Polygamist Women Set Their Own Style

To the outside world, women from the Texas polygamous compound present a startling image. They wear ankle-length dresses, use no makeup and sport uniform hairstyles. The outfits are meant to show modesty and conformity, experts say.

To the outside world, women from the Texas polygamous compound present a startling image. They wear ankle-length dresses, use no makeup and sport uniform hairstyles. The outfits are meant to show modesty and conformity, experts say.

Female members of Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints wear sleeves that go down to their wrists and dresses that go to their ankles. The dresses are often worn over long undergarments, so that no skin shows.

Celebrity stylist Ted Gibson said the women's unique hairdo gives off a "homely" impression. "It says 'I don't really care very much. I really don't have time to worry about the way that I look, because I have 20 children,'" he said. "He's going from wife to wife to wife, so why should I look any better than the other ones?"

With their uniform hairstyle and almost identical dresses, the women look alike to outsiders. But that doesn't mean they don't feel jealous when they are competing over the same man, some say.

FLDS women favor pastel shades, which are meant to evoke feminity and don't come across as strong or bold, said anthropologist Janet Bennion, who studies polygamist women.

Will polygamist fashions have any influence on mainstream style? Prairie skirts are in fashion this season, while dusty pastels and neutrals are being introduced to offset trendy bold colors and patterns.

HBO's show 'Big Love' is about modern polygamists. Actresses Jeanne Tripplehorn, Ginnifer Goodwin and Chloe Sevigny, who play Bill Paxton's three wives, don't wear the ultra-conservative long dresses of the FLDS women. Indeed, they look like any other suburban wives.