I don’t know a single mother who doesn’t bristle even the slightest bit when someone beams at her daughter and comments, “What a handsome young man!” Even mothers who’d sooner put lipstick on a toddler than dress their daughters in pink ruffles find ways to identify their little girls as…well, little girls. We also struggle with the merchandising of trends to our little ones that are age-inappropriate at best. Whatever happened to girlhood?

Maiden America seeks to hold on tight to girlhood - both figuratively and literally. These beautiful, handmade non-slip hair clips were admired by our bloggers without exception - all of whom have daughters with hair that doesn’t hold most barrettes. As one mother described it: “She rarely will leave a bow in her hair and rarely will a bow stay in her hair. Most days I admit defeat before even trying and don’t even bother. She pulls them out, gnaws them until they no longer look like a hair bow, and then makes me search her mouth for pieces of said bow. It’s not pretty.”

And it’s not just girls with wispy hair who struggle with keeping barrettes in place. Witness this little princess’s tale:

“Once upon a time, there was a little princess who had the most beautiful hair. Everywhere she went, the townspeople commented on her blond, curly hair. “What beautiful hair you have, little girl,” they would say. The princess, while sometimes a shy one, learned to say “Thank You” because that was the kind of good behavior that was expected of princesses. Surliness is definitely not princess behavior.

The little princess and her mother fretted about, trying to find ways to keep the curly hair in place. Then one day, there was a knock at the door. “Who could it be?” wondered the princess’s mother.

“Maybe,” said the princess, “it’s ice cream!”

In fact, it wasn’t ice cream.

It was, however, a gift from another maiden of the village. Maiden America had sent the little princess beautiful barrettes that wouldn’t slip, and wouldn’t slide. They would stay put, no matter how fine her hair was, and how fuzzy curly it might be.”

Both mothers and daughters thought these clips were beautiful. One mother described her daughter’s reaction upon opening the package from Maiden America:

“Mommy, how sweet!”

“You’re the best mommy in the whole wide world.”

“These hair clips are wonderful!”

“Daddy will be so impressed when he sees these!”

And her mother felt the same way. She enthused: “All three barrettes were beautifully produced with amazing artistic details such as the hand-crafted clay daisies and the perfect, little ladybugs.”

Even a blogger who described herself as “a recovering tomboy” commented that, “with a little searching I found a few different styles that were pretty without being too cutesy or over the top for every day use.” Another mother, who usually dresses herself and her daughter quite simply, agreed: “…normally these aren’t something we’d choose because of all the flowers and jewels but [my daughter's] been in a serious princess phase for the past several months…her first self expressions while different from my own are hers just the same.”

The bloggers also had high praise for the selection of clips and the ordering process:

• “I was able to actually order directly from their site to see first hand how easy it was to go through the purchasing process. The instructions were very user friendly and easy to follow along. There were so many cute pieces that I had a hard time deciding what I wanted to get.“
• “The hardest part was picking out which ones I wanted. I probably spent 3 hours on the site looking at all the colors and options.“
• “When one of my choices was not available I was contacted by email within minutes of placing my order and promptly asked how I wanted to handle the situation instead of simply being told it was on backorder or no longer available. I could not be happier with my whole Maiden America experience.“

The million-dollar question though, is: “Do they work?” Ask this mother:

“I was skeptical about the claim that these clips never slip, but dude. They don’t.

[My daughter] wore hers to school AND the playground, then she wore them to the mall and outside to play in the yard.

Those suckers didn’t budge.”

Another mother, whose daughter barely had enough hair for clips, concurred: “I literally put these barrettes in first thing in the morning when I’m getting her dressed, and they stay put all day long.” A third agreed: “They are a great combination of beauty and function and a great solution for thin, fine hair that refuses to be tamed by regular hair-dinis,” - “hair-dinis” being her family’s term for mysteriously disappearing hair accessories.

Even though one little girl’s fine hair did slip free from the clips after much rough play, her mother commented, “The nice thing is that my daughter is so fond of them that she notices when the barrette is slipping and immediately asks me to fix it because she’s afraid of losing it.”

But Maiden America is about more than just pretty barrettes that stay put. “Like their name suggests, all products are made in America using high quality materials and excellent craftsmanship,” commented one mother. Another blogger added: “Known for their non-slip barrettes (patent-pending), their non-toxic glue and other safe/good business practices, Maiden America is a mom-owned and operated company that not only cares about its customers but also the quality of their product.” A third quipped: “Maiden America barrettes really are made in America with non-toxic glues by moms who understand that you don’t want to spend your day in the ER x-raying pearls in your baby’s belly.”

Given the materials and craftsmanship involved, it’s to be expected that these clips aren’t cheap: “The prices were just a bit higher than I’d normally pay for hair accessories (around $8 for one bow).” But in the long run, they’ll cost you less than pack after pack of lesser hair accessories. As one mother noted: “I imagine by now I’ve spent the equivalent of one year’s worth of private-school tuition on glittery hair pretties.” And another mom cited the ideals of Maiden America as additional justification for the price: “Yet another reason I don’t mind spending a few extra bucks beyond what I’d normally spend for hair clips. I’m not only getting a high-quality, handcrafted product but I’m also helping to support work-from-home moms. That’s something I can always get behind.”

This mother summed up the essence of Maiden America perfectly: “It’s also nice to support a company who is pro-parent/pro-childhood. The company’s name came about when Tristan Benz explained to her daughter that, Maidens are everyday princesses with the freedom to learn, work, earn and do SO much more. How fortunate we are to be maidens! How sorry we feel for the princesses!”

So it’s not surprising that a few bloggers suggested that Maiden America non-slip hair clips “would make lovely gifts for girls in a wedding or for you upscale mamas who dress your kids to the nines.” In particular, “Maiden America has a Pony Pair™ of The Month Club that not only is convenient, but would make a wonderful gift for that special little girl.”

In short, “Maiden America offers a gazillion beautiful designs (for every kind girl), they live up to their no-slip guarantee which pretty much rules and they are a mom run business and the clips are made by moms. What’s not to love?”

Many more Maiden America non-slip hair clip reviews coming up - check them out!

TODAY! - The Chunky Purse
Thurs 5/29 - Bananas and Toddlers
Fri 5/30 - Lather Rinse Repeat and Marketing Mommy
Mon 6/2 - Mama Drama Stephanie and Mom to the Screaming Masses
Tues 6/3 - mothergoosemouse
Thurs 6/5 - Round-Up Review on PBN