Children's Christmas Shirts Guide

Children's Christmas shirts are the season's hardest-working tops: the white or smart dress shirt under the sweater or with the Christmas tie at concerts and services, the red plaid flannel that is December's uniform for everything else, and the tartan and festive-check shirts between them. Shirts and the season's t-shirts are the twin heads of the Christmas tops family; this guide takes the collared half - woven shirts with buttons - and the t-shirt guide takes the knitted, printed half. This guide covers the styles worth knowing, the fit points that decide comfort, the fabrics and construction that separate a good buy from a regret, and the simple care that makes the garment last.

Styles and Construction

The families divide by cloth. Dress shirts in cotton or cotton-blend broadcloth are the formal end: white first, then pale blue and the small festive check, cut to sit under a sweater without bunching and to hold a tie knot at the collar. Flannel shirts - brushed cotton in red plaids above all - are the season's comfort end, warm enough to be the outer layer indoors. Tartan woven shirts split the difference, festive without a print. In every family the collar decides the shirt's dignity: a collar that lies flat and even, with buttons that meet their holes without strain, reads smart at any price.

For children's tops, finishing decides comfort: flat or taped neck seams that do not scratch, shoulder seams that sit on the shoulder rather than sliding down the arm, and prints or appliques that stay smooth against the skin. Hold the garment up and check that side seams hang straight - a twisted seam means the pieces were cut off grain and the top will keep twisting in wear. Reinforced elbows and double-stitched hems earn their keep on school clothes.

Fit and Sizing

Fit a Christmas shirt by its jobs: under a sweater, sleeves should reach the wrist without riding up the sweater's cuff; with a tie, the collar must close comfortably - the two-finger test at the neck - because a concert is no place to discover a collar has been outgrown. Buy in the autumn measure-up; shirts are the garment where a single size jump shows first, in the cuff and the collar, and December's photographs forgive neither. A spare white dress shirt in the current size is the season's cheapest insurance against the pre-concert spill.

Fit children's tops by shoulder and length first: the shoulder seam belongs at the shoulder, sleeves should reach the wrist with the arm relaxed, and the hem should cover the waistband of the bottoms it will be worn with, sitting and reaching alike. Leave growing room in the body rather than the neck - a collar that gaps or chokes is wrong at any price. If a top will be layered over another, try it over that layer before deciding.

Wearing and Care

Wash dress shirts promptly after the event - party food and candle-wax season is unforgiving of delay - and hang them rather than folding, so December's second and third outings start from a hanger, not an ironing board. Flannel improves with washing and should simply join the rotation. Store the season's shirts with their outfits noted, and the white shirt that still fits in January graduates to the year-round formal drawer, where it will serve weddings, photographs and every occasion that a childhood reliably produces.

Wash children's tops inside out in cool or warm water, fasten buttons and zips first, and treat playground and food stains the same day - children's stains set fast because they are rarely rinsed when they happen. Tumble dry low or line dry to protect prints and elastic, and fold knits rather than hanging them so shoulders keep their shape. A named hook or cubby label inside the collar saves more school tops than any fabric technology.