02:57 PM PDT on Friday, April 21, 2006

By SAINT BRYAN / Evening Magazine

Call it "hooker chic" or "the slutty look," but thanks to Britney Spears and a host of other teen pop temptresses, trashy fashion for girls has reached an all time high – or is that low?

That was until a quiet little schoolgirl decided to speak out.

"You're kind of like sacrificing your human dignity just to be cool," said Ella Gunderson.

Ella wrote a letter to Nordstrom asking the Seattle-based department store chain to carry more modest clothes.

Evening Magazine

Modest clothes for school girls

It was a plea that has hit a nerve with kids and parents alike.

"I think people of good will know sexualizing young people is not doing them a favor and it's wrong and I think sometimes it takes somebody very young who knows right from wrong to cut through the noise and be heard," said her mother, Pam.

The timing couldn't be better. It just so happens the fashion pendulum is swinging back.

From mini to maxi, from bare to covered up, Nordstrom now sells more modest clothes for juniors.

"We also have that customer like Ella who is looking for something more modest, so our goal at Nordstrom's is to carry something for everyone," said Deniz Anders, Nordstrom.

Fashion-setting celebrities are also going more classic and clean-cut.

"I think that there are so many people out there dressing really revealing," said actress Hilary Duff. "You don't have too look like that, that's not necessarily what makes you cool. I think you can look cool and sexy in different ways."

But what about the tweenie set – too young to worry about what's sexy?

"They want to look trendy, but it's also about comfort and color and great fit and texture," said Charlotte Green, Cotton Caboodle.

Seattle-based Cotton Caboodle has a new "Extra Credit" clothing line for the back-to-school crowd, involving modesty, mixing and matching.

On the stairway to trendy heaven, lightweight jerseys make layering easy. A little ruffle ribbon can update a basic look and the classic corduroy jumper is coming back.

So there are plenty of reasons to get in step with modest fashions.

Modesty going too far?

There's a Northwest company hoping to cash in on the modest look with a line of swimwear designed to highlight the face, rather than the body.

Does it work? You be the judge.

Evening Magazine

Modest bathing suits - but will they catch on?

Your basic swimsuit shows lots of skin, a skimpy top and revealing bottom. But if itsy bitsy and tweeny weeny aren't your cup of tea, a father-daughter design team from rural Oregon says you can make a big splash with their modest swimwear.

"Not everybody wants to look at other people's wives in a way that makes them sensually attracted," said Mike Shrock, Wholesome Wear.

You may think he's old-fashioned, but Mike Shrock believes in traditional, wholesome values. But it wasn't until he sold his landscaping business that he and daughter Leisel actually began designing swimwear for modest girls and women.

They got the idea years ago at a home-schooling conference when a speaker complained about the lack of modest clothes.

Leisel says a recent trip to the beach revealed how versatile the swimmerwear can be.

"It didn't look weird walking on the street and it didn't look weird to wear it and play in the water, and I was fully clothed," said Leisel.

Though this may not be for everyone, modest swimwear is a niche that may have the Shrock family swimming in success.

The Shrock family says they are now making swimwear that covers up more for the Muslim and traditional Jewish markets.