Choosing Tween Clothing
If you have seen Confessions of a Shopaholic, you will remember the opening sequence when Rebecca Bloomwood, as a young preteen, looks on longingly at a pair of cute fashionable shoes which another girl at the store gets to purchase, as her own mother buys her a pair of staid brown shoes that will last longer and are therefore, a value for money. The same girl grows up harboring a shopping addiction and a zillion credit cards. A problem that could be traced back by a psychoanalyst to her clothing woes from her childhood.
If you are parent to a tween, then you are probably banging your head against the wall trying to come up with a perfect solution to the conundrum that is tween clothing. How do you ensure that your kid understands the ephemeral nature of fashion and learns how to pick clothing that suits her and is not just a trend that will be over before you can say clothes. Given below are a few tips to choose clothing for girls that will indulge their fantasies and at the same time be practical buys.
How to Choose Clothes for Your Tween
Shop With Your Tween
Tween is an age where they are discovering themselves, and are increasingly feeling a need to express their individuality. Many sociologists have held forth the thought that tweens are the new teenagers, and this is probably true. With many teen idols and clothing lines introduced by them which are aimed at tweens, kids are feeling the pressure to dress older than their age. This is where shopping with them is becoming necessary. At the same time, you should try to avoid making your kid's choice for her. Go shopping together and let her pick out clothes she likes. Browse through her selection and then make the final choice together.
Discuss the Budget
It is extremely important that you and your kid discuss the budget for her shopping trip. Explain to her that at her age (which is a growing phase), she will be outgrow her clothes extremely fast and will need new clothes all the time. Also if her choices are determined by the latest fashion trends, then this too will be a passing phase. While doing so do not walk down on her, but encourage her questions (if she has any). Make a list of the things that are necessities and then allocate a bit of the budget to trendy pieces that she has been coveting for a while. If you want to purchase cheap tween clothes, then you could probably shop when sales are on or even make selections on websites that tend to have huge discounts.
Discuss Appropriateness
With increasing influence of older stars and their dressing styles, thanks to the media exposure, there is a possibility that your tween will want to dress in a way that is completely inappropriate for her age, like wearing low waist jeans or clothes that are too revealing. Before you go on your shopping jaunt, it is therefore important that you explain to your daughter the appropriate clothes that she can choose. It is essential that you make these things clear before you go shopping, unless you want a scene to be created at the mall.
Proper Self Image
This is an extremely important thing to keep in mind, especially if your child has a poor self image. If your daughter tends to compare herself to her friends, is slightly overweight or is not growing at the same pace as her friends, then it is a possibility that she is beating herself up. In such a situation, you need to delicately convey to your kid, that looking good does not depend on fashion clothing or now-here, now-gone trends. Explain to your child the importance of owning classic patterns, that can be teamed with fashionable accessories to look good and also be the cynosure at all outings. Explain to her the fallacy of the images portrayed in the media. Remember that with increasing exposure and faster maturity levels of kids, there is a higher chance, that your kid wants to ape an idol who is projecting the wrong image for her.
Caring for Wardrobe
Your daughter is going to be finally at an age where she can learn to care for her clothes. She needs to understand that some fabrics need more care, like silk or wool. So, if she is going to buy clothes in a certain fabric just because it is in fashion, she needs to understand that she will need to care for it. Also, this is the age where you can start thinking about buying clothing items that will last her a while. For instance, if you buy a skirt that is slightly long now, your daughter can probably wear it till it reaches just above her knees. Also you can buy clothes that can be mixed and matched with clothes that already exist in her wardrobe.
There are many brands like Abercrombie, American Eagle, Justice, etc, that have exclusive tween clothing lines. You could probably make shopping trips to these stores in case you are confused about the choices available to you. While the options available for children's clothing may seem adult like in many ways and your child's puppy dog like expression may melt your hearts enough to buy these clothes for them, it is important to stick to certain ground rules. You will appreciate sticking to them when your kid exclaims, "I have nothing to wear," the next time she wants you to go with her on a shopping trip.
