Overexposed

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun

Last spring, my son’s class took a field trip to Central Park to collect worms. I, along with five other parents, was a chaperone. In my running pants and a fleece, I thought I was dressed perfectly for the occasion. Another mother, in tight, low-riding jeans, motorcycle boots, and sexy top, had a different idea of worming attire.


The Jimmy Choo bag on her arm didn’t stop her from participating as her daughter and her friends collected creepy crawlers. And when the class settled down to have a snack, there she was, capturing the moment with her Nikon. She knelt on one knee to get the perfect angle, and exposed another angle to half the class, half the parents, and all the teachers. There’s no elegant way to say this: There it was, her plumber’s crack.


She is not alone in exposing her derriere to the world. Teenagers – and their mothers – all across the city are pouring themselves into low-riding jeans. It has become commonplace – actually fashionable – to see a teenager’s underwear, and it’s hardly the Hanes Her Way white bikini variety.


Since when did teenagers and moms of teenagers begin wearing the same clothes? Is it really appropriate for 13-year-olds to be wearing thongs? And is there a connection between the fashion statements made by teenagers and their mothers? After all, I thought teenagers tried their best to do the exact opposite of what their mothers did.


At more than one of the specialty stores in Manhattan that cater to the preteen and teen audience, such as Infinity, Berkley Girl, Marsha D.D., M.W. Teen, and G.C. Williams, Cosabella thongs are sold alongside popular teenage brands such as Juicy.


“The girls are wearing these tight, low pants. And they don’t want panty lines. Lowrider thongs are the way to go,” said a saleswoman at one store, who didn’t want her name or store mentioned.


I can understand selling thongs to women in their 20s and 30s, but to 13-year-olds? In theory, thongs and G-string underwear are supposed to prevent the dreaded panty lines that come with wearing snug clothing. But how snug can a 13-year-old’s clothing be? Apparently, very.


A close friend of my husband’s who lives in San Francisco says that his three daughters, ages 17, 15, and 12, all wear thongs. “I tell them, you can wear the short skirts and you can wear the thongs, but you can’t wear the short skirts with the thongs,” he said wryly.


Some schools – even those without uniforms or dress codes – have begun to institute policies regarding appropriate dressing. And not just for the children.


“One mother I know was called into the principal’s office – not because of the way her daughter was dressing,” said a friend of mine. “It was because of the way she was dressing.”


It isn’t only in terms of fashion that the lines between teenagers and their mothers are blurring. Apparently, there is a growing trend among teenage girls to shave their pubic hair off.


“Pubic hair is over,” said a friend of mine with a preteen daughter. “Teenagers are shaving it all off. I figured that out when my au pair had to go to the emergency room after a little shaving accident.”


On several Web sites dedicated to teenage issues, the matter of shaving it all off is a hot topic. OnTeenwire.com, a girl called Sweet Lady asks, “Are women supposed to shave ALL their pubic hair off? I KNOW we’re supposed to shave our bikini zone, but are we supposed to shave all of it off????”


The editors at Teenwire emphasize that choosing “to shave, trim, or remove pubic hair is ultimately a personal choice.”


But in chat rooms dedicated to teenagers such asScarleteen.com, which bills itself as “sex ed for the real world,” girls are overwhelmingly positive about the decision to shave their pubic hair. “What I did for the longest time was I shaved my bikini line and then trimmed up the rest. Now I just shave everything,” writes one girl. “It probably is weird that all of a sudden people are talking about pubic hair and how to shave it…It’s the new generation and we’re curious,” she adds.


It’s hard to know just how widespread this trend is, as there are no statistics available. I spoke with one college sophomore who told me she doesn’t know of anyone who shaves their pubic hair off. And then I spoke to a junior in high school who said that every single one of her friends shaves their pubic hair.


“I feel cleaner this way and I never have to worry about being embarrassed if I wear a short skirt,” she said. “It’s also better sexually. The boys love it.”


It’s difficult to know who is influencing whom – the teenagers or their mothers, or both. And it’s hard to know if the way mothers are dressing – or shaving – really has anything to do with our teenagers’ behavior. After all, far more mothers have a pair of jeans from the Gap than some trendy label at $150 a pop.


What kind of control can parents exert over their children’s decisions to wear provocative underwear and to shave their private parts? Is it reasonable to assume that it will be harder to prevent your daughter from showing off her thong if your own thong is sticking out? Probably. The only thing I am certain of is that as a parent, it is far easier to modify your own clothing as an example than to try to convince a teenager to avoid the latest trend.


One mother of a 15-year-old told me that unless I was a teenager in the last 10 years, I had no idea about what kind of revolution was occurring. “It’s a whole new world out there,” she said. Does it feel newer than premarital sex did 40 years ago? I’m not sure.


I can only hope that by the time my daughter is a teenager in 11 years, it will be a whole new world again. Maybe one that includes Hanes Her Way white bikini underwear.


The New York Sun

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