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The rising, and close-cutting, trend in little girls clothes

When children are little, most clothing manufacturers use the same sizing system – assuming that body shapes will not differ much before puberty – for girls and boys. The problem that many parents seem to find, though, is that, in reality, clothing in a given size for boys is extremely different from clothing in that same size for girls.

In general, size guidelines are used as a way to design for particular body dimensions. Each size for a brand will accommodate a range of measurements, and the hope is that a given child’s body dimensions will fall within the range for one of the sizes. The cut of the clothing, though, can vary drastically for boys’ and girls’ clothing and will affect the way that an item fits and how it looks

Broken down, this means that a toddler size 3T may be designed to fit the same body dimensions regardless of the child’s gender. But, because of the way a clothing item is styled, it may fit those dimensions differently – perhaps more closely than loosely. This tends to be the case for girl’s clothing lately.

Part of this difference may be due to the trend of dressing little girls in the down-sized versions of the styles their mothers wear. But, close-fit, low-ride, low-cut, and too-short clothes are not appropriate or practical for little girls, especially if diapers, modesty, skin protection, and freedom to play comfortably are concerns. My opinion, sure, but one that is shared by others.

This morning, for example, I ran across a blog posting from Tracy at Dandelion Mama. She snapped a picture of some shorts that were on sale – one a boy’s pair, the other a girl’s pair in the same size – and laid the girls pair on top of the other. They were much, much smaller and close-fitting.

“Those shorts were both in the little kids department, on adjacent racks. Both are Circo brand, by Target, both cost $4 each, and both are children’s size 5T. Hmmm….”

“My daughter is a little girl. She will be three next month. I could not squeeze her diaper-clad butt into those size 5 shorts. She is a girl who wants to play in the mud and run around the backyard with her brothers- and she really ought to be able to do those things without her behind showing- or worse.”

Sarah, author of the blog A Glimpse into My Life, also expressed frustration with this issue in an open plea to clothing designers:

“I am writing in regards to the design of little girls clothing. I do not believe it is appropriate that clothing for little girls is cut in such a way that their bottoms are hanging out. Also, I do not believe it is necessary for a little girl to show her non-existent cleavage…Please design clothing that is appropriate for little girls. Children only get to be children for so long. “

What can we do about this?

• Contact the name brands and retailers (responsible for in-store brands) you most shop and let them know your concerns, why they are problems, and how you would prefer clothing to fit. Most websites these days have either a contact form that you can fill and send in. This is preferable to calling customer service, since you can describe things clearly and specifically and there is a written record of your feedback.
• Change your shopping habits…whether it’s buying boys clothes for your daughter, finding new brands, or simply stopping buying the brands that no longer meet your needs.
• Try your hand at making children’s clothing. Not only are hand-made clothes unique and personal, some patterns are very simple and allow you to create clothing that meets your child’s needs.

If you’ve found girls’ clothing brands that let little girls remain little girls, please share.