My girls will be going to camp this summer and we've been instructed to label their water shoes, towel, lunch box, sun hat, etc. I'm a bit stumped. I guess I could write on everything with permanent market, but that seems a bit extreme. What's the best way to label cloth items and other things like shoes and lunch boxes? Thanks!
Do not understand what is extreme about using a laundry marker to mark
their belongings? Just put their names on their things and be done with it.
Fabric pens (fabric store or craft stores sell them) for fabrics.. and Sharpie Metallic Pens (gold or silver) for the shoes.
We still have sheets and towels with her name on them from camp..
I have been ordering these for years, and they are EASY and stay on! The clothing labels are simply peel-and-stick (no ironing, hallelujah). They even stay put on items such as socks and t-shirts with no tags. Even for items such as water bottles that really take a beating and go into the dishwasher every day, the labels stay on and don't peel or fade. Miraculous stuff.
my son has been going to camp since he was 10 and we have always used a sharpie and put his first initial and last name. and when they say label everything they mean exactly that everything. when you have a lot of kids it is hard to figure out what belongs to who especially when 5 of the kids come with the same cute lunch box or tshirts. my son goes to over night camp for 2 weeks. the councilor told us that the kids will change clothes and stuff gets left out. if not labeled then who knows what belongs to which kid when 3 are claiming it lol. put names on it all. if you have some of those stickers with your name and address you could put those on things like the lunch box and backpack but it is just a lot easier to use the sharpie on an inside label.
Use tape and a Sharpie. You can't believe how much stuff you will lose if you don't label it. (Even if you do...)
Hope they have a wonderful time!
Dawn
I buy these, they stick forever! http://www.mabelslabels.com/
They are much quicker than writing on everything! I have found that laundry markers/Sharpies fade over time and also don't work on dark materials (which is what I dress my son in, especially for camp because he is a mud magnet). Also the tiny tags are unobstrusive on socks. I know for shirts/pants most people write on the tag but my son likes most tags removed from his clothes.
I usually just put my child's initials on items. I use a Sharpie.
Both my kids (girl and boy) have the same initials, so if the other kid ends up using the item later, no big deal. Even if they take it to camp, lol.
A towel, I would write them along the seam tape at the end of the towel. Socks, on the toes/bottom side.
Tshirts, in the back of the collar (inside, just above where a 'tagless' shirt would have its label printed).
Pants, the inside back of the waistband.
Shoes, write inside the tongue, or the inside of the "cuff" part that goes around the ankle.
Flip flops, you can write on the bottoms usually, or the underside of the thong part/straps.
It really isn't that big of a deal. Pillowcases, I put inside the open end where the fabric is thicker, and write small.
As long as your kids know where to look for their name/initials, then you are good. They can identify it by showing it to whomever is asking.
Lunchboxes and the like, I label inside. Even for school. You'd be amazed how many times one left on the playground or gym floor, can be re-claimed based on the initials or name on the inside if they make it to a lost and found.
Something like a lunchbox, I'd include a telephone number, if it is a good quality lunch box. My kids always used Land's End ones, and they will last for years, so I definitely wanted them back if they were lost. They weren't cheap, but they lasted FOR.EVER.
I run a camp on Lake Grapevine - www.AdventureDayCamps.com - I appreciate when parents label everything - initials, last name...doesn't matter, just something....I end up with tubs of unclaimed items every year so yes, when asked to label everything, that would be a tremendous help to your camps :-)
Mabels Labels or Kiddo Tags are great. They often have Groupons or Mamsource deals for both. Check them out! Good lunk and enjoy the break from the kiddos.
