Modern Holy Communion

[goldfluffyclouds]

So DD is about to do her First Holy Communion.
The idea of a fancy white dress is making her want to pull out of the whole process... But at the same time I know that she will want to look nice and feel special.
Any ideas on a cool outfit? (She has definitely said an absolute no to the idea of a white trouser suit as I already ran that by her!)
Is the white colour essential or just recommended?
She does have a 'thing' about comfort - so is generally found in supersoft leggings and t-shirts. She will wear dresses but they tend to be dark simple styles - as soon as they vere into pastels, flouncy overly girly styles then she's not keen.
I'm not much of a style guru - so if I could show her a few ideas we can work out what she might be comfortable with...

[quote ChirpyChirp]Something like this over a white vest and leggings?

www.riverisland.com/p/girls-white-embellished-kimono-492125?gclid=CjwKCAiA9tyQBhAIEiwA6tdCrI3UVKZOcZKn1XkxGv1TVWFOgmpKCp7muJnY_k_L3lDrkawMOQag3xoCxzAQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds[/quote]
This is a good call. I think that would look lovely and agree with PP who said she should wear what’s she’s comfortable in.

Have you thought about getting a dress made for her? You could choose any pattern and have it made up in white - or with a bit of colour.

The one first communion I have been to had a range of girls outfit. Most wore some form of white /cream coloured outfit but not everyone - one wore gold and one purple. Style ranged from full on mini bride to leggings and a top.

Mileage will vary according to the specific church and congregation.

Check with the school or the Church or have a chat with other parents about what their DCs are wearing. Everyone here still wears white and any colours would be very noticeable. If your DD isn't comfortable standing out then definitely stick to white. The last Communion we attended, there were lots of plain white dresses and one white jumpsuit. I hope you find something she likes.

My niece initially pulled out of doing FHC but when my husband and I got married she got to make her FHC during the ceremony (our wedding was a Nuptial Mass with HC in the high Anglican Church) and her attire was white with purple and lilac accents... I appreciate I may have derailed the thread a little

What about a Twiggy crochet dress?
www.shutterstock.com/editorial/image-editorial/twiggy-model-in-crochet-dress-891855a

There are various patterns about - eg this one, not too skirty
www.stitching-together.com/adelaide-easy-crochet-girl-dress/

Incidentally it isn't compulsory for girls/women to wear white when making their FHC. I was 40 when I made mine along with 3 other adults and I would have looked a right plonker in a big white dress. I wore a very nice, custom made, navy shift dress and jacket.

I worked in a Catholic school and one girl a few years back wore white jeans, a tshirt and white converse. No one cared and she was happy.

I don’t think it has to be white. For baptism you use a white shawl as a symbol of purity. But for communion the boys aren’t in white so as far as I know it’s just a tradition but not a requirement.

One girl I know wore a plain, non frilly white dress with her comfy black leggings and runners underneath.

Personally I think it’s important to advocate for our dc when they’re struggling to fit in with pointless social traditions. Let her wear what makes her comfortable.

Aw @Punkyfish3000
Your niece looks beautiful.

@ParkheadParadise

Aw *@Punkyfish3000* Your niece looks beautiful.

Thanks, she was one of the flower girls

I work with the First Communion programme at our local parish and although most girls do go for the traditional white dress, we've had some children go for a summery, but dressy jumpsuit style in recent years. Veils are (thankfully) falling out of fashion too.

@Punkyfish3000

My niece initially pulled out of doing FHC but when my husband and I got married she got to make her FHC during the ceremony (our wedding was a Nuptial Mass with HC in the high Anglican Church) and her attire was white with purple and lilac accents... I appreciate I may have derailed the thread a little

@Punkyfish3000 her dear wee nervous feet! God bless her x

What about a simple plain white dress, one that she at least likes the style of if it was a different colour, just to “ endure” for the service. If you can get it, or have it made, in a natural fibre like cotton or linen you could have it dyed afterwards to a colour she does like, navy or black even.

I hated my dress I wanted a long dress but now the woman who dragged up had her way. This was 1975.

That dress is gorgeous that your niece wore.

Back in the 80s I wore a perfectly ordinary Sunday dress. I'd never seen the hoopla over outfits until my own dc. Everyone dressed like they're going to be in a wedding party.

Is she doing it with other dc or can she do what she wants? I appreciate full white bridal number is off-putting but equally she might not want to stick out by being the only girl not in white.

I think it's ridiculous that she shouldn't be allowed to be comfortable (if smart). I agree with Universaltruth Jesus doesn't mind.

hi thanks all for the ideas - sorry went a bit quiet - had an accident in the family so suddenly dress/outfit concerns got dropped...
DD is feeling happier about the idea - that we'll be able to find a more relaxed/comfy outfit which fits the white brief.
Next couple of weeks are going to be a bit hectic for other reasons but I'm confident now we'll find something. I'll try to post back when we find something - its not till May, and we've got other stuff to deal for now but thankyou for all the ideas and links... x

For my Communion, (approx 20 years ago) there were very few girls who had the big white dress. Most of us wore a nice white dress from a high street store. My mother bought me a nice white linen set (shift dress with a frill around the waist, and a matching linen jacket) from Vertbaudet. You could have a look on the Cyrillus or Jacadi websites for some nice, chic but not OTT girls dresses.

A friends daughter is a complete tomboy and wouldn't entertain the idea of wearing a dress. She wore a sailor themed trouser suit and looked really well.

www2.hm.com/en_gb/productpage.0925590002.html
This is very simple in white jersey.
She could maybe wear it with leggings?

For my Anglican confirmation (age 10) I wore a lilac dress with dark purple tulips on and a lilac cardie over the top.

For my Catholic FHC (when I was 26, after RCIA) I wore a bright golden yellow top with a royal blue midi skirt with hollyhocks around the bottom. Everyone else wore black but I was happy, damn it!

Amazon have some nice stuff if you search 'white tunic dress kids' - could go over some comfy leggings?

At my nephews FHC a couple of years ago there was a girl wearing a mint/khaki/pastel green (sorry the colour is hard to describe) trouser suit, white t-shirt, converse and a side half plait. Looked amazing and kind of stole the show from all the girls in traditional dresses and boys in sober suits. It was hard watching a child exuding more coolness in a 45 minute mass than I will ever have in my own life.

I’d let her wear whatever she wants that’s “smart” enough to respect the occasion but she is happy in.

Sorry more coolness in a 45 minute mass than I’ll have in my whole life (not own life!) 😂

There's a gorgeous ad with the little girl wearing red polka dots 😍 is it a mixed school? As far as I remember the only thing is a white shawl for baptism and after that as long as it's not satanic you're probably grand - unless she doesn't want to stand out.