This is when you take her out of private school and put her in public where she can be herself.

Anonymous wrote:It seems like for kids nowadays, it goes from little kid clothing to teen style and it starts earlier too, by 8. There isn't an in between tween stage. It's sad.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FWIW I don't think she needs to be limited to muted athleisure. I think she just needs some help with some brands and styling. My DD9 likes graphic tees from Abercrombie Kids, Zara, and Old Navy.

She had sneakers similar to these https://lolaandtheboys.com/collections/girls-sneakers/products/star-girl-glitter-sneakers. Basically like Golden Goose knockoffs and got alot of compliments.

With Wicked 2 coming out there will probably be alot of related tshirts or hoodies.

Leopard print leggings with a black shirt and a denim jacket?

https://factory.jcrew.com/p/girls/categories/clothing/pants-and-leggings/printed-leggings/CM489?display=all&fit=Classic&colorProductCode=CM489&color_name=desert-khaki-vintage-br

I would take her to a mall and let her explore Abercrombie, Old Navy, Zara to get some ideas. I feel like 8 years old is when I started shifting to having to take my DD to actual stores to try things on vs just ordering a bunch of stuff online and assuming that she would like it.

Things like cherries, bows, capybaras are in so if you get shirts with that kind of stuff you can pair it with flare or wide leg denim.

It is a stage where girls start transitioning their fashion away from Tea Collection and Boden but it doesnt mean that she needs to jump into crop tops and teen wear. I think alot of girls start to accessorize more with bracelets, necklaces, keychains on their backpacks, jibbitz in their crocs etc.

Thanks for the brand recs and links. I think Lola and the Boys might be a sweet spot for her because she likes bright colors and sequins but its a bit more grown up that some of her clothes. She does have a skirt from there I bought her over the summer I think she likes, I'll have her take a look.

I think the bummer is that she genuinely likes the clothes that are now deemed "babyish." Like I'm not buying her Boden and Hanna because it's what I want -- she likes it. She loves the skater dresses and the prints. She likes "tutu dresses" and will ask for them specifically for her birthday and holidays. When I take her in places like JCrew or Zara, she tells me the clothes are boring because she doesn't like the limited colors.

But I'm doing what I can. It's a tough age! When I was in elementary I exclusively wore hand me downs from my sister and my clothes were always too big and a bit out of fashion, so I do want to get her stuff she likes that fits and makes her feel good. What I'm trying to avoid is adding to the pressure to conform to a style that doesn't really feel authentic to her. I especially don't want to squash her love of color and prints because that stuff makes her so happy! She's always been that kid who loves playing dress up, playing princess, spinning around in a dress, etc. I don't want her to feel like she has to change to fit in.

Anonymous wrote:Do you have a babysitter or other neighborhood middle school or high school girl that your daughter knows that could go to the mall with her to help pick out clothes?

When my daughter was in about 5th grade a friend of mine and her teenage daughter went shopping together. Never has my daughter felt more confident about her clothes than the clothes she got on that trip. She felt “teenage” cool. Even though the clothes weren’t anything much different than what she already had.

Anonymous wrote:Get some knockoff stuff online, kids won't know difference.

Maybe straighten her hair and teach her how. Let her grow it out.