Children are very sensitive by their nature. They express their individuality by means of their body, voice, movements, imagination, games and clothes they like wearing, often, without realizing it. Children get to know themselves and the world around them, through making their choice between chocolate and vanilla ice-cream, pants and shorts, pink and orange colors, etc., that occurs irrespective of them.
As soon as, children learn to express their opinion, all of them, begin to experiment with a choice of clothes – only, in such way, they could express their individuality. Most of adults, probably, know what a person, the teenager, experimenting with desire to identify himself with a certain group of his mates is, or, on the contrary, who wants to rise above "a crowd". But even at early age, the children's personality and individual taste start to be formed, let even in clothes.
Adults, buying children's clothes, somehow help the child to define, who he/she is and what their preferences in clothes are. Certainly, it lasts, before children will be able to express their own preference. Most of parents dress their children in such clothes which, first of all, they like, and which reflect their own personal belief concerning a fashion, style and individuality. For example, in an average family, a child is dressed in traditional clothes: he/she wears children's overalls, jeans in more moderate color scale and, as a consequence, the child has formed his/her own style. In other case, in families who consider themselves as a certain non-standard ones, children are often dressed in styles of different sub-cultures.
Today, the firms and the companies design and produce clothes of various styles and tendencies: from traditional clothes to punk rock, a Gothic style, so-called "casual", "urban" and, at last, very popular clothes made in "unisex" style. Up to a certain moment, it is a prerogative of adults to dress their children: just they start to "express" their children individuality through their clothes. As the children grow, they try copying the adults’ manner of wearing clothes. Children start to notice everything the adults wear and, invariably, want to wear the same. It is quite a natural process, by which children’s individuality and originality are formed in children’s perception..
Imitating the adults’ manner of wearing clothes, children start realizing that the clothing is one of the ways to confirm their individuality, both boys and girls, a member of a certain group or a person in general. Certainly, some children wear, completely, the same clothes as their mum and dad do, whereas, others prefer wearing, absolutely different clothes. And, to tell the truth, up to a certain age, the children, in their overwhelming majority, do not mind about their clothes at all! No wonder, that is, also, the individuality in the process of its formation!
In the today's complicated and impetuous world, where complete responsibility, independence, critical thinking and a certain approach to adults’ problems are demanded from children, it is very important to allow them express themselves through clothes: through a variety of colors, materials and styles. In spite of the fact, what clothing you prefer, and what clothing you consider to be, absolutely, vulgar and unsuitable, it is up to the child, what color and style of clothing to wear, after all, the choice of clothing makes the individuality and the originality of a child.
Certainly, the clothing cannot be the main defining factor in developing and formation of children’s individuality, but a choice of clothing, definitely, will teach children to find out, that all of us are very different and that self-expression is a natural way to self-affirmation. It goes without saying, that parents should take an active part in choosing of children’s clothing or a certain style in their clothes, but, allowing children make up their minds themselves, you teach them the important lessons of a life.
