![]() I wouldn’t feel comfortable dressing like any of them, but that’s the point. They are dressing to make THEMSELVES happy. One of the women (Bridget) says “Style as one gets older, is more noticeable. How I look is to do with my identity and the fun of it. It’s nothing to do with looking younger.” YES! This is a rule I can live with. As the reviewer states, “wearing things that make you happy gives a sense of wellbeing, regardless of what anyone else thinks, and it helps in dealing with a good deal of the discomfort that comes with getting older.” I don’t need to try looking younger; I can just wear clothes that make me happy. Sometimes it makes me happy to follow the rules and sometimes not. I didn’t feel comfortable in revealing clothes when I was younger so I am surely not going to feel happy in them now, but they might make some people feel very happy. I don’t like to wear scarves around my neck because it is short and squatty, but those actresses who feel happy covering up their wrinkly neck should go for it. I felt very happy in my vein covering nude hose at my nephew's wedding. Yay me! Unfortunately this just takes me back to where I was when I started searching the internet, without any clear cut rules. It’s not easy to decide in the changing room if a particular item of clothing “makes me happy.” It’s also not an excuse to throw caution to the wind and not care about how I look, which is often my default mode. I guess looking at what makes me happy does give me a focus on how to proceed. I can look through my closet and get rid of things that are OK, but don’t push my happy button. When I shop I can think about whether I like something just because it minimizes my not-so-attractive parts or because it really makes me smile when I look in the mirror. Hummmmm, I think I might be feeling the need to go shopping. ![]() I am not a fashion rebel. In fact my wardrobe leans more to the conservative, frumpy side. I have never been known to be a flashy dresser. I started thinking about whether or not my clothes make me look old when my cousin told me a story about two elderly women she knew who decided to join a bridge club at their local senior center. They told her that they enjoyed playing cards, but also commented on how old some of the people looked. Evidently, even in their 80’s, they did not see themselves being as old. They were always very nattily dressed and felt that many of the women at the senior center leaned more towards the “little old lady with cats” look I have been known to adopt. I decided to do some research about what kind of clothes make you look older, with the idea in mind of achieving a more “youthful” look. There are a lot of rules out there about how old folks (which on some internet sites starts at 40!?) should or shouldn’t dress. The general consensus is that you should “dress your age.” This makes me think about putting everyone in t-shirts emblazoned with a giant number that clearly establishes how old they are, but in its practical application it boils down to avoiding shopping in the section for teens if you aren’t one. I’m good with that. I don’t fit into anything in the junior department anyway. There are an abundance of wardrobe specific rules about what could make you look older: An all-black outfit, leopard print overkill, cardigans, mom jeans, baggy pants, tweed, socks and sneakers for everyday wear, turtlenecks or neck scarves used to hide a wrinkly neck, nude stockings to hide leg veins (bare legs are the norm now for young women), a poor-fitting bra, too much or too little makeup, revealing clothing like very short and/or tight fitting skirts and very low necklines, and trendy clothes from another era even if they have come back into style. These are just a few of the rules. There are conflicting opinions on them. Yes, an all black outfit could make you look like one of those Greek widows you see bent over sweeping their doorsteps. On the other hand I’ve seen women with striking silver hair look very chic in all black. I see older actresses on TV violate the “no turtle necks and scarves hiding the neck” rule all the time. To me it does scream “I hate my wrinkly saggy neck. It makes me think they must have a neck that looks worse than mine. I broke the no nude stockings rule by wearing nude panty hose to my nephew’s wedding. No one pointed and whispered about me in the way they might have if my knarly leg veins were on display. Except for the no revealing clothes rule, I’ve probably broken most of these rules at one time or other. I was hoping I would find some concrete rules about what to wear, but instead I found a lot of people happily breaking the rules. I found an interesting British TV documentary called “Fabulous Fashionistas” (clips of the program can be found on YouTube www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKAR3HsrNsQ). According to a review it features “six women with an average age of 80, who are determined to look fabulous, have fun and redefine old age.” It features remarkable women, including a model who is back working in her 70’s, an 87 year old dancer/choreographer, and 91 year old Lady Trumpington who is one of the oldest members of the House of Peers. They are not your average seniors in any sense of the word. What they have in common is that they each have a sense of style that is unique and personal, and does not stick with the rules of how to dress as an older woman.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Leslie Masona woman in search of her post-retirement future Guess what! By subscribing, you get notices about the latest Little Old Lady with Cats posts sent to your mailbox!
* * *
The Book Naked Little Old Lady with Cats A collection of Little Old Lady with Cats blogs * * *
WHAT IS A LITTLE OLD LADY WITH CATS - REALLY?
(from an entry posted on 5/1/2015) “I definitely fit some of the characteristics of a little old lady with cats: Retired - check, Single - check, Like to knit - check, Have cats - check. . .I do not want to get stuck in my Little Old Lady persona, however. In fact, this blog is a risk taking experiment in exploring and redefining what I want my retired life to look like.” Categories
All
Archive
June 2024
|