I’ve always been fascinated with color, its origins, and the effect it has on our everyday life. A big part of my professional life has been trend forecasting and how socio-economic trends and culture play a factor in how we see color, and why we are drawn to specific colors at certain times.
I am very much a colorful person, and I like to live my life surrounded by ALL THE COLORS - because I believe they bring energy into my life. So naturally, when it came time to dress my son Atlas, I avoided gender-specific clothes/ colors and focused on fun pieces. Not a week goes by, where he isn’t called a “she” or a “them” while wearing lilac or yellow - which honestly only shows how short-sighted people are.
Society identifies pink with girls and blue with boys, but this is actually a pretty new construct. Back in the day, all babies used to wear white dresses, because it was easier to bleach. It wasn’t until they were 6/7 years old that they would start wearing more color and gender-specific clothing.
The association of gender and colors didn’t start until the mid-19th century, and at the time blue was associated with girls and red with boys. It actually wasn’t until WWII that retailers started marketing the color blue for boys and pink for girls.
History aside, as you can see the modern association of color and gender has been fully manufactured by the retail industry and thus should play no role in how you dress your baby/kid.
That being said since so many of you have been requesting ideas for non-gender-specific fun brands.
Here are my favorite ones
[ spoiler alert: they are full of color ]
MILKTEETH
Started by a former stylist and editor Catherine Newell-Hanson, they have the coolest edit of kids clothes from all over the world. This is currently our go-to!
BOBO CHOSES
Spanish sustainable kids brand with quirky designs for kids + adults alike.
MINI RODINI
Sweedish baby/ kids brand with the FUNNEST prints + incredible quality. A bit on the pricier side, but honestly worth it.
MINIOLIE
Koreans do it best when it comes to baby/kids clothes. Mini Olie has Super cool pieces + affordable prices. *The only downside is that they have A LOT of options, so you will be scrolling for a bit to find the gems.
ADULTINY
Founded by über cool girl and stylist Diletta Bonaiutti, Adultiny is a non-cartoonish take on kids fashion aka the pieces I wish was wearing right now.
LITTLE OCCASION
Super stylish, very affordable clothes for kids.
THE ANIMALS OBSERVATORY
Unique prints and fun colorways. This brand is the epitome of FUN.
That’s all for now, please be sure to share your favorite brands with us too :)
Besos,
Victoria
Ps: I am ESL so forgive any mistakes.
I would add Tiny Cottons to this list!