My mom keeps wearing the same old sweater. Are there any clothing stores that cater to the elderly?

Yes, anything with elastic and easy to slip on and off. You can always "adapt" clothing like blouses or cardigans by leaving the placket of buttons and just adding large snaps or Velcro tabs on the existing placket, that way they can help dress themselves and have look of buttons but not fumble with the buttons.

Also, you can always buy a couple colorful scarves (target avail at less than $10) to dress up something plain.

You can but some larger sizes t-shirts and then cut them down the front, adding buttons or Velcro tabs so the can more easily slip on or off without pulling over their head.

My mom wears the same couple things as well with closets full of stuff. I think if I was there to clean out her main closet and just hang a few things it would be easier for her to make decisions. I think with dementia, it's overwhelming with too many choices. As long as the same outfit is clean and not ragged, I don't mind what she wears. She has a hideous wig that she insists on wearing when we go out, it's the only thing I put my foot down on and tell her we won't leave the house if she wears the wig. Lol.

Can you find the exact same sweater? I know I have my favorites and I wear them until my daughter insists they be thrown out. And please, if she likes black (I do) stick with black or other dark colors. Everyone has their own color palette. From another old lady... 62.

I am sorry for repeating Eddie! Just saw your post. I have had wonderful compliments and I just say that I bought the outfit from a local boutique. If they ask, I tell them Sally Ann's.

Please, please don't be grossed out by this! I have shopped the thrift stores since 1989. I am blessed in that I don't have to; I want to. I have found the most beautiful cashmere, brand new boots, jeans and whatever at less than 10 dollars each. Just found 2 Land's End cashmere sweaters for $2.00 each. Consignment stores are also well worth going to. By all means, don't do this for your mom if it would upset her. My mom doesn't like the idea because she is very proud, but she is happy to wear my clothes. I just never told her where I got them. :)

TheirDaughter, tell your mother she's not wearing clothes for other people's good - just her own! My mother has the bad habit of keeping 'good' things for special occasions, then knocking around in tatty old sweatshirts almost all of the time (assuming I can persuade her to get dressed at all). But she's incredibly lucky that she looks great in strong, bright colours; so when I sneaked a red cashmere cardigan (probably a long-ago Christmas present) on to her when she wasn't paying attention, she got compliments all day long - not on the cardigan, but on how well she was looking. Nice clothes are good for morale, even if you are the opposite of a fashionista.

Darn it, I thought I had proofed before submitting. I meant "sweater" not "swather," whatever that's supposed to mean!

Eddie, thanks for the great feedback. Hey nothing wrong with the Salvation Army, Goodwill, etc. In fact, my mom was thrilled when she and my dad found a $3 purse at St. Vincent's! I actually did think about going there to look for a swather for her.

To be honest, money is not an issue here. I'm not exactly sure what's going on, but as I said, clothes were never a big deal to either of my parents. When I say something to my mom about her clothes she will say, "no one notices old people anyway." She's not unhappy about this, it's just something she wants me to know.

I'm hoping she'll like the sweater I did find for you online and then maybe I can get her another one in a different color!

TD:

Since you live in WI, check out the Salvation Army Thrift Store @ 4636 E. Washington Ave. in east Madison, (608) 249-5713. Don't forget churches. Tell them you can't afford much, but can make a $10 donation.

I know there's nothing like clothes no one has worn before; plus the strange satisfaction from the whole hunting-for-clothes experience. It'd be nice if we could always find that custom fit, but caregivers -- unless they're rich -- have to live in an off-the-rack world.

I hear male co-workers brag about their $60 designer shirts and the new car they just bought; then complain about outrageous cellphone bills they incur while talking BS with some "babe" that couldn't care less. Image is more important to them than having food in the fridge.

1/3 my wardrobe comes from the SA. $2-5 business shirts / pants, ties, shoes that make me look like a supermodel and feel like a million. I might take home $2,000+ every 2 weeks, but there's nothing wrong with a bargain. ... Especially when you know how to be poor.

Thank you, I haven't looked at Kohls.

I got my moms clothes at Woman Within, Blair, and Roamans online. Check out their clearances too, they have great stuff and my mom has a ton of beautiful clothes. Other than online Khols has nice sweaters . Good luck!

Ha ha! I told my dad to get rid of the old sweater once she gets the new one. Believe me, it's NOT looking good. My mom's a nurse, too, but she's stuck on drab colors even though she was thrilled when I got her a red coat (all hers were black).

And, unfortunately, the stuff she wears again and again isn't always very clean. I'll see it on her on Monday with a stain and she'll still be wearing it on Wednesday. My dad is sharp, but he just doesn't seem to notice what my mom is wearing. I don't think clothes were ever a big issue for either of them and now they really don't care. Although as I mentioned, my dad is always clean, wearing clean clothes, etc. He's just not good about helping my mom do the same.

I'm glad you found something new to buy! I don't see a problem with wearing the same thing over and over, if it is off long enough to get washed. Maybe Mom will fall in love with the new cardigan and you can keep the old one as a backup for when the new on is being washed.

My mom is a retired nurse and only likes white shirts. So when I find something she will like I buy five of them. Lol! But I am going try Blair for pants! White is nice tho, cuz I can bleach everything!

You guys, thank you for responding so quickly. I no sooner posted this than I tried doing an online search, as suggested. And, I ended up ordering a sweater from Buck & Buck, too! They say that their clothes are made to hold up against nursing home laundering so I thought it was worth it to pay slightly more (although I can't complain about $32, which includes $7 shipping).

I WISH my mom was more interested in her looks. She likes going in every week to get her hair done, but she will find one outfit that is comfortable and wear it over and over again. My dad is still good about caring for himself and changing clothes regularly. I don't understand why he isn't more aware of his wife.

I will comment to my mom that she needs to change her clothes and she'll say, "no one notices us old people." Well, she makes a point of not being noticed. She will dress in drab colors and she's friendly, but not outgoing. Sorry, I'm getting off on a tangent because I get so frustrated!

My mom is in a nursing home and it's hard to find clothing to stand up to their laundry procedures. My sis and I tried to do it ourselves, but no matter how many times we complained or put BIG signs up in her room, her clothing would end up in their laundry, washed and dried in hot water. There is very little available in local stores these days that don't have a label instructing to machine wash in cold water and dry flat. I did an internet search and came across "Buck and Buck" senior and adaptive clothing. They have some reasonably priced items that I'd like to try.....but am leary about ordering from unfamiliar companies. Has anybody dealt with them? By the way, my mom is 99 years old and still likes to look nice!

I love the internet. If you will Google "elderly" and "clothing", you'll come up with lots of websites. I landed on careapparel.com and they have cardigans that might be the sort you're looking for. I may go shopping for MY Mom now --- she wears the same black pants over and over again.

Several of the outlet stores seem to carry clothes that are very simple but nice. My mother wears a few outfits repeatedly and has a room full of clothes we have given her. I have noticed that she prefers warmth, elastic, and the same type of clothing. I have started buying things that are basically the same but in different colors.

I've gotten a few things like that online. they're pretty good at having a choice of less fancy stuff for my mother-in-law.