Raggant Standard

Hello Ragrents!

 

If you didn’t know, a Ragrent is a parent of a Raggant. At least, according to moi.

 

I know you have all been camped outside the school, eagerly anticipating this year’s uniform policy, and I am here to deliver it to you! (Much cheering in the background!)

 

From the many excited questions I’ve heard, it seems as though our transition away from Dennis Uniform to Lands’ End has not been a well-kept secret at all, so most of the changes will not come as a big surprise. Here are the key points, just in case you haven’t heard all the buzz:

 

• The updated policy can be found HERE on our website as well as in the files of the ECS Parents’ Facebook Group.
• Lands’ End will be replacing Dennis Uniform as our supplier for skirts, jumpers (more on that in a second!), sweaters, fleece jackets and ties. Our preferred school number is 900159773.
• Please note! The point above means that you can purchase anything not listed there from any store of your choosing. While our Lands’ End program lists things like polos and chinos, you DO NOT need to buy them from Lands’ End. Of course you are welcome to, it just isn’t required.
• Lands’ End will be handling our logo embroidery, so you no longer need the extra step of taking uniform items to DMG for embroidery*…and then remembering to pick them up. Not that I’ve ever had a problem with that. 
• For those wondering about the return policy on embroidered items from Lands’ End: “Items with a school logo received within 90 days of purchase will be issued a Merchandise Credit refund. No returns accepted after 90 days.”
• Lands’ End currently does not have gray sweater vests or the girls’ ties - however, one of the reasons that we switched to Lands’ End is their far superior customer service. They routinely add items to what they offer based on customer requests, and we have put these in as requests. For now you will be able to purchase these from the ECS office (we will have a stash from Dennis Uniform, and the sweaters will already be embroidered and everything! Please be patient with us as we get that stash ready.)
• Any previously purchased Dennis Uniform items are still welcome in the uniform policy! Some of the Dennis skirts appear to have a half-life of a century or so, so feel free to keep your students in them as well as selling and buying them at the used uniform sale!
• By popular demand, jumpers are now included as an option for K-2 girls! They are not allowed for dress or event uniform, but if your daughter has repetitive stress injury from re-tucking her shirt 10,000 times each day, get that girl a jumper for her daily uniform needs!

 

Okay, that should do it for the informational part of our presentation…now we move on to the questions - FIRE AWAY!

 

Blessings

Mo

 

*Brad at DMG is a good friend of the school, so feel free to continue taking him your other random items that you want outfitted with the ECS logo ($8.50 per embroidered logo). Design Matrix Group - 3923 88th Street NE, Marysville. 360-653-9900.

I love our uniforms and I love the updates! Like many of you, we have been in the midst of Uniform review and purchase, and I thought I would offer some helpful hints from our years of back-to-school shopping:

• As Mo said, you may purchase polos from Lands' End if you want to, but you are also free to purchase them in light blue or white anywhere you find a great deal and fit! Our favorite polos (IZOD brand) are from JCPenny, and they even come in a Tall length. You can also ship them for free to the Marysville store and receive curbside pickup. We have used polos from Amazon, Target, Children's Place, Costco (French Toast brand), and Old Navy, and the IZOD retain their color and shape the best (other than Land's End).
• That said, we also like the Cat & Jack brand of Polos, and Target has a great deal on 3 and 5-packs.
• Our favorite place for cartwheel/bike shorts for girls is Children's Place. Note that grammar girls wear these shorts under their skirts every day, so it's good to have a stockpile! Children's Place has free shipping all the time, and the cartwheel shorts are just the right length. (Kohl's also has a number of options, and Walmart has adult sizes).
• Shoes can be tricky, but Amazon has an excellent dress flat for women for Event Uniform. Otherwise, Lands' End has high quality youth and adult all-black shoes, Seattle Premium Outlets has a Vans store that stocks the all-black shoes, and Zappos.com has unique and wide ranges of shoe sizes (like for my penguin-footed children). Kohl's can be another good option here for Vans or Converse.
• Also on the Amazon front, the Angelina Girls Cotton Knee-high socks have held up surprisingly well, and my children say they are comfortable. The "teen XL" are long enough to fit a child who is adult-height. The Goldtoe brand at Kohls has proven to have longevity, and for younger girls and boys, Children's Place socks have also been great (the Tidal color is an excellent blue for uniforms).
• Finally, Walmart Grocery Pick-up and Fred-Meyer Grocery Pick-up allow you to shop for school supplies via the app and have them delivered to your car for free, as long as you spend $35+.