Madelyn, my 7-year-old, informed me a few days ago that she is ready to clean her closet of any dresses she hasn’t worn in a few days.  A few days?  She said that if she hasn’t worn them in a few days they aren’t a favorite and should be given to a little girl who will appreciate them.  Seriously, I thought.. she actually heard something I said?!

So, we went through her closet and took out a bunch of stuff most of which was too small and she took out a few dresses that were not too small but she hasn’t worn more than once or twice.   I had to accept that we were getting rid of relatively unworn pieces but we will deliver them to Goodwill and I’m sure there’s a little girl who will love the dresses as much as I did when I bought them for Madelyn.

I asked Madelyn to come up with a list of what she wants and doesn’t want in “fancasual” dresses.  That ended up being quite the project.  She got a whiteboard and dry erase markers and asked me to make ‘want’ and ‘don’t want’ columns then she spouted off a list of characteristics she’s looking for in a dress.  Maybe she should be a dress designer after all.  I have always thought career choice was an odd one but now that she’s getting older and better able to share her thoughts with me, I see it.

Here are the columns.  I was a good listener despite some of her strange requests like ‘gross, uncomfortable stuff’.  I wanted so badly to ask what dress she’s owned that was gross or had uncomfortable stuff on it?  Really?

Two more  questionable characteristics in her ‘don’t want’ list are blah and ugly sleeves.   As we went through her old dresses I asked if each was ‘blah’ or had ugly sleeves.  What’s an ugly sleeve anyway I asked?  She said “it’s one that’s puffy or has things dangling from it”.  Ok.   We didn’t come across a dress with ugly sleeves so apparently I haven’t made that mistake yet.

Here are 5 dresses that Madelyn hand-picked that meet most of her ‘want’ requirements.

You’ll notice that blue from the ‘don’t want’ column was ignored when it came time to actually choosing dresses. 🙂

1 – Splendid ’Sparkle Lux’ Dress  | Available in girl’s sizes 7-8, 10, 12, 14 – $68

2 – Soprano Beaded Peter Pan Collar Sleeveless Dress | Available in sizes 7-8, 10-12, 14, 16 – $42

3 – Ella and Lulu Striped Floral Dress  | Available in sizes 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 – $38

4 – Truly Me Stripe Hooded Dress | Available in sizes 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 – $54

5 – Ella and Lulu Colorblock Dress | Available in sizes 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 – $38

Madelyn was a little concerned about the beaded collar on dress #2 but when she saw that it is called a Peter Pan Collar, she agreed that might be the best dress ever!

What is your daughter’s dream dress?  I’d love to know what she says if you ask her! It might be different that you expect. I didn’t expect unicorns and no ‘ugly sleeves’… that’s for sure!