Labeling my childrens' lives

August 16, 2023 4:00 PM

I've waited until 2 weeks before preschool starts to remember I need to label every damn thing. HELP!

Recommendations for sources that will deliver (contiguous US) quality property of NAME stickers for stuff, and also clothing iron labels? Preferably two lines each bc I label everything w both twins' names.
Last time I did this every iron on label came off in the 1st wash. User error? Shitty labels? Thanks, parents who came before me!

posted by atomicstone to Shopping (25 answers total)

I suspect that Namebubbles, Mabel's Labels, etc all are printed on basically the same exact machine with the same exact label material so the differentiator is really just how cute you think the label designs are, not how well they work. I'd be thrilled to be proven wrong but I've never noticed a quality difference between the various printed label mail order companies.

TBH, I now usually just write their name in sharpie on their things, like a farmer.
posted by potrzebie at 4:10 PM on August 16, 2023 [17 favorites]

Don't stress, use a sharpie on the tag like a heathen. Your children 100 precent do not care.

Labels get wet, peel, get scratched off, picked at and absolutely ignored anyway.

For things that were staying relatively still and dry (like a container full of unsorted crayons) we use a boring staples bought label maker that you would use for things like mailboxes. That thing has paid itself off and we can just make new ones if something happens to the old and we care about it ( 99 percent of the time we do not care)
posted by AlexiaSky at 4:19 PM on August 16, 2023 [18 favorites]

My professional organizing colleagues who work extensively with families with tiny humans swear by Mabel's Labels. They've got stick-on and iron-on, but they also have clothing stamps, and just a variety of options.

That said, I trust reviews from The Spruce and they had a whole piece on clothing labels last month.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 4:19 PM on August 16, 2023 [4 favorites]

We've used the same Inchbug bottle/cup label bands for 9 years so far. Highly recommended if you need that product.
posted by bizzyb at 4:24 PM on August 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

I label everything w both twins' names.

Do your twins have the same last name? That could be a handy shortcut…
posted by staggernation at 4:29 PM on August 16, 2023 [2 favorites]

Use an ultra fine sharpie if you want to look like you care a little (and actually be able to read it). UF Sharpie is maybe 1.0 mm like a nice pen.
posted by toodleydoodley at 4:30 PM on August 16, 2023 [6 favorites]

We used the Sharpie and Mable’s Labels combo. Pro tip: unless you care, you can just label with the last name and then it goes for both twins and any future siblings.
posted by warriorqueen at 4:52 PM on August 16, 2023 [3 favorites]

I have purchased cute labels from Mabel’s Labels, but what actually works best is a sharpie. Oh well.
posted by samthemander at 5:01 PM on August 16, 2023 [4 favorites]

Fine tip Sharpie has been hands down the easiest and most reliable for my kids' cumulative 24 years of school labeling. We use initials only so our stuff can be handed down without the next person having to cover up whole names.
posted by cocoagirl at 5:25 PM on August 16, 2023 [4 favorites]

Oddball, I have this flannel shirt that I took to university in i987. A year or so later a girlfriend's artist roommate got a good bit of one of those fat oil paint crayon things right down the front.

I wore and washed that flannel for 20 years until it was threadbare and torn and full of holes. That paint *never* came off. For clothes, maybe just make a stencil of some sort and hit it with some spray paint. But I guess that's close enough to a sharpie.
posted by zengargoyle at 5:26 PM on August 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

I literally made a Metafilter account because I wanted you to know about name pens. They are admittedly only marginally better than a fine tip Sharpie, but I think the combination of a precise bullet nib (versus fiddly needle tip) and less feathering is worth it.
posted by 26thandfinal at 6:00 PM on August 16, 2023 [24 favorites]

I used iron-on mending tape and a Sharpie.
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:02 PM on August 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

I use a combo of Mabel's labels and a sharpie. The very small Mabel's labels last a surprising long time stuck to clothing tags. I think the smallest label type, and one larger one for lunch boxes and waterbottles works well for kids. I have also purchased the smallest Mabel's labels for myself, for labelling headphones and other office stuff.
posted by ice-cream forever at 6:43 PM on August 16, 2023 [2 favorites]

And maybe using different colors of the name pens linked by 26thandfinal
for each kid will make for quicker sorting?
posted by calgirl at 8:01 PM on August 16, 2023 [4 favorites]

Specialized labels look so refined, but seriously, fine-tipped Sharpie does the job perfectly for clothing. If it’s “tagless” clothing, you can write the initials on the inside of the collar or waistband where the fabric is doubled and it won’t be visible from the outside. Back when my kids were in preschool I used some washable label things for the reusable sandwich box, etc, and honestly the entire pack I bought lasted from early preschool through the end of elementary.

But really, Sharpie.
posted by stowaway at 8:02 PM on August 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

We’ve had best results with a Sharpie “Rub-a-Dub” laundry marker or Mabel’s Labels. Other brands of labels don’t work as well.
posted by fimbulvetr at 8:42 PM on August 16, 2023 [2 favorites]

We've been happy with Namebubbles for 9 years. The labels DON'T come off in the laundry (even the wash-and-fold's commercial machines) or the dishwasher. There's a water bottle that I sent through the dishwasher today with a label that is at least 8 years old (I can tell from the style of label). It almost looks as good today as it did when it was new -- which is a lot more than I can say about the bottle itself.

Others may use the same machines/cardstock. All I know is that someone gave us a gift certificate for them when my son was born, and we used it, and we've then gone back and purchased more.
posted by toxic at 10:23 PM on August 16, 2023 [3 favorites]

I'm mystified as to what is uncouth about using a sharpie. Name. On clothes. Done.

Perhaps we're more bogan than I had realised.
posted by deadwax at 2:36 AM on August 17, 2023 [2 favorites]

We did both Mabel's Labels and Name Bubbles for years, and occasionally Sharpies. I think we switched around based on the designs, price, and what the kids wanted that year. They truly do come in handy for way more than clothes. Just know that Sharpie ink comes off in the dishwasher (at least in my Bosch), so don't use it without checking that your kiddo's name is still on it before sending the lunchbox/water bottle/etc. back to school. (I have stuff that is 15+yrs old that still has labels on it and I never ironed on a single one. Those stickers stick!)

If you look around you can almost always find coupon codes for Mabel's this time of year (they're now owned by Avery).
posted by dancinglamb at 3:46 AM on August 17, 2023 [1 favorite]

I recommend self inking clothing name stamps! So much faster than iron on labels (random example)
posted by poxandplague at 4:10 AM on August 17, 2023 [2 favorites]

Another vote for Namebubbles. Yes, a Sharpie works, but you can stick a name bubble on the inside of a rain boot and it is there forever, it’ll never wash off. Also, we have the ones with name, and my email and phone number for more valuable items.

Also, I have terrible handwriting.
posted by rockindata at 4:21 AM on August 17, 2023 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Wow, thanks for all the advice! About to go on a hybrid labels/sharpie buying spree.
posted by atomicstone at 4:55 AM on August 17, 2023

I've had zero luck with pre-printed name stickers. What works for me, so well that hand-me-downs I gave our neighbor are still labeled with my daughter's name, is a combo of these specific Avery labels and fine point industrial sharpie.

They stay on everything (washer/dryer/dishwasher), the ink doesn't fade or smudge. I just pre-write out a bunch for each kid and then label as they get new things.

I've also used these multi-size Avery labels, they're good if you have some odd sized things, but the 1st link works for more things and is easier to fit first name plus last initial, which is how I prefer my kids stuff to be labeled.
posted by DoubleLune at 8:03 AM on August 17, 2023

I am a loyal fan of Name Bubble (and my kids have long names). I buy both the multipurpose labels for toys, lunch boxes, etc and the labels meant to be stuck to clothing tags.

But, here's the thing -- I don't label everything. Very few clothing items get labeled (really just the things that are frequent on/off or are more expensive, like shoes and jackets) and stuffies, nap sheets, etc. If my kid's spare set of Target brand clothes go missing, they were not worth the effort of labeling anyway.
posted by i_am_a_fiesta at 11:43 AM on August 17, 2023

Ok, so this is going to sound precious and impossible for reasons that will become immediately obvious, but I suggest that for this round of labelling, you use the sharpie or name bubble thingy, but in the mean time you order some super old-school fabric labels with your kid's name printed on them -- the kind you have to sew in. Years ago, I found myself in exactly the same predicament that you are. I bought various different kinds of labels, many of which are listed above, but the only thing that actually worked is actual sewn-in labels. The pen solution looked sloppy and gross; the stick-on kinds did not survive the washing machine. Sewn-in labels, on the other hand, took every beating my kid and I could hand out. You just make sure to take 5 minutes to sew one in as kiddo grows out of things and you acquire newer, larger ones. Yes, I know this sounds nuts. Yes, I know you have no time. But they work when all the other methods fail. I think I ordered mine off Etsy or something.
posted by pleasant_confusion at 3:26 PM on August 17, 2023