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Original poster

Children's wear too genderized?

97 replies

MimiR · 19/04/2017 02:32

Hi
Is it only me who thinks that children's wear (both day wear and sleep wear) is just too genderized and segregated? It's not just the pink and blue thing but even the prints. I am yet to see a girl's tshirt with trucks or spaceships on it and a boys tshirt with rainbows. Are spaceships too masculine and rainbows too feminine? Who decides these things?
Honestly I would be willing to pay a bit more to see a wider spectrum of clothing prints/colours for our little ones and was wondering what you all thought.

OP posts:
Rubberduckies · 21/04/2017 07:21

I went to Jojo Manan Bebe yesterday to buy presents for friends who have just had babies - they had some lovely neutral newborn things!

Lots was split into 'boys' and 'girls' in the shop when there was no need, but when I looked online actually they just have 'baby tops' and 'baby trousers' the only specific section is 'baby girl dresses' which I can live with!

AppleAndBlackberry · 21/04/2017 07:34

I think there's more around now than 5 years ago. I had a little girl who was obsessed with dinosaurs at that time but I also didn't particularly want her to be mistaken for a boy. I could not find anything at all with dinosaurs on in girls' clothes departments. I got one or two tops from boys' sections in the end. I see quite a lot now, although the phase has passed for us!

LaundryQueenHatesBunfights · 21/04/2017 07:38

My DS is 17 mo and I often buy him girls jeggings, boys jeans are awful in most places, baggy and with those awful cotton waist bands and ankle bands (WHY?!) or really stiff like real adult jeans. Considering babies and toddlers have to sleep in their clothes during the day and often are pressed against you in a sling it's so impractical and uncomfortable. I had a look in primark for some girls jeggings for him and every single pair had some pink on or embroidered flowers or hearts, as if girls can't wear something as 'boyish' even as plain denim. It's bloody depressing. I usually get them in H&M, most of their clothes are pretty unisex. I get the point about buying from the other section but if I wouldn't put a girl in jeans with embroidered pink hearts on then I don't want to put a boy in them either.

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Foldedtshirt · 21/04/2017 07:43

I hope the tide is turning. Clothing in the 70s was much less gendered.

MiniAlphaBravo · 21/04/2017 07:44

My dd loves trains and Thomas the tank engine so we bought her boys pj's. I've had people assume recently that my baby was a boy despite wearing pink at the time. I don't really care at this age I think just wear/buy what they want. Doesn't matter whether aimed at the other sex. Sometimes though I do like to dress my girls in dresses and/or pink.

Coverup890 · 21/04/2017 07:45

Back in the 80s my sister had a "here comes trouble top" how times have changed!

My 12yo dd loves Adventure Time and has taken to buying from the boys sections as you only ever get Princess Bubblegum (the only pink character) in the girls. When she was a baby there was so much more choice its sad.

justinelibertine · 21/04/2017 07:50

Princesses. Pink. Bling. Cartoon characters. Peppa fucking pig. Tractors. Diggers. Dinosaurs.
If your child is under three chances are they don't know whether they like those things.
I have no problem in my DD wearing any of the above but only when she chooses to. Not before.
I don't give a fuck what she chooses, as long as it fits and is clean. (And er, is somewhat appropriate.) It's her body. Not mine to push what I want to wear on her.
Apparently I am cruel for not forcing her into slogan princess grandma loves me tops. Thing is. She can't read to work out what message she is displaying. Arrrgh.

honeycheeerios · 21/04/2017 07:51

I do think some people just look for things to offend them.

There are plenty of clothes that aren't sparkly and pink, but are marketed towards girls because it might be dress or a skirt, or the cut or shape of the item is a little more feminine.

There are of course pink glittery clothes with daft slogans on but not all girls clothes are like that.

You will never get away from a girls/boys clothes divide, because adults have ladies and menswear, it's just the way it is Hmm

Just choose items that you like for your kids Confused

SacharissaCrisplock · 21/04/2017 08:03

It drives me crazy too. I tend to just buy what I like from either the boys or girls section and stay away from stuff at is unnecessarily gendered.

Try blade and rose for some nice leggings (bit expensive but not bad in the sale).

It's just utterly pointless, the baby doesn't care what they're wearing so it's not like they're showing a preference for a particular colour!

MiaowTheCat · 21/04/2017 08:10

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

anxious2017 · 21/04/2017 08:14

My DS loves the "girls" clothes section and will often try on sparkly, glittery tops. He has a few but now he's getting bigger, they don't fit him any more because they are cut SO narrow - completely different to the way boys' tops are cut! I've started buying him size 8 ladies tops in the styles he likes but it's a shame I have to do that. I have no idea what parents of larger girls buy for their daughters!

AuntieStella · 21/04/2017 08:16

Children's clothes are far more gendered than when I was growing up, and I can't see that it's a good thing.

It is of course all driven by marketeers who want to maximise what you buy, and one strand in that is minimising what can be handed down form one DC to another.

It's all very cynical as a money-making ploy, pushed by people who are simply nit thinking about the consequences of increasing stereotyping in the very young. What was that latest study that found gender stereotyping in very young DC? Because that's not a good thing at all.

duchess22 · 21/04/2017 08:26

I got some very funny looks when I bought a set of boys babygrows for my 3mo DD in Next and when she was just born a woman in Tesco just assumed she was a boy because she had a green sleepsuit on and a blue hooded cardigan thing!!!! I used to love blue when I was little, are girls not allowed to wear anything other than pink these days?!

Sandsnake · 21/04/2017 08:30

There's definitely more gender neutral stuff available from the more expensive brands. I've long thought there would be a market for affordable, colourful, gender neutral play clothes.

And I'd never heard of Frugi! Just visited the site and there's some really nice stuff. Bit more than I tend to pay for 'everyday' clothes though. Thanks for the tip!

Sandsnake · 21/04/2017 08:36

There's definitely more gender neutral stuff available from the more expensive brands. I've long thought there would be a market for affordable, colourful, gender neutral play clothes.

And I'd never heard of Frugi! Just visited the site and there's some really nice stuff. Bit more than I tend to pay for 'everyday' clothes though. Thanks for the tip!

DrewOB0 · 21/04/2017 08:39

Boots do a lot of brightly coloured unisex clothing

MrsGsnow18 · 21/04/2017 08:42

This has been bugging me recently! I've been looking for 'gender neutral' clothes that aren't lemon yellow or just plain white! When I go to most shops though there are rows of blue and then rows of pink!
I loved frugi'a multi-coloured and rainbow things, I bought some items in their clearance (made them much more in my price range!)

metalmum15 · 21/04/2017 09:11

Can't you just buy from the opposite sex section? DD favourite hoodie and pumps are actually boys. She's always preferred boys baseball style boots because they're much darker colours, whereas girls always seem to be pink and sparkly. If you have a girl, you'll find once they hit teenage years everything in the shops is black /grey /khaki /navy/denim anyway. Then you start longing for a bit of colour.

metalmum15 · 21/04/2017 09:11

Can't you just buy from the opposite sex section? DD favourite hoodie and pumps are actually boys. She's always preferred boys baseball style boots because they're much darker colours, whereas girls always seem to be pink and sparkly. If you have a girl, you'll find once they hit teenage years everything in the shops is black /grey /khaki /navy/denim anyway. Then you start longing for a bit of colour.

passingthrough1 · 21/04/2017 09:16

My baby son wears a lot of Scandi unisex stuff, it's great but expensive.

Semaphorically · 21/04/2017 10:24

It's easier for babies than for older children. Baby DD2 wears only unisex stuff (and I often get asked "how old is he Hmm), it's relatively easy to find - H&M, Zara (on sale!), Sainsbury's, some M&S, some John Lewis.

But once you get past the toddler years it gets really hard. DD1 is now into bigger girls' clothes and I just cringe at what's out there. Apparently I have to choose either cutesy princessy / impractical (you can't climb a slide properly in a tutu) or over-sexualised. Both are inappropriate.

MiaowTheCat · 21/04/2017 10:24

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MiaowTheCat · 21/04/2017 10:26

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anxious2017 · 21/04/2017 10:34

No I can't just buy stuff from the other section. The girl stuff is cut narrow and doesn't fit him.

fairypink · 21/04/2017 10:46

Bizarre that anyone thinks there is anything other reason than supply and demand! Most little girls like girly things and boys like boyish things. Why oh why is this such a problem? We're wired differently - that's all!

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