Do little girls wear party dresses to parties?

[beatie]

I feel incredibly shallow asking this.

My dd is 3 at the end of this month. She's been invited to a 4 year olds party from her Pre-school. We don't know anyone. So far DD has been to parties mostly at soft play areas, where I dress her in trousers.

I have dressed her in a pinafore dress and funky tights for other parties but she's usually the only girl. We've reached new territory and I'd hate her to be the odd one out if little girls wear twirly party dresses.

Hmm kinds depends on the party i think.

If activity type of thing then definatly trousers.

If it's a normal party like at someones house or something then, i'd say a nice but not OTT party dress is great.

My DDs are 4 and at the parties they go to there tends to be a great mixture of outfits. Some of the girls do go for the glitzy sparkly dresses and others will be in jeans and jumpers.

IME, lots of girls wear fairy dressing up outfits over their clothes.

IME, no.

dd2 just had her 7th birthday party - most kids were in ordinary clothes. And this has always been the case with both my dds.

Didn't stop dd2 wearing her tartan silk party dress with lace collar - she doesn't care!!

I think it depends on the area where you live, and the activities planned at the party. DD's friends all want to wear party dresses, so they do. However, one of DD's friends has started at a new school, and the mum tells me that those children tend to wear jogging trousers to parties.

Presumably you must RSVP to the party? I'd take that opportunity to ask the party host mum what clothing would be appropriate.

agree wth sandyballs

Some do, some don't. Whatever suits you and dd!

I think so long as it doesn't restrict her from doing things and so long as you don't care if it gets dirty you should dress your child in what you want to see her wearing

next party I'm sending DD as a white rabbit

I've not seen any proper party dresses yet - a couple have worn them to soft play parties where, imo, they are totally impractical even if they do look beautiful!

A few might wear a nice skirt with tights and a nice top but very rarely have I seen proper full-on party frocks!

maybe a invitation with 'dress, formal' on them are the order of the day

dd2 went to her school christmas party in a fairy outfit when she was in P1 - complete with wand and wings

What an interesting question! - I'd love to hear the spread on this.

Leaving out activity things or fancy dress, around us (central west London) it's pinafores and funky tights or flouncy cord skirt and top with sparkly applique (butterfly/unicorn, the usual); very occasionally a dress-with-sash, (generally looking a wee bit battered). Going north a bit, you might find silver miniskirt & logo'd top.

We've been to a few fancy dress ones though so usually they are dressed as princesses!

binkie what are you trying to say? That we are rough as toast oop north?!

I think she is !

gdg - would you turn your bloomin phone on please!

where north are you? ... St. John's Wood? (That's what I was getting at ... inverted snob, me.)

I'd say 3 is about the right age if you want to see her in a traditional party dress. I could get away with it with dd at that age but by 5 she was more vocal about her tastes - no dresses and no pink!

DD is 6 and up until now she has always worn what I would say is a party dress, Other girls dressed in everything from similar to jeans and sparkly t-shirt to clothes and high heels that would suit prostitutes.

I have looked at party dresses for this christmas but i don't long velvet ones this year. At her 6th birthday their was a girl wearing shoes that I couldn't have walked in and she certainly couldn't.

At 3 yrs I would say proper party dress is perfect.

My dd recently attended a party dressed as Little Red Riding - collective sound of "aaahhh" please

hehehe at JT - "Gdg is in trouble,Gdg is in trouble...."

Suppose I should clarify and say that the girls at dd's nursery mostly wore dresses/party dresses to birthdays. Now that dd is at reception, the parties have, to date, been dressing up parties, or if after school, the girls simply stayed in their uniforms. We haven't had a weekend party so far at this new school so am not sure what to expect.

My dd went to a birthday party when she was 3.5 and the only girls who were dressed in party dresses were three miserable little triplets who had been got up to the nines in identical lacy, netted, sequined numbers and who were too afraid to move because the dresses were too restrictive and uncomfortable for them to bounce on the bouncy castle or do Musical Bumps in.

For her 4th birthday we had a do at home, so children were grubbing around in the garden, playing in the sandpit, sitting on the grass - dd wore a pretty dress but not a party dress, and all of the other girls who came were the same or wore pretty tops and skirts or trousers.

She's since been to some 5th birthday parties, one of which was fancy dress, at the others all the children wore casual-smart stuff - smart trousers with pretty tops, that sort of thing.