Dressing our kids like adults now???

[holden]

In response to the cost of Hanna Andersson: Their sizing is such that I am usually able to get 2 summers/2 winters out of their clothes. They aren't sized like US clothes. That's how I justify the cost. For example, DD8 wore 120s last summer and they'll fit her again this summer. Then I'll buy 130s on sale at the end of the season for next summer.

 

[disneyjunkie]

I don't shop at any of the places listed here. I have no problem finding cute kid clothes for my nieces.(5&12) There's nothing wrong with kids wearing tank tops, shorts, 2 piece swim wear...

 

[NotUrsula]

I don't mind the padding, but the UNDERWIRE kills me. I think underwire bras are torture devices and can't wear them without getting sharp stabbing pains in my upper rib. I don't know why most 10 year olds would need underwire.
(admittedly I know this not because of my kids, who are too young to need them, but because of my small bra size I have to shop in Juniors )

Depends on the girl. I was a solid 34C at 11 years old, and I needed that underwire to be comfortable. When I was young and self-conscious I preferred what used to be called "fiberfill" cups; the ones with just a tiny bit of batting to prevent show-through. Now I'm a DD and I wear minimizers, so I don't want any padding at all, but the wire is still necessary for me to feel comfortable. I won't even wear a swimsuit that lacks underwires.

FWIW, wires are meant to be bent for comfort. Most ladies need to bend them inward a bit at the top of the underarm to prevent poking.

 

[dzorn]

I feel your pain! Try finding a bra for an 11 year old that is not padded!! I even went to the little girls section and all of the "training" bra types are padded! Why does a little girl need a padded bra? Let them be little as long as they can! They have plenty of time to wear the grown up stuff when they are older!

Or even a swim suit. We swim year round with our gym membership so I always stock up when they go on clearance. Pennys had hugh racks left but all of them had thick padding. Sorry my 9 year old does not need a padded swim suit.

Denise in MI

 

[spacemountainmom]

I don't shop at any of the places listed here. I have no problem finding cute kid clothes for my nieces.(5&12) There's nothing wrong with kids wearing tank tops, shorts, 2 piece swim wear...

I don't have a problem with tank tops, shorts or two piece swimsuits. I have a problem with clothing for children that is skanky and alot of it out there is skanky.

 

[Alice's Mommy]

I mean no disrespect, but I seriously have to wonder where some of you are shopping? I have a 10yo daughter and I have never had a hard time finding her clothes or shoes. Shes never owned a pair of heals or a string bikini in her life.

Payless is where I had trouble finding shoes. And I have trouble finding clothes in every store...there are always more inappropriate clothes, with the few appropriate items hidden among them. Sometimes I dig for the appropriate stuff, but sometimes I get so fed up with the fact that I actually have to look for stuff for my 5 year old to wear so she doesn't look slutty that I end up walking out disgusted.

 

[Alice's Mommy]

Wow! I'm away from the Dis for a couple of days and come back to see how many people there are who feel my pain!

Thanks so much for the links to the sites where some of your get age appropriate clothes. I'm going to check them out soon!

To those posters who said these places wouldn't sell this stuff if people didn't buy it. True...but because the retailers out there aren't giving parents any alternatives it becomes increasingly difficult not to buy it. What happens if I can't find anything I deem appropriate? She goes naked?

 

[laliwalden]

I don't usually have a problem finding things for DD, who is almost 4. I buy most of her stuff at Gymboree, Childrens Place, Gap and Crazy8.

I buy her shoes at Target. I just bought some cute sandels that are flat there. She loves flip flops so those are easy to find. She has mickey crocs and will get another pair of crocs and a pair of tennis shoes. (I prefer skechers).

I will say that I do see girls who are older than my daughter dressed like, ummm, adult women who are going clubbing. But, I blame the parents for that, who is buying the clothes? It hasnt been an issue for us yet, maybe DD isnt old enough yet?

 

[disneyjunkie]

I would love to see pictures of the items some here are calling slutty and skanky.

 

[momtoprincess A]

I would like to see some of these inappropriate clothes as well.
Maybe the stores in my area just doesn't sell them.
I've bought my daughter (almost 10yrs) short skirts and buy her lots of leggings too. She knows she can't wear the skirt without leggings and the leggings without a skirt or really long top.

She's skinny and tall. The skinny jeans fit her the best and that's what we buy. I also notice they sell normal jeans and husky jeans.

My daughter is having a hard time finding clothes that doesn't make her feel like a big doll. I don't want her dressing like a big baby either. ( and no she doesn't dress like a floosy)

The only kids around here that I find dress inappropriate are the ones whose parents can't be bothered to buy them new clothes when they out grow their old ones. These kids are showing off their bellies and butts etc. I know these people have the money because they are always dressed in designer clothes themselves.

 

[princessmom29]

I would love to see pictures of the items some here are calling slutty and skanky.

I have problems with this:
http://www.shopjustice.com/girls-clothing/skirts-skorts/denim-patch-skort/5061564

because when we tried it on is BARELY covered DD's cheeks and she is NOT tall.
All of the tees at justice are cut waay to narrowly for us. The right length and fit in the shouldres is SKIN tight, and desigfned to be that way.

put the short skirt and tight tee with shoes like these,
http://www.amazon.com/Touch-Ups-Lit...XA/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1300302331&sr=8-16
and you have the picture.
It is really about the combo a lot of the time!

 

[Colleen27]

Or even a swim suit. We swim year round with our gym membership so I always stock up when they go on clearance. Pennys had hugh racks left but all of them had thick padding. Sorry my 9 year old does not need a padded swim suit.

Denise in MI

There's a flip side to that one, though... I just realized on our last trip that my 9yo has gotten too old for Gymboree's swimwear. It isn't padded or lined, and when wet it reveals more than it should on a little girl even though it still fits well and the cut is modest (rashguard style). Slightly padded is better than nipples showing through thin lycra.

 

[CaFeeney]

For those of you that believe that Hanna Andersson is too pricey, hit your local Costco! I just purchased 5 summer dresses for $13.99 each. The Hanna clothes are definitely worth it and if you purchase correctly you really can get 2 summers/seasons out of the clothes. My DD (almost 5) is in a size 100-110 but her coat is a size 90 and is just starting to get a bit short. All of the Hanna dresses can be paired with bike shorts or leggings. This fall Costco also had Hanna leggings for $14 for 2 pairs - and the leggings are fantastic. Hanna clothes can last through 2-3 kids and still look wonderful, and the prints are adorable.

I also share some of the posters concerns about just having little girls look like little girls. I don't buy any clothing with logos, especially on the rear - who wants to pull attention to their child's bottom?

I typically stick with Hanna, Gymboree, Carters, some Target and believe me I am a bargain lover. If you are in the Northeast we have a Hanna outlet in Kittery Maine that is a amazing if you hit it at good sale times. They have a listserve and will email when they are having sales - pj's for $5!, dresses for $10! The Hanna retail stores also had some incredible deals after the holidays, I really stocked up then.

 

[maxiesmom]

I have problems with this:
http://www.shopjustice.com/girls-clothing/skirts-skorts/denim-patch-skort/5061564

because when we tried it on is BARELY covered DD's cheeks and she is NOT tall.
All of the tees at justice are cut waay to narrowly for us. The right length and fit in the shouldres is SKIN tight, and desigfned to be that way.

put the short skirt and tight tee with shoes like these,
http://www.amazon.com/Touch-Ups-Lit...XA/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1300302331&sr=8-16
and you have the picture.
It is really about the combo a lot of the time!

It is about the combo, and no one in their right mind would put strappy sparkly dress shoes on with a jean skirt. You can make any piece of clothing looking bad if you don't pair it with the right stuff.

As far as that denim skirt goes, the fashion is to wear it with leggings underneath. Not by itself. I have shopped at Justice some, and have never had a problem with a skirt being so short that it wasn't going to cover the rear. Maybe your daughter is to tall waisted for that style? Just as with adults, not every style fits or flatters every child.

 

[princessmom29]

It is about the combo, and no one in their right mind would put strappy sparkly dress shoes on with a jean skirt. You can make any piece of clothing looking bad if you don't pair it with the right stuff.

As far as that denim skirt goes, the fashion is to wear it with leggings underneath. Not by itself. I have shopped at Justice some, and have never had a problem with a skirt being so short that it wasn't going to cover the rear. Maybe your daughter is to tall waisted for that style? Just as with adults, not every style fits or flatters every child.

NO, she isn't all All long waisted. These things are designed to fit that way, and that is the major problem I have. Why design shirts with the intent of having te fit skin tight. We then have to go bigger to get a fit we are comfortable with, and iti s too long and too big in the shoulders. My DD is very thin through the ribcage. She is 7 ,48" tall and wears a size 6 top in most brands. The 8's at justice are too tight.

 

[mjkacmom]

NO, she isn't all All long waisted. These things are designed to fit that way, and that is the major problem I have. Why design shirts with the intent of having te fit skin tight. We then have to go bigger to get a fit we are comfortable with, and iti s too long and too big in the shoulders. My DD is very thin through the ribcage. She is 7 ,48" tall and wears a size 6 top in most brands. The 8's at justice are too tight.

Dd8 is wearing a size 7 Justice tshirt, she's 51 inches, 54 pounds, and it fits fine. Dd10 is just now wearing size 8 shirts in Justice, and they're not tight. I think the style is more fitting today, and I think children's fashion trends follows the adult styles. I look at pictures of myself in elementary school, wearing micro-mini dresses (think Brady Bunch). I'd never let my kids wear something that short, but all of the other girls in the school picture are wearing similar styles.

As for the skort, anything that short, even though it's a skort, goes over leggings. My younger girls don't want to dress babyish, probably because their older sister is a teen. They love to put together cool funky outfits, with lots of layering. They would never wear anything from Lands End or Hanna Anderson (I know this because I had a bunch with #1, and they told me to give them to goodwill).

 

[clanmcculloch]

I've never had problems at Justice either. My kids love to layer. That skort would look cute with leggings which is how my 10 yo likes to wear them. Looking at it though, I can't imagine how a rear would be hanging out of it. There are shorts attached and it doesn't look that short.

My 10yo doesn't fit that tapered style of shirt either. So we don't buy those ones. Not all of the shirts are cut like that. I also don't care if I have to buy a size up because of the cut. Why does this matter? What matters is that what I do buy fits and looks appropriate. Every store will carry different cuts of clothes; just choose the ones that actually fit or choose to shop elsewhere. It's really that simple. At any store we have to try on quite a few things to find the items that will suit us. This is true for kids and adults.

No need to criticize those who do shop at stores that you don't like. My kids do NOT dress trampy but basically you're saying that they do because I buy things at Justice.

ETA: The only thing I see wrong with those shoes is the type of heel. I don't want to risk my kids twisting their ankles. A much thicker heel and this would be a beautiful dress shoe and something similar to what I might have worn as a kid. When it comes to shoes my basic requirements involve safety. Lots of parents send their kids to school in flip flops or crocs with no backs but no way is my kid going to school without a back; that's a recipe for a twisted ankle or a shoe flying off and hitting somebody else.

 

[disneyjunkie]

The sandals are cute. (I couldn't get the first link to work.) I think they would be fine to wear in the summer with a nice sun dress. Or maybe a dressy skirt and blouse. They wouldn't work with shorts or a skirt and leggings

 

[NotUrsula]

I
put the short skirt and tight tee with shoes like these,
http://www.amazon.com/Touch-Ups-Lit...XA/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1300302331&sr=8-16
and you have the picture.
It is really about the combo a lot of the time!

I'm not fond of kitten heels for anyone because they make it easy to turn your ankle if you put your foot down at an angle, but the heel on that shoe is only 1.5" high, so I don't consider it too high for most gradeschoolers. However, that is clearly a special-occasion shoe, not something to play in. (Shoes of that height are very commonly worn with 1st Communion dresses; in my neck of the woods that would be age 7-8).

As for the skirt, I would let a preschooler wear something that short, but not an older girl, even with leggings, (The deliberate rip is something else again. We don't buy anything that violates dress code "decency and good repair" standards because I don't want to have to run interference on dress-down days, so that rip would eliminate it right out of the gate even if it were longer.)

All of this emphasis on layering makes it obvious that fashion designers don't tend to spend much time in the South, LOL. There is no way that any kid in her right mind is going to wear three shirts in Atlanta in August, even if only one of them has any sleeves at all.

 

[Miss_Honey]

As the mother of two (soon to be three) little girls, I agree that it is hard to find well fitting, as well as quality, clothing. I also shop online for my kiddos, we love hanna andersson, oshkosh, Naartjie kids and crazy8. We sometimes can find staples in stores like target or walmart, but I find that quality tends to be an issue. I'd rather spend money on an outfit that I know is going to last, especially because I can hand it down to one of my little girls. Boys on the other hand, always easy to shop for!