firedaniels Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 :cursing: Is it just me, or are the Christmas Dresses this year horrid? I have been shopping with my daughter for over two weeks now and the ones that I find nice are overshadowed by horrid, imported, stretch spandex junk. I finally conceited and allowed my daughter to try on one at Khol's; it had so much glitter that it literally gave her a 24 inch scratch down the side of her arm and drew blood. I can't bring myself to spend money on such poor quality garbage. So now we are trying to find something of quality in a reasonable price range and well...we can't seem to agree. I really don't want to cave, we have a dress that her Grandmother bought her last year from Justice, that was so,so and about as close to the line of what I find appropriate. She has other dresses in her closet; I think I am at the point of telling her to just where what she has...I feel like the big bad ogre. Am I the only one having a hard time breaking tradition? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 Are you looking in the junior department? If so, must your dd only look in juniors or can she fit in the small sizes of misses. I started dd shopping in misses when she was 13. My dd thinks the junior department is more inappropriate than I do, so she won't shop there, except to wander and point out how ridiculous something is (too low, too high, too see through, too...). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 My dd is almost 10 and we have not been able to find anything we like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 Dd happened to find a red dress in a second-hand store a month or two ago, held it up and announced, "Christmas!" It was a great find, and I'm grateful that she was thinking ahead. Totally glitter-free! It's sleeveless, so it needs a cute sweater or shrug, which should be easier to come up with than an entire dress. Had she not found something, I probably would've sewn something. I know most of the year people wonder why I sew, given that you don't really save money by sewing your own clothes. But I can make exactly what we want for a Christmas dress (and also a swimsuit in the summer), which is worth the time and effort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skyday Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 We are having a hard time finding a dress for my daughter who is 9. I'd prefer something with sleeves, but that is getting harder and harder to find..everything is sleeveless! We're also having problems finding something that is age appropriate for her that she can actually bend over in. She is really tall for her age but also very skinny. The size 10 fits her perfectly up top but is way too short for her and the size 12 is the perfect length but, would have to be taken in up top because it gapes open too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gentlemommy Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 We went with non-traditional dresses and colors this year. I have the same problem every year...finding dresses for three girls that somewhat coordinate, aren't glitzy, are 'little girl-ish', and don't cost me $300. I hate spending a ton of money on a 'Christmas' dress only to be worn once or twice, especially since I have *3* to buy. Plus, I've got two kids that fit in toddler sizes, and one that needs a junior size. The toddler sizes are cute, but the bigger sizes are FUGLY. And way too grown up for my 7 year old. I got some cute stuff at Old Navy a few weeks ago. A grey and cream floral dress with a bright pink sash for the 2 year old, a bright pink knit dress for the 4 year old, and a bright pink corduroy skirt, cream long sleeved shirt, and grey sweater vest for the 7 year old. All under $100, all sweet, all able to be used for other occasions after Christmas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 The quality of clothes has gotten simply horrid over the past few years. And manufacturers are doing whatever they can to keep costs down. So sleeves are gone. Sleeveless dresses require less fabric, thus are cheaper to make. Plus, sleeveless formal wear is more likely to fit, and requires simpler alterations if it doesn't fit (thus the trend towards strapless bridal gowns). And skirts are super-short, because, again, less fabric is needed. Inexpensive items are often cut off-grain, to fit more pattern pieces on the fabric with less waste. And don't get me started on the quality of the fabric!!! Of course, consumers are willing to spend less money, and want more clothes. Plus, fashions change quickly so people aren't shopping for clothes that will last - they are willing to buy cheap because they only anticipate a few wearings before tossing the item and moving to the next fad. I agree with the PP's - shop the miss's department, shop second-hand and look for the high-end brands, and/or sew your own - those are the strategies we've been using. I'm hoping that at some point consumers will start going for quality again, and will be willing to pay the higher prices manufacturers need in order to produce it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mimm Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I went shopping with my kids yesterday and sequins and glitter are all over the place. Everything is thin and lightweight because layering different pieces is in style. We don't buy Christmas dresses each year unless we are planning to get pictures done that year but last year we did and I remember having a very difficult time finding anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenangelcat Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I think most Christmas dresses for kids are horrid every year. This year I managed to find two gorgeous navy dresses. One is a high waist with full skirt and the other is reminisant of the 60's, A shaped swishy dress. Nice style, simple embellishment, no crushed velvet. Got them from Children's Place for half off last month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arghmatey Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 Check on Etsy. The only clothing we purchase in B&M stores for our children are socks and other accessories. I don't even bother looking any more. Tea, Hannah Anderson, and Mini Boden may be more your style, too. Chasing Fireflies has some nice options, but they price items very high. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jujsky Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 :cursing: Is it just me, or are the Christmas Dresses this year horrid? I have been shopping with my daughter for over two weeks now and the ones that I find nice are overshadowed by horrid, imported, stretch spandex junk. I finally conceited and allowed my daughter to try on one at Khol's; it had so much glitter that it literally gave her a 24 inch scratch down the side of her arm and drew blood. I can't bring myself to spend money on such poor quality garbage. So now we are trying to find something of quality in a reasonable price range and well...we can't seem to agree. I really don't want to cave, we have a dress that her Grandmother bought her last year from Justice, that was so,so and about as close to the line of what I find appropriate. She has other dresses in her closet; I think I am at the point of telling her to just where what she has...I feel like the big bad ogre. Am I the only one having a hard time breaking tradition? My main gripe with Christmas dresses (and this has been my gripe since DD was a toddler) is 95% of the Christmas dresses have short sleeves. I live in New England. DD will be wearing this in the WINTER. Why are there so many short-sleeved dresses in the store? That makes no sense at all! The whopping 5% of long sleeved dresses that are left are usually pretty ugly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 My main gripe with Christmas dresses (and this has been my gripe since DD was a toddler) is 95% of the Christmas dresses have short sleeves. I live in New England. DD will be wearing this in the WINTER. Why are there so many short-sleeved dresses in the store? That makes no sense at all! The whopping 5% of long sleeved dresses that are left are usually pretty ugly. That way they can sell you the dress *and* the cardigan/shrug/jacket that matches. It's sort of like selling the sleeves separately. Ugh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 When my dd was younger, we loved the retailer, Wooden Soldier, which has lots of traditional dresses with sleeves and without glitter. I agree with all the pp -- girls clothes nowadays can be so trashy. I now have dd's clothes made by a seamstress -- it is not as expensive as I had thought. (I buy the fabric, etc.) Another idea is to see if there is an Orthodox Jewish shop near you. You can find clothes that are pretty and modest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I try 2nd hand shops. I can usually find beautiful dresses at a reasonable price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celticmom Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I am very fortunate, my mother is sewing dd8's christmas dress this year. She made alot of clothes for her this summer that were cute and appropriate and there is no way that I would have found similiar clothes in her size in the stores. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nrg Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 The link below is to the "holiday traditional" section of Wooden Solider: http://woodensoldier.com/browse/products.aspx?cid=28&bid=5 lovely, traditional, holiday dresses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I try 2nd hand shops. I can usually find beautiful dresses at a reasonable price. :iagree: And as an added bonus, they're usually in perfect condition because they've only been worn once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamakelly Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I fpound Marlie's Christmas dress 2 months ago at a childrens resale shop. It's beautiful and only cost me 7.99! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsmom2011 Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 n/m Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I'm not going to say it's top quality, but my youngest wanted a black coat, so we went to Old Navy. They had a great sale going on, and I thought many of the little girls dresses were very simple and appropriate. For older girls/young women, there are some very nice long-sleeved wrap dresses. Again, I am sure the quality is lacking, but they were not glittery, nor sleeveless. The Gymbo store for older kids also has some cute dresses. (They go to size 12 or 14, I think.). I bought dd's holiday dress there last year. Again, lots of dresses at Lands' End and LLBean. WHo mentioned Chasing FIreflies? My youngest loves their clothing, but it's very $$. Same with Mini Bodoen, Hanna, Boden, and Garnet Hill. What about the CWD catalog? Not as pricey as Wooden Soldier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I found a nice skirt and jacket for DD11 at Sears' Lands End shop. They were 30% off a few weeks ago. She chose pink ones, but they had plenty of other colors too. I agree on the dresses thing. Poor DD11 must have tried on 30-40 dresses that were all poor fitting and poorly made before we tried Sears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasmama Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I buy Christmas dresses for my dd at Gymboree on clearance after Christmas for the next year. They are often short sleeved or sleeveless, and I just put a plain white turtleneck under them. They are inexpensive, well-made and have a classic look with no glitter and sequins. We are not big on Christmas dresses, but if she has one, I guarantee this is how we got it. This year she has a lovely green velvet dress which she also wore last year. Edited to say that I have no idea why my font is so small nor any idea how to fix it. Goblins seem to have inhabited my WTM posting habits...first bolded posts with no paragraphs and now this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jujsky Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 The link below is to the "holiday traditional" section of Wooden Solider: http://woodensoldier...px?cid=28&bid=5 lovely, traditional, holiday dresses. Pretty, but again -- all short sleeved!!!!!! Wooden soldier needs to don one of those babies and get his little wooden butt up to New England in December. I bet those dresses would have sleeves after that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songsparrow Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 If you're looking for girls' sizes 14 and under, try Pink Princess. They have lovely holiday dresses (even some with sleeves) at reasonable prices and many are made in the USA as a bonus. Once you hit the junior sizes, well let me know if you find a solution! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trlt Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 If you're looking for girls' sizes 14 and under, try Pink Princess. They have lovely holiday dresses (even some with sleeves) at reasonable prices and many are made in the USA as a bonus. Once you hit the junior sizes, well let me know if you find a solution! I agree...Pink Princess is wonderful. I purchased this dress: http://www.pinkprincess.com/lc911-gr.html and it is gorgeous! I was a little worried because I have ordered from an online store before and the dress was nothing like the picture but the dress I ordered from PP was very well made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I just went dress shopping this weekend for the company Christmas party, and I had no luck anywhere. Blech! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 Check on Etsy. The only clothing we purchase in B&M stores for our children are socks and other accessories. I don't even bother looking any more. Tea, Hannah Anderson, and Mini Boden may be more your style, too. Chasing Fireflies has some nice options, but they price items very high. I agree. There is quality out there, but you are going to have to pay more than $20 for it. My main gripe with Christmas dresses (and this has been my gripe since DD was a toddler) is 95% of the Christmas dresses have short sleeves. I live in New England. DD will be wearing this in the WINTER. Why are there so many short-sleeved dresses in the store? That makes no sense at all! The whopping 5% of long sleeved dresses that are left are usually pretty ugly. Many are made to wear with shirts under them or sweaters over them. It makes them easier to fit, cheaper to make and better suited to a bigger variety of climates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simplyme99 Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 The link below is to the "holiday traditional" section of Wooden Solider: http://woodensoldier...px?cid=28&bid=5 lovely, traditional, holiday dresses. Super cute, but out of my price range! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simplyme99 Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 I HAVE had luck finding dresses for my 9 yo (Gymboree - usually from a Christmas or two ago off of ebay). But my 11 yo, forget it! I cannot stand all the sparkles and cheap materials either. I don't have much luck at 2nd hand, but can usually find some things at the consignment shop. Sleeves? I too get perturbed that most of the dresses don't have sleeves. We live in Houston, but I buy many outfits for the girls to sing in church. They do not want them wearing sleeveless dress/tops. Adding a shrug usually takes away from the dress IMO (plus it's extra money)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truscifi Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 We are having a hard time finding a dress for my daughter who is 9. I'd prefer something with sleeves, but that is getting harder and harder to find..everything is sleeveless! We're also having problems finding something that is age appropriate for her that she can actually bend over in. She is really tall for her age but also very skinny. The size 10 fits her perfectly up top but is way too short for her and the size 12 is the perfect length but, would have to be taken in up top because it gapes open too much. Wear the 10 with leggings? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 My 13 year old found a dress at JC Penney she liked. It is red with grey and black accent fabrics. It is not a "typical" Christmas dress, but she is wearing a snowman pen with it and a Christmas bracelet. She also picked out a pair of grey leggings to go with it. It looks good on her and the colors with the holiday costume jewelry round it out nicely. My 16 year old had more trouble finding what she wanted. She has settled on grey Lee slacks and a red shirt from Khols. The shirt is long sleeves and plain except for a red satin border on the rounded neckline. She also has holiday costume jewelry to dress it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NASDAQ Posted November 25, 2012 Share Posted November 25, 2012 Our religion has fairly strict rules on women and girl's clothing, and I don't even bother to look at B&M stores. It's online and ebay all the way, plus the occasional swap meet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simplyme99 Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 Surfing ebay ... what about Strasburg? They have nice, classic dresses ... not too expensive on ebay! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murmer Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 Yep so hard...my dh's family gets all the little girls dresses...but this year my dd sized up to the 8-12 group and they couldn't find anything...so they got this ugly big girl flapper dress with a necklace...it was way to big kid for a 5 year old. Thankfully Friday I found a cute one that didn't try to make a 5 year old look like a 12 year old, and they paid for it and return the other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewingmama Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 Thanks for the reminder -I need to get my butt off here and sew my DD's dress. Sleeveless is appropriate here because it's summer but everything is glittery or covered in that itchy lace. My DD has SPD so she is NOT going to wear that kind of thing. Once again I am thankful I can sew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewingmama Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 dp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SJ. Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 Every time I skim through the thread titles I read this thread as "Horrid Christmas Diseases" :lol: OP, and everyone else having the same problem, I hope you are able to find something suitable for your dds! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 Op, how old or what size is your daughter? My older dd could wear size 16 until she was 15 but my younger dd outgrew size 16 by 12. If she still wears girls clothing, I would recommend highly thrift stores and consignment shops. Many girls wear a dress once and then the mom gives or sells it away. Also, it does depend where you live. I found it much easier to find nicer clothing in the southern part of the US including NM, Florida and AL due to the type of stores available. Dillards, Belk, and Sears are some of the stores I found have nice girls dresses. If she is out of girls clothing, I completely agree with all the PP who said shop misses, not juniors. I can count on my fingers how many times we have bought anything from the juniors department of any store. This is with me having more than 6.5 years of experience buying clothes for both girls. Unfortunately, once they are in adult clothing, the costs run high- dresses are almost always $50 or more. For adult dresses for the girls, I have had good luck with a lot of stores by sticking to misses clothing-some that I have used are Coldwater Creek, Dillards, Belk, SteinMart, and Modcloth online. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 Dd9 and I have been looking at dresses, too. We're in a hard stage right now. She is a kid - but not a little kid. She is tall and thin. She has long legs and a tiny little bottom. She wears size 12 skinny jeans and they look like regular jeans on her. A skirt or dress that is short but okay on most kids is really short on her. She could wear a size 10 in something sleeveless or shorts, but needs a 12-14 for her arms and legs. Most of the size 12 or 14 stuff is too old for her. The dresses are often cut for developing bodies. Or the styles are too old. Dd will still pick out shirts with unicorns on them. We found a dress for Christmas, but we are having a hard time finding simple, comfortable dresses for church. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.Balaban Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 My mother bought my DD a dress for her baptism that was a beautiful ivory color - so that is what she is wearing for a Christmas dress. Short sleeves is not my first choice, but it fits! It is so hard to find reasonable clothing for children. There is GLITTER and SEQUINS everywhere I feel like everyone has lost their marbles. I was walking though Kohls today and Dh commented at some shirts: "Oh, that is so you. :glare: " I was like "These clothes are horrendous..." And yes, they chop sleeves off so you have to buy the *matching* sweater. My mom is in the Gymboree "camp" (she's obsessed) and she buys matching shirts, shoes, socks, etc. and then I end up wanting to strangle her. I want simple, basic, fun, pieces I can mix and match to create different looks... Ugh. :cursing: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamzanne Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 I totally agree with the OP. My mom really wanted a dress for my daughter and we settled on this one from Children's Place. I find most of their clothing overly embellished and tacky but this particular dress is not too bad. I generally like Christmas dresses to look more Christmasy but compared to the other options this was the best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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