Fashion-Forward Prom Dresses Spark Parenting Debate

— -- Crop tops and cut-out dresses are the hottest trend on the red carpet but are they too much for high school proms?

The belly-baring trend seen on the likes of Kendall Jenner, Kerry Washington and Iggy Azalea is actually causing trouble in several states as some high schools crack down on the styles, saying "no" to cut-out couture.

Teenage sisters Camille and Claire Brule of Davidson, North Carolina, say they actually feel better wearing crop tops.

"I think parents and school boards are against crop tops because they're revealing but, honestly, you wear swimsuits all the time," 15-year-old Camille said. "They're less revealing than bikinis or one-pieces, so I don't really get it."

Both Camille and Claire, 17, describe the feeling of wearing crop tops as "free."

The girls' mother, Jennifer Brule, says she is fine with her girls wearing crop tops as long as she sees them in the outfit before they leave the house.

"I do know moms who would absolutely refuse to allow their daughters to wear crop tops," Brule said. "I think it's not so much about style as it is about control. They want to have control over a lot, if not all aspects, of their children's lives."

Claire hopes to wear a crop top-style dress to her upcoming senior prom, if her mom approves.

"I'm not crazy about crop tops but I pick my battles," Brule said.

Ericka Souter, parenting expert and editor at Mom.me, says parents can lay down three ground rules when it comes to fashion debates.

1) Make sure your kids are “clothes”-minded.

2) Lay down the fashion law.

3) You hold the purse strings.

Lori Bergamotto, style director at Good Housekeeping magazine, says parents can also steer their daughters in the direction of more conservative ways to wear red carpet looks.

"When you’re going to wear a crop top, you have to tell them you can commit to it and do it conservatively," Bergamotto said. "Wear them with high-waisted pants or a high-waisted skirt. I love the rule about holding your arms up. We don’t want to see ribs.

"Stars like Sarah Hyland and Emma Stone have done this [look] well on the red carpet but you have to remind your teen, they’re not Rihanna," she said. "If you’re going to the prom, there is a time and there is a place.

There is a way to do it conservatively and, in fashion, proportion and balance are key. So if you are going to show a little sliver of skin, you better be wearing a skirt to the ground."