When is it time for a crop top?

[Nikki2ol6]

My little girl keeps wearing what she used to wear at her dance class it's almost like a crop top and she likes to wear it for school but wants it on every single day and I have to wash it and she gets very upset if she can't wear it! She has vests but wants this other thing on! She's 7 by the way. When did your daughter start wearing crop tops?

[ChinchillaFur]

Yep my dd is 7 and in yr3 and she has just asked for one. We bought a multi pack of very plain basic white ones from Sainsbury's that are just like a vest but shorter.

I think a few other girls have started wearing them recently. Not a bad thing, just girls becoming aware of their differences and own bodies.

Interestingly she has also put a sign on her bedroom door asking us to knock before coming in. They are growing up fast

[PetraDelphiki]

I wish mine would! Yr 5 and needs to be wearing one...point blank refuses!

[Megainstant]

Never. A vest, nothing or a bra.

[Stillwishihadabs]

Dd is 10 yr 5 we bought some for going back to school this year- (in a lingerie shop in Sicily)

[TheoriginalLEM]

my dd is 11 and will only wear a vest she doesn't like the feel of tight things. arrggghhhh.

[Megainstant]

I think they are silly. What's the point of them? Dd3 is 10 and hates them. She's totally flat chested, if she wasn't I would buy her a bra.

[surreygoldfish]

I think they are really useful if you find the right one. DD doesn't wear vests (and hasn't done for years although this would do the trick if she did) and doesn't need a bra but absolutely needs something as is clearly developing. (Yr 5 but very tall and her elder brother went through puberty early). After trying some others which were uncomfy we've got M&S ones - age appropriate, not fussy and fit nicely. If she was flat chested I wouldn't bother.

[puglife1]

My daughter started in about year 5 I think. She still wears them now and is in year 7. I have bought her bras but she prefers the crop tops.
You can get them cheaply from primark, Asda etc

[MrsMandS]

I remember being 7 (way back in the 80s!) and getting laughed at because I still wore vests.

It's a bit of a mix in this house. My DD1 is 7 and hates crop tops. I bought her some, but she found them uncomfy. She wears nothing or a vest if she's cold. My younger daughter is 5 and nicked the aforementioned crop tops and refuses to wear a vest.

I'd let her wear what she likes.

[SoupDragon]

Never. A vest, nothing or a bra.

They are just a short vest.

DD asked for some in Y5 so I bought her some. Because she wanted them.

I don't get the angst about them.

[Gileswithachainsaw]

Whenever they start wanting one.

I don't see the big deal that needs making of what is effectively a short vest.

I didn't need a bra til I was 16. Can't tell you how fucking embarrassing it was to not have anything to wear under my shirts cos of some parental imposed arbitrary age cut off.

[Afreshstartplease]

I don't see the big deal that needs making of what is effectively a short vest

^ this

[ShelaghTurner]

DD1 is nearly 9 and has recently asked to wear crop tops. She's a bit chubby so is hard to say whether anything is happening up top or if it's just chub but she says she feels more comfortable with a crop top. And also I think a lot of her classmates are wearing them now so she wants to fit in. She wears a vest over the top of it when it's really cold.

[midcenturymodern]

dd1 got one in about Y4 I think. I would have bought them younger, had she asked. My mother was in the 'silly' camp. It's a horrible feeling as a kid to be told you are silly to want a perfectly ordinary piece of underwear.

[Lazybeans50]

Am interested in this. DD yr 5 has asked for crop tops but I bought (pretty) vests to keep her tummy warm. Perhaps I am being an unreasonable mummy if crop tops are the thing to have.

[Starla268]

DSD (9) started wearing them recently mainly because vests were a bit hot in the summer and the crop tops look nicer under some of her tops (strappy vests etc). She is definitely at the stage of needing something under her clothes as things are becoming more visible and she finds the crop tops comfortable and I think feels they are a bit more grown up than vests. We got a few packs from matalan - nice and cheap.

[ineedamoreadultieradult]

As a crop top is essentially just a short vest and not some sort of lingerie designed to be appealing to men I don't see the problem with a child wearing them when they feel that they would like to. I can't imagine how uncomfortable a child who is staring to feel they want to cover up must feel to be denied the opportunity to do so.

[TheHighPriestessOfTinsel]

Lazybeans50 I also suggested my (then yr4, now yr 5) daughter might be warmer/more comfy in a pretty vest, and got some nice cami-style ones with lace detail . Now feeling a little harsh - I might revisit the crop top issue.

[Seeline]

I too cannot see the problem with crop tops. The basic ones really are just cut-off vests, no shaping, padding or adjustable straps.
I think when girls are becoming aware of their bodies and are still forced to change in the same classroom as boys (as is the case at most primary schools) if a short vest makes them feel more at ease then go for it .

[MooseAndSquirrel]

Yr4 dd has just asked for some, she's totally flat chested, but her friends wear them - I got her some plain white ones in Asda.
didn't really think twice about it, not like she's asking me for thongs and wonderbras

[Gileswithachainsaw]

I can't imagine how uncomfortable a child who is staring to feel they want to cover up must feel to be denied the opportunity to do so

I can tell you it's hugely embarassing and uncomfortable. Vests are for babies toddlers and pre schoolers... noting worse than being 7/8/9 plus and being treated like a baby.

Puberty can start as young as 8 and many schools have girls and boys changing together. It worries me sometimes on MN just how many developing children are feeling really self conscious cos people are so hung up on age appropriateness. Of they need or want one then sodding get some.

Of course as was in my case puberty can also start really late. So having watched all the girls get crop tops and be denied them.for my self just because I didn't "need" one well, it's not fun. Amd may I remind people that white shirts are see through. And polyester can rub . Do the math...

[BertrandRussell]

When she asked. If your dad wants to wear then get her some more. Honestly.

[steppemum]

I have 2 dds aged 11 (just started secondary) and 9. They both wear crop tops.

The older one could wear a bra, she is a bit borderline, size wise, but she has lovely soft comfy bras and she hates them. She much prefers the crop top. She needs something, bit too old and developed for nothing, and most girls at school are in bras or crops tops.
I see them as an alternative to a bra for younger/less well developed girls. She likes the Asda ones which look like a very soft sports bra (racing back, wide straps)

dd2 has asked for them, because her nipples are 'tickling and rubbing' against her shirts. I assume she is starting to get some hormones and that they are now sensitive. The crop top is soft cotton, and provides a layer between. Again, to young for a bra, but wants something.

My girls both found that vests were a no-no from about age 6. No-one in their class wears them, and they get laughed at for being 'babyish' for wearing a vest. No ideal, but that is how it is.

[ShelaghTurner]

All I will add is that dd1 found that the cami type with the very thin straps drove her crazy as the straps kept slipping down. She's much happier in the racer back type. 2 in a pack from Asda in white with little hearts along the bottom!