Soft Clothing Review and Giveaway

As I’m sure you all know by now I am totally addicted to finding new and cute clothing online and to me there is nothing better than finding a website that offers unique and different clothing for children! Recently I was introduced to Soft Clothing, a clothing company dedicated to offering parents a line of clothing geared toward children with sensory or tactile sensitivity, a common symptom of Autism, Aspergers, and Sensory Processing Disorder. My son does not have any of those disorders but I just could not pass up the opportunity to work with the Soft Clothing company and letting all you other parents know about their wonderful products.

About Soft (taken from website):

Soft was founded in February 2007. We then began a two year market research process and one year sample development and testing phase, and finally launched our first collection in Winter 2009/10! We are a research driven company, therefore we continue to test samples on children with a variety of sensory needs and a range of tactile sensitivity--to ensure that the clothing we manufacture will eliminate the most common complaints we hear from parents and children. No more morning meltdowns, no more spending hundreds on clothes your children refuse to wear. Sign up for our mailing list on the Contact Us page for updates on our collection launches, new styles and for access to exclusive coupon codes.

Mission
Many children are extra-sensitive to the texture and feel of clothing. Soft® is the first line of inclusive clothing designed with the needs of all children in mind, including those with Autism, Sensory Processing Disorder, ADHD, and tactile defensiveness/sensitivity. We use flat seaming and seamless construction for extra comfort, 100% of the softest combed cotton and our specially developed Soft Sensory Blends , wide collars, encased elastic waistbands, printed labels (tagless), custom fits, and much more.

Created by a Mom and Special Education teacher, our goal is to design clothing that can enhance social skills, sensory organization, concentration, by addressing unique sensory needs, but without sacrificing personal style and self expression.

Jessica E. Ralli (founder, director) has an MA in Special Education from Columbia University, and worked with children with Autism and Sensory Disorders in the New York City school system before starting Soft in 2007. Jessica conducted three years of both qualitative and quantitative research in and out of the classroom in preparation for launching the Soft clothing line. Jessica is also an avid fashion junkie--following her favorite designers religiously, and pulling expertise and inspiration from her close friends in the industry.

Suzy Kogen Friedman (co-founder, partner), is a lifelong advocate for people with developmental disabilities. Her nephew Timmy, now 9, was diagnosed with Autism and global developmental delays at age 3. Timmy's daily dressing challenges were Suzy's inspiration for Soft Clothing. Suzy runs a successful real estate development company in the Chicago area, where she is also a wife and a mother. Suzy is working her creative and problem-solving magic on the development of the Soft Sensory Toy line, to launch in 2011.

What is so different about Soft?
More than 1 in 150 children have sensory needs that are largely unmet by the children's apparel market today. Soft is about to revolutionize children's apparel. We are the first inclusive and universally designed line of clothing geared toward children with sensory or tactile sensitivity, a common symptom of Autism, Aspergers, and Sensory Processing Disorder. Soft is designed and constructed considering the needs of all children, particularly, sensory sensitive dressers.

Soft provides comfort and style for all children. After conducting over two years of in-depth market research, we learned a lot about what parents want and what children like. We have incorporated that feedback to create stylish and comfortable clothes for the people who need it most. We use:

* Flat seaming totally seamless construction throuought (for extra comfort)
* Soft high quality cotton (combed, bio-washed and pre-washed for extra soft and smoothness)
* Wide collars (for a roomy fit)
* Encased elastic (waistbands that don't pinch)
* Printed labels throughout -- printed with water based ink (for a smooth non-plasticy feel that won't itch)
* Vegetable dyes, natural enzyme washes, and water based digital prints (to protect against allergies)


Our Thoughts:

Soft was kind enough to send “Bug” their seamless crew sock 2-pack (white/blue) to review and I was very excited because “Bug” is very particular about his socks, and well to be completely honest he pretty much refuses to wear most socks because he says they make bumps under his feet and hurt him and I figure that’s due to the seams because I have the same issues with my own socks.

Once our socks arrived “Bug” immediate knew that they were sent especially for him so he wanted to try them on right away which was awesome because we just so happened to be headed out the door on our way to town and it was a rather rainy day and I didn’t really want him wearing his flip flops so this was a perfect excuse to get him to wear his tennis shoes J! I decided to let him choose which pair he wanted to wear first the white or navy and I wasn’t surprised when he wanted to wear the navy. Once we got him settled down we put on his new socks and usually by this time he is complaining of the socks either itching, or crumpling up under his toes but he didn’t seem to have a care in the world so I knew right then these may just be the socks we have been looking for. But the real test was the rest of the day that we spent out in town running errands, in and out of the car and lots of walking but he never once complained about his socks or his feet….score one of Soft Clothing!

Since that day anytime he has to wear socks he searching and searching his sock drawer to find the seamless crew socks from Soft Clothing! I love them because they fit him so nicely and of course they don’t bother him to wear them all day so what could be better? As you can imagine I’ve had to wash and dry these two pair of socks quite regularly and there for a couple of weeks when we was having all those storms and flooding here in Arkansas I was washing them every other day so he could wear them out and I’m very happy with the way they stand up to the constant washing and drying. They had not shrank which is awesome nor has the navy socks faded, they still look pretty much like new and still have lots of wear left in them, although we are fixing to order a few more pairs for this fall/winter so I will always have them on had.

Bottom Line:

“Bug” and I both totally agree that the seamless crew socks from Soft Clothing rock! “Bug” has not once wanted to jerk his shoes and socks off in the store or car while wearing these socks nor has he even made one complaint! I love them because he loves them and that he will actually wear them and so far they have held up to heavy wear and tear! I’ve actually noticed Soft has a line of seamless underwear that I’m probably going to end up ordering for “Bug” since he is now strictly in underwear and of course he is picky about which ones he will where when it comes to those too.

If you have a little one with sensatory issues or is just picky about their socks or clothing I would highly recommend checking out the clothing from Soft!

Buy It:
To purchase seamless crew sock 2-pk mentioned above and so much more visit the Soft website!

Win It:
Soft has generously agreed to offer one of my super cool readers their very own seamless crew sock 2-pk for their little ones to try (ARV $12.00)!

Mandatory Entry: Visit Soft and tell me what other item you would like to get for your little one(s)! Please remember to leave your e-mail address if it’s not visible in your profile.

Want or need extra entries? Check out how to grab em’ below! (Mandatory Entry must be complete for these to count)

1. Become a public follower of my blog (2 extra)

2. Follow me on twitter @sgrant2005 and tweet this giveaway (can be done daily)

3. Subscribe to my feed via a reader

4. Blog about this giveaway with a link to this post and to Soft Clothing be sure to leave me a link (5 extra)

5. “Like” Soft Clothing on Facebook

6. Follow Soft Clothing on Twitter


Giveaway ends June 29, 2011 @ midnight CST. Winner will be chosen at random, using random.org and contacted by e-mail and has 48 hrs to respond before a new winner is chosen.

This review is based strictly my opinion. Others may have a different opinion with the product listed above. I did receive the seamless crew sock 2-pk mentioned above complementary for this review. No monetary compensation was received.