Sybilla Hart has a confession: she’s a little scared of her teenage daughters, Beatrice, 16, and Florence, 14. With glossy blonde hair and polished style, she says they look effortlessly glamorous — and carry themselves with a confidence that can feel intimidating at home.
This year, she spent around £350 on each girl for Christmas gifts. But she says that barely matched their expectations. Weeks earlier, the sisters made a PowerPoint wish list that totalled about £3,000. A “cosy” hoodie cost £85, while make-up alone added up to £600. Hart jokes that today’s teens want premium brands, not the bargain options she grew up with.
She admits she admires their certainty about what they want. Still, she says it comes with relentless judgement. The girls regularly critique her night-out routine, offer beauty tips, and even do her hair and make-up — with an expert finish she can’t deny looks good.
The family lives in a friendly village on the Essex-Suffolk border, yet Hart says even other parents find the girls daunting. One mum told her she hides when she sees them, describing their looks as “withering.”
Hart’s coping strategy is simple: don’t show fear. She matches their cool tone with her own calm stare and tries not to overreact. She suspects social media has helped shape their “professional” level of polish, and she hopes the intimidating phase will fade by university.
For now, she says she’s learning to live with it — and even enjoy their bold, fearless confidence.