What was your childhood like, in terms of clothing/style/fashion? - YouLookFab Forum

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What was your childhood like, in terms of clothing/style/fashion?

April

Veteran

We know Angie's gorgeous and fashionable mum had a tremendous influence on Angie's style development, and I love reading about their history. How about others? Do you have a wonderful or terrible story about clothing from your childhood?

I had a cousin who was three years older and quite a bit taller and heavier than I, and I got all her hand-me-downs. I loved hand-me-downs and still do, but these were always waaaaaay too big and my mother was not particular about waiting until they fit me. (Probably just as well, because she'd still be waiting.)

The two items I remember most were winter coats that appeared when I was in about fourth grade. One was a full-length off-white fake fur. It was enormous and I looked like a polar bear. The other was a full length, bright orange fake fur. It was enormous and I looked like a bright orange polar bear.

Over to you...

General

38 replies

Latest reply was from Kristine

Claudia

Veteran

Money was very tight in my household growing up. Shopping for new clothes was stressful, and primarily lower end options, purely bought on a need only basis. I felt guilty indulging in fashion for fun and style for a long time.

I know this is why I still am drawn to shop clearance and tend to have to stop myself from buying many poorer quality items over going for the fewer better quality items.

My mom was very beautiful, but had to be very low maintainance. She did this with grace and simple style. Later in life she was able to indulge.

Louise

Veteran

April I had an older cousin's hand me downs too though thankfully she was small for her age so when she grew out of them they fit me perfectly. I remember a very posh Dash (80's) brand sweatshirt in red I was in heaven! And thankfully they were richer than us so they was lots of expensive type clothes I used to love going to visit as I awlays came away with a bag of stuff x

Debora

Veteran

I often wore my older sister's hand- me- downs and occasional items from my cousins. There is one particular story that's been repeated in my family about a pair of beat up white patent leather shoes that I received from a cousin. When my tender hearted father went to tuck me into bed that night, he found me asleep with the shoes on my pillow. It brought tears to his eyes, and my mother still talks about it to this day.

marianna

Veteran

My mom always prided herself on having a well dressed daughter. Even when money was tight, I always had nice clothes as a child. I'm really thankful for that.

Case in point: My little nautical inspired outfit:
http://i985.photobucket.com/al.....ce30c3.jpg

April

Veteran

I can't see it, Marianna -- just a little red X in a box?

londonkiwi (now back in NZ)

Veteran

My clothes as a child were a combination of hand-me-downs from my cousins, clothes my mother and grandmother made and the odd thing that was bought new. As a toddler, Mum used to dress me in dresses as when she put overalls people used to mistake me for a boy...

In New Zealand 20 years ago, clothing was not as disposible as it is now, so I think that children had less - that said, I was always nicely clothed in appropriate clothing.

One thing that my Mum was particularly keen on was ensuring that we had very good quality shoes - mostly Clarks.

April

Veteran

Oh, Marianna -- there you are! You were completely adorable. Did you love that outfit?

Claudia -- it sounds like your mum set an excellent example for you. And I know just what you mean about developing the habit of shopping clearance and ending up with a nonfunctional wardrobe. Working on that one myself.

Louise and Debora -- hand-me-down treasures are wonderful, aren't they?

londonkiwi -- another mum setting a good example: fewer items, better quality, and good shoes!

Ele

(website)

Aww, nice thread

Like Fi, my childhood was a mix of handmade, shop-bought and hand-me-downs. With an older sister and 17 first cousins (13 of whom are older) there were lots of those. At the time I liked to complain about it but looking back, some of my favourite things were worn by others first. There was one maroon snowsuit that I'm pretty sure was worn by every grandchild on my Dad's side- that's 15 of us! Only the family christening gown's seen more mileage than that

Some of my favourite outfits were ones that matched with my sister- sometimes we'd get dresses in different styles but the same fabric, for church or special occasions. Also, anything that my Mum or Grandma made was special.

Claudia

Veteran

Thanks April. I am feeling very philosophical about this and I am glad you brought this topic up.

I am grateful that I learned from my mom and dad the benefits that go with living within one's means. A very valuable and handy lesson.

Times are very different for the next generation than from when I grew up in the the 1960's and '70's. I remember wanting stonewashed jeans when they first came out. Basically I had Lee, Levi's and Wrangler jeans to choose from (designer jeans didn't exist). We went to the Army-Navy store for jeans because they were $5 cheaper than at the department store. I wasn't allowed to get the stonewashed I really wanted because they were already worn looking, i.e. "wouldn't hold up as well," and they were more expensive than the basic denim!

I grew up in a new development neighborhood with almost all young, just starting out families, moms didn't usually work so there was one income supporting the family, and celebrity style and all the different entertainment/celebrity media saturation, rapidly churning trends and mass consumption didn't exist like it does today.

I have had a real battle raising my daughter (just turned 21) in this more affluent and spendy era which she grew up in. For her, in elementary school Tiffany heart pendant jewelry was all the rage. At one point when she was still in elementary school she had at least a dozen real Tiffany pieces (I remember counting all the turquoise boxes, none bought by me) and it really bothered me! In fact, it appalled me. She had two Coach bags while still in middle school! In high school she had a fit if her buying $200 premium jeans was questioned or denied!

There was a thread here recently about spending limits and people noted that once you raised the bar, it became the norm and you couldn't go back. My daughter has a very high bar in her tastes and appetite and she has no ability to tighten her belt and delay gratification. I think it's a very bad result.

londonkiwi (now back in NZ)

Veteran

Marianna - that photo is too cute for words, I love your cheeky little grin as much as your adorable little outfit.

Katja

(website)

My mother sewed for herself and for us. My sister and I are 14 months apart, and for most of our childhood we were dressed like twins in home made dresses. Sort of dowdy and practical.

My daughter, on the other hand...

My sister was a pattern maker for a manufacturer that had a licensing agreement with Donna Karan when my daughter was 10, 11, 12, something like that. Whenever she came to visit, she brought a suitcase full of sample garments for my daughter - all very stylish, all very black and grey - it was weird. For a couple of years, my daughter was the best dressed child in town - her babysitters were wild with jealousy.

Dusty

(website)

Money was tight so my clothes were mostly garage sale items with some handmade stuff and a very few store-bought items mixed in. I had a lot, but, it mostly was not great quality and definitely not what I would have picked out for myself (at least until about 6th grade, when I started to push for more influence over my own clothes). I can't say that my mom had bad taste, just that we like different things.

April

Veteran

Claudia -- it's really hard not to give into the status-consciousness that is so prevalent among kids now, isn't it? I don't think you're alone in feeling that your child struggles with belt-tightening.

Katja -- "dowdy and practical" sums up most of my childhood clothes as well.

Ele and Dusty -- is it a coincidence that so many of us who have ended up hanging out on YLF have a history of hard times, hand-me-downs, and tight budgets?

Also, I neglected to mention in my original post that I think I thought I looked pretty fab in those oversized faux fur coats. I was imaginative and probably thought people would mistake me for a rich kid or a movie star. Only in hindsight did I realize how odd and shapeless they must have looked.

Itari

(website)

Aaah. Late 80's and early 90's. The era of shoulder pads

I had some really good clothes when I was a kid. It was hard to buy decent clothes in Poland, but my family bought things for me in western Germany. I have a sister who is 2 years younger than me - we were two cute girls, one dark-haired and one blonde. My mother bought similar clothes for us: for example, I had a pretty red dress, while my sister had a blue one. I used to wear a lot of skirts and dresses... maybe I should return to the old habits

Mac

Veteran

Lots and lots of hand-me-downs. I'm from a family of 5 kids, so my mother bought most of the baby and children's clothes in red, white and blue and then the boys AND the girls could wear them: jaunty sailor suits for babies, red cords with a navy and white shetland sweater for kids... that sort of thing. We looked neat, classic and not at all flashy or brand-driven. Function was important, too: my mom wanted us to be able to play, run around and dig in the sandbox.

But for church and parties I had lovely hand-me-down dresses: again, no brands or trends: mostly delightful hand-smocked cotton dresses from Portugal, Ireland, England, etc. and velvet-collared wool coats.

Actually, if I'd had kids, I'd have dressed them in exactly the same way.

Maya

Veteran

I don't have any extended family to get hand-me-downs from, and my only sibling is a brother. My parents had to start anew. For the first few years of my life, I refused to wear anything but dresses. My mom would have to chase my naked little self around the house and hogtie me before being able to wrangle me into a pair of pants. I think I have come full circle in that respect..

I remember spending a lot of time in the kids' department at Macy's and JCPenney, but I didn't care much about clothes again until I was 13. In fact I hated shopping for clothes. I actually vividly recall having a fit when I realized we were going to Kids R Us instead of Toys R Us one day. I was such a lovable child...

cyan45

fantastic topic! as a child, i enjoyed what clothes i did have at the time. my mom rarely went shopping with my sisters and i, so we had to get creative. i had a few ghastly favorite 80's topsl: pink triangles with black background, tie-dyed drawstring top from contempo casuals, lol.

when espirt was hot, i used puffy paint and mimicked the brand logo on the upper right of a plain white t-shirt. yikes! guess i was trying to fit in, rather than make a profound statement...

my 4th grade teacher was young and hip. i idolized her style, and copied her belt look with an aqua green faux snakeskin i already owned. she was such a wonderful, kind teacher...

i wasn't fashionable (glasses, braces, gangly, unruly hair, nerdy), my mom didn't make clothes a top priority, but instead supported us in music lessons, youth orchestra and summer music camps. as a result, i can afford to apply some 'polish skills' as an adult. thanks mom

judy

Veteran

Growing up as the middle child in a big family that was mostly female in the 50's and 60's we wore a lot of hand-me-downs. My mother sewed, so we had some matching dresses when we were really young. Girls weren't allowed to wear pants to school then of course so we went and bought plaid skirts and sweaters at mill stores before school started. I realize now what a big expense that must have been for my parents, not to mention the shopping trip from hell, probably.

In grade school, I recall that no matter what I carefully chose to wear when I came down to breakfast in the morning, my two older sisters relentlessly teased me about my choices..."you're wearing that?"..."what's wrong with it?"...and they wouldn't tell me, just smile and laugh. Where was my mom? Off somewhere with another baby, I'm sure. But I never wanted to go and change my clothes or they would think they'd "won". I tried to be confident and not listen to them. So on the plus side, I grew a very thick skin style wise.

By high school, I was searching out trends that I wanted to do...like being only the second girl to have clogs! ha ha...and the first girl got hers in Sweden that summer. And I remember searching the JC penny catalog for the smallest pair of men's overalls. I was the first one to wear those. Ah, such fashion statements! :)...it was afterall, 1970 and we could finally wear pants to school. I remember the little tiny pieces of fabric we'd use to make our mini skirts. By then my sisters and I were all on the same team, so to speak, and we'd all straighten our hair together and wear go-go boots...yeah, that's what we called 'em. How "mod" we were.

April

Veteran

Oh, Judy -- you reminded me of my favorite fashion item from my childhood: the white patent "leather" go-go boots that I had in second grade. They were made of pure vinyl, and I was in heaven. No footwear has ever been sweatier than those boots...

And cyan -- the early Esprit! I was in high school at that point, and Esprit used to publish those gigantic catalogs (for those too young to remember -- I don't mean the catalog was thick, I mean it was about 11 x 17 when closed. Fabulous.) I was buying my own clothes by then and I ordered a pink baseball cap from that catalog, assuming it would transform me into a devil-may-care type. Good grief.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

*hugging April*

Too emotional to comment, but loved reading your stories.

Tansie

I grew up in the late 70's/ 80's in country Australia. When we were small Mum would order our clothes from England, and later it was twice yearly shopping trips in Adelaide.I have older cousins so there were lots of hand-me-downs too (which were then handed down to a younger friend). We also had summer dresses and winter jumpers (pullovers) sewn/knitted by my grandmother. Gosh they were beautiful!! Then until I was about 20 I would send my sister to shop for me! She is really good at it. To this day my most successful shopping trips are done with my sister. Pity we live on opposite sides of the world!

Sarah Baker

(website)

I grew up in the 1980s and 1990s so really bad fashion memories abound for me.

It depends on what part of my childhood I look back on. As a very young child I was dressed in hand-me-downs from a neighborhood friend who was the same age but much bigger than I was, and handmade dresses from one of my mother's friends. Later, in early high school, we were so poor that I wore my mother's clothes. Which doesn't sound bad, except she was a size 14 and I was a size 0 at the time, and all of her outfits were very businesslike.

When I was 16 I got my first job and spent my money on clothes and my Volvo 240 GL. It was there that I got my love of thrifting, because I could make my paycheck last so much longer. I also picked up an eye for quality because I figured an item that looked good by the time it got to the Salvation Army had to be excellent after years of wear and repeated washing. I do remember that my first paycheck, I went to the mall and spent the whole thing buying smart causal clothes for my mother, who still had only very formal business clothes or paint-spattered jeans in her closet. I bought her two t-shirts, a pair of sassy jeans, and some new undergarments (hers were always in holes).

Now that I have a daughter I dress her as well as she will let me (she went through a phase where she wanted only a denim skirt and a striped t, so I washed both every night). When she gets older I will have a hard time saying no to buying her beautiful designer things, because I did feel deprived as a child.

Tansie

I'm sorry but I have to chime back in! I also lived in Clarks (Fi!) when I was wearing shoes anyway, and I remember one pair of dark blue patent mary jane's. I was about four yrs old. I loved them so much! I still love them! This surely began my love for patent leather which continues to this day. And I plan to pass it on to my daughter. This autumn I want to buy her a pair of patent leather mary jane's and I already know she will love hers too!
Thanks for this thread April - so many lovely memories!

wilson

With eight kids in the family things were very tight and so I wore hand-me-downs. However, looking back at photos I think my mom did very well with what little she had to work with. We always looked age appropriate, clean and presentable and I remember hearing other people frequently commenting on how well dressed we all were. She definitely accessorized by putting bows in our hair, replacing plain buttons on sweaters with floral ones and such.

As for my personal taste as a young child, I honed in on "sexy" and whatever Charlies Angels were wearing and tried to copy Daisy Duke by rolling up my shorts and tying my shirt together in the middle. Thankfully, my mom ALWAYS put the kabosh on my attempts.

April

Veteran

Sarah B., that tendency to over-compensate for childhood deprivation is something I have trouble with as well. I do live within my means and don't rack up debt for things I want, but I lust after way too many beautifully-made items.

Wilson, sounds like you had another wise mother...

Tansie, that is so sweet. I hope your daughter loves her patent maryjanes!

Angie -- *hug back to you*

Beth

Veteran

I am the eldest child without any extended family, so my clothes were always new. My mom was and is a very stylish woman who loves clothes and shopping, so I have many fond memories of shopping trips growing up. There was always the "back to school trip" and the "just before Christmas trip." It was always as much about spending time together as it was about shopping, and there were certainly limits on spending, but I still remember how excited we were when Nordstrom first came to the DC area:)

Our styles have diverged over the years, but we still love to go check out the stores together. The day where we come home without a single bag is just as fun as the day we find the perfect pair of shoes.

Theresa

(website)

Veteran

Oh what a fabulous thread! This is lovely reading all your childhood stories!

I am the eldest on both mum & dad's side of the family so no hand-me-downs for me (I'm also the only girl in my family and the closest female cousin is about 5yrs younger than me).

But, my maternal family are very crafty, & we were also poor, so I wore handmade clothes almost entirely. We lived on a farm, so initially, it was school uniform for week days and daggy shorts & t shirts - no shoes - for weekends running free.

My most vivid clothing memories though are of the times when we would have an event (like a school fete, or the "show" or similar) - mum would make us all a new outfit - my 3 brothers would have the same shirts and shorts/pants combo, and I would have a pinafore made out of the same fabric as the boys shirts. I HATED it with a passion. Mum had no interest in fashion - just the creating, & really never put any effort into appearance.

But once I went to high school I found out there was a whole world of beautiful clothing out there! So at 16 when I first started working, the very first 2 things I ever bought for myself were my black 8 hole Docs (1995) & a nice silver/gold watch that lasted me 10 yrs.

So, with 2 daughters only 20mths apart, I really try not to dress them the same and let them pick their own clothes. And already I know Miss 4 is going to be the one who is most fashion orientated - she has a good eye already and is VERY feminine, but Miss almost-6, well, she has no concept of what goes together or anything - as long as she likes the individual pieces she wears them LOL She is my free-spirit who is far more interested in being herself than wearing what the other girls are.

Of course it helps that I have a lovely friend with a daughter the same age as Miss 6, but much bigger, so I now have a constant supply of hand-me-downs for my girls, and my friend has an unlimited clothing budget so her daughter has pretty much every style of clothing possible so both my girls are happy!

taylor

Veteran

We were VERY poor when I was a child, I was the only girl between 2 boys so I didn.t get hand me downs at all. I remember my mom taking me shopping 1 time , she bought me 2 tops and some undies. I learned to sew and stole my older brother levi's:) he only had a few pair.

I started babysitting at 11 to buy my own clothes and continued babysitting until I started doing hair. I remember every favorite outfit from 1st grade on because they were rare and treasured. I babysat my entire freshman summer to buy a pair of black leather lace up boots in 1972....They cost 69.99 That was a fortune back in the day...I will never forget the thrill picking them up off lay-away!!

Vani

Veteran

Money was always tight growing up but we were mostly teetering between lower and upper middle class unlike both my parents who grew up poor with lots of hand me downs and only about 2-3 pairs of clothes each. So, I learned from my always stylish mom how to make the most of a small wardrobe. We bought new clothes once or twice a year and there were a lot of hand me downs, but I swear my dad always thought I was sneak shopping for more because I never wore the same outfit for a while! Somehow my mom developed fab taste and style even with very little while she grew up and somehow that rubbed off on me a little bit. I only started buying clothes on a whim about 3-4 years ago and I think I might taper off again in a while. My biggest style mentor is my mom and I still wish she were there with me every time I go shopping.

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