Here’s a little tour of what the lovely Maude Blair, age 13, will be wearing to 8th grade. Starting with outfit #1, which features a floral jumpsuit from the Next outlet, and a navy cardigan from Abercrombie. (If you’re curious, you can find a little sidenote about what my kids think of Abercrombie in this post.)
The silver, leather ballet flats are from Carrefour (a French grocery store).
Outfit #2 has lots of pieces and textures. I really like it. The tweed jacket is a hand-me-down from our landlords. The scarf is borrowed from Mom. The denim dress is by Kayce Hughes. The thick star tights are from DPAM. And the boots are from… I can’t remember. A funny little shoe chain in our town. (Keep reading to see better shots of the boots.)
Outfit #3 is modeled after an outfit her cousin Roxcy wore while she stayed with us in the spring (it was such a cute outfit!). Red jeans from Justice. Ribbed tank and stripey top from Abercrombie.
Plus grey Ben Simon knock offs on her feet. All the French school girls — preschool through high-school — seem to have a pair of Ben Simons, or similar knockoffs. They’re sold in every shoe store.
Oufit #4 might be my favorite. And I can tell Maude feels great in it too. She’s wearing jeans that were already in her closet, with a super-cool cardigan and stripey top from H&M.
Her watch is by Swatch. And the boots are the same ones mentioned above.
This outfit makes Maude feel sassy.
Outfit #5 is a simple one. Stripey dress and leggings are both from H&M. Ballet flats are mentioned above.
Remember when you were 13 and super cute and totally confident? Me neither. At 13, I was the opposite of those 2 things.
Outfit #6 is the final outfit of our tour. Maude is wearing the same jeans as above, a hand-me-down chambray shirt from her big brother, a denim jacket from Children’s Place and a leather belt she’s had for years and years.
This has become such a good tradition for us each Back to School season. Clearing out closets, mending clothes, putting together outfits. And the kids love having a record of their wardrobe to reference, and new images to upload to their Facebook profiles. : )
Thanks for coming along for the tour. I hope you enjoyed it!
Sweet Maude looks so chic in all of her outfits! And she totally took it to “young lady” level with outfit #5. Beautiful gal!
First off she really reminds me of you in these shots. And she seems to be quite tall? Lovely photos, fun shoot and great outfits!
She looks SO MUCH like you, Gabrielle! So lovely and tall :)
I love the jeans outfit too and I love that Swatch watch!
She has had such a growth spurt since we moved to France! She’s much taller than she was when we first got here. It’s been fun to see her sprout!
13 might be the roughest age in a girl’s life, but it looks like your girl will be able to handle what this year may throw her way :)
I agree, she looks just like her mom! And wonderfully cute and sweet. And age appropriate :) I only hope my girls will dress this nice at that age
Lovely! No matter how chic and stylish, Maude’s kindness and goodness permeates! Isn’t that wonderful!!
Maude looks absolutely gorgeous! She looks so much like you–lucky girl!
What does it say about me that, at 37, I want almost all of Maude’s outfits?
She is lucky to be 13 at a more stylish time than the 80s, I’ll give her that.
Absolutely lovely, and I love the braid, too!
Maude really got lucky in the hair department. Her hair is wonderful to work with and she’s good at braiding it and trying updos.
I second Heather’s comment! I was just thinking that I need to take a trip to H&M after seeing these outfits. And I love love love those boots. Go Maude!
Question, Gabrielle: did you do a lot of your back to school shopping when you were in the U.S. this summer? I noticed in this post as well as the one last week that there were some items from US chains, and I was wondering if they have stores over there, or if you shopped here, or bought online? Just curious!
Hi Karen! Great question. We did do some shopping while we were in the States. The red jeans and the abercrombie pieces came from the mall in Colorado. The year before, we stayed in France for the summer, so everything we bought was local.
In the U.S., I do a fair amount of shopping online, but here it’s always a little bit riskier because sometimes there will be unexpected custom fees that can be 3 times the worth of the product. Yikes! So I mostly shop in person.
“Remember when you were 13 and super cute and totally confident? Me neither. At 13, I was the opposite of those 2 things.” Oh my gosh – that just made me laugh! Middle school was totally the worst, most awkward, uncomfortable time in my life. I’m so glad I survived! And again, I’m totally getting wardrobe inspiration for myself out of your kids’ outfits.
I had a swatch watch when I was 13 too…all those (cough) many years ago. Mine smelled like peppermint.
Looking lovely, Maude!
Scented Swatches? I somehow missed those!
Wow, in the last outfit (denim jacket), where she is looking straight at the camera, she looks so much like you in your photos on this site! I love all of the outfits!
Maude, you are an exceptionally stylish 13 year old. I’m 35, and I wish I had your confidence and style!
I love her style and wish the star tights were in my size! You can definitely see the French influence in all the outfits. Tres bien!
Has she read “I Capture the Castle” by Dodie Smith? I think its a lovely book for a thirteen year old and the cover would go perfectly with these sweet outfits!
I don’t think she has, but she’s reading these comments, and I’ll bet she’s already made a note to look it up. : )
Cute outfit! An awesome 8th grader outfit! Way to go :)
Your children are so beautiful. Maude is so pretty and she looks much like you.
Our beautiful girls, Maude, Olive and Betty! We love you all.
Maude is so beautiful, and seems so smart and kind too. I love all the outfits! Funny, my mom had warned me that 13 was an awkward stage, so even though I was excited about turning into a teenager, I was also terrified of what I now know is the insecurities and changing times of middle school. What’s funny is – it totally wasn’t awkward for me! I loved it! I still remember what I wore on my first day of 8th grade too – It must have been when I was really getting into clothes, because it was very exciting and still probably my favorite “first day” outfits (even though it would be totally dated now).
Love your ideas and styles and they help this mom of seven who sometimes feels very, very out of style.
There are a few stores/brands I avoid paying for or supporting b/c of their advertising…whether soft porn or lifestyles they support or other things that I’m willing to sacrifice style for a statement I want to make since my money supports their business. Abercrombie is one of them…check out the ‘sexy’ adds going on.
http://www.abercrombie.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreView?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10901
With that said, we have benefited greatly from many hand-me-downs over the years for which I am extremely grateful. When a brand logo or name is fairly hidden, I leave it be, but when it is a bold one, I try to get creative and cover it somehow. Aside from not wanting to give scandal by others seeing me ‘support’ businesses or ‘issues’ by the clothing we wear, I just get irritated that children are walking, free advertisements for companies!
Okay, I’m totally not a bitter woman…and all that sounds rather harsh. I probably owe you ten minutes of trying to re-write all that so that it sounds all sweet, but I don’t have the time. I’ll finish with reiterating how lovely your family ALWAYS looks regardless of brands. Thanks for giving the view of a joy-filled large family!
Your point is well taken!
My first thought was “Wow, so ladylike and modest” – so unlike what I see in junior high school in the US…especially at that age:) Second, what a perfect model! Third, I am wondering when any of you began wearing makeup? I remember my mother announcing I could wear mascara and a little lip gloss as I entered seventh grade. Funny, I don’t recall being excited or into it then. Now, high school on the other hand… (in the eighties)…..!!!
Wow – I can totally imagine you at 13 – she looks just like you.
I love her outfits – Awesome style for a young girl
These are such special photos. Maude has the best type of loveliness – the inner beauty that radiates outward!
oh i loooooooove when you do these. Maude is just such a pretty, sweet and wise lookin’ little sassafras! I love her in the red jeans but outfit #4 is my fave too. So cosmopolitan and modern but SO age-appropriate.
Please tell Maude she looks amazing and chic! And of course….good luck with her studies.
;-)
Hi Alix! I will make sure Maude reads your kind comment. Thank you for your words!
Zooey Deschanel!!! Do you see it in the first photo? or is it just me??? Maude channels a young Zooey Deschanel. I had to do a double-take! THOSE EYES! You’re gorgeous darling. Good luck in 8th grade!
She’ll be so pleased to read your comment. She’s been told she looks like Zooey Deschanel before and it absolutely made her day!
I would definitely wear some of these outfits and I’m 21! I especially like 2 and 4. And I already own an outfit really similar to 3. Looking back on my style when I was 13…it was just awful.
I love Olive and Maude’s outfits. I agree completely with the others who’ve mentioned how nice it is to see cute, age-appropriate outfits. Some of what’s fashionable, at least in the US, seems almost trashy to me. As the mom of an 11-yr-old 6th grader, I really appreciate seeing girls looking their best while still looking their age. My daughter reviewed both posts (as she did last year) and I know she’ll take some inspiration from Olive and Maude! :)
Oh, and cute and confident at 13 … I definitely wasn’t. You can tell Maude is, though, and I hope my daughter will be too!
Oh my goodness, she is just absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!! Wow. Watch out for those boys when they come knocking. I’m 30, and I think I’d happily take any (better yet, all!) those outfits. Absolutely adorable! She should start her own fashion blog!
My daughter turns 14 Sunday (!!!) and is way more comfortable and cute and cool than I ever remember being at 13. Since she is my mini-me, she has taught me how to be a better me now.
Thanks for sharing. :)
“she has taught me how to be a better me now.”
Such a great sentiment!
I used to wear abercrombie articles of clothing occasionally. Then, my roommate in college get one of their catalogs in the mail. It was awful, pornography, if I’m going to blunt. We threw it away immediately and I have since never worn their clothing. Hopefully they have changed their methods of advertising but I’ve never looked. That’s kind of off the subject a bit I guess. I do love the style of your children. Mine tend to wear mismatched clothes, nothing so sleek. :)
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I’m 25 years old and plan to draw some serious inspiration {aka “copy”} every single one of these gorgeous outfits! Well done! What a beautiful young lady you have there. Her hair is to die for.
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I love the pictures of you wearing the ballet flats.I also wear ballet flats barefooted.
She looks just like you!!