To hate the blue-dinosaurs-cars-trucks-navy-grey thing for baby boys?

[pandarific]

I hate it! My son is a tiny baby - he doesn't know wtf a dinosaur or a car is and couldn't give a shit.

Why do so many tiny baby clothes have to be so depressingly gendered? Even the more modern style supposedly tasteful ones for baby boys are all navy and dark grey, way too adult - why does a month old baby need to be trussed up like that?

I've got some lovely bits from m and s and Debenhams which are very cute without being HEY I'M A BOY I LIKE CARS - stripy ones in light green, yellow, white etc with little shapes and animals all over, so it's perfectly possible. Am I alone in my hatred?

if you think the tiny baby clothes are bad then wait till you get to toddler size. no more bright colours, no more cute animals, just dinosaurs spaceman and trucks.

Yanbu. I have a girl so have the opposite problem. I also don't have much money, my budget for clothes extends to very very occasional one offs from the little bird range in mothercare when it's in sale but otherwise I'm stuck with supermarket bits. The shops around here are very heavy on the pink for girls, blue and grey for boys. What a lot of people don't seem to realise too is that many shops stock different things depending on local area, when I lived in a more diverse area I got loads of gorgeous colourful clothes from all of the supermarkets, this isn't reflected at all in my local area now. I have to buy most things online and get things delivered to store because they just don't stock it.

It gets worse once they are out of the baby range, at least there is a good range of unisex stuff that is easily available until the age of 2. Trying to buy the next age of clothes hasn't been fun, the boys stuff is all bland and the girls all pink and sparkles.

It does matter though, my daughter has just turned two yet she's already getting funny about wearing her dinosaur wellies (which she loves and chose herself!) because people keep commenting on a girl wearing them. We actively buy her a mix of colours to wear yet she's already being told that she should have pink versions of things. And it goes beyond clothes, when we were in the toy shop spending her birthday money the week before last she was happily playing with a big schleich dinosaur that she had picked up when somebody came along and tried to get her to play with the horses because "surely you like horses better, all little girls love horses!" it's not just about clothes. It all drives me mad.

6+ it becomes camo and skulls

Hell would freeze over before my PFB is put in camo and skulls at 6! That's for when he's 16 and hiding round the back of the bike sheds surely?!

If you want pinks or brights, the girls' sections are your first port of call.

If it's toys you want in pink, The Early Learning Centre/Mothercare is particularly 'good' for this. They do everything in a normal version and a pink colourway, including cars.

However, their (expensive) Little Bird baby and toddler range is great for brightly coloured boys' clothes without a skull in sight, and goes up to age 7ish.

For a broader range of primary colours without camouflage for the over-fives, try Mountain Warehouse. We have some lovely stuff from there.

Frugi/maxomorra/duns/jny lots of lovely colour there.

Agree with PPs - after they are 3 all the nice colours stop and it's all sludge! I pay way over the top for Boden etc to get nice bright colours for my little boy.

A sample of Mountain Warehouse's ranges from previous years on ebay.

Yes girls section will have pink, but it will also be covered in lace and frills and glitter. YANBU. And I agree it gets worse when they get older. Why do baby and toddler clothes have to be so gendered - I would rather check t-shirts and trousers, instead of goigh through 2 departments of boy t'shirts and girl tshirts. Toddlers don't have different body shapes by gender.

People like different things. I really detest Scandi style clothes like Frugi and brights like Little Bird. Soft blues and greys are lovely IMO.

By 16, camo and skulls are babyish! It's all about the brands by 16. Even DS1 age 10 is starting to be brand conscious, god help me.

My DD (8months)r egularly gets mistaken for a boy.
I find the joggers/trousers for boys are made much better and a touch looser than girls. I dont want to be putting her in painted on leggings all the time!
Lots of dinosaur and nautical stuff for her too.
But i just buy what i like and what looks easy to put on and take off. And comfy for her to roll around in.

I hate the gendered clothing too! I don't shop on the highstreet now as the girls ranges are hideous: leggings with frills, pointless bows and capped sleeves and glittery kitten pictures. Even Jo Jo are all hot pink and polka dots and horrid little collars! Frugi is very gendered too, although not as bad.

Try Scandinavian brands, lots are unisex and colourful and last well. I like JNY, Polarn O Pyret, Beau Loves, Bang Bang Copenhagen, Papu, More than aFling, Tootsa, Duns, Molo, Villervalla etc.

Or buy from the girls ranges. My friend buys lots of colourful bits from Next for her son.

I love that kind of stuff on my 15 month old, but I won't berate you as you're allowed your own Taste xx

Who declared dinosaurs boy stuff anyway? Half of them were female..
But you can get either sludge coloured dinos or if a progressive brand puts them on girl clothes, they are pink and sparky. Literally. I recently saw a top that had a dino princess on it. Nice smily herbivores only of course.

'Tis true, 'tis sadly true.

But at MW (who had better pay me commission!), they've got a Brachiosaurus skeleton in their clearance stock www.mountainwarehouse.com/028686-sb-dino-tee-p20917/navy/

or an orange dinosaur on sludge. www.mountainwarehouse.com/028690-sb-dinosaur-tee-p20920/dark%20grey/

You defo don't need to pay ridiculous prices for all the Scandi stuff. You just need to be picky about what you choose from ordinary shops. Look online if your local selection is poor, as they usually have free delivery to stores.

Mothercare is pretty crap these days but occasionally has stuff in.
Supermarkets as mentioned have some gems, especially babies and toddlers, not so much older kids.
Next used to be better, but defo still have some good stuff in their "Younger boys" (3m+) range.
Boots is fantastic. Only to age 6 sadly but great.
Mountain Warehouse as suggested, yes.
Decathlon too. And these two are cheap and practical, because they are clothing designed for moving about in and keeping you cool/warm.
H&M's younger boys range is also excellent - the one from 18 months+ - I find their baby stuff is dull and overpriced these days.
Marks and Spencer have a lot of nice, bright, basics - their multipacks are fantastic - and some unusual stuff - I know pink dinos are de rigeur these days, but they were the first high street brand I ever saw pink dinos in, so they aren't afraid to mix it up. They do have some really heavily gendered stuff too, but they're OK to sift through.

Then if you must have POP, Frugi, Boden - there are second hand selling groups specifically for these brands on FB which are worth a look. I do tend to find though that even second hand these items are more than I want to pay for kids' clothing.

I’d forgotten MW, DS was given a t-shirt from there with a glow in the dark Dino that he loves and a nice bright pirate ship.

i must be the only one who loves my baby boy in pale blue (without any emblems or writing). i love sainsburys and next boys range too. id never look for neutral clothing for him. and as for my girl i dress her in traditional smocked frocks / spanish wear.with underskirts. bows ribbions. frills the lot . im happy . shes happy
really cant understand when people dress their kids mismatched . summer dresses (in winter ) with long sleeved tops undernearh paired with purple stripped tights that really dont match outfit.

rubyslipper1 as long as you and the kids are happy then that’s what matters! People have different tastes, personally I prefer brights. DS is 2 and we let him choose his own clothes now - within reason - so he’s frequently mismatched and he often picks the brightest items he can find in the wardrobe. If he chooses a t-shirt then I insist on a long sleeved vest under it to keep his arms warm, i attempt to coordinate but sometimes he has his own ideas!

I agree op.
I think it has gotten worse.
My dc are older and I remember buying red, green, navy, yellow, orange for my ds.
I had a lovely Disney dress for dd in cream and brown and a dark green Disney baby grow.
There was lots of lemon, white, mint about for new borns.
Contrast this to recently my friend had a baby and there was a huge push in shops towards either "pink" or very bland brown and blue.
The pink section was indeed frilly and glittery. Nothing with male gendered words on only things like " mummy's little princess".
The same with the pale blue/Brown all geared towards boys.

I believe that it has got worse since its common to find out the sex of your child before you give birth now and all the baby shower/gender reveal parties were guests take gifts.

Clothes were far nicer when my d's was a baby.

Then when my dc were young teenagers they often wore the same clothes. Coloured chinos, converse type footwear colourful tops and sweat tops.

Why don't you look elsewhere? There are plenty of things in different colours and unisex clothes.

as for my girl i dress her in traditional smocked frocks / spanish wear.with underskirts. bows ribbions. frills the lot . im happy . shes happy
really cant understand when people dress their kids mismatched

I'd rather mismatched than dressed in a way that hampers their movement and reinforces the dated idea that girls should look decorative. How does she climb/run/splash in puddles in a smocked dress? What purpose do frills and ruffles serve a child, other than male adults coo over her?

I dress my DD (4) the same way I'd dress a boy. Quilted leggings/joggers, merino underlayers (winter), cashmere/wool/cotton sweaters. Waterproof fleece-lined boots and ski jackets. I try to match but prioritise comfort and functionality over matching. She loves soft textures like velour, waffle knits, fleece. Occasionally wears a dress for a party, or in summer when it's hot.

I feel so sad for girls who are trussed up in ribbons and petticoats and shoes they can't have fun in.

*make not male!

People looking for bright colours for boys of 6, 7, 8 or so - we have a lot of Lego brand stuff in bright colours. It does have pictures etc but, obviously, Lego themed - Ninjago etc.

It's also easy as anything to get plain t shirts in any site and colour online for older children.

My teen girl and nearly teen boy both dress similarly to thrir friends and wear each others clothes sometimes, "Sis have you got any clean jeans!" "Bro have you got a jumper I can wear tomorrow" is quite a common call when theyre putting their clothes out for the next day. We're abroad though, perhaps kids dress differently...

neon t shirts for your teen boys :o