How to choose pageant dresses for girls
What dress and accessories are appropriate for my young daughter who wants to enter pageants?
Some may consider girls’ beauty pageants to be a fantasy event, but in reality, girls’ pageants are just like any competitive sport. Young children study, train and focus to win. Learning the correct ways to walk and stand, minding your manners, and thinking quickly under pressure is also a long process that requires concentration, discipline, and stamina. Just like any other sport, parents are expected to spend on pageant dresses, training, other costumes, and coaches. As with any sport, a child learns to give up the desire to play in order to do what it takes to win.
Just like with sports, your child will also learn to do his or her best in contests. He will learn the confidence to face and talk to people. A girl will learn to dress and charm people. She will learn to handle the pressure. She will learn to deal with victory and defeat. Contests can also build character, depending on adult guidance.
Some people view girl pageants from a distance. This is always due to some contest factor taken to the extreme. Crazy costumes and makeup that make children look like miniature adults may be one reason behind this. The Guardians’ extreme way of pushing youngsters to win can increase the distance.
If your girl is interested in participating in the contests, families can encourage her to do so, as long as the goals and values are clear to the family. Young girls like to dress up in pageant dresses, be pretty and win. That’s a fact. It is up to parents to strike the balance and be attentive to the best interest of a child’s health, values and overall character. After all, that’s what parents want for their kids, right?
The key to all of this is balance. Let her daughter be the best she can be, in the way that best suits her age and well-being. Pageants can bring out the best character in her, but parents need to step up to provide the balance between looks and character.
Dress up for girls pageants
Being age-appropriate in a girls pageant doesn’t mean your girl has to be ugly or boring. On the contrary, the young women are full of joy and natural beauty. Overdoing things makes a natural beauty blah and disgusting.
formal dresses for girls
The styles of formal dresses for girls are classic. Whatever the season, young ladies always look cute and fresh in mid-waist sleeveless regular dresses with full skirt in formal fabric. Other sleeve styles might be cute, but long sleeves might not be comfortable for a girl (and look outdated, too). The fabrics should be beautiful but not fragile for a girl, who can become fussy or restless and fabrics can be too fragile.
The color of the dress can be light or pastel. Pink is a common color for girls, but there are many other colors that can help express your young contestant’s personality. A different color dress will also help you stand out. Cheerful earth colors as well as jewel tones can also be worn if it’s in season (usually during the fall). Or use earth colors and jewel tones to accessorize a light-colored dress. Black is usually too severe and looks weird for a young girl.
The dress can also be embroidered or embellished, but keep the embellishments small and tasteful so it suits a girl.
Shoes
Shoes should be nice, but comfortable. Young girls can wear Mary Janes or formally embellished flats. High heels are bad for the back and legs.
Hatred
The girls have beautiful hair. Show it in its natural state. Leave it loose and pin it up with a pretty, sparkly barrette, or pull it off the face with a pretty, sparkly headband. Mom can also tie it into pigtails or braids. Young girls wear pigtails and braids.
Any hairstyle that requires a gallon of hairspray is probably looking too severe. It is also not healthy for a girl to have her hair teased, pulled and yanked and loaded with chemicals.
make-up
Girls are pretty by nature. They have the best skin and lips. Using lipstick and a thick foundation gives it a fake look. Young girls with a lot of adult-like makeup are an eyesore. Try using lip gloss and a light touch of baby powder. If she’s worried that her little one will look too pale onstage at night, she’ll try out the makeup during the dress rehearsal when the actual lights to be used are also being tested. Make sure makeup is minimized and enhances your natural beauty. Less is more for children’s makeup.
Accessories
Shawl wraps may not be comfortable for a girl. These can also be left behind when our young contestant runs off somewhere. If the weather is cold, get her a jacket or coat suitable for her formal dress. Imitation jewelry is perhaps best used for pageants, as it’s easy to lose things during a busy event like a pageant. Purses for girls can be awkward, ask your child if she is comfortable carrying a purse. Pretty sashes can also be used to enhance your little girl’s pageant dress.
Young girls in pageants can enjoy the attention and be pretty. The pretty pageant dress, makeup, hair may seem superficial, but behind all this, the girl is building her character and confidence. And these are things that parents do develop in their children, even in other more “normal” activities.