She wore an itsy bitsy teen -weeny…
When I see those little chubby 18 month old todlers waddling around with their bellies hanging out of a bikini, I just love it! Those round bellies and chunky thighs can’t get much cuter! But at what age is it not cute but, rather, appalling? Parents are in an uproar over a new swimsuit being sold by the popular retailer Abercrombie Kids, a padded bikini for 8 year olds. This is pretty disturbing if you ask me, and I’m a pretty liberal and easy going type of parent.
My daughter is 6 1/2 and she just started to ask me to wear makeup and I am having some reservations, which I literally just posted about last week, . It frightens me to think that next summer I could be shopping for a swimsuit for her to go to summer camp and there be a padded bikini! While some of the jewelry, make-up and fashions for young girls I find fun and harmless, I think this padded push up bikini is a bit much. Glittery gloss and painting her nails is one thing, but enhancing a little girls breasts before they have even developed is insane!
You can watch the video story that was posted this weekend over on the Huffington Post. They also talk to a child psychologist about what the damage is to our girls when we shape there behaviors at such a young age. It’s not just the swimsuits, but the tween beauty market is tapping into these young girls as well. Tweens spend 24 million dollars a year on beauty products. I realize some of this is just girls being girls, but at what age are these young girls forced to learn that it is not enough to just be who you are?
Comments
Andrea,
I think it is CRAZY to put a 6 year old in a teeny push-up bikini! The day that I will be fighting that battle with my tween-aged girl will come soon enough… I don’t need to introduce sexy clothing now, thinking it looks “cute” on them- and then be fighting against it later when I think it looks “trashy”!
Nope, not in my house. We’re letting little girls grow up too fast. And since we send our kids to Christian camp, they are not allowed to wear a two piece so that’s not going to be an issue here. Ambercrombie always likes to push the envelope. I honestly think they do it on purpose because it’s totally free advertising.
Did I miss something? The little girl bikini tops at Abercrombie say “lightly lined” and they don’t look like push-up bras to me. Just being honest here.
Well, I guess the website had said “push up” before the story broke and then they took those words out of the description. I went into the store today and physically felt them and they are “padded”, not just lined. It is a full on string bikini. I also went into some other retailers to check out other swimsuits and I have to say the style and cut of the swimsuit matters as well. Some bikini’s are tasteful and fine, but others look pretty trashy.
I think it’s terrible!!!
I just watched this a bit ago and can’t believe how they’re marketing to little kids.
http://www.dailyparenttip.com/abercrombie-gets-pushback-over-%E2%80%98push-up%E2%80%99-kiddie-bikini/
Too much! Girls are so vulnerable to peer pressure as it is, now to add in padding to a bikini, to make them more aware of a warped sense of body image. We all need to learn to love what we have! As you said the girls are still developing and something they shouldn’t even need to be thinking about right now. So sad that a company would even think that this is appropriate to manufacture and advertise.
little ones in bikinis can be cute but the padding is crossing the line. What’s the point other than to start controversay and bring attention to a product at peak summer shopping season. These people in marketing know what they are doing and we are feeding into it and bringing more spotlight to it. As parents we need to hit them where it hurts most, the wallet. DON’T SHOP THERE. Abercrombie is known for their marketing tactics, when are we going to learn to let it die a slow boring death.
As a Dad of 2 girls (9 and 12) this gives me the heebie jeebies. Fortunately my 12 year old still wears basketball shorts and baggie t-shirts to school but my 9 year old seems to be getting too fashion savvy before her time.
This is EXACTLY what I seek to shift.
We are NOT pieces of meat.
We are works of art.
We are to FIRST build confidence and self worth from the inside out, celebrating our creativity, courage and collaborative capacity as women and then as we naturally bud into sexual beings (NOT AT 6!!!) to honor the reverence and sacredness of our sexuality, learning healthy boundaries, learning to shine our own unique radiance for the sake of shining, not from emptiness trying to seek attention and validation. We are ALREADY Radiance Itself.
Padded bras at 6 yrs old teaches her she’s not OK as she is, a beautiful child of the Light, proud of her body just the way it is, with PLENTY of time to grow up and learn the beauty of her mind, her heart, her soul and her sacred sexuality.
You are so right Melinda! I guess I have just never cared before because it didn’t directly affect me – but now with a 6 1/2 yr old girl, my eyes are wide open to these products and parenting situations!
Holy freakin’ crap! Padded? You know why, right? Lots of 8 YOs already have boobs these days from all the hormones in the water/milk/chicken/anything you eat or drink. So sad. I agree – 18 mos – adorable! Over 3 – inappropriate child porn.
Not my child.
Aside from the issue of teaching our girls to be happy with yourself for who you are, not what you look like, I have a huge issue with the fact that our society is not letting kids be kids. I find it absurd that there are these types for products being made for children, not to mention a bit pedophile-like.
On the other hand, I believe this was probably just another stunt from Abercrombie to get publicity. They knew what they were doing and they knew parents would be up in arms and the media would run with it….so once again, they win.
i think its crazy for an 8 year old to wear a padded bikini. but at the same time, im not the type to get worked up over something. if i dont like it, i just wont buy it. pretty simple to me.
This padded bikini nonsense for 8 year olds touches a nerve. I saw this last year too-maybe not by Ambercrombie but they were out there. Some of my daughters pals had them. I loathe the moraless efforts of manufacturers that work to get little girls to grow up quicker. My nine year old will not be seen in it. There’s special place in…(well you know where) for folks who try to sex up little girls. I think its obscene wrong on so many levels. There’s enough ugly out there in the world and keeping our kids protected is hard enough. Why try to beckon ugliness and solicit inappropriate thoughts/behavior with sexing up little girls? Keeping them little girls in today’s world is challenge enough.
oops! I wrote the wrong email address. Here is the correct one. Thanks.