Kids Posh Togs

James Alexander Philip Theo or to give him his correct title, Viscount Severn, the son of Prince Edward and the Countess of Wessex was christened today in a private chapel at Windsor Castle.  In attendance were the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh.

James wore a replica of the satin and lace royal christening gown, which was made in 1841 and has been used for every royal christening since.

Not all of us are lucky enough to have such esteemed connections with a gown already available to us, or even to have an heirloom gown that has been passed down through our families.  If not, why not start a tradition with your little one, by purchasing one of the beautiful gowns pictured on this site.

Names come and go in the fashion stakes, but is personal preference all you should consider?

According to an article by Anushka Asthana for The Observer  newspaper in 2007, the name you give your child really does have an impact on their life.  It is claimed that this is due to the fact that names provide a powerful image of a person and influence people’s reaction to them.

A study of 1,000 pairs of twin sisters in the US by David Figlio, professor of economics at the University of Florida showed that those girls given more ‘feminine’ names were less likely to study subjects traditionally male dominated purely because they weren’t expected to.  Girls with feminine names are generally typecast and have different expectations placed on them, although when tested they were not necessarily less able.

Figlio also claimed that giving a child a ‘chav’ or lower-status name can also limit their life-chances.  In a study of 55,000 children, the exam marks recorded were on average 3-5% lower than those of their siblings who had the exact same upbringing but given more traditional names.  This theory has been supported by a primary school teacher in London who agreed that it was hard not to form judgements about pupils based on names only.  She went on to say that “If you treat a child differently because of their name, then they will behave differently”.  Figlio concluded that people should be more aware of the power of names and the consequences of their choices before naming their babies.

The official statistics for girls names in England in 2007 are:

1st  -  Grace  -  moving up from 2nd place in 2006

2nd  - Ruby  -  up from 4th place in 2006

3rd  -  Olivia  -  previously holding the top spot in 2006

4th  -  Emily  -  up from 5th place in 2006, but had been 1st place in 2003 and 2004

5th  -  Jessica  -  down from 3rd place in 2006

6th  -  Sophie  -  same position as 2006

7th  -  Chloe  -  same position as 2006

8th  -  Lily  -  up from 9th place in 2006

9th  -  Ella  -  up from 11th place in 2006

10th  -  Amelia  -  up from 16th place in 2006

languishing at the bottom are  Evelyn at 99 and Tilly at 100.

The UK is not alone in turning away from traditional names.  In the US, psychology professor Cleveland Evans from Bellevue University, Nebraska has been studying US baby names for 25 years.  He reports that popular culture and even big brands were the inspiration behind some of the more bizarre names.  At the time of his report (2003), 6 boys had been named Timberland and 7 Denim.  The most bizarre perhaps are the 2 boys in Michigan and Texas called ESPN after the sports channel!

In England, the top 10 for boys in 2007 were:

1st  -  Jack  -  remaining in the top spot over the last 5 years

2nd  -  Thomas  -  same position as 2006

3rd  -  Oliver  -  up from 4th place in 2006

4th  -  Joshua  -  falling from 3rd position in 2006

5th  -  Harry  -  same place as 2006, but up from 11th place in 2005

6th  -  Charlie  -  up from 10th place in 2006

7th  -  Daniel  -  up from 9th place in 2006

8th  -  William – down from 5th position in 2006

9th  -  James  -  down from 6th place in 2006

10th  -  Alfie  -  up from 16th position in 2006

Andrew and Zak were 99th and 100th respectively.

Various shops are located across mainly Southern England, with a couple of retail outlets.

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