Should parents play Fashion Police?

(listicles.com)

My husband doesn't think so.

I disagree.

When my 7 year old child wants to wear sandals and socks to school

(just like his grandpa has been known to wear on occasion),

I feel that it is in his best long-term interests to inform him
 that this could well be interpreted as mega-daggy at school 

and could make him the source of ridicule,

possibly ...OK, I did say probably... for a very long time.



When my 6 year old wants to button his school top all the way up to his chin,

or alternatively, channel the cover of a Mills and Boon book lothario
and leave all the buttons undone,

I cannot stop myself from correcting a perceived fashion faux pas

and undoing or doing a button up so that he is...well, normal.

I like to think that I don't sweat the big stuff.

If my kids head out the door wearing 3 clashing shades of blue,

no worries.

After all, they are hardly likely to get pulled up by their 6 or 7 year old peers
to tell them that Cerulean blue, Prussian blue and Ultramarine
really don't not compliment each other.

In time, I hope that they will get an eye for colours

and maybe care enough to dress without clashing.

Gumboots and bathers with a fairy dress is expected uniform for a 3 year old.

But once they start school,

I do feel the need to control what little bit that I can

to keep them safe from peer pressure.

I admit that I have no idea of what the tweens and teens of today are wearing.

The fact that I can buy hipsters and sequined boob tubes for my 3 year old

scares the heck out of me and I really don't want to know.

(I do hope that "wear-oversized-baggy-trousers-that-drag-on-the-ground-

with-a-really-loose-belt-so-that-everyone-can-see-your-really-cool-designer-undies" look has run its course.

It probably already has.
Who would know?

Not a 42 year old mother of 3 under 8 years)

(befuzzled.wordpress.com)



I am not a slave to fashion.

I wear what I love and/or what is comfy, even if it may not be the best look for me.

The last thing that I want is for my kids to want this or that,

because it is what everyone else is wearing.

(Besides, even wearing what is trendy now will set them up for ridicule,

some time in the future.

I am still hiding evidence of some of my fashion choices in the eighties.

Who'd have thought perms and harem pants could now be considered such a mistake?)

I do want my kids to grow up with a sense of individuality,

not just in what they wear,

but in their decision making and their interests.
I am not a fan of conformity
but I also appreciate that life can be easier for kids
who don't stand out in the "wrong" way.

(blogcentrale.co.uk)

Mr Boozle reckons that I will make them self conscious

by informing them that wearing socks and sandals will ruin their lives forever.

I didn't quite say it like that...

but I didn't let my son wear socks and sandals to school.

Was that wrong?