Kid's Nightgown (Sleepwear)

From the shoulders to somewhere between knee and ankle, a nightgown falls as a single width of fabric with no waist seam and no leg tubes. Nothing presses on the stomach and nothing binds when a child turns over. This is the whole appeal for children who complain about elastic and seams.

Being loose puts a nightgown on the other side of the sleepwear rule. A garment that cannot be cut snug has to be flame resistant to be sold as children's sleepwear in US sizes 9 months through 14. That means most are made from polyester, which resists flame by its nature, or from cotton with a flame resistant finish applied. That is why so few are plain untreated cotton, and why the fabric feels smoother and less absorbent than pajama jersey. Read the hem tag before buying: a loose gown labeled loungewear, or marked as not intended for sleepwear, was never tested to that standard.

Set against two-piece pajamas, a gown is cooler and simpler to get on. But it leaves the legs bare and rides up to the waist by morning on an active sleeper. A footed sleeper sits at the far opposite end, covering everything down to the toes. The infant version, a baby gown, looks similar but does a different job. It is open and elasticized at the bottom hem so a night change takes seconds. It is built for babies who are not yet rolling.

Hot sleepers, warm bedrooms and warm climates suit a nightgown, as do children with sensory complaints about waistbands. It also helps with a child who resists being wrestled into clothing, since the whole thing goes on in one motion. Cold floors and night trips to the bathroom rule it out, so do restless sleepers who wake tangled in fabric, and so does a child who plays on the ground before bed.

Hem width is the first thing to test: gather the hem and check that a child can sit cross-legged without the fabric pulling tight across the knees. A narrow sweep looks neat and traps the legs. Armholes should be cut close enough that a shoulder cannot slip out. Wash flame resistant gowns without fabric softener and without bleach, since one coats the fibers and the other strips them, and the finish weakens with every dose of either.