Asked and answered, at least for people with 2-year-olds and a penchant for preppy clones.
A couple of months back, DT reader Christy sent in a heads up on J. Crew's new range of clothing for kids ages 2-8. It was to be called Crewcuts, but it wasn't anywhere to be seen. Well, it's there now. Crewcuts is in stores, and it's available online, and it looks like a near-perfect translation of J. Crew adult clothing's style and quality into pint-sizes.
Now, I've got no problem if you've got a problem with J. Crew; I do, too, and I've never actually shopped there myself. [I remember visiting one of the company's first retail stores in South St. Seaport--back in the day, it was once just a mockably ubiquitous catalog, like Tweeds, remember all the different shades of heather?--and cracking up because you couldn't tell the customers from the employees. And remember those models? They were as cracked out as the folks in the Newport ads once.]
For girls, there are polo shirt dresses, and a tennis dress. And straight-cut Liberty print cotton shifts. And a bunch of totally normal clothing. For a change. For boys, it's a little narrower; a lot of striped polos and oxford/collared shirts are nice-looking, but they also look conspicuously like the grown up versions. Teach him some PowerPoint, and your Crewcut-clad son will be ready for a life in a cube farm.
Suddenly I'm really depressed. Unobjectionably dressed on the outside, and a hollowed-out soulless shell on the inside. Does anyone know who called this meeting?
J Crew Crewcuts are not super-cheap, $22-150 or so at jcrew.com [jcrew.com]
For example, this "hopscotch dress" is $36, and this "favorite shirt" is $34.50.
Previously: Q., Holy Moley, where are all the decent kids clothes at?
The clothes are cute, for sure, but no different really than what my local Gap Outlet has for half the price.
[lucky. there was nothing but pink velour sweatsuits at the Gap Outlet in Park City. -ed.]
This is at least the 2nd time (and I think maybe the 3rd) that J. Crew has launched Crewcuts. The prices seem a little off to me, but not as bad as last time around.
I have a boy and, I must say, when I see the racks of purple and pink velour sweatsuits on the other side of the store, I am glad.
The baby stuff at the Gap outlets I've visited - and nearly everywhere else - is nauseating.
My 11-month-old son wears white Onesies nearly every day because I can't stand all the creepy pique rugby shirts with rubber buttons. It's sad that I'm excited lately because on some days he can wear a SHORT SLEEVED white Onesie for a little variety. If you believe the buyers at department stores, he should be wearing creepy plaid short sleeved shirts and creepy stiff little navy pants with belts. Screech to the nth degree.
When he was littler I got some great onesie-type shirts at Flora & Henri up next to the Whitney. They came in a very deep dark grey, a super-pale blue, ivory, & a few other interesting shades. But they only went up to 12 months and he's in 18 months now. They have other cute stuff though. But not cheap.
And oh my God, Tweeds! If it wasn't heathered, it came in Oxblood!