Tween Fashion - Is It Just Too Grown Up?
Thongs for the tween set? How about belly baring shirts, lacy camisoles, and go-go boots? I’ve seen the last three on girls at my children’s school recently.
As of mother of two girls - a tween and soon to be tween, it’s getting harder and harder to filter out the influences. Just last week my youngest declared Gymboree off limits for ever - it’s babyish, you know, and my tween tells me she likes Aeropostle better than Children’s Place. Luckily, she is tiny for her age and won’t fit into Aeropostle’s clothes for ages.
Inside Motherhood is dealing with this issue today, too. Her post is titled Can we keep our little girls little? The sexualization of the pre-teen set and it is a response to an article she read in today’s paper. Check it out and be sure to let us know how you feel.
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POSTED IN: Teen Fashions, Weary Parent
21 opinions for Tween Fashion - Is It Just Too Grown Up?
Casual Keystrokes » Worth A Read
Feb 21, 2007 at 8:36 am
[…] Join the discussion about our tweens and the grown up fashions they are wearing at Inside Motherhood and WearyParent. […]
Two Knives
Feb 21, 2007 at 11:50 am
The answer is “yes,” it is too grown up. Remember marketers selling things to tween girls exploit their natural age-appropriate insecurities by showing popular older girls with the tween product. (More on that in “The Great Tween Buying Machine: Capturing Your Share of the Multibillion Dollar Tween Market,” Siegel, et. al.)
It’s up to us to make sure our daughters are able to recognize marketing manipulation. And spend a lot of time just saying No.
char
Feb 21, 2007 at 11:53 am
I spend so much time saying no - but I do try to educate my girls as to the reasoning behind no. I am going to go look for the book you referenced.
Courtney
Feb 21, 2007 at 3:28 pm
I’ve got a toddler girl…and I’m already appalled by the selections as we enter the 3T and 4T clothes. Even though their not as revealing, they certainly are a lot more “trendy” than I’d like.
Tween boys have it bad as well, although not quite as bad as girls. Trying to find my 12 year old son a shirt that I approve of and that he likes is virtually impossible. Am I a bad mom because I don’t want him wearing a shirt with a skull on it or one that says “Tickle My Pickle” (which I honestly saw one of his peers wearing at school today).
Angela
Feb 21, 2007 at 9:50 pm
My husband used to make our teen when she was a tween sit down flat on the floor with her legs stretched out. She had to touch her toes and hold them. If we could see butt crack then the jeans were going back to the store!! Even jeans can be too grown up.
Maggie
Feb 22, 2007 at 6:33 am
Interesting. My daughter loves the limited too and the Aeropostle. However, I don’t find her wearing anything showing skin. She loves the sweatshirts, cami’s always under a blouse and jeans. So I’m ok with it. Just the price tag.
char
Feb 22, 2007 at 6:36 am
Maggie - I’m okay with Limited Too and the new Justice - Just for Girls. But only if its on sale, got a coupon, or really think I can get two kids worth of wearing out of it.
Kristen King
Feb 27, 2007 at 4:51 pm
The sexualization of children is one of my big issues. My friend’s fiance calls today’s girls “prosti-tots.” I saw the term in a recent article (Newsweek?) about this very topic, and about how role models for young girls are anything but role models these days. The key, I think, is to lead by example and to talk with your kids early, frankly, and often about your values.
Angela
Mar 1, 2007 at 8:44 am
I can remember a couple years back when I went to our local OSH KOSH outlet store and saw thong underwear for girls. THAT really ticked me off.
Kristen King
Mar 1, 2007 at 10:31 am
Thong underwear at OSH KOSH???? Forgive a cliche, but what is the world coming to?
kk
char
Mar 1, 2007 at 12:04 pm
I know this may be a stretch, but sometimes I think Moms let their young girls wear these “sexy” clothes is because their daughters still have the figure for it. It isn’t appropriate, but sometimes I wonder if this is part of the logic.
Kristen
Oct 11, 2007 at 7:54 pm
As a parent and tween boutique owner, my customers are constantly telling me that they’re so happy to find girl’s clothes in my store that don’t have the”hoochie mama” factor. We don’t specialize in modest or prim clothing, and in fact it’s all very modern and stylish. It’s just not trashy!
A company recently pitched me t-shirts with rhinestone martinis on them, modeled by buxom 20 year olds. Blecch.
Kristen King
Oct 12, 2007 at 5:33 am
You all will appreciate this, then:
http://tinyurl.com/2qsmfk
My friend Dana tells it like she sees it, and apparently so do her kids!
kk
Angela
Oct 13, 2007 at 6:05 am
I don’t mean to change the subject but what is up with the whole tiny URL bit?
I don’t click on links that use tiny url.
Kristen
Oct 15, 2007 at 5:26 am
For really long links, like permalinks to a blog post, pasting the whole thing in often causes it to break and then people who are less web savvy can’t figure out how to get to the destination. It’s worse in e-mail discussion lists, but it happens in blog comments, too, so I always use the tinyURL unless it’s a super short link because that’s guaranteed to work.
But here’s the whole link for that one:
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/lifestyle/columnists.nsf/mamalogues/story/E60128E45845BEB48625712C006C2605?OpenDocument
kk
gethsemenerose
Jun 21, 2008 at 4:39 pm
I agree that tween and even Teen fashion has gone way to far. Check out my CLEAN shirts promoting a pure lifestyle at my website.
Fizzburn
Jul 31, 2008 at 12:35 pm
I thought it was just me! I mean, I walk into a place like walmart looking for.. say.. a one piece swimsuit, and all i can find are bikinis (why does a toddler need a bikini, let alone a pubescent Tween?) Just as hard to locate ANYTHING that doesnt make my daughter look like Prosti-tot (a word i will now use instead of “street walker”). I’ve told her that the styles are highly inappropriate for her age level (not to mention her maturity level!) and that she will have plenty of time to dress like that when she is 18. While she may not always like it, she does understand.
How do we get around the *cough sputter* FASHION?
Simple. We invest a little more up-front money. Pick up a multi-pack of BOY’S tshirts. Plain old white or multi-color. Wander over to the craft store or section and spend a few more $$ than you had planned. We bought Sparkly Glitter Deco Fabric Pens ($14.99 for 6) several iron on decals (her choice, mostly. most ran about $2.50 multi packs with 40 ran about $10) and some heat transfer designs.
We used the heat transfer on a couple Ts, but found out rather quickly that ANY additional heat erased the transfer.. so we used the glitter pens to spice up the transfer and keep it permanent.
From this point on, she laid out the iron ons how she wanted them and poof! we have 100% K-Originals. some of them turned out rather awesome. So far the Glitter pens have been used on 5 Tshirts, her book bag, her Canvas Ring binder, hiking boots, canvas shoes, leather shoes, blue jeans, and a couple other things that escape my memory. I bought a second package of the glitter pens (only because was the last pack) but the first set hasn’t run dry yet… VERY worth $15, and my daughter has styles that i not only approve of, but that she will actually wear proudly!
We have invested somewhere around $100 on clothing and roughly $50 on the iron ons and pens. Oh… These pens come in 38 flavors, so you can get the bright, bold, pastel, glittery, whatever floats your boat.. and boys can use them too (of course, most wont be interested in it i think)
Martha
Aug 28, 2008 at 7:31 pm
I love this website. I was looking for party ideas when I came across it. My almost 10 year old is starting to “blossom.” We went to Target to purchase a few training bras to make her more comfortable. I almost fell over when I saw underwire, padded training bras!! I say if a girl is ready for these type of bras, she should not be shopping for them in the girs/tween section, she should be looking in lingerie! I LOVE the term “Prosti-tot!!!”
nancy
Sep 23, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Kira Plastinina’s clothes are perfect for tweens! I got a lot of great things for my daughter. Fashion forward but not slutty!
klik
Oct 9, 2008 at 8:56 pm
I don’t have a problem with tween fashions at all. Where does everyone find these “prostitot” clothes?? Gap Kids is great. So is Gymboree - though a bit too cutesy and “precious” at times for my 10 year old. I love Tommy Hilfiger kids - trendy yet classy designs. Zara Kids is also amazing with great styling!! I often buy online from designers like Ella Moss or Sister Sam. Also the French brands like Catimini, Jean Bourget or Ikks are very cool and well made. I don’t find that there’s really any problem with slutty girls’ fashions. My daughter doesn’t wear or want them and neither do her friends. Frankly I wouldn’t even know where to look for them!!
Cate M
Nov 8, 2008 at 9:49 pm
While I would agree that these bras can be a little too much for a 10 year old there is nowhere else to buy them. The bras in the regular womans department are not small enough so for the tween or for the grown woman like me who wears them these are a godsend. the ones for women just don’t go small enough. And these are much better priced.
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