Megan Fox Encouraged Her Son to "Be Confident" After He Was Teased for Wearing Dresses

Megan Fox Encouraged Her Son to "Be Confident" After He Was Teased for Wearing Dresses - Oprah Mag

Posted: 20 Sep 2019 10:26 AM PDT

Megan Fox opened up about her support of her 6-year-old son's decision to wear dresses to school during a recent visit to The Talk.
Despite being teased by classmates, her son Noah says he doesn't care: "I love dresses too much."
Celebrities including Charlize Theron, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Gwen Stefani have faced criticism for allowing their children to simply be themselves.
Fox says she's trying to teach her son to "be confident no matter what anyone else says."

Actress Megan Fox, 33, opened up about her decision to allow her son Noah, 6, to wear dresses during a recent visit to CBS's The Talk.

The Transformers and Jennifer's Body star, who has three sons—Noah, 6, Bodhi, 5, and Journey, 3— with her husband, actor Brian Austin Greene, said that Noah likes to dress himself and likes to wear dresses. "I send him to a really liberal, hippy school, but even there—here in California—he still has little boys going, 'Boys don't wear dresses,' or 'Boys don't wear pink,'" she said. "So we're going through that now, where I'm trying to teach him to be confident no matter what anyone else says."

She revealed that despite being teased by his fellow students, the 6-year-old expressed no remorse, instead doubling down on his love of the one-piece garment more commonly favored by women, but seen on celebs from Jaden Smith to Jared Leto and on runways from Rick Owens to Givenchy. "He just wore one two days ago to school, and he came home and I was like, 'How was it? Did any of the friends at school have anything to say?'" Fox recalled. "And he was like, 'Well, all the boys laughed when I came in, but I don't care, I love dresses too much.'"

It's not the first time Noah's received attention for wearing a dress.

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Fox and Greene have defended their son against similar attack's from adults online. In August 2017, Greene took on a question from an interviewer asking if it bothered him to see any negative comments after Fox posted a photo of their son wearing a Frozen-inspired dress.

"My son, he's 4," he explained at the time. "I've heard from some people that they don't agree with him wearing dresses. To them I say, I don't care. He's 4 and if he wants to wear it, then he wears it."

To crystallize his feelings on the subject, Greene continued: "And it's dresses or goggles or slippers or whatever ... It's his life, they're not my clothes … I feel like at 4, at 5, that's a time when he should be having fun. He's not harming anyone wearing a dress. So if he wants to wear a dress, good on him."

Other celebrities have faced criticism for allowing their children to simply be themselves. Back in April, Academy Award winner Charlize Theron shared a similar mindset when she fielded critics who questioned her child's gender after photos of her oldest, Jackson, wearing a dress surfaced online.

"I thought she was a boy, too, until she looked at me when she was 3 years old and said: I am not a boy!" Theron told the Daily Mail. "My job as a parent is to celebrate them and to love them and to make sure that they have everything they need in order to be what they want to... And I will do everything in my power for my kids to have that right and to be protected within that."

BBC radio producer Chris Evans faced similar backlash in 2017 after his 4-year-old son was snapped wearing a tutu. Actress Sarah Michelle Gellar's decision to get a matching manicure with her 5-year-old son in 2018 also received a similar response from some. Singer Gwen Stefani has fielded criticism for allowing for her son to do both.

It's important to note that brouhaha from a handful on Twitter does not mean there is not equal if not overwhelming praise for the decision to allow a child to freely express themselves and maybe—whether pointedly or unconsciously—curb gender norms while doing so. It's also important to distinguish the difference between Theron's story, which is about her child's gender journey, and the rest of these examples, which are about the ability to dress without abandon.

In my opinion, clothing has no gender. Neither does anything without a pulse despite the advertising industry's overwhelming effort to gender products. But increasingly, studies show that gender-specific products are favored by less than half of consumers.

Perhaps most notable about Fox and Greene's child's decision is not the act itself, but the unbothered response to classmates' attempts at bullying. After all, if it makes you feel good, we say "wear it."

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15 Short, Modern Wedding Dresses to Consider Instead of a Ball Gown - Vogue.com

Posted: 19 Sep 2019 11:14 AM PDT

Photo: Getty Images

When it comes to planning your wedding, it's often said that you need to start shopping for your dress a full year in advance. You might book a few appointments at Kleinfeld, Mark Ingram Atelier, or Saks Fifth Avenue, where you'll try on a series of tulle gowns in shades of eggshell and porcelain. It could be weeks until you finally land the one. Next you'll wait several months until your first fitting, followed by another few until the dress is finally done—though at that point it's hard to imagine being just as excited about it. Who wouldn't be tempted to change their mind a year later? On top of all of that, a custom-fit gown is often wildly expensive. If you'd rather avoid the headache—or you're planning a low-key wedding at City Hall—we have an easy alternative: Go short!

The ivory minidresses available now feel sweet and just a little retro—and most of them aren't even true wedding dresses, so finding your favorite is as easy as placing an online order. If you're feeling fashion's '60s revival, consider something like Sharon Tate's baby doll number with princess sleeves circa 1968. Elizabeth Taylor's canary yellow mini looks fresh too and was designed by Cleopatra's costume designer, Irene Sharaff. Mia Farrow's two-piece set back in 1966 would be a chic option for Las Vegas or City Hall today, while a more alternative bride might channel Yoko Ono, who styled her minidress with knee-high boots.

Photo: Getty Images

We've found the best options to get their look, whether you're shopping for your big day or just need a cute party dress. Giambattista Valli's bell-sleeve lace dress is perfect for the romantic bride, while Goat's mod number is better suited to a minimalist. Carolina Herrera's tiered dress with aqua ribbon straps is a clever way to add something blue, and if you're searching for a dress you can wear again and again, try Brandon Maxwell's sculptural mini (our tip: layer it over trousers for a black-tie event). Below, shop 15 above-the-knee wedding dresses inspired by a few of our favorite brides.