Kim Kardashian Says She's Not Trying to Be North's 'Bestie' as She Addresses Criticism About How She Lets Her Daughter, 12, Dress
- - Kim Kardashian Says She's Not Trying to Be North's 'Bestie' as She Addresses Criticism About How She Lets Her Daughter, 12, Dress
Kayla GrantJanuary 22, 2026 at 6:40 AM
1
kimandnorth/TikTok
North West and Kim Kardashian -
Kim Kardashian appeared on Khloé Kardashian's podcast and talked about her parenting style
She addressed some of the criticism she's received about allowing daughter North, 12, to use fake facial piercings and tattoos, and get a dermal piercing
"I think like the one misconception that people might have is like, 'Oh, she's trying to be her bestie and lets her get away with a lot.' Like, no, Northy actually has a lot of rules," said the mom of four
Kim Kardashian is addressing the scrutiny she's been receiving about her daughter's recent forms of self-expression.
During the latest episode of Khloé in Wonder Land, the SKIMS founder, 45, spoke to her sister, host Khloé Kardashian, about her parenting style. In the conversation, she also addressed some of the criticism she's received about allowing her daughter North, 12, to wear certain items of clothing, use fake facial piercings and tattoos, and get a dermal piercing.
"I'm just not a judgmental person like that, so I try not to pay attention to it," she began. "But, I think that no one knows unless they're in my shoes what I'm dealing with and how we have to manage certain things from the outside world or even close in our life that we have to go through together."
The mom of four went on to share the one big misconception she believes everyone has when it comes to her relationship with her daughter North.
"I think like the one misconception that people might have is like, 'Oh, she's trying to be her bestie and lets her get away with a lot.' Like, no, Northy actually has a lot of rules. [That's the] one area I do let her express herself," Kim explained. "I love her for that, and she would do it, you know, regardless."
Kim also added that things like the colorful hair and her fake piercings are not new for her daughter.
"It's funny, like people are like, 'Oh, this blue hair, all of this, all of a sudden,' or like her fake piercings that she puts up," she said, before continuing, "I have pictures of her when we're in first grade [and] pre-K, where she'd come with like a fake septum ring and she has her green braids and she has pink braids. But she's always loved the colored braids in her hair since she was little."
"Like she really is who she is and always has been that girl," she continued. "And so, like, I nurture her."
kimkardashian/Instagram
Kim Kardashian with her children
— sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
In addition to North, Kim is a mother to sons Psalm, 6, and Saint, 10, as well as daughter Chicago, 8. She shares her children with ex-husband Kanye West. Back in October, the doting mom spoke out about her daughter's appearance after the footage of North wearing fake face tattoos, a nose piercing and grillz sparked outrage.
"North West, 12, worries fans with new look," Daily Mail Australia captioned a TikTok video. One person responded, “How about go be a kid," while another chimed in, “She’s 12 years old by the way,” and a third wrote, “This is just sad.”
The Kim and North joint TikTok account responded to the backlash in the comment section of the clip, writing “This is such a non-issue 😭.”
Kardashian again spoke about North’s fashion choices during an appearance on the Call Her Daddy podcast on Oct. 15.
"She's really mature in one sense where she'll be like, 'Mom, I saw this and I don't really care that they don't like... my blue hair or this or that,” said Kardashian, adding, “She's really confident…”
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
