How to style children
This month Natacha is styling her two children Cian and Maeve for styling success when it comes to styling the children.
Styling for children is just as important as styling for adults. When I was asked to write my column on this topic, it got me thinking about how easily the concept of dressing authentically can be transferred to children- why not start them early? Why not empower them to be themselves without fear of judgement?
Children love wearing fun and cool clothes. When it comes to boosting self – esteem, it’s important to let children be themselves and empower them to use personal style as a tool to showcase that.
There’s no doubting that dressing the children can be stressful, but fear not as this month, I have enlisted the help of my 2 beautiful children to model some of the favourite looks we’ve had fun creating together and I have put together styling advice that will help you style your children in fun, comfortable and authentically stylish clothes- you’re sure to achieve styling success in dressing your children everyday!
Comfort
Did you know that children who are more comfortable in their clothes are more likely to be more involved in playtime and be more social. If you’re children are any way like mine, they love to play, run, dance, jump and generally be little bundles of energy. So comfort is absolutely essential! Opt for natural fabrics e.g. cotton, which will be easier to move around in, wash and allow temperature regulation.
Going 1 size larger is a great way to promote added room for the kids to comfortably move around in and grow into for longevity. For ultimate in child comfort, look for simple styles in bright colours or neutral colour/prints with pops of bright colours e.g. simple stripy dress (1 size larger) by H & M teamed with a block colours (red tights and orange trainers) as styled on Maeve.
Make it fun
Personal style is about injecting personality into the clothes we choose to wear, so encourage your child to dare to play with colours. Do not restrict colours to gender specificity – if boys want to wear pink or red let them! Cian is funny and outgoing so opting for bright red really makes his looks fun and punchy e.g. matching red joggers set with a pop of red in his trainers by Adidas.
Prints are also a great way to make styling fun- the bigger and bolder the print, the better. Be sure to experiment with mixing prints or teaming a bold print with bold clashing colours e.g. bold printed floral dress by Joules teamed with bold red jacket as styled on Maeve. By teaming with their favourite footwear e.g. wellies, you are creating clashing styles that will boost their confidence and fun vibes.
You also can’t have fun in style without accessories- they add charm and glow to their look. Style your child with a funky hat, colourful bow tie, cool sunglasses or fun headbands. There’s no need to over accessories here as it will steal the grace and cuteness of the outfit- so 1 or 2 accessory items is plenty. A great accessorised look is an all denim outfit with cool trainers and a colourful bow tie as styled on Cian.
Empower them
As I always do with my clients- Let’s break the cycle of only wearing the clothes we think we should wear, let’s instead encourage children to choose what they want to wear. Make it a fun and collaborative process using this easy guide –
1) To reduce overwhelm- firstly preselect 3 of the same item you feel is appropriate for your child to wear e.g. tops/trousers/skirts
2) Ask your child (out of those 3 options),which one they would like to wear
3) Work through every piece of an outfit in this way right through to accessories until the full outfit is created
4) Let them wear confidently the pieces they have chosen to wear
Always opting for pieces that go with the personality and age of your child will make empowering them much easier and collaborative. For example, Cian loves Rock music and Spider Man, therefore styling him in a biker jacket, grey jeans and spider man printed shirt speaks of this side of his personality and highlights his cool, and edgy personality. Whereas Maeve loves nursery rhymes, flowers and Peppa Pig- so teaming a floral dress with Peppa Pig wellies showcases this age appropriate side of her personality.
Encouraging the use of clothes to reflect your child’s interests and personality will help your child carry themselves confidently – no fear of judgement here!
Top tips - dos and don’ts
Avoid grown up fashion
Avoid over accessorising
Always ask your child if they can jump/run/ move comfortably in their outfit
Let your child choose the clothes they want to wear- they might just surprise you!
Let them dare to wear funky and bright colours and prints
Go 1 size larger to maintain longevity of clothing
Want to learn essential styling skills to style yourself and your children with ease? Authentic Style club (launching 5th Jan 7pm) access 2 weeks for free