Do ladies really have to dress old & frumpy after a certain age...?

[HadleyH]

Dress old and frumpy after a certain age?

Oh I don't think so.... I mean women can dress and look frumpy if that's their choice.... if that's their heart's desire, sure ... but if they don't care about frumpiness ... that's cool too, more power to them!

Let's see.... all these ladies are 60 years plus and in my opinion, they don't look so bad at all :eusa_clap

Raquel Welch

Jessica Lange

Olivia Newton-John

Dolly Parton

Susan Sarandon

Suzanne Sommers

 

[cupcake]

Don't forget Helen Mirren. She always looks elegant, and the photos of her in a bathing suit? Sexy Mamma!

 

[HadleyH]

Don't forget Helen Mirren. She always looks elegant, and the photos of her in a bathing suit? Sexy Mamma!

Yes, she does!

Helen Mirren

In her 60s and looking hot !!! Recent picture 2009
Sally Field (The Flying Nun)

 

[Edward]

Ah..... dear Susan Sarandon. Not the first Janet Weiss (about the fourth or fifth, I think), but thanks to the power of celluloid the one we all remember first.... A stunning woman.

If I might speak freely, for what it's worth I have noticed that as I get older myself, there is something considerably more attractive about a lady who is that bit more mature, that bit more comfortable in her own skin, knows who she is. (A well earned crow's foot can be a very sexy thing indeed). Dresing like you're twenty when you're middle aged may not be advisible, but to be honest for the most part from what I see dressing like twenty year olds commonly do nowaays isn't advisable at any age. lol

 

[chanteuseCarey]

*bump*

I want to look as full of life as Helen M. here when I am her age- smiling, dressed in a glam dress, enjoying life, and proud of all the wrinkles that show as a result of living a "real" life- bearing the marks of the good and the not so good!!

A very recently taken pic from May 24,2010, me volunteering for the California Pops Orchestra! This is what 51-3/4 years old looks like these days...

Yes, she does!
Helen Mirren

 

[Widebrim]

*bump*

I want to look as full of life as Helen M. here when I am her age- smiling, dressed in a glam dress, enjoying life, and proud of all the wrinkles that show as a result of living a "real" life- bearing the marks of the good and the not so good!!

A very recently taken pic from May 24,2010, me volunteering for the California Pops Orchestra! This is what 51-3/4 years old looks like these days...

Beautiful as always!:eusa_clap And don't forget Proverbs 31.

-Lee

 

[Kishtu]

38, waist length red hair, expecting first baby mid July, no way I am I losing the hair or the earrings.

Being six-foot-ish and broad shouldered I would look absurd with short hair.

I was saying to Hairy Chap the other day that I get *so* cross with some of the teenagers in town these days... we were parking up in the town centre and there was an older lady walking past who evidently had some kind of problem with her hair/scalp but because she'd taken such pride and care in her clothes, make up etc she looked beautiful - and what hair she had was dressed and styled immaculately. She looked smart, classy, and confident.

Past her walked past a group of college aged teenagers, most of whom had much better figures than me or this lady had (not hard in my case at the moment hahahaha) - limp, unbrushed, unwashed hair, unkempt jeans frayed at the cuffs, ill-fitting t shirts, dirty shoes - sorry, but when I was young and pretty I used to glory in showing it off. (Now I'm old and haggard and I still - oops!) I know they're not necessarily typical and I'd hate to turn into a Monty Python style "young people today!!" rant but there seems to ba uniform amongst the college kids I see on the bus - never mind people dressing appropriately when they get *older*, what about mainstream *youth* culture not being turned out like a sackfull of dirty laundry?!!

 

[kamikat]

38, waist length red hair, expecting first baby mid July, no way I am I losing the hair or the earrings.

Haha! You say that now! My first son ripped my earring out of my ear, tearing the lobe. I now only wear clip-ons.

 

[Kishtu]

Ah I've had that done already Kamikat, got the nick in my ear to prove it lol

No recollection of it happening, mind you, just woke up one morning with a missing earring, a hole in my ear, and blood all over the pillow

 

[chanteuseCarey]

Wow, spoken like a real man! Hallelujah. Edward, as one of the probably few 'mature' woman on FL (I'm almost 53)- I really appreciate what you've said here.

If I might speak freely, for what it's worth I have noticed that as I get older myself, there is something considerably more attractive about a lady who is that bit more mature, that bit more comfortable in her own skin, knows who she is. (A well earned crow's foot can be a very sexy thing indeed).

 

[MissMeraRose]

Helen Mirren was just voted best body in Hollywood. Proves that older ladies can still be sexy

 

[Isis]

When my maternal grandmother approached 90 she sported a red leather coat with a very jaunty black beret when all the other little ladies wore tan and tan and tan...

 

[chanteuseCarey]

I saw that too. WOOHOO for her! She's 66, I'm almost 53. When I grow up I want to look (and dress) like Helen M!

Helen Mirren was just voted best body in Hollywood. Proves that older ladies can still be sexy

 

[chanteuseCarey]

Good for her!!

When my maternal grandmother approached she sported a red leather coat with a very jaunty black beret when all the other little ladies wore tan and tan and tan...

 

[sheeplady]

My grandmother was always in style (she died at 70). When she died, she owned a pair of Calvin Klein jeans (which were in then). She never owned a lot of the latest clothing, but she tried to buy a few pieces so that when she left the house she was in the latest style.

She had 4 earrings in one ear and 3 in the other. She expressed interest in getting more ear piercings. She stacked her rings on each finger (also in style).

If the woman was alive today, I swear she'd have a nose ring.

 

[MissMeraRose]

I know a lady in her 60's who is a major fashionista. Nearly anytime I see her she has knee-high leather boots, red lipstick, and perfectly coiffed hair. This woman lives in stilettos and dresses, none of her pieces being frumpy at all.

 

[LinaSofia]

I just had to share something I found very funny the other week.... we were having lunch with my fiance's grandparents who are both very smart and take pride in how they look (they're both in their eighties) and his grandmother said "oh yes, when I was younger I would have had a tattoo! A pretty little butterfly or something!" Then she giggled like she'd said something really naughty. I nearly fell off my chair!! I thought it was so sweet because it was so unexpected!

oh, and a little more on topic... I don't think there is ever a need to look frumpy! As long as you wear what suits you and you look good in. Thankfully, I think 40s/50s fashions, being quite modest and ladylike, have a very ageless look to them and I can imagine wearing the same sort of dresses I wear now in 20 years time without looking like mutton dressed like lamb.

 

[sheeplady]

I just had to share something I found very funny the other week.... we were having lunch with my fiance's grandparents who are both very smart and take pride in how they look (they're both in their eighties) and his grandmother said "oh yes, when I was younger I would have had a tattoo! A pretty little butterfly or something!" Then she giggled like she'd said something really naughty. I nearly fell off my chair!! I thought it was so sweet because it was so unexpected!

oh, and a little more on topic... I don't think there is ever a need to look frumpy! As long as you wear what suits you and you look good in. Thankfully, I think 40s/50s fashions, being quite modest and ladylike, have a very ageless look to them and I can imagine wearing the same sort of dresses I wear now in 20 years time without looking like mutton dressed like lamb.

Awwwhhh... your grandmother-in-laws sound so cute. I was very lucky to have both of my grandmothers-in-law alive when I married my husband, and that was the first and last wedding that either one attended of their grandchildren. Both are still alive, but unfortunately now one has severe dementia (but she her personality is intact and she is still a laugh riot). The other grandma has told me to call her grandma, which is so touching because I only had one grandmother as a child (and she died a long time ago). They are a wonderful resource for learning about the family- so use them. Make them tell stories to you about their family members and write them down. Then you can tell your children (if you decide to have them) family stories- not just of your family but of your husband's family. Even if you don't have children, but his siblings do, you can carry the family stories forward.

On the comment you made about the timeless of vintage fashion- I totally agree. I told my husband right now that a lot of my clothing that I have bought is timeless and an investment. The things that I am buying today (as long as they still fit ) can be worn when I am in my 60s and 70s because they are classy and modest. The lines are clean and classic, and they are repeated at least once a decade. Or at least that is how I justify getting a Pendleton suit every holiday season as a requested gift.

 

[W-D Forties]

I think it's more about finding a style and a cut of clothes that suit you and your personality, whether thats punk, classic, mod, whatever. Trying to look 20 years younger than you are is always going to be a strain and look vaguely ridiculous, thats when you get problems!

 

[LinaSofia]

Awwwhhh... your grandmother-in-laws sound so cute. They are a wonderful resource for learning about the family- so use them. Make them tell stories to you about their family members and write them down. Then you can tell your children (if you decide to have them)

They know I'm interested in the 'olden days' so recently when we met them (they're called Cyril & Rosie) they brought a tiny little tin... inside was a pressed flower that Cyril sent Rosie in his proposal letter, posted to her when he was in the army during WW2! Amazingly sweet, don't you think? I totally welled up!

And yes, I think you're totally justified in getting a suit every year!

W-D Forties, I think you're right, as long as it suits you (body and personality), it works! For example, I don't kid myself that I'd look good in crop tops and short-shorts! Although they can still look good on someone much older than me, with a better figure