Clothing Rules
Do you ever feel old, or just think you’re getting older when you look around and see the way some younger girls dress? Well, I don’t think it has anything to do with our age! Kids in general are dressing older sooner, and with that comes lifestyle choices. I don’t know about you, but I’m in my 30s, and my daughter has to live by rules I set in place, and that includes what she wears!
So when I pull up to school and see some of my daughter’s fellow classmates, I often wonder how the heck she got out of the house wearing what’s on her body. My daughter tells me that her mom dropped her off looking like that. I’m like…W-H-A-T??? I wonder if the mom understands that she is allowing her daughter to wear those clothes. Does she realize what is happening by her clothing choices?
Society has made it practically impossible for our preteens and teenage girls to cover their bodies with clothes. Girls move from sweet little girl clothes to revealing and sometime disturbing clothing choices.
Last month, I served as a judge for the Boone County Fair Royalty Competition. One of the questions that the contestants were asked had to do with beauty and the role media plays in it. One of the girls simply stated that beauty wasn’t outside but inside. I completely agree, but I want to add to this: Beauty is on the inside. It’s in your heart and one of the ways it shows is through the way you dress (this is not just for girls). The girls of today are pushed and shoved in so many directions to fit in and to “look” the part. I remember I did. I wanted to wear what was in style, wanted the shoes, clothes and book bag, all of which were posted on TV ads, in magazines and posters out at the mall.
One of the better choices I made in my parenting career was when I attended a conference “party” with my daughter called Secret Keeper Girl. This was a great bonding experience for my daughter and I to share, but one of the best things that came out of this was some rules about clothing choices:
1) Put your hands to your sides: If your shorts or skirt are shorter than your fingers tips, they are too short! We take this rule with us when we are clothing shopping, and if we find the cutest shorts that my 10-year-old “can’t live without” but they don’t pass the test, she cannot get them! Female adults are role models in this area. If you are shopping with a teen or preteen girl, help her to understand that why she feels the need to wear the shorter shorts. What is the reasoning for this? Are the good motivations? I bet not!
2) Raise your hands straight up: If your shirt comes up where you can see your belly, the shirt is too short. Again, we are role models and need to help our girls understand that they do not need to show off their precious bodies at the age of 10, 12 or even 15. This can be very hard when the advertisers are saying mid-drift shirts are what is in style!
3) Thumb and pointer on collar bones: If your shirt comes down and shows your chest, it is too low cut. Ouch! I know this one hurt as I sometimes catch myself with shirts that do not meet the mark. But guess who is there to remind me I am not passing the test…my little me!
This is tangible information that you can take with you shopping with your daughter. I know, don’t you wish you would have had this a few weeks ago when you were school shopping? The next time you are shopping looking for “that outfit” for the next event she is to attend, remember these simple and helpful rules. Better yet, maybe you could apply these “rules” when shopping for yourself. Remember, we are all role models.