Thoughts on girls clothes
I hate shopping for young girls clothes. I have an eight year old niece and have had occasion to shop for clothes for her. I absolutely hate it. I think most of the girls clothes for the past couple of years are inappropriate. I’m serious. Think about it. As we grow older, a man is called a lech or a pervert if he stares. If an older man is caught looking at a young girl we wonder if he’s a dirty old man or a pedophile. Well, here’s the beginning of a solution to this problem. Stop dressing your daughters as if they’re grown up, because they aren’t. Here’s a few examples of what I’m referring to.
Pants. I’m talking about the pants with the writing on the butt. We all notice billboards on the side of the road trying to sell us something. We can’t miss them because they contain pictures and words that get our attention. Guess what folks? Those pants you think are so cute? They do the same thing. Stop turning your daughter’s butt into a billboard. Why would you want to encourage anyone to stare at your child’s butt?
Shirts. I know, you’re wondering what the harm is in letting a young girl wear a shorty shirt. Well, I don’t see a good point in purposely drawing attention to a girls flat stomach at a young age. They’re not adults and it isn’t appropriate. Girls might become concerned about their weight and belly. Boys will be concerned about anything they can see. And of course everyones concerns will only magnify with age.
Shoes. Many of the girls shoes have heels or platform bottoms, adding inches to the girls height. Do we need them to look taller? Sometimes people associate age with height, so if a girl looks too tall someone might think the girls is older than she really is. Why do the shoes need heels? To be like Mommy’s shoes? We’re back to encouraging dressing like an adult again. Children need to be children, until they are no longer children.
I may be showing my age, but I really don’t care. I’m 41. When I was growing up young girls and teenagers still dressed their age. I wish that trend would come back and stay. It might help keep our girls safer and have a better self image.It might also encourage kids to be kids longer and enjoy their youth, rather than rushing to grow up.
December 15th, 2007 at 7:05 pm
I’m with you on this one! I have an 11 year old girl and it’s been really hard to find her clothes and shoes. She doesn’t like wearing skin tight shirts that show her belly (thank goodness). And shoes? Well, since she got out of the little girl sizes everything comes with a heel. It’s a good thing she spends most of her time in sneakers!
December 15th, 2007 at 9:47 pm
I agree with you 100% and I’m 24. I think the way young girls dress now is inappropriate and disgraceful. I have a 10 year old step daughter and she may dress that way at her mom’s house but when she comes to mine she does not walk outside looking like trash. And that’s what I think it is, trash. Britney Spears and the other “pop stars” started this way of dressing and being so called role models for our children and it’s not something I applaud or condone. Glad I’m not the only one.
December 15th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
I’ve seen a flurry of posts on the internet about this lately. I completely agree with all of them (seeing the clothes on some young friends of mine is a little scary), and they all inspire me to learn to sew.
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December 15th, 2007 at 10:59 pm
I agree! My daughter is 5 and I make sure she dresses her age. This often means she picks, and it is completely uncoordinated, but she looks her age. Not the fashion plate some of her classmates are already.
This is something I intend to keep up. No shorts or pants with words on them. No mini skirts… although I often enough allow skorts. I really prefer skirts of a length that she doesn’t have to think about them too much. She wears sneakers, boots or flat sandals. Generally these are very obviously the property of a little girl.
I don’t know how long we can keep her this innocent, but I sure intend to try!
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December 15th, 2007 at 11:39 pm
Nope, you’re not alone. You’re right Jen, you’d think some of these pop stars would actually want to be a good role model. Good for you regarding your stepdaughter. More parents should give the whole matter some serious thought.
December 15th, 2007 at 11:40 pm
Sewing is one of the things I never learned, and wish I had, for a variety of reasons including clothes.
December 15th, 2007 at 11:44 pm
Stephanie, you should be proud that you care enough to try. I remember skorts, they were popular for a while when I was younger and my Mom still manages to find and wear them now. There’s nothing wrong with skorts. There is something wrong with shorts so short the butt cheeks are visible, and I see girls out in those all the time.
December 16th, 2007 at 5:50 pm
I agree. Some of these kids are second graders dressed in hose and slinky dresses that I wouldn’t even wear. I’m grateful for site like FunkyFrum.com, where I can find things that are more modest; only wish they sold kids’ stuff.
February 29th, 2008 at 2:25 am
kids will rush to grow up no matter what you do. I grew up in a repressive household.. the thought of choosing my own clothes intimidated the fuck out of me, for fear of disapproval. consequently, i rebelled in the worst possible way: the secret way. the risky behaviour you can’t see and can’t react to.
pick your battles. if your kid wants to wear the silly pants, be glad she has a mind of her own. if she wants to wear the porn star makeup, you might want to draw the line.