Custom Shirt Designs for Your Kid's Back-to-School Wardrobe

Back to school usually goes one of two ways with kids, either they're excited to get back to the classroom, or they shuffle towards that first day like a condemned prisoner to the electric chair. Either way, one of the few things most kids can agree on is that they'll at least get some new gear out of the deal, even if they hate going shopping. Well, you and your kids are in luck.

Not only can you add to their wardrobe without fighting through crowds of other miserable back-to-school shoppers, but you can also guarantee that your kids will actually like, maybe even love, their new clothes, and they'll be exactly what they wanted – because they designed those clothes themselves.

More than that, there are a lot of other benefits you and your kids can share during and after the experience of allowing them to design their own custom-made shirts, including the ones below.

An Opportunity to Flex Their Creative Muscles

Parents are always looking for opportunities to help their kids become more well-rounded and often want them to take up creative tasks and activities. As you know, choosing between different shirt styles and colours, and seeing how they interact with the shapes, uploaded images, freehand designs, etc., that your child can add to their custom shirt is a highly creative exercise.

It's also commonly known that the more you express your creativity, the more creative you become, just as "practice makes perfect." Regardless of what people think of their creative abilities, we all have the potential to be creative people in our own ways. Our brains are constantly practicing creativity in the background like software, and when we do something as simple as taking a different route home from work, we are exercising our brains' creative muscles. If your kids aren't sure where to begin, they can learn a few tips for designing shirts to get them started. But once they get into the swing of things, they'll find that they're flooded with so many more ideas.

But the good news doesn't stop there. Research published in the Journal of Positive Psychology showed that creative activity can improve a person's mood and emotional and psychological health for up to 24 hours afterwards and is linked to long-term benefits such as increased cognition, better memory and lower cortisol levels. In other words, not only do tasks that require imagination and creativity help us become more creative, but they're also good for our cognitive and mental health!

Kids Use Clothing as a Form of Self-Expression

There are few instances when children actually look forward to going to school, and one of those rare occasions is to showcase new clothes they're excited about. This can often be because they can't wait to show off that they have the latest sneakers or shirts from famous brands.

But there are also many times when that excitement can be attributed to the role that clothing and style play in self-expression. Whether it's one of their favourite sayings, a statement they want to make, a drawing they're proud of, or a completely unique design they created, the clothes children wear are most often a way for them to express themselves.

Self-expression in children is a crucial part of developing their social identities – how they see themselves and the role they play in society. Social identities can be based on several factors, including:

• Culture/ethnicity.
• Beliefs & morals.
• Achievements.
• Hobbies and interests.

Children use these identities for several purposes, like feeling a sense of belonging and for their self-esteem. Parents are advised to support their children's social identities, and helping them design their own shirts with proper guidance allows kids to wear clothes that truly express their specific individuality in a positive way.

A note on encouraging self-identity in children, it's also recommended to remind kids that they play many roles in society: scholar, advocate, athlete, family member, community volunteer, etc., so that they don't rely on one role as a primary identity. Having multiple roles to draw on for an identity is generally considered healthy, while the opposite can have a devastating effect if that role is taken away. For example, a child who sees themselves primarily as a star athlete could suffer an identity crisis if an injury forces them to stop playing sports.

You Could Be Raising a Fashion Mogul in the Making

While your kids may be motivated to design their own shirts because they can't find what they want in department stores, countless successful fashion designers and entrepreneurs got their start doing exactly that.

It could be a slow process where your child's design skills take years to develop and need to start somewhere. Or, it can be a case where your child designs shirts, sweaters, long-sleeves, etc., that become an instant hit at school, dropping a lucrative business opportunity and learning experience right in their lap. Even if your kid doesn't wind up with a career in the fashion industry, they will learn many transferrable skills when they order custom t-shirts online and run a shirt-selling business:

• Marketing their custom shirts – through social media, getting popular kids to wear them, etc.
• Learning about inventory – will they take pre-orders or buy inventory first?
• Studying and implementing "cost of goods sold" – not only do they have to calculate the true costs of their custom shirts (cost per unit, shipping, taxes, etc.), but they will also have to learn how to value their time in every business function.
• Customer service – your kids will get first-hand experience of what it's like dealing with all types of customers, how to keep them happy, how to implement feedback and what it takes to keep customers coming back for more.

If your child's custom shirt business really takes off, they could end up being able to pay for their post-secondary education (or their next hobby or business) by themselves!