Wheat Canada: spring/summer ’15

If there’s one thing we know for sure about springtime in Canada, it’s that we don’t know a damn thing.

Will it be sunny? Rainy? Warm? Cool? Or all of the above in the same day? Yes, yes. Probably that last bit.

So that means we need layers. Lots of them. To hit up the mall/park/movie theatre/indoor playground/insert-other-fun-activity-or-location-here without the option of going from five degrees up to 25 degrees, and you’re going to end up with those horrific noises children make when they’re too hot or too cold. (And not in that cute Goldilocks kind of way.)

This is what I love about my friends over at Wheat kids’ clothing — they get it. They get that parents want fashionable, comfy clothes that all go together without being too matchy-matchy or too cutesy. And the newer collections also still need to go with the older collections because some stuff actually still fits from the previous season.

Welcome to Wheat Canada’s SS15 (spring/summer 2015) collection. It’s a beauty. As always, the clothes are “contemporary adorable” and blend seamlessly with most of the pieces we already own.

But if you’re not quite sure how to narrow it down, or you’re just starting out on your Wheat obsession, I’d encourage you to let Wheat do the choosing by purchasing a Mystery Bundle. For a fixed price point (usually around the $100 mark), all you do is provide your child’s size and sex, and Wheat will hand-pick several co-ordinating items and ship them to your front door.

The best part? You get every item at a discount because of the bundle promotion. You’ll save at least 20 per cent more than if you’d bought the items separately. And way more if you consider what Wheat sells for in the U.S. and Europe — where prices are double what we pay here for many of the pieces.

The only downside of the Mystery Bundle, of course, is that you might get foundation garments (socks, undershirts and underwear) when you really didn’t need any. Or you might get nearly white-coloured leggings for your daughter who thinks playing in the mud is hilarious. But those are about the only downsides as far as I could tell after Wheat Canada sent Miss Q and The K Man their own Mystery Bundles.

Miss Q’s arrived with an underwear set (one tank and two pairs of boy-shorts in a pink polka-dot pattern), a pair of ivory leggings, a fitted pale pink T, a looser graphic T that dips down around the bum giving it a great shape, a lightweight ribbed pink cardigan and a bamboo floral-print dress that buttons up the back.

The K Man got a lovely light blue cotton “poor boy”-style dress shirt, fitted navy T, graphic-print T, a pair of slate cargo-style capris (that fold up into long shorts), a set of three pairs of navy socks and an underwear set consisting of a tank and two pairs of boxer-briefs with great button detail.

As always, there are pieces from the Danish-designed collection that can’t go in the dryer, which I don’t love. Because I wash way more laundry than I’d like to as it is, and stopping to hang stuff up slows me down. But that doesn’t negate the fact that Wheat’s clothes are just lovely. Soft-to-the-touch cotton, silky bamboo, and beautiful details.

If you’re concerned about ordering kids’ clothes online without trying for fit first, the fit is somewhere in between GAP Kids and H&M. If it helps, Miss Q is a tall four year old who is already well into size 5s and 6s in these brands; above, she’s wearing a size 5 from Wheat in all but the leggings and undergarments — those are both 6s. She would be fine in a size 5 legging from Wheat but the 6s give her a good inch or two of room to grow and they’re still narrow enough around the waist that they actually stay up. The K Man, a six year old who’s also on the taller side and wears a size 8 from GAP Kids and a 7/8 from H&M is shown wearing a size 8 in Wheat, except for the undergarments, which are a 10.

In between working with Wheat Canada for a couple of posts (like this one and this one), I’ve also purchased a few (OK, a lot) of clothing — not only for my own kids but for birthday gifts, too. Shhhhh! Don’t tell my nieces! And that’s because it’s a brand I trust, and one I’m proud to support beyond my blog, too.

But don’t just take my word for it; check out all the new Wheat Canada spring/summer ’15 pieces for yourself. And be sure to watch Wheat Canada’s Facebook page for Mystery Bundle offers.