Tuesday, January 20, 2009

A study in little girl's clothing

Last time that M went through a growth spurt, I bemoaned the sorry state of little girls clothes. Specifically, the sorry state of girls jeans.

I like having M wear jeans for a number of reasons. The least of which is that they just wear better. I have trouble getting stains out of knits. Jeans either come out easier, or just don't show. They are also much warmer in winter here in the lovely state of Minnesota. When your other option is a thinner knit, they block the wind better. (we use leggings under our jeans)

However, I've noticed that girls jeans are far different than the boy's jeans, and not in a good way. While most kids M's age are generally growing at the same rate, girls jeans are skinny. Not just the skinny cuts either. They're skinny in the legs, the hips, just about everywhere. Go over to the boys section at the same store, and they're all baggy and comfy and you can actually move in them.

When M is in girls jeans that by all rights should fit her (her height and weight are proportional, if not both a little ahead of the curve), they are snug in the thighs, she can't pull them up on her own, and worst of all, she can't climb in them. It is sexism for the toddler set. Pants should not be skin tight on someone who can't form a sentence of more than three words. (leggings being the exception of course)

Size 18-24 mo. Gap jeans - Bottom boys, tops girls

There are of course brands that are the exception to this. Carters is OK, but the elastic in their waists (at least up to 24 mo size) tends to give out early. Hanna Andersson rocks, but they are expensive. We're getting ready for potty training, so I've bought less jeans in the next size up, and more long tops and leggings. (I'm trying to hold off on really getting into it until it warms up and we can get rid of the onesies, but still we need to get her some larger pants)
I'm laying down a challenge to Gap, Old Navy, Gymboree and Children's Place. You can make cute, fun, stylish clothing for little girls that still allows them to be kids. They will have plenty of time to shove themselves into the style of the day, to put on the cute heels that give them shin splints, to sacrifice for fashion, when they are older. Right now, they just need to play as much as they can.


Same 18-24 mo. boys, 2T girls, 18-24 mo. girls





3 comments:

yasmara said...

We have the opposite problem with my boys - all the pants are SO baggy that if they are the right length, they literally fall down.

I've had to search & search to find comfy pants that actually have adjustable waists, not just fake drawstrings (not as hard to find in jeans/chinos as in sweat pants). Of course, Hanna Andersson has them but I only buy on mega sale (or eBay). I have actually resorted to buying some very generic girl's leggings (black & grey) because they stay up!

Birdie said...

I had no idea! I second the first commenter about boy jeans- the ones that are the right length tend to fall down. But the skinny girl jeans? Ridiculous! I don't know if you shop at discount stores (i.e., walmart, kmart, target) but I've found some basic sweat pants (w/o elastic at the ankles) for 3.50 a pair...hard to beat and warm to boot! And perfectly appropriate for either sex...Suppose they might not wear quite as well as jeans, however.

April said...

we have the falling down problem with my boys too!!! seems like there should be some happy medium, no?