can you help me dress dd1?

[steppemum]

dd1 is 11. She is tall for her age, and on the stocky side. She doesn't do dresses or skirts at all.
Her preferred clothes at the moment are camouflaged shorts, ds hand -me -down T shirts, fleece jacket and trainer boots.
She pairs it with her scout penknife at home. She would be happy living in a tent in the wood all summer.

She starts secondary in sept. She has already decided to be possibly the only girl in year 7 in the school trousers that no-one else wears.

So, I am more than happy for her to wear what she likes. But she is off on a week long residential next week. It is more summer holiday than PGL, they are going to Isle of Wight. Today I asked her if she would like some new clothes to take and she said yes.
I asked because she has hardly any clothes that fit at the moment. We found her some shorts just before she went on scout camp at half term, but we really struggle to find stuff. The ones we found were from Tesco's mens, camouflage knee length baggy shorts. She only likes the boys dept, but she has hips, so is the wrong shape and ends up in a huge boys size. She won't do anything in pink or purple, or with patterns or sparkles.
But she doesn't have enough clothes.

She needs some trousers that are lighter than jeans, and another pair of shorts as least.

size 13-14, she is 155 cm tall, finds womens/girls stuff too narrow - eg doesn't like shaped T shirts, only box T shaped ones.

We also have a tight budget. Often buy Tesco and Asda)

Help!

[AgeingArtemis]

Ah, she sounds just like me at that age! I still prefer sleeping in a tent to a house

It's very tricky as I assume most mens trousers will be too big and most boys trousers will be too narrow in the hips. Will she wear womans trousers if they don't look girly? I wore (and still do) womens trousers and mens tops.

For tops H&M boys are cheap and big- I can fit in age 14+ no problem (I'm 170cm tall and size 10)

These trousers look good but unfortunately they seem to be sold out of the biggest size www2.hm.com/en_gb/productpage.0199913016.html

Plenty of shorts www2.hm.com/en_gb/kids/shop-by-product/boys-8-14-years/shorts.html?product-type=kids_boys14y_shorts&sort=stock&offset=0&page-size=60

Try to find some womens cargo trousers maybe? Much easier in the early noughties

[steppemum]

yes she would love cargo trousers.

She is a bit on the cusp between kids and adults. So we got away with mens shorts, but trousers would be too long.
We haven't tried any womens trousers as we haven't seen any she liked

[steppemum]

the H&M trousers look perfect, but I think they will be too tight.

Most of the shorts she would reject as being too short, but the clamdiggers might do it

thanks

[Diddlydokey]

Something like a harem pant might work for her? Next do them in petite
www.next.co.uk/g31100s2#148974

[Diddlydokey]

www.fatface.com/crops/washed-utility-crops/invt/908559

[Naicecuppatea]

Would something like this be any good for her? I read your post and immediately thought of outdoorsy type clothing. www.gooutdoors.co.uk/craghoppers-basecamp-womens-trousers-p323223?gclid=CNP4gv7tys0CFcO4Gwodx_wN7A&gclsrc=aw.ds

[Diddlydokey]

They come generous in fat face so an 8 would be like a 10. Not sure if it big enough for her

[VioletBam]

Get her some joggers and harem pants and some t shirts and stop worrying. She is who she is and you need to encourage her to dress to please herself.

[ItsAllGoingToBeFine]

Can you take her to Mountain Warehouse/ Blacks / other outdoor shop?

[TinklyLittleLaugh]

FWIW OP, DD1 was the only girl in the whole school who wore trousers when she started in year 7. Even some of the teachers tried to tell her off because they didn't realise it was an option on the uniform.

By the time she finished year 11, all the girls wore trousers.

[steppemum]

violet - I think you have completely misunderstood the OP?

I am not worrying, I am trying to find trousers she likes that fit.
Harem pants - no way not a chance
joggers - fine she wears them in the winter, but they are too hot for now, and she NEEDS some CLOTHES to wear.

Not asking for help changing her style, asking for help to find cargo type trousers and shorts that fit her.

size
She is size 13-14 as in age 13 -14. I don't know if that is the same as a womens' 8 or 10? She hasn't ever tried on women's clothes as she rejects them all as being too adult/grown up.

We did have a look at a couple of things in Go Outdoors and she wasn't keen. I must talk to her and find out why not. She loves cargo shorts, so cargo trousers would seem to be right for non jean type trousers??
(who knows the inner workings of a pre-teen mind)

[MunchyMunchkin]

Could you get some surf style shorts? The surf brands would suit her style and fit requirements and you can pick them up on eBay for a few quid. Billabong, Roxy etc.

[steppemum]

I don't think she would do the bright coloured surf style.

The issue really is fitting. I just looked again at the H&M. Loads of stuff on there that I think she would wear, but largest size is 13-14 in most of it.

I will have to wait till she comes home to measure her and see if it will fit. Some are available in 14+ so that might work.

I have never ordered from H&M online. We have a shop near us but it never has these sizes in, only younger kids. Is that a thing? Do I just have to order on line? I hadn't realised they went up to 14 + online.

[steppemum]

those fatface shorts look really good (resists the temptation to order a pair for self)
like the sale price too!

[steppemum]

tinkly - very encourged by your dd.
ds goes to boys school next door. dd will go to the girls school. Ds has been giving her a really hard time about how it is Not Cool to wear trousers. dd looks at him as if he has just grown horns and shrugs and says So? I don't like skirts. End of discussion!

I love the fact she knows her own mind. And I am hoping that cycling to school will help with the stockiness and make clothes buying a little easier.

[FauxFox]

Nice shorts at catalan boys range
and maybe eBay for combat trousers?

[MERLYPUSSEDOFF]

Are you close to a bootsale? She could give you an idea of what she likes if she sees it. I frequently wear men's trousers ( I have a strange arse to waist ratio) but have also found some really nice women's stuff too and not had to spend loads for just one holiday. I normally wear mens 3/4 with ladies tops. Or sometimes the men's retro type tops as the sleeves are longer. Have you thought about getting lightweight joggers and shortening them - think t-shirt style material.

Good luck. I am terrible to shop for.

[slug]

I second the Mountain Warehouse idea. Trousers that zip off at the knee to make shorts

non girly shorts

Pockets for the pocket knife

[gingerbreadmanm]

I would go for surf shorts. Vest tops. 3/4 sleeve tops. Hooded gillet. Harem pants.

[SparklyLeprechaun]

Decathlon hiking shorts are very light and comfortable, also cheap. Ditto tshirts and cargo trousers

[FeliciaJollygoodfellow]

Definitely try H&M, the 14+ fit my 15 year old DSS who is slim and 5ft 7ish. They've got loads of nice shorts in the boys range - I only have boys hence shopping in that area, but have noticed they are longer and have pockets!

Does she like logo tees? Redbubble are pricey but do lovely tops, the women's relaxed fit in an XS would be good. It's basically a website that hosts artists work, you find what you like and order the image on a product of your choosing.

[steppemum]

Do H&M ever have the larger sizes in store?

I thought they only went up to an age 10 ish, I had no idea they did larger sizes.

It would help to go and try them on, as boys shorts aren't always the right shape.

Thanks for all the suggestions. We will have a trawl through the websites and I'll measure her and see what we can order.

[CherryPicking]

Yes, go with outdoorsy stuff. My DD is much like yours and I'm probably going to channel her in that direction. Practical, and more of a 'look' than just supermarket stuff (although we do that too).

[itstheyearzero]

Would she wear these? Bit pricey but they're probably quite good quality. How tall is she?
www.next.co.uk/g6534s7#104476

[AgeingArtemis]

My local H&M has the larger sizes, they are in a separate section but on the same floor (womens is one floor, men and kids the other). They have sections for baby, 2-10 and 9-14+ iirc