Help me dress the twins

November 18, 2007 5:07 PM

I need help finding clothes for identical twins that aren't identical (the clothes, I mean).

My boss and his partner are having twin girls in January.

Anyhoo, I want to get them a couple of pretty dresses - something more traditional, like sailor dresses or smocked dresses. Something pretty they can wear next summer, as opposed to all the onesies they'll be wearing for the next few months, so I'm looking for size 6 months. Something like this.

This is the problem. I don't want to get them matching dresses, but I do want coordinating dresses - maybe two different dresses with the same pattern by the same designer. I keep finding almost what I want, but I haven't found that perfect match yet.

Any ideas? Thanks all.

posted by Evangeline to shopping (24 comments total)

That site you linked to is great. Perhaps complementary Lilly Pulitzer dresses, such as this and this? Close enough to feel twinnish, yet different in the details...?
posted by GrammarMoses at 5:20 PM on November 18, 2007

Shopping for summer dresses might be tough this time of year, but... maybe you can find some clearance items.

Tiny Bubbles is a great brand and makes a lot of cool smocks. (Not cheap.)
posted by k8t at 5:29 PM on November 18, 2007

With infant twins, anything that will help *differentiate* the twins is a good thing. The same dress in different colors would be great.

Sailor suit with pink accents, sailor suit with yellow accents. Light green onesie, robin's-egg blue onesie.

Of course, this is assuming that you'll be sewing.
posted by freshwater_pr0n at 5:30 PM on November 18, 2007

I'm considering Lilly Pulitzer, because she does have the widest selection of dresses in the same color scheme. I'm just not crazy about her clothes, though. Maybe it's just a leftover prejudice - all the popular girls at my high school wore Lilly Pulitzer clothes!
posted by Evangeline at 5:30 PM on November 18, 2007

One note: even with twins (who are often smaller), chances are slim that a size "six months" dress will fit them when they're six months old. I'd go with a larger size -- perhaps 12 months.
posted by The corpse in the library at 5:31 PM on November 18, 2007

I think you're more looking at a 12 month size. (Or 6-9M, 6-12M. Note the birth weights.) Baby clothes sizes do not work as one might reasonably expect them to work.

There're lovely Liberty print dresses that would suit, but -- $$$ (or rather, £££).

One in each floral?

These are not traditional (but, unlike some traditional stuff, will probably look nice without ironing, and be comfortable), but two in different colours, or two different styles in the same colours?

White skirt, red skirt.
posted by kmennie at 5:32 PM on November 18, 2007

Here's the Tiny Bubbles website.
posted by k8t at 5:33 PM on November 18, 2007

OK, I'm back. I realized that my earlier suggestion wouldn't work because the dresses don't come that small. But here are a few more thoughts:

This dress comes in both red and blue.
This dress comes in both pink and blue.
And these dresses come in a whole array of colors (e.g., ocean, harvest, pear, pink, vanilla, lilac, avocado, white, spice, raspberry) -- just pick your two faves.
posted by GrammarMoses at 5:36 PM on November 18, 2007

These are perhaps less traditional than you were requesting, but wow, they're cute.

And reversible!
posted by Space Kitty at 5:38 PM on November 18, 2007 [1 favorite has favorites]

They're being delivered by c-section on January 7th. I figured that if I got them summer dresses in the 6 months size they could wear them by June. So 12 months will be a reasonable size by then? I don't know from babies. I'm just really excited that someone I know is finally having girls so I can by tiny little dresses.
posted by Evangeline at 5:44 PM on November 18, 2007

Patsy Aiken stuff is really, really cute. They seem to be pushing some kind of Tupperware/ Pampered Chef kind of party-distribution deal but also looks like you can order direct from the website.
posted by Sweetie Darling at 5:50 PM on November 18, 2007

If they are using cloth diapers, that's another reason to buy bigger sizes. But, yes, breastfed babies tend to be bigger in the early months than other babies. My 6-week-old who wears cloth diapers is already in the 6th month size.
posted by acoutu at 6:15 PM on November 18, 2007

Unless they've hired a wet nurse, I don't think there's going to be any breast-feeding involved! The mother is a surrogate, the egg comes from another anonymous woman, and my boss is the sperm donor. He and his male partner will be raising the twins.

But knowing these guys, I bet they will use cloth diapers. I'll take your suggestion and go with a larger size.
posted by Evangeline at 6:23 PM on November 18, 2007

I'm thinking of going in a different direction now. Maybe this and this.
posted by Evangeline at 6:28 PM on November 18, 2007

just be careful about the size, possum..

little girls shouldn't be in dresses from about 8 months till about 16 months. they crawl, and the dresses bunch up and cause them to fall flat on their faces. once walking, all bets are off.

as the mummy of an infant girl, i prefer rompers. in australia we call them all in ones.

twin girls, very cool.
posted by taff at 7:55 PM on November 18, 2007

oops. i shoulda read what you just wrote.

um... what you said.
love them. i'd put my goil in them.
posted by taff at 7:57 PM on November 18, 2007

www. Orientexpressed.com. Awesome smocked dresses. Sister sets . I would go with 9 month size. With a dress, bigger is ok but you don't want it to swallow them!! Happy shopping!
posted by pearlybob at 8:07 PM on November 18, 2007

I'm a non-identical twin, and I sorta wish my Mom would have dressed us in different clothes when I was younger. We had the same toys and everything.
posted by KokuRyu at 8:37 PM on November 18, 2007

Sorry for assuming the partner's sex.

To make dresses better for wear in colder weather (in case we all mess up the sizes), you might look into some tights with no feet.
posted by acoutu at 9:51 PM on November 18, 2007

Oh no worries. It's kind of an unusual situation. I would have assumed the same thing.
posted by Evangeline at 4:47 AM on November 19, 2007

little girls shouldn't be in dresses from about 8 months till about 16 months

I would've said earlier (I have a three-month-old; thanks for the heads-up). The problem with babies and dresses is that they get put places that are rarely compatible with dresses. Dresses do not work well in slings or most other carriers, and there is no dignity in being belted in to a car seat or bouncer in a dress...

Whatever you get, please make sure it is reasonably easy to put on (snaps or buttons at the neck...), reasonably easy to change a diaper in, free of irritating embroidery, dry-clean-only fabrics, cheap construction which will require ironing, and fabric that pills if washed frequently.
posted by kmennie at 9:55 AM on November 19, 2007

A vote please. I'm trying to choose between this and this or these (one in pink and one in green). Remember, these are for spring and summer.

Something to keep in mind - these guys are the richest people I know. They have a house in Chelsea and a house in the Hamptons. They buy horses in Ireland and have them shipped to the US. My boss goes on fox hunts (I try to overlook that). His partner is an interior designer. So as much as I love children's clothes with monkeys all over them or giant polka dots, I'm pretty sure they would want something simpler or more classic.
posted by Evangeline at 10:14 AM on November 19, 2007

One of your links doesn't work, but I like the A-line dress. Does it come with shorts, though? If not, the girls are going to be flashing their diapers at everyone as they crawl around... not that there's anything wrong with that.
posted by The corpse in the library at 9:18 AM on November 20, 2007

I went ahead and bought the first two choices.

It doesn't come with shorts, but I figure they'll probably have some white bloomers on hand.
posted by Evangeline at 10:39 AM on November 20, 2007