Last fall I wrote a blog post about the very short shorts that were available for my very young daughters from a certain very large retailer, and it got a very big reaction. (For anyone wondering how many times I could cram the word “very” into one sentence, the answer is four.) At the time, the pictures I snapped with my iPhone at my local Target became international news. Before I knew it, a crew from Good Morning America was in my living room, Glenn Beck flew me to Texas to appear on his show, and I was getting flooded with requests for interviews and permission to republish those pictures. My post really seemed to touch a nerve with parents who were frustrated with the limited options available to our girls in retail stores.
After seeing my post, Target’s Public Relations department reached out to me and made several offers. At first we were talking about me being able to speak with one of their designers. Unfortunately, they decided to take that off the table. But they did allow me to send them some detailed feedback via email and they sent me two shipments of samples from their children’s line over the past few months. The shipment with the shorts for my girls from this year’s line arrived a few weeks ago. Yesterday it was finally warm enough for the kids to wear their new shorts. This year Abby is in a size 6 and Penny is in a size 3T.
Our peach tree is in bloom, so we went out to the back yard to have the girls model some of the shorts that Target sent.
To Target’s credit, they did send several pairs of shorts that met my criteria for length. This means they do have options in their children’s line this year for girls who want shorts with inseams longer than an inch. They also sent a pair that are similar to the ones that Penny was wearing in my original post, A Target Intervention on Behalf of my Daughters. The inseam on that pair was about an inch and a half.
The frustration I have been hearing from literally thousands of moms over the past few months is that when they go into their local Target or other retail stores, the only options on the shelves seem to be the ones with the smaller inseams. We are not sure what the deal is with this.
From wanting their kids to try on the clothes in the dressing room, to not having internet access, to being on cash-only spending plans, families had lots of reasons for needing to buy their clothes in person from a retail store rather than online. Yet over and over longer inseams popped up as online-only, more expensive, “premium” options– not just at Target, but almost everywhere. Moms are speaking out across social media and asking for different options in their price range. The girls themselves have been studied by the American Psychological Association and report that they do not like the options being offered to them. Princeton has done legitimate scientific studies that prove that women who dress in more revealing clothing are more likely to be seen as objects and less human. (The fact that we don’t want that to be true does not make it any less true, unfortunately.)
No one seems to be able to provide a logical explanation for why we are still seeing this trend on our store shelves, but we definitely are.
People may say that stores are only selling it because moms are buying it, but for six months now moms have been telling me that they are only buying it because it is often the only thing available on the shelves.
Here are just a few of the pictures and comments that moms have been sending me:
Ellen said, “I have two teenage daughters and shopping for shorts having inseams longer than an inch is like trying to find water in the desert or modesty in Vegas: it’s difficult. It’s sad when boy short underwear is actually longer than shorts meant as outerwear. And shopping in the women’s department is not an option because with the gradual inflation of sizes there, even a size 0 there is too big.”
Rebecca added, “I can’t find a single pair of shorts for my 15-year-old that are longer than an inch. Although there’s a multitude of boys’ basketball shorts, cargo shorts and jorts for boys that go to their knees, girls are only expected to wear thigh-high short shorts. It’s hard finding a pair of shorts suitable to wear to high school because any of the fashionable shorts available do not pass the fingertip length test.”
And Courtney commented, “I never thought I’d have to buy boy’s shorts for my modest, long-legged 7-year-old daughter. Shorts that fit around her waist are significantly shorter and tighter. As a culture the clothing industry is sending the wrong message to our girls.”
If you are listening, retailers, I still think we can do better.
And if you are a mom who does prefer to shop online, Jess from Don’t Mind The Mess has put together and entire post about where you can find shorts for your girls with longer inseams.
You can also follow along with my Pinterest board, where I’m collecting options recommended by readers.
Follow Stephanie {Binkies and Briefcases} ‘s board Cute and Modest Options for Girls on Pinterest.
If you’re interested, you can read about all of the original reasons I care about this issue. Some of them might surprise you.
If you want to keep getting updates from Binkies and Briefcases, make sure to like my Facebook page or follow along on Twitter or Instagram.
Thank you and keep going!
I did buy several pairs of Circo shorts in store a few weeks ago that to me are a good size – Girls Draw String Bermuda shorts. I did not measure the inseam, website says 9.5″ but that might be a stretch. They are soft cotton with elastic waist in several colors (solids). My daughter is 5 but tall and wears a M (7/8). http://www.target.com/p/girls-draw-string-bermuda-short/-/A-16866703#prodSlot=_1_57
Thank you for sharing this post. I have 5 year old boy/girl twins and am so frustrated when I buy their clothes. My son can still wear his shorts from last year because they were long to start with, but not so much my daughter. Even if the waist still fit, the shorts barely covered her bottom. What is up with that?
It drives me crazy and it isn’t just Target. I would consider Carter’s to be a high-end brand and most of theirs are super short as well. As a result we end up sticking to scooter skirts and the like. I have found exactly TWO types of shorts for summer so far that aren’t what I consider “hoochie shorts” for my 4yo. They need more options IN STORE than short-shorts!!
Great followup! We have a long way to go! Thank you for all your effort. Girl Gotch would love to work with you and help keep spreading the awareness of more choice needed to keep our girls Comfortable. Covered. and Cute 🙂
Keep up the GREAT dialog and hard work. I am rooting for all of us moms to embrace modesty and purity in our daughters. Keep going!
Your girls look adorable in their new shorts! But, I get it. I know this is still very much a real and continuing issue and so appreciate you fighting the fight for all of us. Thank you, Steph!
Thank you for your update and for the links to stores offering these longer shorts. I don’t understand why the stores don’t seem to stock them. They are obviously popular with the moms (who are the one’s spending the money), as they sell out quickly, even online.
I can’t find but 1 pair of longer shorts in Target, and they are the purple polka dots your daughter has. Everyone says to buy boys shorts or to wear leggings instead, but it is already almost 90 here in Texas, and I shouldn’t have to buy boys shorts. I started making my own. They are simple play shorts for home and day care, but they are appropriate for a 2 year old. I hope ro make many more and add them to my Etsy shop for sale. That list is not ok. Every store needs to have more, and more of them in store. It is a start, but not enough. I wouldn’t want to pay double the price for shipping, because I only wanted 1-2 pairs of shorts. Which is why they need to be easy to find on a shelf.
We did find some great looking and appropriate shorts at a few thrift stores to supplement my sewing.
Good luck moms, and let’s keep fighting.
I often buy clothes for my grand daughters, ages 5 & 10 and I too, wasn’t happy with the overly short shorts available. This past weekend, I had to go out to buy some shorts for the 5 year old. so I decided to give Target a try. While they still had the short shorts, I’m happy to say, they also had longer shorts that came to just above her knee. Perfect!
The other problem we have in our family when shopping for shorts is that the waists are the low-rise style and often times even the Bermuda shorts are the skin tight fit.
Check Old Navy this year. Longer styles are making a comeback. They are calling them “Bermuda.”
I have found that Old Navy carries the longer inseam shorts, I have been buying all my daughters shorts from there for the past 4 years.
it gets no better in the teen department!! My 14yo daughter has found one style of shorts at Old Navy that are fairly long, but none at any other stores we’ve tried. It is frustrating.
I bought the CUTEST pair of shorts the other day at Walmart ($5). I don’t normally shop there because it makes me feel kind of crazy, but I might now. They had three lengths available for this short, too. http://www.walmart.com/ip/FADED-GLORY-GIRLS-CHINO-BERMUDA/40593877 It seemed like a lot of their shorts had the three available lengths.
The ones i saw in my local store are still to short
Thank you thank you thank you. Please keep up the hard work. I believe in dressing my family modestly. Shame on Target for not letting you go and discuss the issues. Let’s keep letting the retailers know.
Great article.. I feel your pain..I have a 10 yr old granddaughter who is 5 ft 2 and we have always had a difficult time finding age appropriate clothing for her.. We will NOT dress her in hochie shorts, or spaghetti strap dresses, neither of which pass school dress code rules..Jr sizes don’t work as they are cut WAY too low
It’s not just young girls clothes. The same issue goes all the way to high school. Those short shorts are everywhere and a little inappropriate. And the dress code length is impossible to find in the stores so my daughter wears Capri or jeans to school everyday regardless of the temp a ture outside.
Now, if they would do something, anything about the t-shirt issue! I held a boys medium superhero shirt up to a girls XL and the boys was STILL fuller and wider. It is ridiculous that I should have to buy my 5 year old a size 14 shirt to get something that is not form fitting and too short!!!
Iagreeandappreciateyoureffortstomakechange! IwasactuallyattargetinOregonlastweekandboughtthreepairsoflongBermudasportsinsizelargeandmediumformytwindaughters. IthinktheywereCherokee brand,intwodifferentstyles,andreallycute! TheyalsohadlongdenimcutoffsbutIdecidedtojustmakethosemyselffromoldjeansinsteadofbuyingthem,haha. Nowiftheywouldmakelongerskirts!
Add lace or some material to the bottom or put leggings or bike shorts underneath
Nowifyoucouldlearnwherethespacekeyissomeonemightactuallyreadyourcomment.theytaughtwritingearlyoninschool.
I recently bought my baby daughter (seven months old) some three-piece pajama sets by Carters. They have a cute top, long pajama pants, and shorts that really should just be advertised as a “diaper cover.” My son had plenty of Carters pajama sets as a baby, and the shorts were almost knee-length. Even shorts for BABIES are shorter for girls than for boys. WHY??
My 15 year old has taken to wearing boys jogging shorts because we can’t find and modest length short. We have given up on skirts and dresses all the way a around. If they fit her waist, her butt cheeks hang out.
Thank you for posting this! My tween is going through body issues now that she has her monthly cycle and the Kohl’s utility shorts caught her eye! We ordered two pairs. (She is currently only wearing pants because she doesn’t feel comfortable in short shorts and we couldn’t find anything decent in the stores). I’m so happy!
I don’t have girls, and my boys are older now, but I am a great supporter of this cause. Please keep talking about it. I support you!
I noticed this summer Walmart’ Faded Glory (kids grow so quickly that walmart is just fine by me) has several styles with tags boldly displaying their inseam…. their “shorties” have a 3 in inseam and they get longer from there in 3 or 4 different lengths “shortie, midi, Chino & Bermuda” i believe. I’m very satisfied… maybe you could be too 🙂
Wow what you did was sexualize little children. Kids get hot, they can wear some short shorts. Disgusting that you got rewarded for your bitching.
I agree
I’m very sorry you feel that way, but the American Psychological Association actually studied the sexualization of girls and reached a much different conclusion. They put together an entire task force of doctors and public members, did a lot of research, and released a 72 page report. Interestingly, they actually reached out to me after my first post because my blog posts are in line with what all of the research says. Those who have followed my blog over the past six months know that my readers even helped raise funding which was donated towards additional research. Anyone can read the report by the APA Task Force on The Sexualization of Girls here:
http://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/girls/report-full.pdf
OMG quit being prudes. They have other stores to shop at if you don’t like their clothes. You sound like an entitled stuck up prude. Good grief people find something better to do than complain about everything. Get a freaking job making clothes if you have such a problem finding what you want. You are an example of what is wrong when mommy gives everything you want and no consequences.
There are also blogs to follow up on. So please take it from yourself: quit being prude. Find something better to do than complain about this blog. Get a freaking job writing your own if you have such a problem. You are an example of an internet troll.
Seems to me that the blog owner did nothing much except showing what was already out there.
My kids are grown now, but I have been known to buy pants or capri’s and hem them myself! I realize not everyone can do that, but a lot of the times when pants would get too short, I would do this if it still fit in the waist. And don’t even get me started on finding bathing suits for 8 year olds that didn’t look like they were for 20 year old swimsuit models…and that’s not a compliment!
Yikes! I don’t have a daughter but I have 2 nieces and ran into this problem. I’m not add bothered by short shorts for my HS niece, but for my 7 year old niece I was horrified to see the short selection! Waaaaaaay too short!
Kohls and old navy both carry longer length shorts in little and big girl sizes…..target isn’t the only store out there to shop at.
Yes, yes, and yes. My daughter is 16. She would love clothing that is longer than diaper covers, but perhaps not bermuda. We also have issues with bathing suits. There is very little left to the imagination in the suits, and very little support in the bathing suit tops. Why can’t retailers/designers respect our girls enough to actually clothe them?
Even infants are what I call booty shorts! There’s barely enough fabric to cover a disposable diaper, forget our cloth diapers.
My daughter is 8 months old and wears a 12 month clothing because she’s so long but she’s very slender. I’ve been to every retail store locally and the only available options are either capri, leggings or booty shorts. Online buying isn’t an option for me due to needing the adjustable elastics inside the waistband which is also hard to find. Im already having a difficult time finding modest and affordable clothing. I fear as she gets older thus will worsen if the retailers don’t provide other options. Don’t even get me started on the bikinis for infants !
Thanks for the links and post!
It’s not just about sexualization, it’s also about body shaming. Not every young girl is a perfect size 6. Girls shouldn’t have to feel bad about their thighs at any age.
I agree. I don’t understand why the manufacturers seem to be cutting the girls pants thighs so tight now.
Thank you for showing these companies that their inappropriate length shorts are NOT okay. My daughter will be dressed in modest length shorts and skirts during summer.
ThanK you for your activism on this! JC Penney has a selection of Bermuda length shorts for young girls this season. They are available in black, denim shades and a few bright colors. I think they are even BOGO right now!!
If Target won’t carry appropriate shorts in their stores, send a message and don’t order them online. If national media attention doesn’t get the message across, a drop in their profits may. We had to buy shorts for my daughter in the boys department that fit the school dress code. Unacceptable!
Jcpenneys had quite a few longer short options for my super tall 3 year old (but also some obnoxiously short ones as well)
So it sounds like they KINDA listened. Sort of. Not really.
Just bought some decent length shorts at Old Navy over the weekend, right after going to Target and finding NOTHING.
My thing is do not forget about our boys too! I am tired of silly saying , action figures, skulls and junky things on shirts…what happened to regular shirts and argyles for our little boys….options are much more limited for them then for our girls and I have to buy online for my son just so he will not look like EVERY single boy in his classes.
I’m adding my voice to this. My daughter is almost 11, but she’s big for her age and needs junior clothes. She is very self-conscious and modest, and the clothes she can fit into are not an option. I would love to find affordable, decent clothes for her. I saw where the Duck Dynasty ladies started a modest clothing line, but I am a poverty-line single mom and I cannot afford those.
Until I read your original post, I thought I was the only one who resorted to buying boy shorts for my daughter!
I rarely have to buy clothes because we receive awesome hand-me-downs from cousins, and since my niece is 4 years older than my daughter, many of the inseams are a little longer. Actually, in our stash, we have a good selection of long shorts and crazy short shorts that I just throw out as I come to them.
I love the longer shorts your daughters are modeling. They’re adorable, feminine, and stylish. You can be modest and comfortable without looking frumpy!
Thanks for the info! I’ve struggled with this problem for years now. My daughter is almost 14. I’ve been taking her jeans that are too short and cutting them into a nice length for summer.
It’s not getting any better to find shorts for her age group either. Another fun trip is trying to find a dress for her Spring Fling dance that covers. They are short short short, strapless, low cut etc. We started looking months ago. I’ve been all over the internet, mall etc looking and found ONE. What’s interesting is that the rules for dressing for the dance specify that dresses not be super short, strapless or spaghetti straps. I don’t know what the other parents are going to do.
I am disgusted in not only our options but the cost of the “bermuda” shorts. $30?! I’m outraged!
We just bought our two yo some shorts from Kohl’s. Size 3T. Brand Jumping Beans. That go to her knees. They had a lot of shorter shorts but was happy that they had some selection of longer versions.
Thank you for defending our girls! My daughter is 9 and grows so much from season to season. I buy some of her clothes from Walmart – love the Bermuda shorts – so cute for her long legs. Just bought pink shorts there with yellow pineapples on them for $7. The denim shorts are also great there and have lasted for a couple seasons. I’ve also bought great shorts for her online at Children’s place. Thanks again!
And how about Ladies’ wear? I usually end up buying thrift store finds because I cannot find a descent length dress or skirt that isn’t skin tight, slit up the sides, or expecting me to bare my chest! (same with tops.) I am so aggravated and hate to even go shopping any more.
I was wondering what happened with this. I went to target today to try to buy some shorts but sadly all they had here was booty shorts so I will take my summer shopping else where.
For those Moms on a budget – skip the stores carrying all the short-shorts. Go to your local thrift store/Good Will and pick up a few pairs of jeans, yoga pants, etc, and then cut off whatever length of leg to custom make them into whatever length shorts you want. Problem solved and WAY cheaper. 🙂 Growing up I lived in cut-off jean shorts all Summer long and never thought anything of it. Maybe if NO ONE ever bought Target’s shorty-shorts and they had to clearance them out and dump them, they’d really get the message! 🙂 Just a thought for those really budget conscious Mamas like me… cheers!
We cut off my son’s and my daughters pants every year for shorts. They love it.
Add me to the list of frustrated moms. Not only are shirts short, what about dresses??! I have twins girls who are 7 and my oldest daughter is 12. It gets worse as they get older. I could not find a modest dress for her to wear on Easter. The dresses in the juniors department were too short, and their girls dresses size 14/ x-large were too short or were baggy on her body. Anyone know of a store where I can find her reasonable priced dresses that aren’t revealing for my preteen?
Children’s Place has a whole bunch of longer shorts as well as shorter ones for girs. I didn’t look at the baby and toddler section but there were many choices in the girls 4-14 size range. They have a web site as well as stores and outlet stores. They have a lot of sales to make the prices more reasonable.
I, too, have been frustrated by this ever since my daughter was little. Now that she’s 11 and growing some womanly curves, it’s even more frustrating. I will share that we found really cute shorts that were the perfect length at Old Navy. Although the majority of their shorts still had the one inch inseam, these were called “mid-length” and came to about 3 inches above her knee.
This is one big reason I buy Matilda Jane…keeping little girls looking like little girls. But it comes at a premium price :/
I have recently discovered Sew Sassy boutique online and on Facebook as well as adorable essentials. They have cute ruffled shorties that aren’t ridiculously short.
I am glad they are starting to listen!
Next battle? How about little girl jeans and pants that are cut so low on the hips that they show crack just sitting on the classroom floor listening to a story or worse, when they bend over to play. Designers need to pay attention to real life.
Elly – We are having this problem too. My daughter wants cute embroidered or print jeans, but they are not comfortable for her, because the waist is cut far too low. It isn’t just me that doesn’t like her bottom showing, she hates it too. We ended up buying her plain boys jeans the last 3 years. The other problem we run into is that they cut the the thighs far too skinny on the girls jeans. It pulls the low waist pants down even more! I don’t know how much longer she will be willing to wear boy’s jeans, she turns 8 this year. 🙁
I was JUST thinking of you the other day when I was at Target trying to buy shorts for my daughter and they were all mini shorts. She HATES looking “sexy” as she calls it, and who can blame her. She’s 9!!!! She wants to look like a kid.
And that’s why I just spent $150 on longer length shorts at The Children’s Place!
I went to target this week to buy a swimsuit for my 5 year old, preferably one with short sleeves (tonuaenless sunscreen, which bothers her skin) and some kind of bottoms that weren’t bikini. The boys section had multiple racks of short sleeve swim tees. The girls section had a couple of cute suit tops with sleeves, but they were in the infant sizes–and they had bikini bottoms! So frustrating. (And don’t get me started on Old Navy’s *fitted* tee shirts for toddlers and young girls. This year’s offerings for tee shirts for 5T and down were cut like a woman’s tee–fitted and nipped in at the waist. No thanks.)
Thank you for making a stand on behalf of us. You make us braver to speak.up.for our daughters.
We have been shopping exclusively at Old Navy for my daughter for this reason. They offer all lengths of shorts in the store. My daughter is 10 and a very active competitive gymnast. She had a tiny waist but muscular legs so it is challenge to find shorts in size 10 with adjustable waist and longer length that is cut generous enough to fit over her muscular thighs. Old Navy had dozens of options including skirts with built in bike shorts that are stretch to fit over her legs. I have quit even looking at Target for clothes for her beyond socks and underwear.
Thank you for standing up and pointing this out!!! I have 3 daughters and 1 son. Here’s a very accurate statistic for you: 1 in 3 girls will be sexually abused before age 18, and 1 in 5 boys will be sexually abused before age 18. I don’t understand why the clothing industry is so insistent on forcing us to advertise our girls, big and small, for the millions of perverts out there. I think this point needs to be made to the clothing industry, as well! I simply won’t buy shorts with such a high inseam or shirts that are low cut. My two teenage daughters are very large chested and it’s hard enough to keep them dressed modestly, as it is!
As I said, I have 3 girls and yes, we’ve had to deal with one being sexually abused, so I’m an expert on this. Her perpetrator was a trusted family friend. He’s now in prison, but too many perpetrators go unpunished, just to hurt more girls and boys. Many don’t have a preference on age, either so yes, little girls need to be dressed modestly, too.
I went to Target earlier this month and could NOT find any appropriate shorts for my 7year old. They had one small rack (2 color options only in prints nothing solid) of longer “Bermuda” shorts, her size all gone. They did have a Huge table of denim short shorts with 1″ inseams frayed edges, all different designs in her size. I was annoyed I don’t specifically want Bermuda shorts but she can’t wear daisy Dukes either!! I did end up finding good shorts at Walmart of all places.
Thanks for fighting the good fight with the retailers. I was in Target today, trying to buy athletic shorts for my nine year old to wear for soccer. No way am I putting her in shorts where the curve of het butt is visible! I don’t buy shorts that short for me either. The other option? Skin tight leggings, nope, not buying them either. I finally bought the last three pairs of sweat type shorts they had in her size. I would love it if they would carry Champion shorts in the same length that they have for boys. I was going to buy them but I knew my little fashionista would be upset if they didn’t match the shirts.
My 13 yr old is over 5’5″ and I had to buy her shorts in the kids department at Walmart because the junior shorts were too short for my liking. A size 16 in kids is about the same size as a junior size 3-4. Walmart has been the only place to find 6 inch inseams.
I know my answer really doesn’t help most people, but I usually end up making my girls clothes. Their dresses too, because they seem to be short also.
my friend went to Target to buy a bathing suit for her 4! year old daughter and said the bikini tops were padded!!! for a pre-schooler?! When did feminism become a dirty word? and every woman is supposed to be a _______/stripper? doctor/stripper, engineer/stripper, homemaker/stripper?etc.
I will never understand the bikini thing. We love Cabana Life rashguard sets, for the sun protection! 🙂
I’m not sure if this is an option for some parents, but maybe just stop buying from Target. I know they have adorable patterns and stuff, but giving them your money is just the Green flag to let them do what they want with it. An alternative would be to get pants from consignment stores or places like the Salvation Army and cut them to the desired length. It’s easy to stitch a seam on the bottom or even hem it with hem tape.
I appreciate you sticking up for our girls! I hope you can get better reactions and these large retailers will truly listen!
Sadly, this is not a new development, either. I’m 36 and I ran into this same problem as a pre-teen and as a teenager. Wearing boy shorts at the time was not an option, because it was the 90s and boy shorts were so baggy and so long, they might as well have been pants!
My only option was to cut the legs off of my old jeans and either fringe the bottom or sew my own hemline.
Ugh I was just at target buying shorts for H and they were super short. Surprisingly there was a pair of boys shorts in the same size, fabric and almost the same style on the rack in the girls section (probably because of this story) and they were SO much bigger. I got H (who is 14 mo) a size 2T so they wouldn’t be super tight and short.
A friend pointed me to your blog because I had a similar frustrating shopping experience yesterday at Crazy 8. I’m now wishing I had taken pictures. I have an active, play-in-the-dirt three-year-old girl, and she needs shorts that she can wear sitting on the ground without getting dirt on and in her underwear. I ended up buying boys’ shorts because they were literally all three inches longer than the toddler girls shorts, which I don’t think would’ve covered her underwear entirely when she sat down. And these were all 2T and 3T sizes, same brand, same store. I’ve had similar issues at other stores, both with shorts length and with the tightness of jeans. As I said, my daughter is very active and has muscular legs. Because so many stores now sell only skinny jeans for girls, even at the toddler age, she spends most of the winter in leggings. The skinny jeans are sometimes the only option and they just don’t fit her. If I go up a size, they fall off her waist. I’m fine with people selling short shorts and skinny jeans for those who want them. I don’t really care what clothes other parents choose to put on their kids. I just want options that suit my daughter’s functional needs, and I know I won’t always be able to shop in the boys’ department for her.
I barely shop at Crazy 8 anymore 🙁 Clothign is very skimpy most of the time for my 7 yr old. Try Mini Boden online/catalog. Perfect for toddler clothing and older children!
Just wait until you have to try to find training bras for your prepubescent teenager. They don’t make them. Every bra for young girls is insanely padded. My oldest daughter and I fought bitterly over bras. At 11, she wanted the padded ones to “make her boobies look bigger”. Why do young girls just getting breasts have to wear women’s undergarments?
So glad you addressed the issue! I find myself having to spend more money on name brands, like Mini Boden, for Appropriate Clothing in general!! I found once my daughter was out of a 5T, and into the girls section, most of the clothing looks better suited for a 12 year old, not a 6-10 yr old. Tea Collection is another great brand where I can find longer shorts, and Land’s End. I also love the comfy waistband, and length, on Tractor Shorts from Nordstrom. Not cheap, but I buy them every year in denim, and white!. They do run small though, so my daughter wears a 10 in those, instead of an 8.
Good Luck! 🙂
I’m a little late to this discussion…3 years late because I just stumbled upon this post somehow. I think it’s great that Target responded to the discussion, asked for feedback and then sent some options. But where are those options now? I’m asking because my 11 year old daughter just started middle school and one of the few rules that they have for how kids dress is that shorts have to have a 3 inch in seam. So several days before the first day of school we headed to Target in search of “long shorts” for girls. We ran into one of my daughter’s friends who was there with her mom also looking for “long shorts.” We searched the girls’ section high and low….they simply did not exist in the Target girls’ section. It’s not even like they were out of stock or anything…they just didn’t carry them. But over in the boys’ section…plenty to choose from. And Target wasn’t the only store- we checked elsewhere and it was the same story everywhere we went: plenty of options for long shorts for boys but none for girls. We decided to buy some jeans and just cut them to the length we needed. I actually own my own girls’ clothing company that I started when my daughter was about 6…and part of my inspiration was that I felt like the options for girls over about age 6 were pretty much just trashy. I make dresses and skirts…but maybe I should add some shorts to my line!