I don’t know about you, but I LOVE looking ‘put together’. And I LOVE my kids being well dressed. I like to think of it as putting your best foot forward, presenting yourself in the best possible light. Is this vanity? I’m interested to hear your thoughts.

When I was little, my mum spent much of her time designing and sewing outfits for her son and three daughters. Even with a limited budget, we always looked well turned out. We had a special outfit made for every special occasion. I was the girl wearing a long length sailor dress at the year seven free-dress day, and I loved it!

Mum’s friends will often remind her of all the gorgeous pieces she made for us, and so many of her friend’s children. Even thirty years later, they’ll still tell me how cute we all looked. It wasn’t seen as vanity then.

These days, I try and make a lot of my kids’ clothes. But I’m not the seamstress my mum is, so my skills are limited. If I can’t make it, I’ll buy pieces and put them together. Most of the kids’ clothes come from Target (I’m a budget kind of girl). Even so, my little miss is mostly to be found in a dress, and if we’re heading out, master six knows I’ll be insisting on a button through shirt!

To me, what you are wearing and how you put it together goes far beyond the constraints of what’s considered fashionable and ‘in’. When you present yourself well, it puts others at ease. It makes them comfortable. It shows that you care enough about others to consider what they have to look at. It’s polite.

I feel that I am teaching my children to put their best foot forward in life. I’m not concerned with designer brands and wearing expensive and impractical clothing. But I want my children to learn that if they respect themselves then others will respect them too. So I iron all our clothes, I sew on missing buttons and I polish shoes. And I’ll teach my kids to do the same.  I believe it illustrates the strength of your self respect.

Lauren x

{Here I am on the left, with my sister. I love these hand made outfits. My mum kept them and my daughter has worn both. I’m looking forward to my sister’s girls being able to wear them also. So precious!}