Rant....shopping for age appropriate girls clothing

[tdbates78]

So my twins are just now entering the big kids clothing section at the stores and I seriously do NOT like the options. I do not like how they lump sizes/ages 7 with a 12, 14 or even 16 year old. My girls are still very much little girls. They like princesses and unicorns, dresses and shirts with pretty flowers and sweet animals...you know, "cutesy" clothing. Now we are stuck weeding through "boho chic" clothing and shirts with silly hashtags that look much more appropriate for a tween or teen. They grow up too fast as it is. I'm not a prude but I would prefer that they dress like little girls for a little bit longer! I went to Kohl's today and mourned our Jumping Beans days. We didn't find a single clothing item they wanted after I had to explain to them that the display of cute Disney shirts were no longer in their size :(

 

Any ideas on where to buy cute age-appropriate girls clothing? I've tried Belk, Kohl's, Old Navy and Gap. I have had some success at Target. 

[Elizabeth86]

My girl is only 2 and I am already horrified that shorts are so dang short. Ugh I dont even care to think of the older years.

[Southern Ivy]

I like Gymboree for this reason. If you shop online, it's easy to hit their sales. I tend to get my daughters clothes for Target prices or cheaper.  I also find that shopping Kohl's online, it is easier to find the clothes you want. 

[tdbates78]

My girl is only 2 and I am already horrified that shorts are so dang short. Ugh I dont even care to think of the older years.

Yes!! How did I forget to mention the shorts?? Yikes. It's depressing. The dresses aren't much better. 

[eternalsummer]

Preach it.

 

You may have to go online, or to a upscale resale kids' store.

Hanna Andersson is good for that age.  I like Lemon Loves Lime but I only buy it used as it is $$$$.  Ebay often has this or that, though.  Citythreads on amazon has good quality basics.

[tdbates78]

My girl is only 2 and I am already horrified that shorts are so dang short. Ugh I dont even care to think of the older years.

Duplicate Post

Edited September 18, 2017 by tdbates78

[Southern Ivy]

Ooh! Primary.com is also great for accent pieces or mix/match. It's just solid colors, but great for leggings and such. 
Zulily has good choices - you can often find Hanna Anderson on there. We also like Jelly the Pug, but that might be too "little" for them. 

 

Edited September 18, 2017 by Southern Ivy

[tdbates78]

I love Hanna Anderssen. It's expensive, although they have decent sales. I prefer less expensive items for just hanging around the house or when my daughter is at the (very messy) pottery class. Thanks for the suggestions eternalsummer! I will research the brands you mentioned. Never thought to check ebay. Good idea!

[itsheresomewhere]

Justice has some cute shirts and dresses. DD is into unicorns, horses and dogs and they have a lot of that now.

 

Disney shirts- Walmart juniors section has some nice Disney shirts very reasonable and are just normal shirts.

 

Amazon has quite a bit of cute ones and Disney.

 

Cat and Jack brand at Target is great. They have up to size 16.

Edited September 18, 2017 by itsheresomewhere

[Peaceseeker]

My daughter moved up to the big kids section at 3 years old. She has always been all legs. I called my husband sobbing from Target, lol.. I was just not ready at all and I hated everything! Eventually I found Children's place had fairly cute stuff (still some sparkly t-shirts, etc). Wal-Mart often had younger themed stuff in their girls section (stretchy leggings, little girl appropriate t shirts, cute pj's). Old Navy was hit or miss. Target, Old Navy and Kohls worked better for us when she hit tween years.

 

I don't like a lot of Justice but they do carry Bermuda length shorts in girls sizes every year.

 

And then it all starts again when they hit juniors/womens. My daughter hit it at age 11 and she bemoaned all the black everywhere. She still wanted rainbow sparkle even then :)

[eternalsummer]

there are often good prices on lots of Hanna Andersson on Ebay - 4 sets of pjs, or something.  Because they're durable clothes, buying used is not as bad :)

[medawyn]

My girl is only 2 and I am already horrified that shorts are so dang short. Ugh I dont even care to think of the older years.

Yes to this! All summer I've cringed a little and tried not to snap her toddler-chubby thighs in the car seat buckle. Not a problem for her two brothers.

 

And pants! Why are all the toddler girl pants leggings or skinny jeans? What happened to just plain pants? (And I know they are out there. I just shouldn't have to look so hard or pay out the ying yang.)

 

I just dread trying to dress her as she grows up, and I don't consider myself super conservative when it comes to clothes.

[alisoncooks]

Gosh, just wait...it gets worse, I'm sad to say. I have 9 and 11 year old daughters. 11 year old is still very "young" however she is 5'3" and 125#. I can't find a darn thing for her to wear (she fits ladies clothes, but the necklines are often cut too generously for a young girl's chest). We buy a lot of basic stuff (jeans, tshirts), but the choices are lacking in the "fun and cute" category.

[JFSinIL]

Back when my dds were small, Target had the nicest clothing for young girls. Appropriate. Then the store had to go and get "with it" and I stopped shopping there. You might do better buying on-line, or even on ebay. I do not know which websites still carry decent, quality kid's clothing nowadays.

[73349]

You might look at the Lands End boys' section for a better selection than you're seeing for girls, especially if you wouldn't mind some science-themed graphic tees, solid polo shirts, or tie-dyed or rugby shirts.

 

I agree about Hanna Andersson; lots of cute stuff, and I find it at consignment sales for my niece.

[Joker]

My 15 year dd shops in the boys / men's sections instead for shirts and athletic shorts (the only shorts she'll wear since the girls / ladies are so short and uncomfortable). The only thing she buys in the girls sections is her Old Navy jeans. A lot of the graphic tees she likes seem more unisex anyway but they're usually only in the boys / men's part of the stores.

 

She's been doing this for a few years now and it works well.

[Guest]

No help for you but I understand your pain.

 

My daughter likes school uniforms! She has discovered them and now has several girly polos and a short. They are on sale at target right now.

[fairfarmhand]

Matilda Jane?

 

 

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[EMS83]

Land's End.  It's wroth it.  When they have sales and promos, it's not quite so much sticker shock.  I hardly ever shop in clothing stores for any of us.

[EMS83]

Gosh, just wait...it gets worse, I'm sad to say. I have 9 and 11 year old daughters. 11 year old is still very "young" however she is 5'3" and 125#. I can't find a darn thing for her to wear (she fits ladies clothes, but the necklines are often cut too generously for a young girl's chest). We buy a lot of basic stuff (jeans, tshirts), but the choices are lacking in the "fun and cute" category.

 

My 11 year old isn't too far behind yours. 

[MercyA]

The Children's Place has been great for us. They almost always (always?) offer free shipping and their prices are very affordable.

 

My daughter likes the girly/sparkly t-shirts and tops from Justice.

 

I'm pretty much only able to find decent-length dresses on eBay and at Once Upon a Child (a resale children's clothing chain).

[Guest]

We do Gymboree during the red ballon sale, and Lands End, almost exclusively. The reason is quality plus child appropriate cuts. I'm with you 100%.

[solascriptura]

I've always had luck with shorts at old navy. You can get cuffed shorts and let the cuff down.

[Beaniemom]

My girls happily shopped the boys section for their shorts this year. Our challenge was skirts for my leggy 7 y/o.

[gardenmom5]

The children's place and jack and jill for more appropriate clothes. For this age Higher end stores may be better.

 

I never even took my girls to the Jr dept. Straight to misses.

[Clemsondana]

My girl moved to the big kids section when she was 5. So many of the girls' stuff is skinny, which is also a problem. Danskin at Walmart, lands end knit stuff, hanna anderson, occasionally target or old navy or belk (their store brand j khaki used to be pretty good). Recently we found a few things at justice, and she can now wear a womens XS for things like umbro shorts. I've also found long shorts at JC Penny. I have the reverse problem with my boy, who is tall and very skinny...all of the girl clothes are skinny and much of the boy active wear is boxy (for anybody who's interested, Wes and Willy shorts from amazon, lands end slims, and gap skinny, which has jeans and sweats are good). Both kids could sometimes find things at gymboree/crazy eight.

[Wheres Toto]

Gosh, just wait...it gets worse, I'm sad to say. I have 9 and 11 year old daughters. 11 year old is still very "young" however she is 5'3" and 125#. I can't find a darn thing for her to wear (she fits ladies clothes, but the necklines are often cut too generously for a young girl's chest). We buy a lot of basic stuff (jeans, tshirts), but the choices are lacking in the "fun and cute" category.

 

 

My youngest dd just turned 10 but is tall and a little on the chunky side.   We can get lucky at Target sometimes but some of the shirts are cut short and slim, which doesn't work for her.

 

We've had the best luck with fun, character clothes at Hot Topic (might want to look online because they do have some more adult stuff in stores), or getting things made a CafePress or someplace with a Z that is similar to CafePress.

[Jyhwkmama]

Target has some great STEM themed clothes for young girls.

[Wheres Toto]

Target has some great STEM themed clothes for young girls.

 

I love their new line of STEM clothes.  They don't fit my dd.  :sad:

[SebastianCat]

The juniors sections are worse than the "big girls" sections.   It's really hard to find misses' sized clothes for a size 4 teen, and especially hard to find clothes that she actually LIKES.   Her current favorite for t-shirts is Life Is Good - they are expensive, but she hasn't grown (outward) for over a year and they've held up really well.

 

For big girl sizes, we bought a lot at Children's Place and Justice.   They had great sales and Justice used to do coupons.   My DD still wears shorts from Justice.   I loved when maxi dresses were in fashion, because DD loved (and still loves) the maxi dress style.   

[Hypatia.]

My 11 year old daughter will only wear one brand of boys' athletic shorts, and boys' elastic waist cargo pants.

 

My 2.5 year old daughter only wants to wear shirts with Minecraft, Pikachu, or Star Wars on them, but luckily she has a nice set of hand-me-downs from her brothers. I hear ya on the shorts/leggings for her size, yeesh! 

[almondbutterandjelly]

You also might look at Academy Sports and Outdoors.  We buy many things from them for my dd and have since she was little.  

 

 

[heartlikealion]

You're right. I'm seeing more and more shirts that seem a little more tween than kid in design for young girls. Have you considered making any? Like iron on transfers or something. I used to make shirts when I was in my 20s? And dh has a t-shirt press and vinyl maker at his work so we've made a couple that way, too. Then of course you could get monogramming done. Not ideal for the whole wardrobe probably, but maybe a couple items.

 

My girl is only 2 and I am already horrified that shorts are so dang short. Ugh I dont even care to think of the older years.

 

Yep. I look for the "bike shorts" at the Children's Place. I prefer them to the "cartwheel shorts." I especially like the length if I am wearing dd. I think it prevents her leg from rubbing the fabric on the carrier.
 

[heartlikealion]

Most of the prices are out of my range, but I hear they sometimes have decent sales. https://www.rufflegirl.com. Might be something cute up your alley there. 

[fairfarmhand]

My oldest turned 11 at the height of the ULTRA LOW RISE jeans style.

 

It was alsmot impossible to find pants that would cover my ELEVEN YEAR OLD's bottom! SOOOOO frustrating. Why do they even make some things? Why does an 11 year old need ultra low rise pants?

 

I find the retro high waisted stuff not so cute but at least it covers the bum.

[RootAnn]

Yep. Y'all feel my frustration.

 

Surprisingly, Shopko does well in the 7 - 12 size range. Lots of butterflies, sparkles, and owls.

 

My biggest frustration lately is when I find something that works for one of my girls, it isn't available the next season. The shorts that fit and aren't obscenely short? Nope, that style isn't available anymore. Pants that don't have something plastered across the rear end - no longer available.

[kitten18]

I never found one thing for my DD in the girls department at Kohl's after she outgrew the Jumping Beans. It's much better now that she's in Juniors.

 

I used to buy her a lot of clothes at Crazy 8 (Gymboree's cheaper line). They have great clearance racks and sales.

 

I also bought her a lot of basics at walmart.

[Reefgazer]

Gymboree, TCP, Janie and Jack, and Naartjie were my go-to stores when my kids were that age.

I like Gymboree for this reason. If you shop online, it's easy to hit their sales. I tend to get my daughters clothes for Target prices or cheaper.  I also find that shopping Kohl's online, it is easier to find the clothes you want. 

 

Edited September 19, 2017 by reefgazer

[nixpix5]

Mini Boden, Hana andersson, and Children's Place all have older girl sizes that are precious and not to tweeny. I love Mini Boden the most for their sweet and sturdy clothing line for girls.

[blondeviolin]

The Children's Place. But to be honest, my 11yo would love to live in sweats and is pretty bummed that none of the ones I find fit. She's too long and skinny.

[Tenaj]

My daughter just turned 8 and this may sound strange, but I've been buying a lot of her clothes, especially dresses, at Sam's Club.  I just check the girls' clothes every time I go and have been able to purchase some really nice dresses that avoid the "mini-teenager" look at reasonable prices.  They also seem to be of a higher quality than some other retail stores.  Selection is limited, that's why I check almost every time I'm there.

[marbel]

The children's place and jack and jill for more appropriate clothes. For this age Higher end stores may be better.

 

I never even took my girls to the Jr dept. Straight to misses.

 

I tried that.  But we could never find anything below a size 4 (if not a 6) and she wore (I think still wears) size 2.   And still struggles finding clothes she likes and that fit. Though this year's styles seem to be working better.

[tdbates78]

Thank you all for the suggestions and for agreeing with me! :)

 

My girls are small for their ages, and have very slender frames. I've had problems in the past with Gymboree and Jack and Jill not fitting them well, mostly in the shoulder area. I haven't tried in awhile though, so I will have to revisit the stores. I completely forgot about Children's Place. The one closest to me closed earlier this year and I haven't been to the mall in awhile so I can hit up both Childrens Place and Gymboree. Love Mini Boden! We have had several cute dresses from them in the past. Not sure why they slipped my mind. Our Nordstrom carries the line so I will check it out. 

 

DH works for Belk in their IT department. He kindly vented my frustrations to one of the head buyers for the children's department. Not sure it will hold much weight, but it was nice of him to try because he was even less impressed with the selection than I was! :) I love their J. Khaki brand for cute, basic pieces but even that selection dwindles in the big kid section. 

[Barb_]

I like Gymboree but heads up that skinny kids can be hard to fit. My youngest is turning 9 and I just bought her some size 7-8 elastic waistband knit shorts that have several inches of waistband I have to safety pin. The size 7 swimsuit bottoms don't even try to stay attached to her body. They've always cut their clothes generously, but the problem has gotten worse in the past 2 years. And if we size down the dresses and pants are so short as to look outgrown.

 

HM kids has a combination of older styles and sweet little girl styles. They fit better here. But the clothes don't seem to last as long. I'll link it here in case you're interested in having a look:

 

http://m.hm.com/us/products/kids/girls?page=2

[73349]

We've had the best luck with fun, character clothes at Hot Topic (might want to look online because they do have some more adult stuff in stores), or getting things made a CafePress or someplace with a Z that is similar to CafePress.

 

Zazzle! I had them make a t-shirt for DS in his favorite color, with our school name and his class year. :)

 

 

I like Gymboree but heads up that skinny kids can be hard to fit. My youngest is turning 9 and I just bought her some size 7-8 elastic waistband knit shorts that have several inches of waistband I have to safety pin. The size 7 swimsuit bottoms don't even try to stay attached to her body. They've always cut their clothes generously, but the problem has gotten worse in the past 2 years. And if we size down the dresses and pants are so short as to look outgrown.

 

 

:iagree:  We also had that problem with Gymboree.

Edited September 19, 2017 by whitehawk