My Little Fashionista

I know this Fashionista. No it’s not me. It’s my 4 year old daughter.

It would be fair to say that I am not the most fashion forward person. For the past decade or so, I have worked in the news business. We news journalists aren’t known for being the best dressed, especially those of us who work behind the scenes. I have never been someone who spends too much time on clothes and fashion. I like clothes, nice clothes and even occasionally look at fashion magazines but at the end of the day I just don’t have the time. (OK, truth be told, it’s more like I don’t make the time.)

When my first child was born I bought her lots of really cute clothes. Lots of girly stuff, pink, frills, ruffles and skirts. Once she got old enough to express any kind of opinion I soon learned that she, like me, really didn’t have the time for all the really girly stuff. She is more of a pants-and-t-shirt kind of girl just like her Mom. Phew. I escaped with that one, but wait, I decided to take my chances with another pregnancy. And I got myself another girl. And this one is a girly girl for sure.
 
I have been challenged by my youngest daughter. By the time she was walking she was starting to express her fashion sense, slipping her feet into the fanciest of my shoes (those would be the white high heel shoes I wore at my wedding). And of course, she has to throw a bag, any bag that could pass for a purse, over her shoulder. And very early on she began demanding skirts. I was stuck.

She was wearing her big sister's hand me downs and there was not a skirt in the pile. Not one. And as my little princess told me when I tried to put a nice frilly pair of khakis on her, “those are man pants. I will not wear man pants”.  So I quickly had to scramble to find some girl clothes, especially a few good skirts. Luckily my friends had some girly-girl hand-me-downs to throw my way.

Now that my little Fashionista is heading off to Junior Kindergarten I am worried. Getting out the door on the best of days is hard, but dealing with a fashion crisis every school day could just about send me over the edge. So I reached out for help and a little advice. Parenting expert and author Alyson Schafer extended a hand and some great words of wisdom. Here’s what I learned from Alyson:

Remove clothes that you don’t want them to wear on a daily basis (bathing suites in winter, confirmation gowns you don’t want them to wear to school) allow them to pick their own clothes, even if it means mismatches. Congratulate them on getting dressed on their own and notice when they strike a match. Alyson says it will all fall into place eventually. (I hope so!)

If they change 3 times a day don’t say anything about it. It’s their business. If they burn through clothes teach them to do laundry. (Great tip Alyson. I could use the help with housework!)

If they change as a form of dawdling treat it as a dawdling issue and not a clothing issue. Alyson says some kids dawdle over eating, dressing, tooth brushing. Your Fashioniesta may not care about clothes at all; they just found a venue for pissing you off!


I think my youngest will always have a love of fashion (clothes, shoes, purses, hair, make up). It is clearly who she is even though she is only 4 years old.  One thing is for sure, the fashion budget in our house is getting bigger every year.

I better start saving now for those teenage years.