Duggar Family, circa 1994
(Jim Bob, Michelle, Josh, Jana, John-David, Jill, Jessa, and Jinger)
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| Jill, Jana, and Johanna, circa 2006 |
rough, that was a rough patch.’”
Jana Duggar: “Those are the embarrassing days.” Jana also admitted that she was not a fan of the poufy sleeves.
Joy Duggar: “They were like bags…We wore those until I was like 12.” Joy went on to share how glad she is that her family made the switch to “normal clothes.”
Jinger Duggar chimed in, saying she is glad for the change in wardrobe.
For those who grew up in the '80s and '90s, do you remember wearing similar clothing?
Duggars and Bates, circa 1995
Photo courtesy duggarfamily.com
What is with those huge clothes racks in the girls' room? They weren't there at first. Now they're there every episode. Didn't they put closets in that room? Are they too full with other thrift store finds? Did anyone else catch this and wonder?
ReplyDeleteAnna moved in remember do hers and the kids clothes are there. I am also thinking that they use the racks to close off Anna's area a little to give her some privacy.
DeleteThose are probably Anna and her kids clothes. There are not closets in the rooms. They have a central closet that the entire families clothes are kept. They talked about it on one of the shows. They said it was much easier for laundry and sorting clean clothes to keep everything in a central closet. Also for packing for trips that way everything was together.
DeleteThey have a "family closet" connected to the laundry room. Clothes are sorted and hung by gender and size, then socks and underwear are in bins. I assume that the older girls prefer to keep their clothes in their room now, so I guess they had to improvise. I actually love the idea of a "family closet". If I ever get to build a home, then I would do something similar, but I would still include closets in each bedroom. :-)
DeleteAnna and her kids moved in to the Duggars house so they got clothing racks for all of their stuff.
DeleteThey didn't put any closets in the bedrooms because they had a central family closet on the main floor next to the laundry room. I'm not sure why the older girls moved their clothes upstairs.
DeleteIt's Ana and kids clothes, she's at the Duggar while Josh is in rehab
DeleteI may be mistaken on this, but I believe that they DID put closets in the large bedrooms but they just re-purposed them. The girls' closet was turned into a sewing room, and the boys' was something like a sound recording studio. So they could have bedroom closets if they ever decided to stop using the laundry room closet.
DeleteIt's Anna clothes. I surprise Jana,Jinger and Joy could fit into Anna clothes. They doen't look the same size.
DeleteWhy do we need to question their clothes storage choices? There is absolutely no reason, other than middle class American convention, why each person needs to have clothes in their own closet or in a closet at all. Many Europeans use wardrobes, other people keep their clothes folded in a drawer.
DeleteGuys, this is getting really boring... are we really discussing about where the Duggars keep their clothes?
DeleteWe're discussing something we noticed when we watched the episode on Tuesday! Isn't that the point - to watch these episodes and boost viewership?
DeleteThey should have put Michelle on camera to explain this.
ReplyDeleteTo explain what?
DeleteThat's right. And how many moms dressed their little girls in "prairie dresses"? My girls begged for them to pretend they lived on a farm, etc. They grew up in the '80s. As they got older they wanted pencil skirts and tops.
DeleteThe Duggar kids weren't the only ones who dressed like that in the '80s and early '90s!
I didn't see the episode but I can sure appreciate the children's kindness to Anna during this difficult time.
Kelley~
This wasn't the 80s and 90s. As Lily and Ellie accurately tagged the photos, this was circa 2005.
DeleteThey corrected it to say 1995.
DeleteTwo of the photos are from the 90's and one is from 2006.
DeleteI'm thinking they're Anna's things while she's staying there. Keeps them separate.
ReplyDeleteEveryone was pulling from that rack last night to pack, though. That was a lot of clothes.
DeleteHave you ever seen a House Hunters where women--and men--turn their noses up at regular sized closets and say "that would never hold my clothes." I'd say 90% of episodes have that line. Many Americans have a lot of clothes. However, those racks were holding at least 4 women's clothes...so that doesn't seem at all crazy.
DeleteHaha! Heck yes! I have so many "why did I like that clothing" pictures!
ReplyDeleteI grew up in the 80's and 90's. I didn't dress like the Amish.
ReplyDeleteYes I was a baby in the 90s. I agree they have definitely improved their wardrobe.
ReplyDeleteWhy did they eventually''switch'' to regular clothes? I'd be interested in hearing more on this!
ReplyDeleteSo would I.
DeleteProbably changed the way they dressed because they made enough money with their TV show to buy "normal" clothes instead of buying material off the clearance bin and making their own!
DeleteI agree with the second reply.
DeleteMy guess is that the girls grew older and developed their own styles, and their parents gave them their blessings to wear what they wanted, as long as the clothes were modest.
DeleteTLC was the influence - TLC wanted the Duggars to appear more mainstream to attract viewership. TLC wanted more people to relate to the Duggars.
DeleteIf TLC did this, the Duggars certainly didn't say no! And the girls just love going shopping for clothes now, so there's no going back.
DeleteThat top picture is burning my eyes with major ruffle overload! LOL
ReplyDeleteApart from the dresses, looking at the first picture, I was stunned to see how much Spurgeon looks like Jessa and how much Israel looks like Jill.
ReplyDeleteIsrael is soooo Mini Derick :)
DeleteLol I loved my puffy dresses when I was little. But yes I have quite a few of the oh my goodness I can't believe I wore that and I have a lot of wow why mama just why lol
ReplyDeleteIs it me? Or has some of the girls hair darkened up as they got older.
ReplyDeleteThis happens often. My own hair (and both of my daughters') was blonde/light brown as a child and has gradually darkened to medium/dark brown as we have gotten older.
Deletehuh, I was thinking the opposite of that
DeleteThat happens to most people.
DeleteIt's normal, it happens to most kids.
DeleteThat actually is super common. Lots of kids are blondes when they're young and turn darker.
DeleteThose clothes were "normal" back in the day. Just because they look weird now doesn't mean they were weird then. I do appreciate the "modern modest" clothing that they wear now. :-) My daughters and I wear dresses/ skirts, too. My 4 year old likes her "poofy" dresses. :-) I'm sure her tastes will change as she ages; mine sure have!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Sarah D. I like the dresses back then.
DeleteAwe all those innocent little cuties!
ReplyDeleteThat was in style back then. The family wasn't in a "rough patch". : )Their mother made them the same pretty dresses that all other girls wore, homemade or store bought. Those dresses were "normal" for that fashion period.
ReplyDeleteYes yes that is just what is was thinking
DeleteThose clothes were NOT in style back then! My daughter is 40 now and I NEVER dressed her in those big collared dresses. I was teens to mid 20's and I certainly didn't dress that way. Never saw clothes in the stores like that either. I think Jessa was just being honest that they were going through a "rough patch". Goodness, they had a lot of kids to dress. They did their best with what little was left after food costs I'm sure!
DeleteThey were too in style back then. I'm 44 I remember them. I saw them in Von Maur,Younkers,JcPenneys.
DeleteHello, I have to agree with anonymous. It sounds like Jessa was being honest about the clothes. I was a kid in the 80's and this style was not popular in the 80's, 90's or 2000's. In the late 70's or early 80's gunny sack dresses were popular. However they did look different then these puffy
DeleteI have some "what was I thinking" pictures from the 80s and 90s.
ReplyDeleteStyles change throughout the years. And that family was stuck in the 80s for awhile. Some of the girl's hair styles are still there. Time for an update. Cut that super long hair. Everybody has those "blackmail" pictures were you were is tacky clothes.
ReplyDeleteYeah I always wonder how long it takes them to wash their hair. Anna's has an acceptable lenght, but for the Duggar girls I wonder if it wouldn't be good for their hygiene to cut it.
DeleteThe poofy hair and poofy, super-girly clothes were from the 80s. Michelle is the only one who was alive in the 80s. I've wondered if they dressed that way because that was what was in the thrift stores when they were little? Everyone cleaning out their 80s clothes?
DeleteMany of the Duggars still have 1980 hairstyles, especially Michelle.
DeleteThe girls will probably look back at pictures one of these days and say why didn't we change our hair styles.
I live in a very trendy area on the West Coast and almost every girl I see in the Duggar's age group has hair that long. It is very much in style.
DeleteMichelle needs a haircut more than the girls do.
DeleteMichelle definitely needs a hair update!
DeleteI'm in my 20s and have very long straight hair (like Joy Anna's), and sometimes curl it a bit (like the rest of the girl). Most girls in my age group are getting extensions to have hair the length of The Duggar Girls (and mine). I agree they had the 80s look going on with the teased perm-style curls and poofy bangs but right now the elder Duggar girls are very much in-style with their hair. (Also it takes me 10 minutes to shower, it doesn't take that long to wash the hair. Drying takes forever, though!)
DeleteMy hair went from Jessa length to Joy anna length last weekend after an accidental lean over a candle. I cried a little... but. All I can say is When you hair is long you don't wash it as frequently. I do only every 3 or 4 days based on how the roots look and where I'm going. It takes me about 3 mins to wash my hair and 5-10 to condition (I put it in and leave it while I continue showering and rince at the end.) Long hair like theirs or mine also requires heat guard, Keratin, oils and leave in treatments at the bottom. All in all it is expensive but not overly time consuming because you can braid it or pull it up very easily. The longer it gets the heavier so one doesn't need to worry about fly aways. JUST BE CAREFUL AROUND CANDLES!!
Delete...and they seemed more humble back then, too.
ReplyDeletehow is my favourite duggar Jinger hope she is well because i am Jinger s biggest fan
ReplyDeleteI wish they could at least say something positive, it is sad they have responded the way they have.
ReplyDeleteWhen they're little, I think those dresses are sweet and cute!!!
ReplyDeleteYes, they are!
DeleteIs the last picture circa 1995? Because 2005 was only 11 years ago and the kids in this picture are now in there twenties
ReplyDeleteI loved the dresses back in the 80's and 90's. I wore them I throught they were cute. So did my sisters and they liked them. We were them to church.
ReplyDeleteMy girls wore them. They were born in 83 and 85. All the little girls wore them to church!
DeleteI think it said in their first book (correct me if I'm wrong) that the kids' bedrooms do have closets, but the girls wanted to turn theirs into a sewing room and the boys, a videotape room. Now the girls probably have clothes upstairs in their (sewing room) closet so that they can try on different outfits more easily. And maybe they were pulling clothes off of that one rack to speed up the filming of that segment. (Maybe it's something the director asked them to do.)
ReplyDeleteAre you sure the lower picture is Form 2005? The boy on the left looks so much like Josh. And who would be the two little girls? I guess it's from 1995. Then these girls could be Jinger and Alyssa.
ReplyDeleteIt's stunning how much that boy left of Jinger looks like little Jeb.
Its Lawson, and the other small Bates is Nathan. Bigger boys clearly Zach and Josh. The photo is definitely from 1995.
DeleteThe bottom picture, is more like 1999 or 2000, not 2005. It looks like it is closer to the top picture, time wise. The older girls are really little in the picture, and there are no little boys in the picture.
ReplyDeleteThose prairie dresses were NOT in style in the 80s and 90s. I never dressed my daughters like that and neither did I drssed like that. And I too sewed their clothes, shopped in second hand shops. They wore practical and comfortable clothes.
ReplyDeleteI've always wondered why Jim Bob and Michelle changed their minds about dressing the kids all in the same outfit. I do like seeing their individual personalities in the 'normal' clothing though.
ReplyDeleteMaybe because the kids were old enough to choose?
Deleteand be not conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, for your proving what is the will of elohim -- the good, and acceptable, and perfect Rom. 12:2
ReplyDeleteI think that knee length skirts are not modest, they are too short. There was a survey of men on the subject of womens clothing , and the survey shows that
'tight clothing is at least as much of a potential problem for men as skimpy clothing.'
One man said: “I would say the number one problem is any garment that is form fitting,be it ,---, skirt, dress, shirt, whatever. Anything that is tight, no matter how long it is.”
Another said: ...”tight clothing. Oh, it may very well be covering but it is revealing the shape in a woman. This can be even more tantalizing to a man.”
And he said unto the disciples, 'It is impossible for the stumbling blocks not to come, but woe [to him] through whom they come;
Luk 17:1
The Bible never says cover your whole leg so how are knee skirts immodest?
DeleteI dont think men should decide about the fashion choices of women. In my opinion a survey abouth female clothing should not be dictated by men. The male part of the population should mind their own thoughts... its your own fault if you let your mind wonder off to "defrauding" stuff...
DeleteIt is good to have personal convictions. For you it seems that knee length skirts are something that you feel are immodest, for other people, it might not be something that they are personally convicted with. I think the problem is when people try to make others live by their standards, not by what the Lord has told them personally to do. Just my thoughts. Take it how you will.
Delete@unknown beautifully said!
DeleteClothes are not modest or inmodest, but one's attitude. Modest people don't tell others: Hey, look at me, I'm being modest, there's no need for that.
DeleteI thought the Duggar wardrobe had more to do with their religious convictions, rather than a style or current fashion trend. My kids wore jeans, sweatshirts and T shirts twenty years ago, including my daughter. They had a few dressy outfits for special occasions, but the Little House on the Prairie look was not among them.
ReplyDeleteI'm 27 and wore dresses like that. Definitely pictures we look back on and say "Why would you let me wear that". It was the style back then.
ReplyDeleteSorry for the typo! The picture at the end of the post is from 1995, not 2005. :)
ReplyDeleteLily and Ellie
I liked the prairie dresses.
ReplyDeleteI wore dress like that in the 90's and 80's until I was ten or 12.
ReplyDeleteI've looked at all the pictures and can definitely say the style of the dresses was "in style" back then. I remember dressing my girls in something similar on Sundays. Of course, that was when they were about 10 and under.
ReplyDeleteThose were the good ole days! I miss them!
ReplyDeleteY'all looked so sweet in those clothes.
ReplyDeleteI wonder why is this a subject of discussion? I can see if the reason is to discuss the evolving dress code of the Duggars but for a discussion on styles seems silly to me.
ReplyDeleteThe Duggars, like many converts to a religion or lifestyle, tend to be over zealous in the beginning. In time, they moderate their views. It is obvious in the way the younger children are dressed. The girls are wearing more leggings, really just thin pants, under their dresses. The older girls are wearing heels, boots and make out, items that Michelle did not wear in the 80s.
What is wrong with leggings under a dress? It's more modest for a child.
DeleteUsually leggings are worn because the wearer wants to be modest. For little girls, it is especially important to wear them, because they tend to be a little more rambunctious.
DeleteI personally liked and I still like those "prairie dresses." On the other hand, when I look back at some of my photos from the 1980's of my 80's hairstyle, I wonder, "What in the world was I thinking?"
ReplyDeleteI do believe that TLC was a big influence and factor that changed the Duggar clothing style. TLC wanted them to be considered more mainstream so that their viewers could relate better. I have a feeling that if the Duggars were never on TV they would still be wearing this style. Many ultra conservatives still dress this way. At Jill's wedding many of the females in attendance were wearing this style clothing - look at past shows or youtube videos and you will see that they have many friends wearing this style of clothing to special events.
ReplyDeleteI agree and I too have noticed this. I grew up in this time period, born in 1981 and I don't remember this style ever being in fashion. Now, I can relate to the fact that I do have pictures of myself and I cringe and say "what was I thinking wearing that outfit?"
DeleteIn Arkansas in the early 90s those dresses were popular for the little girls. I lived then and was around 12 and the little girls in my church wore them. We weren't a super conservative church, everyone wore pants and went to public school, cut their hair short, etc.
ReplyDeleteI had children in the early 2000s and they wore some of those just b/c I thought they were cute. I didn't care what they 'trends' were, I dressed them in anything I found that was cute and didn't cost a lot. I'm sure Michelle felt the same... if she thought it was pretty, modest, and didn't cost a lot, she got it. If she found material she liked and pattern she like, she made the dresses that way. Who cares what other people liked?
Then, the girls got older and wanted to pick/buy their own things, and the style changed. As long as they were still modest, the parents said ok.
My own children are now teens and wanting to pick their own things and they don't always like the same styles I do. As long as it's modest, I'm good with it. No, they don't dress the same styles as they did when I dressed them as littler girls. But they're still modest and sweet young ladies, and that's what I care about.
Since we are on the topic of fashion and what the Duggars used to wear, someone please explain to me why the girls don't wear pants? Michelle Duggar's answer always irritates me, as she doesn't know how to express it properly. Can’t “modest” be pants (not tight ones), too? I can’t understand why being modest means wearing only skirts. I must be missing something. Thanks so much.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand it, either. I see them wear tight t-shirts, so I don't get the pants prohibition. It seems like they should be in mumus if they don't want to show any outline of the female form.
DeleteI think Michelle's hair in that photo is more of a fashion disaster than the girls' dresses.
ReplyDeleteI loved the prairie dresses. I tend to more old fashioned way of modest dress not trendy. Love them all at every stage.
ReplyDelete