This Three-Year-Old Who Dresses Up Like Feminist Icons Is Our New Hero
Girl power at any age
Playing dress-up is a favorite past time for many a three-year-old. But when Scout Larson puts on a costume, she’s not playing pretend princess. With the help of her mom she recreates photos of fierce female role models. The results are just as inspirational for us as they are for her.
Scout’s looks are put together and photographed with the help of her mom, Ashley Larson. Larson shares her daughter’s looks on Instagram, where she’s amassed a following of over 41,000, thanks in part to the hashtag #scoutstolemystyle.
Writing for Bored Panda, Larson recently explained that the idea behind Scout posing as strong women began when her mother, Scout’s Nonnie, was diagnosed with cancer. “When Nonnie’s hair started to fall out, Scout got very concerned and I wanted to put both of our minds at ease,” explains Larson. “I needed to teach her and remind myself that women are fighters! We chose famous and fierce women to teach her about the strength that women have.”
Who needs a tiara when you can dress up like Meryl Streep?
Larson and her daughter worked on their project for almost a year — the time it took for Nonnie to undergo six rounds of chemeotherapy and a a double mastectomy. For each powerful female who’s photo they chose to recreate, Larson taught her daughter a bit about the woman they were emulating. But through it all, Larson was determined that her daughter remain true to herself and not try to copy anyone else. “I fiercely encourage her to become exactly the person she wants to be,” she says.”No matter what, I think she’s amazing.”
The plan was to create a photobook of all of Scout’s looks to present to Nonnie at the end of her treatment. Not only did it cheer her grandmother’s spirits, the project helped both Scout and Larson cope throughout Nonnie’s treatment. “The entire project was such a godsend for Scout and myself,” Larson reflects. “And showing my mom the end result — priceless. Every single minute I spent planning, styling, shooting, and editing was 100% worth it.”
Better than any of Scout’s amazing looks is the fact that Nonnie is now cancer-free. Naturally, Scout had to take on her personal hero for one of her recreated looks.
What started as a way to cope with a devastating cancer diagnosis morphed into something bigger for the mother-daughter duo. Larson says the project has been just as beneficial to her as it has to Scout. “This project has probably taught me just as much or more than it taught my daughter,” she says. “I truly want Scout to be able to look back at this and know that women are just as strong as any man.”
Larson hopes that in the future, all women will be seen as strong and powerful as the icons her daughter dresses up as. “To be quite honest, my fingers are crossed that by the time she’s old enough to understand the strength she’s portraying women won’t be seen as delicate and dainty anymore, anyway. And I hope that when Scout looks back on this, she is proud of who she is and who she will become.”
