Starchild: Malaysian children share their fashion choices

Chloe Leong Xizhen, 8

When at home, most children would wear a T-shirt and shorts or pants – not only are they comfortable, they are also easy to move (or jump) around in. Some children don’t mind wearing hand-me-downs from their older siblings while others prefer to have their own clothes that reflect their own fashion sense.

There are also many who like wearing traditional costumes such as baju kurung, cheongsam and salwar kameez, whether at home or when going out. We all have our fashion preferences but for many, the most important criteria when choosing what we wear is comfort.

Here’s what Starchild readers had to say on the topic, My Favourite Clothes.

Lim Jo Ern, 7

Lim Jo Ern, seven, likes eye-catching princess dresses. “It makes me look so gorgeous, like a little princess in fairy tales. I will match it with my handbag, necklace, earrings and glittering shoes.”

Irshad Afif Mohd Masrul, 9

“I used to take my mother’s scarf and wear it as a cape, imagining myself as a superhero, writes Irshad Afif Mohd Masrul, nine.

Debria Preethi Jeyarajah, 10

“My favourite clothing is usually stylish clothes like jeans shorts and colourful t-shirts. I usually wear short pants when I am at home. My favourite t-shirt is red and it has a picture of a funky headphones on it. I like it because it is comfortable. I don’t like to wear dresses,” says Debria Preethi Jeyarajah, 10.

Eight-year-old Sophie Yap Jyn Qing’s favourite clothes are dresses, pyjamas, shirts paired with pants or skirts. “I like pyjamas most because they feel comfortable. Gowns and dresses are good for fancy parties, but shorts are good for playing sports. Shirts with skirts are good for everyday wear.”

“Younger sibling Claire Yap Jyn Wei, six, writes: “I like outfits that look nice and colourful. I especially like flower patterns, and colours such as purple, and red because they are bright and cheerful. I also like blue and pink colours because they represent Princess Elsa and Princess Anna from Disney’s animation movie, Frozen.”

Claire Yap Jyn Wei, 6

“I like long flowy dresses because I want to look like Princess Elsa from Frozen,” writes Mandy Tang, four.

Mandy Tang, 4

Chong Zng Yi, 12

“My favourite outfit is a dark-coloured T-shirt and short pants. These outfits are comfortable to wear and simple. But I also like to wear a cheongsam,” writes Chong Zng Yi, 12.

Urmila Myainthan, 9

Urmila Myainthan, nine, Ilike to wear her favourite black crop top and denim shorts. “It’s modern and it represents my fashion style.”

I.Githee, 12

Bethany Wang Qi Syuen, 6

Six-year-old Bethany Wang Qi Syuen likes to don the traditional cheongsam and would like to wear the Japanese kimono and Korean hanbok. “My favourite clothes are summer dresses, skirts and skorts for day wear and pyjamas or pyjama dresses for the night. They look nice and are comfortable for my daily activities at home.”

Asher Wang Qi Chuen, 3

Younger sibling Asher Wang Qi Chuen, three, writes: “My favourite clothes are those with dinosaur prints or with construction vehicles pictures. I also like to be twins with my parents and sister by wearing matching family clothes in identical t-shirts with the same colour bottom!”

Ong Skye, 9

“My favourite pyjama has the logo of my favourite toy brand on it, writes Ong Skye, nine.

Lee Sze Kei, 8

“My sweater’s red and my skirt’s blue, I wear socks and I wear black shoes,” says Lee Sze Kei, eight.

Low Linjian, 9

Nine year old Low Linjian likes casual attire such as t-shirts. “My favourite colour is green. I created my T-shirt with smiley faces and hearts because I am a happy and kind-hearted child.”

Jodie Tan Li Juen, 12

Jodie Tan Li Juen, 12, says: “I like wearing a cotton hoodie because it is really warm and comfortable. My favorite clothes are made from cotton. I have many types of clothes like sportswear, short pants and dresses. I like to wear skirts because I like to look feminine.”

Jayden Tan Li Sheng, 8

Younger sibling Jayden Tan Li Sheng, eight, writes: “I like my red jacket which I often wear when the weather is cold. My favourite shirt is the Superman cotton shirt, which I received for my birthday two years ago. It is very comfortable and I can still fit into it.”

Adelyn Hui-Ling Yeo, six, loves fashion and dressing up. “On cold breezy days, I love to put on my pink cardigan with my sleeveless unicorn dress. On some hot days, I love to put on my favourite shirt with printed hearts with my pink lace skort. Sometimes, I will put on my cap with my sunglasses when I feel like a cool rock star.” - Compiled by Sheela Chandran

Adelyn Hui-Ling Yeo, 6

ITEM: Books help to develop children’s creativity, improve language development and enable them to express themselves with more confidence.

What type of books do you like to read? Do you prefer fantasy or adventure? Do you have a particular fictional character that you like best? Why do you like this particular character? It could be any character ranging from Roald Dahl’s Matilda, Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit, J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan or Brothers Grimm’s Snow White, Cinderella and Rapunzel.

In conjunction with Book Lovers Day on Aug 9, Starchild wants to know more about your favourite author and fictional character. Please include an illustration to go with your letter.

E-mail your contributions to [e-mail] by Aug 6. Please put “STARCHILD: Reading” in the subject line of your e-mail.

Scanned drawings should be in jpeg format, with a resolution of 200 dpi. Your contributions must carry your full name, age (open to children aged 12 and below only), gender, phone contact, and address.