Children’s fashion is not an easy task. There are trends that emerge every season. The seasons are Spring and Autumn-Holidays and the collections differ a lot. Fall and holiday dresses are usually produced at the same time. Christmas dresses are a very popular item and so are Easter dresses. These two Christmas seasons keep children’s clothing boutiques going. There are many special occasions, such as baptisms, baby shower gifts, and birthday outfits. This is the most difficult clientele and niche in its category. With competitive marketing strategies and a highly conscious buyer status, manufacturers are proactive in their ability to create new comfortable apparel solutions.
There is a great demand for special clothing items for children. People complain and ask why children’s boutiques don’t carry more children’s clothing. Children’s clothing is very difficult to find. The reason for this is simply that boys’ clothes are as difficult or more difficult to produce than girls’ clothes. People just aren’t willing to pay the same price for boys’ clothes as they do for cute little girls’ things. There is a great demand for ruched Easter dresses for children and also for dresses with special messages, such as ruched with images with birthday cakes or birthday balloons and party hats. Newborn and infant clothing is in high demand in these tough economic times. There will always be a need for newborn baby clothes. The Peruvian cotton layette for infants is of great interest. Lines like Sweet Cheeks have matching blankets, bibs, hats, pajamas, onesies, jumpsuits, dresses and leggings, all in matching fabrics that can be displayed for customers in boutique stores. These make a very beautiful display and customers seem to love them as baby shower gifts and just special things Grandma likes to buy. Garments with appliqués, such as jumpers and jon jons, are very popular children’s clothing.
Many years ago, most royal children wore this type of clothing. Smocking is an ancient art that originated in England and was most popular during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Gathering is an exquisite art and is a kind of embroidery. It is used primarily in children’s clothing, but is used somewhat in ladies’ blouses and evening wear. Patterns from Martha Pullen and Children’s Corner have made the gown very popular with stay-at-home moms sewing for their children. Shirred dresses are available in jumpers for casual wear. In recent years, it has become popular to cut a square from the center front of a t-shirt and insert about a 6-inch square into the center of the t-shirt to make a cute and fun pant or capri set. Smocking patterns are all about threads. Mainly cotton yarn is used. The design may vary according to the number of threads used for the smock. The ruched dress can be made in many different patterns. The round bodice dress is called bishop’s dress. Some dresses are gathered to the waist in a bodice pattern. Many summer dresses are made with ruched designs. Sometimes white inserts are used on a colored fabric and something called picture ruffle is inserted to form a lovely picture, like Santa Claus for Christmas or bunnies for Easter. Children all over the world enjoy a plethora of different clothing items.
If you think your child should look like a little princess, then ruching is certainly something you should consider. Many gathered garments become heirloom garments. There are several companies that produce handmade children’s clothing. A standout shirred line is Bow Peep. Bow Peep is a line of handmade ruched dresses that has been in the United States for 16 years. Bow Peep clothing is made in Central America by some of the world’s most talented artisans. The native women there love to do this kind of work. They teach their young daughters at a young age to make the tuxedo by hand. They start them off by doing what’s called back smocking. This is the stitching that is done on the back of the design that makes the design hold its shape. I was surprised to learn that the 50 women who smock for Bow Peep can produce about 200 smock designs a day. That’s an average of 4 dresses per day. That’s pretty amazing as I’ve smoked quite a bit and it would take a lot longer.
Elegance is the raison d’être of gathered clothing. Parents enjoy dressing their children in elegant and quality clothing. A children’s boutique is the best place to find those unique and special items for your children.
