 

Silicon poppers 

When we asked teachers to recommend some great back-to-school products, they said that they loved silicon poppers. Whether your child has a hard time sitting still or they’d like a fun, quiet game to play in between classes, silicon poppers can help.

These small toys work like bubble wrap—your child will push the little bubbles down—but they’re reusable, and they make very little noise, so your child can play with them even in class. Unlike other toys meant to help kids focus, like fidget spinners, they aren’t incredibly distracting, and many teachers recommend them to children on the Autism spectrum or those who have a difficult time concentrating.

Rolling backpacks

Carrying heavy books can cause back issues in young kids. Rolling backpacks alleviate back stress, making carrying books easy and healthy. 

This rolling backpack is designed to last years of wear. It has multiple pockets, including pouches for laptops and other important devices, making organization easy and keeping your child’s belongings safe. “My 3 kids all have a version of this rolling backpack,” said a reviewer who gave this product five stars. “So far it has held up well to their abuse.” It also has straps for times when rolling the backpack isn’t feasible, and it includes a pouch for water bottles and a front pocket with pencil holders, ensuring that all of your child’s school supplies can be easily carried and organized.

Stickers

Stickers can be a great motivator for kids. Many teachers use stickers to encourage good behavior and to make homework exciting.

This book of 1,000 stickers allows you to use the same motivation technique at home. When your child is struggling to focus on homework or won’t do their chores, you can use the stickers as an incentive to do a great job. You’ll love that your child is being responsible, and they will love all of the fun stickers that they can choose from.

Feelings journal

Learning about feelings and how to manage them is just as important, if not more so, than learning practical knowledge. A feelings journal can help teach your child how to better understand how they’re feeling and how to manage their more intense emotions.

This feelings journal is designed to help kids and teens better recognize their feelings through writing, drawing, or even using stickers. It has different templates for each day of the week so that your child can get used to the different methods used. With 120 pages, this journal can be used for quite some time. “I got this for my nearly 7-year-old,” reported a reviewer. “He has been having a hard time lately with things not being what he is used to. It has been a great way for him to get his feelings about his day out!”

Getting the kids ready for school might seem hard and overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. Check all the items off of your back-to-school shopping list today.