Dressing ourselves is a vital part of growing up and from an early age kids will learn which colours and styles they do and don’t like. As we get older the way we dress ourselves becomes a form of self-expression and can say a lot about who we are. So, should we be encouraging kids to be interested in fashion from an early age? We have a look at the various arguments, for and against.

Sharing interests

If you have a strong interest in fashion, it is possible that this will have rubbed off on your kids and that they too are interested in the clothes they wear. If so, sharing this interest could be a great way to bond and an outlet for your child to express him or herself. Shopping with little ones can be a nightmare, as children easily tire of walking around countless shops. Instead of a shopping trip out, then, why not use the internet to browse clothes with your child? You can look at children and baby clothes online and talk with your child about their likes and dislikes.

Making a good impression

Children will have many ‘first’ experiences as they are growing up: going to their first birthday party, their first day at school or nursery, their first big family occasion, or first memorable Christmas. These are all opportunities in which they will want to be themselves, make a good impression and build friendships. Clothing can say a lot about who we are, so getting kids interested in fashion from an early age will help them to use and choose clothing to reflect who they are. Through fashion, children can learn that dressing smartly for their first day of school is important, and wearing something special to a friend’s birthday party shows that they have made an effort.

Spoiling kids

Choosing expensive designer threads for kids is seen as unnecessary spoiling by some, who feel that top labels should be reserved for adults only. Many think that children’s clothing should be about comfort and fun rather than about which designer they are wearing, and that dressing kids in labels is more about parents showing off than it is about their children’s choices. Supporting a child can be financially pretty hard some for some, and filling their wardrobe with the latest clothing lines is an unnecessary expense.

Growing up too fast

Some think that fashion is not an interest for kids, and that preoccupation with appearance could actually have a negative impact. Instead, children should be interested in age-appropriate toys and games. The teenage years are when many adolescent children become more self-aware and it is during these years that they start experimenting with fashion. Encouraging a child to develop this interest early, some argue, could bring with it all the appearance-based issues which are connected with adolescence.