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Sew cool - Fashion Playtes lets girls design their own clothes

My 9-year-old already knows about Uggs, skinny jeans (thanks, Grandma) and Burberry. So her response to a Gymboree sweatshirt I gave her for her birthday was predictable.

“I don’t know if I’ll wear it,” she said, turning her nose at the poufy sleeves and metal buttons.

“It looks like something designed on ‘Project Runway,’ ” offered my husband.

“Yeah,” she retorted. “A losing design.”

If Mom can’t guide her wardrobe anymore, maybe Fashion Playtes can. The new do-it-yourself Web site is aimed at aspiring Betsey Johnsons who are too young to work a sewing machine.

“There’s nothing for tween girls to create a stylish outfit for herself,” said co-founder Sarah McIllroy, noting that the 6-month-old company already boasts a 21 percent customer reorder rate.

Fashion Playtes, based in Salem, is the brainchild of McIllroy, who wanted to combine her professional gaming experience (she worked at Atari and Midway) with her background in product design and development (Brookstone).

“I felt this crazy sense of urgency,” she said of the two-year launch process.

The result lets girls customize their own garment. They can choose the color of each piece, add embellishments (ribbons, appliques and graphics) and design their own label, and the price depends on the amount of detail.

“I knew right when I clicked onto it,” said Julie Prigmore of Sutton, who found FashionPlaytes.com after typing “gifts for 8-year-old girls” into a Google search.

Prigmore’s 8-year-old daughter, Leah, designed a sweatshirt and both loved the results.

“It’s her own sweatshirt and no one will ever have the same thing,” said Prigmore. “Finally a site that’s comfortable and creative in one. It’s so easy for the girls to do themselves.”

The cotton/spandex skirts, sweatshirts and tops are imported from China, but all of the customization takes place at a factory in Fall River. Basic pieces such as skirts start at $12, but co-founder Marybeth Tirrell said the average order is about $45.

Prigmore said she was so happy with the quality – “I’ve washed it a lot, and nothing’s come off” – that she ordered several gift certificates for her nieces for Christmas.

“It’s really a perfect site,” she said.

But McIllroy and Tiller have many expansion plans – including products moms can design, doll clothes and a place for girls to chat and play games.

“We’ve have 2,000 girls who’ve been on the site over 100 times, and 1,000 girls who’ve been on over 200 times,” McIllroy said.

“The idea is a girl can create her own brand.”