https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Tue, 28 Apr 2026 01:18:36 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes/page/2#post-382910 Tue, 12 Jul 2011 11:46:52 +0000 chewyspaghetti 382910@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>It's funny that this old thread got revived from a spam post (now deleted), but it's still really a hot button topic.<br /> I thought that I had seen it all, but I got a shock at the dance competition this weekend. There was a group of girls (11-13 yr olds)- very typical dancer bodies- long limbed and very thin. Most of the girls looked like they hadn't yet reached puberty. Their costume looked sweet and cute from the front- it had a western style flair: red cowboy hats, a peasant type blouse with puffed cap sleeves, and denim blue booty shorts. When they turned around, you could see that their backsides were padded. They danced to that song- Honky Tonk Ba Dong A Dong. They were up there waggling their fake booties around and slapping themselves on the behind. My jaw just dropped. People in the audience were laughing and whooping it up, but it really bothered my 15 year old son. He said that with girls so young, it made him feel like a pedophile to enjoy that kind of a performance. He's right, though- it's not natural for girls that age to be looking/doing that. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes/page/2#post-382678 Tue, 12 Jul 2011 00:13:17 +0000 lyn* 382678@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have no children, but my really good friend turns to me a lot to help him dress his daughter (single dad! very cute ... single dad... *cough*) ... but his daughter is five and she wants to dress like me! HAHA.</p> <p>So if I have a dress and a cardi, she wants a dress and cardi. The way I figure, if I don't dress all crazy like Noah, then she won't want to dress like that. </p> <p>We also decided to send her to a uniform school. Phew. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes/page/2#post-382664 Mon, 11 Jul 2011 23:53:08 +0000 Jjsloane 382664@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I'm already scared and my DD is 2.5! I intend to give her only choices that are appropriate (but am already struggling with her absolute refusal to wear certain items - Buttons for instance so not sure how this will work out) My pediatrician has 4 daughters ages 3-8 and is struggling with this. My DD swimwear is rashguard tops and shorts or skirts (mostly to save her precious skin but also I find many TODDLER swimsuits too provocative for my taste) I hope I can be a guiding force to keep her from these items, but I wish they were not so sensationalized and glamorized. A neighbor I spoke with has 2 daughters and one is a tomboy dressing in actual boys' clothing, the other loves her short shorts. Given the choice he is much happier with the tomboy outfits. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes/page/2#post-382569 Mon, 11 Jul 2011 19:31:42 +0000 Astrid 382569@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>The two pics in the article are really horrible. I think it's bad enough if they start in their early teens. I can see it with my sister and her friends. She's twelve and a real tomboy (so this doesn't apply to her) but most of her friends wear make-up and mini-skirts and so on. She goes to the same school I attended, an all girls school with a catholic background. My age group started dressing like that with 14 or 15, not with 12. I think that's early enough! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes/page/2#post-382562 Mon, 11 Jul 2011 19:12:33 +0000 Aziraphale 382562@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see sexualized clothing for young girls in real life. What the Hollywood elite are dressing their kids in doesn't count as "real life". </p> <p>I see middle and high school aged girls wearing slightly trashy clothes, but it's certainly not all of them. Jut a few, really. I see them walking to school in the morning on the way to drop off my daughter at her very average suburban elementary school, which is in a very average middle class area with mostly average parents with typical middle-class values. The only elementary school aged child I have seen wearing shoes with a bit of a heel (and really, it's only a 1.5" block heel) is the little eight-year-old who immigrated from Russia last year. She also wears a fur hat (no kidding!) and stiff polyester dresses with white starched collars. I've seen both the mom and the grandma, and they all dress like that. I'm thinking it might be a cultural thing. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes/page/2#post-382545 Mon, 11 Jul 2011 18:49:47 +0000 rachylou 382545@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>It's the shoes in these pics that bother me. I don't like to see heels on girls, quite honestly, until they turn 18. But I have to say, whereas Suri looks to me like she wore her play-princess shoes out into the rain - Noah looks like she's being, well, p*mped out by her mother.</p> <p>What I don't understand is how adults can have given enough positive feedback on looks like these, for people to have begun marketing them. I have a friend who says - and I think he's right - there is something wrong with you, if you look at a child and don't see a child. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125612 Sat, 13 Feb 2010 06:08:14 +0000 LoP 125612@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>This is scary. I'm relieved to have a boy looking at these. I agree with others that it's the parent's responsibility in the end, but there's so much peer pressure that it gets hard. I recently sent my 5-year old niece a very nice green dress and a very cute navy blazer with ballet flats from GAP. She didn't want to wear it because they didn't look like princess clothes! I know the family doesn't encourage it. It's the friends' influence. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125499 Fri, 12 Feb 2010 13:13:00 +0000 anne 125499@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I certainly agree with a lot of the sentiments expressed above. It annoys me too , that my tall daughter, age 6 will be entering the much less appropriate 7-16 size clothing quite soon. At least she wears her practical, hard wearing school uniform most of the time. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125491 Fri, 12 Feb 2010 08:24:41 +0000 Ele 125491@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Wow, there is not a lot more I can add to this discussion. Noah Cyrus's outfits are ridiculous and offensive, no matter what age you are. But the fact that she's so young, and that parents/handlers were obviously involved in the outfit choice, or at least allowed it, makes it so much worse of course. I actually think Suri looks adorable, and can't see the lipstick they're talking about. The heels are weird, granted, but she's hardly in the same league as the other girl. </p> <p>Stuff like this makes me really scared to have kids, actually. I don't remember being that "old" at their age. I loved clothes and dressing up, but I don't recall wanting to create a certain look, and probably couldn't have told you what a celebrity was. But these influences come from everywhere these days, and the thought of having to shield your kids from them leaves me cold. </p> <p>Fi- Interesting fact for you! I think in Sweden (or maybe the Netherlands) there is a law against gender stereotyping in advertising aimed at children. It would be illegal for instance, to show a little girl wearing a pink dress in a pink room playing with dolls. Wearing a pink skirt and kicking a soccer ball around, fine. I like it. </p> <p>About the bikini issue, I agree with you, Julie. It's been brought up before and I remember agreeing with Maya on how we felt seeing little girls in bikinis- yech. For me, it was a swim diaper or bathing suit bottoms only, and a one-piece when I was a little older. Bikini tops on little girls who don't have breasts is something I'll never understand, and I definitely think it sexualizes little kids, way more than them being completely naked, even. I didn't have a bikini until I had something to put in it! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125467 Fri, 12 Feb 2010 04:13:22 +0000 AlexSue 125467@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I can remember being about 12 and wearing ridiculously short puffy skirts in a size extra small bought from Forever21. My friends and I thought that they were adorable; we didn't consider whether or not they were provocative. I think that's a big issue - now, I wouldn't wear something so short because I now that it's in-your-face-sexy, but when you're a kid, you don't understand the image that you're conveying... so even if a child WANTS to wear revealing clothing because they think it's cool, it's up to the parent to say no because the child doesn't understand the messages she will be sending. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125419 Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:19:20 +0000 RoseandJoan 125419@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Thanks so much Maya and Cciele for your opinions. Maya, you just hit the nail on the head for me, it's about choice, about when dress up becomes inappropriate and the parents need to pull back. </p> <p>That is why a smearing of lipstick is completly different to this<br /> <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1250147/Peter-Andre-absolutely-disgusted-Katie-Price-insists-shes-good-mum-Princess.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvs.....ncess.html</a> </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125186 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 23:39:36 +0000 cciele 125186@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I never got the triangle itty-bitty bikinis on little girls. Besides emulating adult swimwear, it's sure exposing a lot of skin that need to be sunscreened.</p> <p>I let my girls (7 and 4) dress however they like, as long as it's appropriate to the occasion, but so far it's me buying their clothes (with input from them regarding color and style).</p> <p>And what about the selection of a 7-year-old(!) girl as a samba queen in Brazil:<br /> <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35260988" rel="nofollow">http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35260988</a></p> <p>In this case, whether she is dressed appropriately or not, she's in a role that is traditionally sexualized. Ack! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125156 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 21:34:23 +0000 Maya 125156@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I don't think I would *want* to dress like this at 10 years old, so my greatest concern is whether or not this is done by force or pressure. </p> <p>I don't think Suri's outfit is offensive at all. Even if she is wearing lipstick. When I used to play dressup with my mom, she would put lipstick on me. Granted, I didn't leave the house like that, but I think the impact is exaggerated. As for the heels, it depends on the context. I don't find Suri's heels "sexy" at all. I'd wear heels like that and like Angie, I am a total prude about how I dress! In fact I was wondering if those shoes came in "big kids" sizes because they are so cute :)</p> <p>It depends on context. If she is wearing shoes like this every day, or for long amounts of walking, and/or without an alternate pair to change into....bad, bad, bad. But even adult women often carry flats in their bag for a "just in case" scenario. </p> <p>Little girls like to play dressup and that is all that is happening here, IMO. There is way too much paranoia and sensationalism about things like pedophiles and predators and such that contribute to these overblown stories. There is no comparison between Suri's outfit and Noah's IMO. Noah is wearing clothes that only adult sex workers wear, which is the creepiest and most disgusting thing I think I've ever seen. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125148 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 21:18:22 +0000 londonkiwi (now back in NZ) 125148@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Julie - I think that it is a valid point, but I also think that it very much depends on the type of bikini - if that makes sense. A little tank top like piece and boy leg shorts is a lot different to a tanga type brief and a top with cups. I think that even on adult women a one piece isn't necessarily any less sexy than a two piece, after all most swimming costumes are farily skimmpy and leave little to the imagination. Again, I think that it comes back to why adults are looking at children's bodies as sexual (and that includes the people designing the clothing!)</p> <p>Mind you these days in NZ most children are well covered up in UV swim suits to protect them from the sun (the ozone layer in NZ and Australia is very thin compared to other parts of the world, so there is less protection from the sun).</p> <p>I have never really been able to see swimsuits (or togs as we call them) as anything other than what Angie would term gear. I swam competatively until I was 14, so that perhaps explains it. I can't bring myself to wear anything that I can't swim properly in, even now, I just find it really annoying. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125142 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 21:07:54 +0000 RoseandJoan 125142@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Fi, I think your first point is especially valid, but do you not think a bikini may be more seductive (if that's the right word) than a naked body. I would allow Teah to run around at the beach in a swim nappy but would not find a bikini appropriate. Does that make sense?</p> <p>The early puberty issue does also raise clothing issues, my friend has to have adult clothes altered for her developing eleven year old. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125135 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 20:40:26 +0000 londonkiwi (now back in NZ) 125135@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have been thinking about this topic since this morning and even though I am not a mother now, I do hope to be one in the not too distant future, my thoughts on this topic are:</p> <p>- When I was growing up in NZ in the late 70s and early 80s it wasn't uncommon for small children (I'm talking under 7s) to run around in the nuddy in the back garden or for little girls to go topless at the beach. It isn't and wasn't a case of not protecting modesty but more a case of children's bodies not being viewed as sexual. If we are insisting that small children should be dressed modestly aren't we sexualising their bodies no matter what they wear?</p> <p>- I don't think that manufacturers of clothing for children have necessarily clicked to the fact that girls in particular are entering puberty earlier, but are still girls at heart. There needs to be clothing that is age appropriate but also size appropriate for the 10 year old who has breasts, but still might play with a barbie doll occasionally. I think that Kris raised this point and that 10 year old was also me. My mother made a lot of my clothing between the ages of 10 and 13 as there was nothing age appropriate or fit appropriate for my body.</p> <p>- What is it with pink and girls! I know that a lot of girls go through pink phases, but many don't. If I have a girl I do want her to know that there are other colours out there! It is especially hard to buy gender neutral clothing for babies!</p> <p>- Most 10 year olds I know don't buy their own clothes, so is it their parents buying these things and why? Or do they actually not sell that well? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-125110 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 18:59:03 +0000 RoseandJoan 125110@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Thank you ladies so very much.</p> <p>I do like to dress my little girls current but innocent at the same time. Teah is a tomboy who is always climbing and falling, it makes total sense for her to running around in skinny jeans and tunic tops, but the tops are modest and the jeans are brightly coloured. Emmy is much quieter by nature and will happily play with a ruffle on a dress. </p> <p>AJ, I think you raise a very valid point about celebrity children, thank you for sharing that perspective. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124972 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 03:05:11 +0000 AJ 124972@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>As much as we already feel our children are exposed to the influences of the media, celebrity children have it in their faces every day. Their older siblings and parents must always dress trendy and often times sexy for their jobs and I'm assuming their level of modesty becomes blurred since everyone around them has a higher sexuality quotient so to speak. They pay a high price for their fame unfortunately. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124969 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 02:46:11 +0000 Isabel 124969@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>This just sent me over the edge. I hate it that we sexualize young girls. To me, it is no cuter to see a little girl dressed as a Las Vegas act as it is to see a grown woman in a Mickey Mouse outfit. Let them be children.</p> <p>I do struggle with finding clothes. For girls there is so much sex and for boys there is so much bad-ass attitude and violence. My 6 year old girl doesn't need high heels or a pair of shorts with the word " NICE" on the butt. And my 8 year old boy, doesn't need a t-shirt that says " you suck ". </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124947 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 01:34:17 +0000 Christie 124947@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I've been keeping my little girl "little" as long as I can. She is 7, and wears Lands' End and Hanna Anderssen dresses often over her jeans. She comes up with darling combinations of colors and layers. I'll encourage her to be creative like that as she grows up, but modesty is the main issue to be followed. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124945 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 01:28:31 +0000 marianna 124945@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>This all boggles my mind. I was 10 relatively not too long ago and I would have NEVER even considered dressing in such a manner. Nothing of the sort was on my mind. Do these girls realize that they're dressing in a sexual manner, or do they just think it's "cute" and what "everyone is wearing?" I really hope they're not putting on these outfits in an effort to be sexy or provocative.</p> <p>Not to place blame, but this has to be a parenting and/or media fault, right? Young girls are not innately "sexy" creatures... </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124940 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 01:17:16 +0000 Tricia 124940@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have two little girls, too (3 and 1) and this really freaks me out. I don't tend to dress them in ultra-babyish clothing for long - I think teeny tiny jeans and such are adorable - but I would never, never put them in anything even remotely close to some of that. </p> <p>I kind of hope that they take after me and spend their teen years in combat boots with long dresses, jeans and punk-band T-shirts. I may not have been the most attractively dressed girl around, but at least I wasn't dressed like a hooker! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124939 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 01:10:52 +0000 Theresa 124939@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>oh boy... I'm another mother of young girls (5 &amp; 3) and this freaks me out no end... I wouldn't even be seen dead wearing some of those things unless it was a fancy dress party - and I'm 30!</p> <p>I just want them to be little girls and enjoy this time in their life without worrying about what on earth they are wearing.</p> <p>Fortunately (??) for me, they are both quite small, so they will be in the littler girls clothes for a lot longer (although that does pose the problem that sometimes they are too babyish...).</p> <p>I think my 5 year old will be ok - she's a total Miss Independent and doesn't care what other people think of her outfits - she's quite an eclectic crazy dresser at times LOL </p> <p>But my 3 year old MUST wear a skirt or dress every day already - so I'm concerned that she's going to want to follow the trends when she gets bigger.</p> <p>Gosh, I even worry that they are too young to get their toe nails painted... but their uncles girlfriend has her own beauty salon so does their toes for them and they get such enjoyment out of picking colours and having an "appointment". But we make it about having fun and picking happy colours etc, rather than doing it to "make your feet look good" or whatever image related reason we could use.</p> <p>ok a bit of a novel here LOL but I'm not looking forward to the things my girls and I may be dealing with... </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124921 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 00:20:48 +0000 Angie 124921@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>(Thanks, Jules. That means a lot coming from a cerebral lass such as yourself. Loved your comment on that blog post too). </p> <p>If Suri Cruise was wearing little Converse sneakers or ballet flats with her outfit, I'd think it was totally fab (sans the lipstick of course). As for the rest - those outfits and make-up are bad taste on anyone at any age.</p> <p>I am very against the idea of little girls wearing provocative clothing for obvious reasons. Come on! I'm Ms. Modesty around here. But in the same breath I will say that I think kids (boys too) look GREAT in high fashion merchandise if the styles are naive and innocent. I hope that makes sense. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124910 Tue, 09 Feb 2010 23:24:25 +0000 Jean Gray 124910@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>It is sad to me when I see little girls dressed too old for their age. I have a 6 year old and I err on the side of prudish probably. I'm squeamish with skirts and swimwear. And I don't care for those tees (or sweatpants) with statements that have an attitude. It has become more of a challenge finding clothes I approve of as she's getting into the older girls dept at the stores (sizes 7-14).<br /> I know that to this day my mom is still the first the woman I think of that I want to emulate. And I know she always will be my foremost role-model. Growing up I always admred her and looked forward to becoming a woman because of the example she set. So I just hope I can be that role model for my daughter too. But I can see that there will be many challenges along the way that my mom didn't have to worry about as my sister and I were growing up.<br /> Ugh...one day at a time...no need to rush it...they grow quickly enough as it is!<br /> Having a child sure seems to speed up the sands of time! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124905 Tue, 09 Feb 2010 23:09:05 +0000 AJ 124905@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Yes, this is a big problem! Before I had my daughter, I loved buying dresses for my two nieces. I started to notice that as soon as they got above a size 6 in the girls department, there weren't anymore cute dresses to be found! The only offerings were fitted separates in tween styles. I couldn't believe it!! Now, I'm slowly facing the same thing with my 6 year old daughter. Luckily she is small for her age, so I have another year or two before my options start to dwindle. Ugh!<br /> I also recently went to visit my niece who is 11 and participates in a dance exhibition group. I went to one of her practices and I was shocked at what the girls were wearing...half shirts with leggings. I even saw some of the younger ones who were wearing tank tops, fold the hem up to imitate the older ones in the half shirts. Ack! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124901 Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:54:32 +0000 Boof 124901@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>As the mother of 2 daughters (10 and 7), this is a touchy subject for me. My 10 year old and I have had to reach an understanding about what is appropriate for her to wear. I will acknowledge that she's not "little" anymore and wants to look a little more grown up. It's a struggle at times to meet in the middle, and the options in stores are pitifully limited. I want her to have fun with fashion and express herself but also to realize that how she dresses affects how she is viewed by others. I think modesty and respect for others needs to be reflected in what she wears. I sound like my Granny, but I don't care. :o)</p> <p>What's even worse is that my 7 year old has always been big for her age and wears a girls size 10. I was shopping in a store and mentioned something to the shop owner about the lack of "little girl" clothing. She said that manufacturers consider little girls "tweens" in size 7 and above. I couldn't believe it! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124898 Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:47:14 +0000 shana 124898@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Yikes, little Noah Cyrus is scaring me. I believe that we've discussed this topic a couple of times on ylf before and my response is the same - an emphatic no! I am really alarmed how young girls are sexualized in this manner and am appalled by what some people consider is appropriate for a child to wear. These are the times that I am happy that I have only sons - I cannot imagine the type of pressure that these young girls are under with all the messages that they are hearing and seeing all around them. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124889 Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:01:47 +0000 Debbie 124889@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I live on a street that the kids walk down to get to the middle school. On non-uniform days I am amazed. Some of the kids get out of the car looking perfectly decent but as soon as Mom turns the corner they are redressing. Often trading with friends. Stripping off leggings and the like.</p> <p>Kids just need to be kids and as adults we need to encourage that. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/age-appropriate-dressing-childrens-clothes#post-124886 Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:55:44 +0000 RoseandJoan 124886@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Khris, it sounds as though you are striking a good balance with your daughter. I loved the photos from your recent shopping trip and she certainly seemed to be enjoying her Mom and Daughter time at the mall. </p>