There aren’t hard and fast rules when it comes to age and style - your style will evolve with you as you change, no matter your age.
It never ceases to amaze me how much of my mother, the thoughts of her generation and the social mores of her time seep into my brain daily. I know how old I am, and I know that I don't feel that age. That's the dilemma of everybody who gets old. Of course there are days where you just say, "Geez. I feel old."
When it comes to fashion and facelifts, my mom's opinion rings loud and clear in my head. Yes, I would still like to wear miniskirts and I would still love to go with the bare midriff. In fact, my belly looks better now than it ever did. And I do see other women do it, but in my brain I think, “yikes...that looks a bit...off.” See - I even sound like my mom!
BUT - is it off? Why isn’t it okay to wear a mini-skirt in your 50s?
Again, it’s not that there are hard rules when it comes to how to dress for your age. A woman in her 50s has the right to wear a mini-skirt. Being in the fashion industry, to me, fashion can mean many things. Sometimes fashion is meant to be uplifting and miraculous, sometimes it’s meant to make a statement and other times it’s meant to stir up controversy and new ideas. As long as your personal style speaks to you, makes you feel confident and is part of telling your story then I think it is okay to wear what speaks to you. And trust me, I’ve had and still do have, my fair share of moments when I try to dress younger. There are days I think it works, and other days I cringe when walking out the door because “I’m not sure if I should…”
An unexpected story about a little flower dress
Many years ago I had purchased a cute little dress. It was never worn and sat in my closet. I decided to cosign the dress to Therealreal.com. They didn't want it. Then I tried to give it to New York Vintage, and they didn't want it! I have never worn it, and I thought somebody, somewhere, would really love this dress and give it a great home. But nobody wanted it. So it ended up back in my closet.
Fast forward to the day of a big movie premiere. I wasn't sure I was going to go to the premiere, so I hadn't planned with my stylist for a dress - I had an important meeting way uptown. When my meeting ended early that afternoon and I made it home in time to actually get prepared, I had nothing to wear - except that cute little dress that just stared at me from the closet hanger. So I wore it.
I wasn't sure if I should wear it – I got it in a younger moment of my life. It was cute and had little flowers on the back. But at 55 cute is usually not an option! But I had no choice. So I slipped it on, fingers crossed, that it still fit - which it luckily did.
I walked the carpet and didn't feel it was particularly spectacular, or utterly amazing, I was just grateful when the carpet was over! In fact, I didn't even bother to go down to the taped interviews - I just did the photos and escaped.
So...you can imagine my surprise the next day when that dress was a hit at the premiere.
Fashion is entirely personal. There are times when you should not listen to your mother, and times when you should dress young and flirty. Even if you feel those days are behind you. It can be an uplifting experience!
Go for it and feel GREAT!
What do you think about the way women over 50 dress today? Love to know your thoughts. Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook ! Xoxo
