Colorful Kids HANNAH HLOPAK
Growing up in the South meant long hot summers and playing outside with the assurance we would all be pot-dirty by noon. Growing up today is texting, sharing, trolling, and scrolling. I know every generation thinks the next has it too easy or is not as fun; that life’s events are not shaping the new generation. My generation didn’t have social media or smart phones to dominate our day, and TV was a nice distraction before bed. Today, kids are more and more involved in chatting and posting on their smart phones than engaging in physical play: there is no regard to exercising their bodies as well as their social skills, and social media does not equal social skills. So, what does social media and technology have to do with color choices for children’s clothing? Color doesn’t substitute for actual social interaction and outside physical activity. Ironically, it was less than a year ago that Nordstrom sold discolored adult jeans that resembled mud smears up and down the legs and around the seat. Now, earth tones for children’s clothes are supposed to provide an image of being an outdoors-style of kid. Unlike adults who want an image of manual labor and working with your hands, image does nothing for the child in their growth and development. In other words, using adult-based color models and trends do not substitute for actual mud and time outside having fun. Sadly, the trends are not just in colors, but also how parents see their children’s style. The latest fad of moms being bloggers has rubbed off on the youth as kids have become the stars of their own lifestyle blogs. Kids are dressed head to toe in designer fashion and blogging about it. Mothers seem to be caught up in making their kids a “mini-me” while minimizing a youth culture where scraped knees and clothes that don’t always match are more the norm.
Colors do play a big role, however, for some age groups. For example, the #metoo movement used an all-black palate that turned heads across the world and caused chatter, good chatter, for women’s plight with sexual harassment. On the other hand, changing colors to give kids a down-home feel will not change the reality of less socially engaged and physically active children.
Emma Macfarlane
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