David Luke School Uniform Review

Reviewed by Elly Sax

There are few things in life that bring me out in a cold sweat, but shopping for school uniform is one of them.  It isn’t so much the actual act of going in a shop and buying things.  If school uniform shopping were as simple as picking a piece of clothing, taking it to a counter and paying for it then it wouldn’t worry me.  The thing is, as anyone who has ever braved the shopping centre for the back to school rush knows, it isn’t that simple.  Oh no, there is far more that goes into it.  

Firstly I have to pursue my 9 year old that pyjamas are not suitable attire for leaving the house, then drag a brush through her hair, which let’s be honest hasn’t been properly neat since the end of term, and even then it never lasted the day.  Once I have battled to get her and the 2 year old into clothes and out the door I’m already exhausted and debating whether she really needs new school uniform at all.  Once at the shopping centre, after hunting for a car parking space, we finally make it into the shops, locate the school uniform section in the department store, which is always upstairs and involves some lift finding, lots of arguments about who gets to push the buttons and generally falling out before we realise that the one and only pinafore left is 3 sizes too small and the cardigan is the wrong shade of green.  I give up deflated and head home with 2 ratty children and still no uniform.  This is exactly what happened the last time we went uniform shopping.  

We all want our kids to look smart on the first day of school so we put ourselves and them through this stress every summer, mostly in vain if my experience is anything to go by.  This year I was given he chance to avoid all this nonsense and shop from home with David Luke Eco-Uniform, and you know what, I took it.  The kids stayed in their PJ’S, and with coffee in hand, I shopped from my sofa.

David Luke have not just created school uniform, oh no my friend, they have created a wonderful world or Eco-Uniform, and (so far) saved 40 million plastic bottles from ending up in landfill in the process.  Hats off to them, that is one good day in the office.  I was asked to choose what I wanted and went for a selection of items suitable for my daughter who has a choice in her school of black or grey bottoms or pinafore,  and bottle green cardigan or jumper over polo shirt with her school logo.

Black Skort: This is designed with PE in mind, my daughter’s school ask children to come in kit on the days they have PE, these look smart and sporty and with an in built pair of shorts they are a great additional piece of uniform.  The material is slightly on the shiny side but that didn’t bother me, it is also labelled as being treated with Scotchguard to enable any moisture to be wicked away, preventing sweat from causing issues and allowing easier removal of stains in the wash.  The skirt is made of over 90% recycled Polyester yarn and saved 5.5 plastic bottles from landfill.  With elastane as well the skirt had a good amount of stretch and will be great for the running and tumbling my daughter enjoys during PE and also at break and lunchtime.

Pleated Skirt:  The junior drop waist pleated skirt was my second choice.  The pleats are quite wide which gives the skirt a more modern look, I appreciated the length as it is not too long or short, just above the knee which is very sensible.  This skirt was made from over 60% recycled Polyester with the remainder of the skirt being viscose and elastane.  

Grey Pinafore: The pinafore is my daughter first choice for school during the Winter months and this one is such nice thick material.  Again, it is part of the Eco-Uniform range and is made of the same material as the skirt but in grey rather than black.  It has a lovely metal heart zipper detail over a plastic toothed zip, it runs really smoothly and feels very well stitched in.  I have had issues in the past with zips breaking or coming loose and having to try and fix or replace them,this one seems incredibly well applied and really great quality.

Sweatshirt Cardigan:  I ordered the bottle green cardigan, it is made from 40% Recycled Polyester yarn and 60% cotton.  It feels butter soft and I am really impressed with it overall.  Ribbing around the bottom and cuffs will allow my daughter to work and play without it becoming misshapen.  I also love the fact that it has pockets, I know I will be cursing them when they are full of very important bits of grit and pebbles when I go to wash it, but great for a pack of tissues, lip balm or hand sanitiser.

Sweatshirt: The last item I chose was the bottle green sweatshirt.  Again, it has ribbing at the bottom and cuffs as well as the collar.  The material composition is the same as the cardigan and I love the way it looks on.  The fabric was so soft and cosy my daughter didn’t want to take it off.

I usually buy all my daughters non logo school uniform from a big name department store.  It isn’t the cheapest but I feel you get what you pay for and so pay the extra, rather than buying uniform from a budget or supermarket brand and it not lasting.  The fantastic thing about the David Luke Eco-Uniform is that you don’t have to compromise.  The prices for uniform start at just £7.50 for polo shirts and based on the items I received I will definitely buy our next lot of uniform from David Luke.  The quality of the fabrics are amazing, the stitching is accurate, no loose threads, and I love the range available.  All the items fit my daughter well and I would say in comparison to the high street the sizing is very generous.  My daughter is nearly 10, but tall for her age, and in clothes from the high street I have to buy age 11-12.  I ordered 11-12 from David Luke and it is definitely going to fit her with some growing room.  All of the items have space on the labels to sew in name tags (or write in with permanent marker) and the washing instructions are clearly marked up.  Everything can be washed at 40 degrees, or 30 if they are not too dirty, when I washed mine I did them at 30 and all the items took minimal to no ironing, which will always get a thumbs up from me.  

Overall I am hugely impressed with the quality, price and fit of the uniform and I love the fact that David Luke are taking such positive steps to reduce waste and encourage recycling of both plastic bottles and used uniform.

Rating: 5/5

RRP of whole range: £7.50 – £33.00 (The items I received were priced between £10 – £15 per item)

These products can be purchased from David Luke here.