Infantilisation is something constantly affecting the fashion industry. In more recent years we’ve seen a growth in more youthful clothing. In response to the modesty and office wear in the early 2010s, clothing became more sexualized in mid to late 2010s. Midriff was shown and clothing was just all around tighter. There was a certain need to look older than your age with full faces of makeup and skin tight jeans. But of course with the cycle of fashion, the reverse was to create younger-looking clothing.
As quarantine happened clothing was less rigid, baggy and flared pants became popular. There was briefly a period of infantilization in fashion with the trend of “kid core” which was just wearing very bright clothes and accessories that often had childlike designs.
One way this has been pushed forward is the popularity of ribbons. There’s something quite childlike about the presence of a bow, it’s delicate and implies a certain naivety. No movie character wearing their hair tied up in a pretty pink bow will ever commit something devious. We as the audience are supposed to see them as youthful and innocent because of the presentation of their clothing.
In addition to that we are seeing a resurgence in some 60s fashion which includes very short babydoll dresses. They are distinctly meant to be youthful and with celebrities like Sabrina Carpenter and Olivia Rodrigo, clothing like this is sure to only become more popular. Olivia Rodrigo takes a distinctly childlike approach to her babydoll dresses with the patterns to create a certain loud style she has on stage. While Sabrina Carpenter’s is based much more in sexualization with matching bloomers and garters. Though the public seemed to be more generally irritated with Olivia Rodrigo’s use of these dresses as they thought a grown women dressing directly like a child are signs of oversexualization and pedophilia.
Photos: Pinterest/Ecosia
The problem with this recent rise in youthful clothing is that it leads to a general infantilization of the individual as well. It promotes the idea that grown women can be perceived as girls and possess a certain naivety. The use of this clothing can effectively undermine some of the hardworking within the feminist movement. In the eyes of the patriarchy these fashion trends make it so men are perceived as the only real grown ups.
XOXO, The Fashion Stock Market
