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October 01, 2014 3 min read 13 Comments
Superman has one. Batman has one. And we have one, too.
It started back in April of 2013. I stopped in a big chain store because my daughter, E, then almost three, needed new pajamas. And I did what I always did when buying her pajamas. First I went to the girls section and picked out a few sets that had some assortment of cute, pastel colors with ice cream cones, hearts, and butterflies. Then I walked to the other side of the store and bought her a few pairs from the boys section - red ones with dinosaurs, dark blue ones with rocket ships and planets, and an orange and blue set with construction equipment.
Back in 2013, there wasn't a single dress with a dinosaur on it. So we made one.
As I walked out past the girls section again I glanced through the dresses. My daughter, then and now, will only wear dresses. She loves to twirl and spin and doesn’t mind tying up the ends of her dress when climbing at the park or showing off her underwear when doing a somersault. We can sometimes convince her to wear a skirt, and on a rare occasion, she’ll wear pants or shorts without something twirly over it, but mostly she just loves dresses. And, to be totally honest, I love buying them for her.
But the thing I started thinking about that day as I walked to the register with my motley collection of packaged pajamas is that E also loves wearing her robot jammies and the ones with the dogs (the ones you know aren’t meant for girls because the dogs aren’t wearing lipstick or pearls or a hat with a flower). It’s too bad, I thought, that there are no dresses with robots on them, because she would totally wear that. Or a dress with a truck. Or a dinosaur. Or an airplane. Or a pirate. Or an alien. Or a train.
We made a dress with a train too.
I couldn’t shut my brain off. Even with a six week old baby, I couldn’t fall asleep that night. Someone should make dresses like this! I should make dresses like this! But I can’t sew. Should I learn to sew? Should I just call Old Navy and complain? Should I call Old Navy and try to sell my idea? Can you even do that? I should learn to sew. How should I do that? Who do I know that sews? Eva! She’s a great seamstress! Maybe she’ll want to teach me how to sew. Oh wait…. Even better! Maybe she’ll want to do this with me! And on and on my brain went.
A couple of weeks later, I threw myself a little birthday picnic out in Rock Creek Park, and Eva and family joined us. As soon as we had a slightly quiet moment, I pulled Eva aside.
AND a fire truck!
“Eva,” I said, “I want to start a company that makes girls clothes - like for girls, dresses and skirts and things - with things on them that are usually only on boys clothes - like trucks and dinosaurs and stuff. Do you want to do it with me? Be partners? Start a business together?”
I don’t remember exactly what she said, but I do remember that she answered immediately, without a moment’s pause and with a look of seriousness and excitement on her face. Serious excitement. Excited seriousness. And then she said, “Can you come over this week for a business meeting? We can start to plan.”
And that was it. Princess Awesome was born.
We've come a long way since our basement-sewn, handmade products four years ago. From left to right: our first pi dress, our Kickstarter sample, our Kickstarter tunic pi dress, and our twirly skirt with pockets longsleeve version.
August 12, 2019
I bought the Phoenix dress for me and my little C. Just bought the Pi dress. Keep those adult dresses coming!
Love,
A teacher
July 10, 2019
Mom of two daughters: 4 and 2 and I keep coming back and buying more because these dresses are starting some amazing conversations: At school, at the dinner table, everywhere. They’re practical, comfortable, and twirly! It can’t get any better. Thank you!
January 14, 2019
I’m on a voc-tech school committee where a great deal of attention is paid to attracting girls and boys to “non-traditional” trades. Maybe your clothing line will make more trades “traditional” for any student. GREAT idea! MaryB.
October 02, 2018
Love the clothes for my 20 month old granddaughter. They are pretty, practical and have a purpose.
August 08, 2018
You should make the dresses with pockets. In the seams like pants pockets. But big and deep and functional like boy pockets. All dresses need pockets for function. Not for “cute”.
August 04, 2018
I’d also love adult sizes. I teach second grade, and my students would plotz if I came in with an honest to goodness Miss Frizzle style dinosaur dress. Get Messy, Make Mistakes, Have Fun!!
March 14, 2018
Your stuff is awesome! Can’t lie, I would totally wear it in grown up sizes.
On the flip side, my kiddo would love to see masculine clothing with cute animals, rainbows and cupcakes on them. Would love it if all kids could find motifs they identify with, without having to worry about what section the clothes are from.
December 26, 2017
I do so wish you woul expand your size lone to bigger kids size 16 and up. I ould love to see Junior and even adult sizes. Love your ideas.
September 01, 2017
Still waiting for a boys’ clothing line that isn’t filled with ugly, muddied colors and violent or sports imagery. Whatever happened to bright primary colored shirts? Even if we leave out pink and purple, there’s yellow, green, blue, orange, red… Meanwhile my son has grown up but still hankers after clothing that doesn’t look like something you’d wear as an extra in a dystopian flick.
May 26, 2017
I love this. My daughter would have loved this when she was little. Now I need a prince awesome clothing line for my little prince who loves pink, purple and all things girly:)
March 10, 2017
I LOVE that you’re combining “girly” and “non-girly!” Like your kiddo, my little ladies are equally comfortable in their frilly frocks or brothers’ hand-me-downs. Their interests run the gamut from flowers, cupcakes, and nail polish to math (their favorite subject), Legos, monster trucks, and picking up dog poop from the yard (their favorite chore – lol). Their favorite colors remain the same, though – pink, purple, and turquoise. You can’t always find pieces, or even material to make your own, that combine the cool stuff they’re into with the colors they love. I may have to find some birthday gifts for them on here!
March 02, 2017
YES YES YES! A million times yes!
My daughter (also an E, yay!) is the same! Can’t wait to show her this stuff and pick out some fun things together :)
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Deborah
October 13, 2019
My daughter found this site and I love it. My girls are grown so I’m purchasing for my niece who is 6 yrs old. She was told at school by a little boy that she couldn’t wear her NASA T-shirt because it was a boys shirt so I bought her the moon landing dress. I love the solar system dress and hope it will be in stock in time for Christmas.
I’m a mechanical engineer working in the chemical manufacturing both which still have a low percentage of women. Your new DNA, Pi and atom patterns are cool and the geek in me loves them and I think they’re great for the older girls. I’m not sure that these patterns are as relatable to the kindergarten set so I’d like to see some more tangible images for little ones. A chemistry pattern with Florence and Erlenmeyer flasks, a Bunsen burner, and maybe a molecule diagram or two. A pattern made of gears could be really cool too – different sizes and colors, Last a Rube Goldberg Machine could be really cool too. Magnets for physics..,, A lever, pulleys, springs…. Ok I”ll stop now. Keep it up ladies!
Deborah