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When you were a kid, did you get laughed at for the clothes you wore?
@beautyqueen26 (16030)
United States
September 8, 2007 9:46pm CST
Funny thing is, now that I'm an adult, I can shop almost any place I want, including Walmart or the thrift store and I'm considered a thrifty mom who likes to save money. Funny how the things I got ridiculed for when I was a kid would be the saving grace for our family during bad economic times! Very ironic.
But, when I was a kid, things were much different. I'm certain that other kids at school thought I was so uncool with the clothes I wore. We didn't have lots of extra money to go around and the little spare change we had did not go into hip new clothes. Just thrift store finds and such. And, any new clothes came from the local Walmart or KMart and not the local mall boutiques where rich kids shopped.
So, every year when school started, though we had different clothes, they weren't always new. And, if they were new, they came from a discount store like Walmart and you could tell it. Until I was a teen, I don't think most kids could tell. But, you know how cruel teens can be, especially to unpopular kids who don't wear all the right clothes or have the latest electronic gadgets. I am pretty sure the laughing was not in my imagination once I reached high school.
So, were you one of those kids that got laughed at because you couldn't afford the latest fashions as a teen? Do you remember seeing other kids get teased because they were poor and couldn't afford to buy new clothes? Isn't it funny how the same kids who made fun of thrift store clothes and Walmart deals are now the same ones who shop there regularly as adults? Now that's irony!
1 person likes this
15 responses
@leedug (920)
• United States
9 Sep 07
I always made my clothes look fashionable even if they weren't "name brand" and I played it off pretty well. It's so funny how teens can be, and you are right, once you grow out of that stage not too many people where you get your clothes unless they are extremely shallow people. I did see it middle school quite a lot though. In fact, some kids would stand in front of Walmart and watch to see if any classmates happened to go in there with their parents, then they would never let them live it down. I wonder where this attitude comes from and why kids care so much about name brands ?
@beautyqueen26 (16030)
• United States
9 Sep 07
Wow! And, I thought my school was tough. That is a very good point about teen attitudes. Where do these ideas come from anyway? Parents? Television shows? Can't be sure.
@carlaabt (3504)
• United States
9 Sep 07
I'm sure some people made fun of my clothes behind my back, but I didn't really care. Most of my friends shopped at Walmart or KMart, too. I bought shoes at the mall, because Walmart shoes never lasted, but the rest of my clothes usually came from Walmart, KMart, or some other store like that.
Even when we had more money, my mom bought us clothes from there. She said they had more important things to spend the extra money on. And I understood even back then. I knew that we were paying so much to the local hospital (my dad is a logger and accident prone!) that we should have had a wing named after us. lol
As an adult, I do buy my son more name brand clothes than I ever had. But the only reason is because I buy them on clearance at the BX. That makes them cheaper than Walmart. :) I also buy a lot of his clothes at yard sales. My mom bought him three big boxes full of winter clothes at yard sales this year, and most of them look brand new, and they are almost all brand names. :) That leaves us with more money for fun things, like toys, and even just those quarter rides at Walmart (my son wants to ride all of them every time we go, so we spend $2 or 3 easy every time! lol).
1 person likes this
@beautyqueen26 (16030)
• United States
9 Sep 07
That is so sweet! And, the yard sale idea is a good one too. I got a big box of practically new baby things before my baby was born, for just about four dollars. She ended up wearing those more than the expensive stuff. And, doing clearance sales let me stock up for her first two years, whereas I wouldn't have even been able to afford to buy six months worth of clothing otherwise. Things have not gotten any cheaper over time.
@lilaclady (28207)
• Australia
9 Sep 07
I can't ever remember being laughed at but I always felt a little hmmm I can't think of the word, but my dear mum always made our clothes even our underwear as we didn't have much money and ever since I have never liked home made clothes, it wasn't that they didn't look good, I just didn't like homemade clothes and still don't...funny aren't we...
@wonderful1 (2075)
• China
9 Sep 07
no, i don't have such experience like you. some of my classmates will laugh at my poor family. when i was a child, my family was poor. so i don't want my classmateds to my house, but they followed me, and find my house, when they see my family, they don't like to play with me in the next day.
some of them even didn't talk with me, they thought they were ashamed of being friends of mine. frankly, i felt very sad, but now it doesnt matter for me.
1 person likes this
@williamjisir (22819)
• China
9 Sep 07
I didn't have the memory to be laughed at for the clothes I wore as a child, but I was laughed at for walking straight, over-straight by older neighbours than me. Their laughter made me embarrassed and influenced me a lot. I did't walk so straight later on.
@CatsandDogs (13963)
• United States
10 Sep 07
Yes I was because my parents couldn't afford allegator shirts and jordace or levi's jeans but that's ok. I went to school with clean clothes and a clean body along with a full stomach. That's more than a lot of kids had then and now.
1 person likes this
@pendragon (3348)
• United States
9 Sep 07
I didnt want the fashionable clothes, so i didnt help my mother out any, so she would get me the generic fashions which of course made me get laughed at, So much for humility!
@GardenGerty (161080)
• United States
9 Sep 07
Sure, I did, but a lot of the time I was too dumb to know it. Then I learned to sew and began to design some of my own clothes. When I went to college (all scholarships, grants, and loans, through my church) they all thought I was a wealthy girl from back east (instead of a hick from the sticks) It did not hurt that I got hand me downs made by my aunt for her daughter who was 6'2". My daughter loved my hand me downs, and got laughed at in middle school, which in my book is much worse than Senior High. She prefered jeans and jean shorts from the thrift shop as they were already worn out and comfy. Full circle, and then some for wearing used clothes.
@acuityplague (763)
• United States
9 Sep 07
I grew up in a military setting, so there wasn't alot of making fun of kids for NOT having something. Those of us that were kid's of regular enlisted, WO's and NCO's made wicked fun of Commisioned officers kids though. Not for what they would wear so much, as for how rank greedy and posturing their mothers were, and for them going along with it. The whole "i'm better than you " attitude.
Their mother's behavior would trickle down to them with the "above their pay grade" clothing they wore sometimes, and of course we would jump on it. But only because we couldn't stand their mothers, and their attitudes. Otherwise we couldn't care any less what someone was wearing.
Looking back on it, we were HORRIBLY delightful kids. We had so much fun though! And making fun of officers wives and kids, stayed the same..no matter where in the world we were stationed. Silly Officers Wives.
As a side note- There were some Officer's wives that were really nice and supported their husbands with grace and kindness. :) Kudo's to them!
@KrisNY (7590)
• United States
13 Sep 07
Growing up is tough- Peer pressure and mean kids. I think we all faced this from time to time.
My parents didn’t have a ton of extra money either when we were growing up. We had enough to be a middle class family. My mom shopped with me at the discount stores- sure I would go to Sears and JC Penney’s also- but I didn’t always get the things that were in style- but the things that were on sale. I don’t remember being picked on- I was pretty cool anyways- but I know some of the kids did pick- the real hoitie toitie kids in school- When I got old enough to work- I bought my own clothes- and I bought the clothes that were in style.
I promised myself that if I had a child. I would buy that child all the coolest clothes and the in clothes- I have only 1 child- she is 11 (today!)- and we shop at Limited Too, Aero, Hollister, Gap, etc. so she won’t ever be laughed at or picked on for her clothing- Kids are mean
@maddysmommy (16230)
• United States
9 Sep 07
Some of the time my twin and I did get laughed at because of the clothes we wore. My mum sewed ours and some of them looked like clown suits (she was trying to make overalls) and then matched them up with different colored shoes and sorts. It was ok though, it didn't bother me one bit. I was happy when we started Intermediate (equivalent to Middle School), where we wore uniform and right through college. Everyone looked the same so that was so much better!
@bowtieguy (5915)
• United States
11 Sep 07
Not as often as you would think I would, seperating my self form the other boys. It did happen sometimes but i think they were mostly jealous because they didn't look half as good as I did.
@theprogamer (10534)
• United States
9 Sep 07
A few times I wore a shirt that had the physical equation to light on the front
(Delta x A) = Delta x A) - Delta^2A?
(Delta x E) = Delta x -(B/t) ?
(Gah, having a mind block, but can you blame me?)
and it went on for four or so lines.
And at the end it said
"And God said let there be light"
Some of my teachers liked it but peers not so much.
