In middle or high school, securing a boy’s hoodie is basically a status symbol for a serious relationship.
But for the boys who are traditionally the ones lending out these hoodies, costs can add up fast, creating a dilemma for the parents who are often buying the hoodie in the first place.
One mom has a new solution: a decoy hoodie.
“This is a PSA to boy moms out there, start getting your decoy bin ready for winter,” Arizona content creator arizona_mama5 posted in an Oct. 26 TikTok. “This is going to save you a lot of money.”
In the video, which has racked up nearly 500,000 views, she explains that her decoy bin is full of thrifted hoodies. She sprays the bin with cologne and adds some dryer sheets to “marinate” the hoodies. Last year she went
through four hoodies, she says, so this year she upped the number to 10.
“When the girls at school want your son’s hoodies, they’re not taking the $90 hoodies, they’re taking the decoy,” she says.
The light-hearted, humorous video sparked a conversation about hoodie-stealing, gender dynamics and parenting.
What’s the reasoning behind a ‘decoy hoodie?’
Though it might have been made in jest, the video elicited a variety of responses.
Many boy moms thanked the poster for the advice: “From a mom of five boys thank you for your service,” one commented.
One mother commented that her son has already lost a $65 Nike hoodie this season, while another shared that her son forfeited a $95 hoodie he bought at a concert with his own money after a breakup.
Other self-proclaimed former hoodie thieves outed themselves in the comments, with some admitting they still have the hoodies they once stole. “As an avid hoodie-stealer… and now a boy mom… I’m just accepting my karma.”
One mother chimed in that she started using decoy hoodies about two years ago for her three teenage boys.
“Too many good hoodies have gone to girls and we never see them again. I also make sure that they wear it to school at least once so the girl recognizes the hoodie and not just some old throwaway,” she commented.
And plenty of girl moms joined the conversation, too: “Girl mom, I’m telling my girl not to settle for a decoy hoodie,” one person commented.
“As a mom of a boy, I deeply appreciate this money-saving advice. As a mom of a girl, I deeply appreciate the heads up for what she should not settle for,” another user commented with a laughing emoji.
In a follow up video, the original poster explained that the video was intentionally intended as a joke, and that her sons don’t just give away their hoodies to girlfriends.
"They hang out with a group of girls, and if a girl's like, ‘Oh my gosh, it's so cold,’ it's like, ‘Here, take my jacket,’” she says. “It's not necessarily like a boyfriend-girlfriend thing.”
With the decoy hoodies, she explains, there’s “no pressure in getting it back.”
“There's no like, ‘where's my hoodie? Bring it tomorrow.’ There's no awkward conversations,” she says. “My boys are nice, and if there's somebody that's cold, he'll give them their jacket, and it's not a big deal.”
Rachel Hale’s role covering Youth Mental Health at USA TODAY is supported by a partnership with Pivotal and Journalism Funding Partners. Funders do not provide editorial input. Reach her at rhale@usatoday.com and @rachelleighhale on X.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Boy moms are stocking up on 'decoy hoodies.' Here's why
