hillfarm Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 Actually, both she and I need help. We live on a farm at the end of a dead end road. We don't go many places other than to our small local towns. I am tired of both of us going around dressed in rags. Everything we own has farm stains and barbed wire picks on it. I am turning over a new leaf and in the sacrificial spirit of parenting, am helping dd first. Yesterday we went shopping. Oh my. It appears that the stores are not carrying many clothes we consider appropriate any more. We came home with new church shoes, tennis shoes, undies, navy, black, and brown tights, and 4 dresses and a skirt from the Goodwill. I aksed dd about her style preferences on the hour ride back home from the nearest mall. She said she likes the swirly, flowing, bright "folk" styles and also her basic tomboy look of jeans, sweats, and t-shirts. She is not at all trendy, as we are usually completely unaware of them and don't have the money to spend on them anyway. We need big time help because it is the blind leading the blind here. Any suggestions? Where can we find these things? I can sew if there isn't anything in the stores that would work. I am looking mainly for suggestions for her town and church wardrobe, since the tomboy stuff will still be needed for around here at home for helping in the barn, climbing trees, rolling down hills and playing in the mud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farmgirlinwv Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I don't have much advice, but I wanted to say " I completely understand!". UNtil Sept. we lived in the same setting. I took care of the farm and the cattle. I went to town in Carhart overalls and workboots! I did have some nice clothes for going shopping (45 min away, 1 way). Kohl's sometimes has nice things. My dd is in womens sizes so I can't really help you. Just wanted you to know there are other women like you and dd! ((hugs)). BTW, I'm sure you know those skirts are super easy to sew. I made one for dd and she loved the twirlyness of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 This is a tough question. I love to talk about fashion but it's really hard to give advice without seeing your body types. Is there a IRL friend or church person who might like to go shopping with you? I would love love love if someone IRL asked me to go shopping with them. It would be a blast. Even if I didn't know them well. I would go if anyone asked me! But if you're on your own, here's what you have to do: Try lots and lots and lots (and lots) of things on till you figure out what you look good in (bootcut jeans? straight leg cut?). Once you know what looks good on you, it's easier in the future to get those same types of clothes. (warning: be careful about "classic" cut jeans for women. They're known as "mom jeans" and make you look dumpy. Yes, they fit and sort of look good, but really, they're "mom jeans" and everyone will think you're dumpy in them.) You'll know when you've found something you look good in. All of a sudden, you'll say, "Wow! That's a really nice shirt on me!" I didn't have a big wedding, but I've heard people say that about finding a wedding dress. If it's the right one, you just know it when you see yourself in it. Here's where I shop: Value City (until they closed) TJ Maxx Ross GoodWill (a lot) WalMart Keep going to the stores over the year. Don't expect to find everything in one day. Wait another couple of months, then go to GoodWill again, when new stuff has been donated. Here's another piece of advice: Take a day and go to the more expensive stores and try on the clothes to see what fits, but don't buy there. Then, later, go to Goodwill and search for the clothes that fit you. Trying things on at Goodwill w/o knowing what types of clothes fit you could take days. Better to go in already knowing how to narrow your search. And buy on sale at the end of the season. I go to Kohls, but always buy on sale. I can't afford full price at Kohls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yslek Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I'm not at all a fashionista, but when you mentioned you could sew, I thought of Ottobre. It's a Swedish (I think) company that has a quarterly pattern magazine. The magazine has many cute, trendy, but modest children's patterns with instructions. The downside is that you have to trace the pattern off of the pattern sheet yourself, and add seam allowances. I think I paid something like $17.50 for the single issue I bought, but that includes a lot of patterns in a wide range of sizes. You can check it out here: http://www.woolythread.com/mags.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denise in Florida Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 If you or your daughter like to sew I can try to describe a skirt pattern my girls loved when they were a just a little older (12ish). Pick three fabrics that go together. (cotton is best) Measure around your daughter's hips (example 16 ins), measure from waist to top of thigh (example 6 ins) leave a little extra for seam allowance. Adjust the measurements below to reflect your daughter's size. My girls were very slender. Cut two strips of fabric 1 (16 ins by 6 ins). Sew them together to make a 32in circle. Cut four strips of fabric 2 (16 ins by 6 ins). Sew them together to make a 64 inch circle. Cut 6 to 8 strips of fabric 3 (depending on how full you want the skirt bottom) - 16 ins by 'remainder of how long you want the skirt'. Sew together to make a circle. Hem one side of fabric 3. Run a basting stitch on other side. Draw the basting thread to gather the fabric to 64 inches. Sew fabric 3 to fabric 2. Baste other side of fabric 2, draw to gather fabric to 32 inches. Sew fabric 2 to fabric 1. Turn top of fabric 1 under to sew a casing. Draw elastic through and tie off or stitch closed. This is a simple and fast skirt that can be made in all types of colors and is very swishy and can be dressed up or down. My daughters had one in pastel gingham shades of yellow and blue and used it for years to dress 'praire girl' style. I taught my girls to sew using this style. (No zippers, button holes, facings, etc.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coralloyd Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I think that you are talking about hippie style when you say, "swirly, flowing, bright "folk" styles". Here is a sight with a bunch of links to hippie and natural clothing http://www.happyhippie.com/directory/clothing.htm. If this isn't what your talking about I'm sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aubrey Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 http://www.twirlygirlshop.com/ Pricey, but a good site for twirly ideas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillfarm Posted February 6, 2009 Author Share Posted February 6, 2009 Garga, my dd is tall and is actually starting to develop a bit of a feminine shape already. Me, well, I look a lot like your avatar... HA! In my dreams. I fear I am a rather dumpy housewife type right now, but I'm working on it. That was another reason I started with dd. Gives me a little more time with that Resolution diet:D. IMO, I think what dd is saying when she mentioned the folk style is that she loves the bright colors, soft and flowing fabrics, and most importantly, the comfort level. I specifically asked her about the hippie stuff and she said she liked some of it but not all. One of the dresses we got at the Goodwill was from Sears, but could have been bought in the 1970's, 80's, 90's or last summer. It has that peasant blouse neckline, long sleeves gathered at the wrist, is gathered at the waist and then has one 8" ruffle of the same fabric at the bottom. It is a peach color, all the same fabric. Personally I think it is kind of ugly, but am hoping to be able to dress it up a little with a cute fabric belt and some jewelry and cute shoes. All I could find in so many of the stores was basically made from the knit material t-shirts are made from, and were IMO, thin and cheaply made. The "look" was very standardized and practically the same from store to store. Unfortunately, it wasn't a look that would do much for dd. I did notice that girls shorts were mid thigh length this summer, which is a relief from all that Daisy Duke stuff (okay if you're 19, but not for my 10yo). Dd did say that she would like some cute capri pants. I'm not sure if she understands the difference between capris and 3/4 length leggings. But I fear the leggings would be cold in the winter with her lower legs sticking out and hot in the summer with the form fitting fabric. Oh, how I wish you all could come shopping with me! I fear I have a low tolerance for it. I go in, I have trouble finding styles I like, I am generally disappointed in their quality and construction, and then I look at the price tag and keel over. I could use someone to talk me down when I go into what dd yesterday called my conniption fit. (Is there a smilie for that?) At this point I am thinking that I will check out a lot of websites for ideas and keep visiting the local thrift stores. It is about a 2 hour drive to get to a mall of decent size, so it will be a while until I can get to one. And I may as well start sewing some of those swirly skirts. I know I want her to have one in denim chambray and one in nice cottons. I also like jumpers, so may try to do something with that. For summer I am thinking lots of gauzy cotton sun dresses with matching little under-t's. When did your dd's develop a sense of their own fashion? Did they adopt yours or do they have strong preferences of their own? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st_claire Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Try LL Bean. They have classic styles built to last for a very fair price. Can't go wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 (edited) While it's very $pendy, keep an eye out for Mini Boden items. They have a good size range and most fabrics wear well. well. We have several of their flowy skirts. A couple we got from the website www.bodenusa.com , but we have been able to find some other of their items second-hand. Edited February 7, 2009 by LibraryLover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty in Pink Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 You might check out The Children's Place online sales. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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