In recent years, mainly due to the heavy influence of Scandinavian childrenswear such as Polarn O Pryet; Uk High Street retailers have embraced gender neutral clothing. Traditionally, this would have been considered 'casualwear' or even....wait for it, 'childrenswear'. Yes, there is nothing multinationals love more than taking an old idea, repackaging it and then charging us double for the privilege!
In the seventies, kids were all dressed the same regardless of gender. They were allowed to be kids and the clothes reflected this. They had to be practical as well as comfortable, plus it was the seventies so the colours and prints were awesome! Now of course there were dresses and items that were specified for each sex, Victoriana was a huge trend for girls. So I'm not looking back with rose tinted glasses and I love a good frock as much as the next person but the childrenswear market hadn't yet been tapped in to. Someone who has taken that 70's formula and shown how successful it can be is Jools Oliver with her Mothercare collaboration 'Little bird'. Many of the designs are based on original Mothercare design specs.
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| Image & Rights Reserved to Little Bird by Jools Oliver |
My main objective is to change peoples perspective of childrenwear by showcasing what is already available. Who is offering an alternative choice and a change in attitude, for both boys and girls. It is a real eye opener when you look at other countries and how they present their children, you realise how gender specific the UK is.
Now you may think clothing is irrelevant, but if you put a child inside a box from a young age then their outlook and goals are moulded and ultimately decided for them. For instance if boys always have 'trouble'or 'mischief maker' on their clothing, what does that instil in the child? We really need to be conscious of what message we are giving our children.
