One of my favorite insta- and-YouTube friends recently posted a video regarding aging, and makeup, and dressing like a granny.
Sandy –our pro-ageing beauty!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjMH9HN5bU0
Watch this. What Sandy says is great—especially about lipstick!
I made a comment on her Instagram regarding “frumpy” and was, very respectfully, put in my place. Granny dressing was also part of her video. To be honest, it was a great video. But I have my opinions regarding the way we “Over-60 and Older” women dress. And I may have been slightly (*cough*) opinionated in my comment to her!
Won’t be my first time!
And please allow me to clarify and state my wanted or unwanted opinion.
As I have aged, I’ve remained true to the way I dress. My style will not change. To some, my choice in certain clothes might be considered a bit “Twee” (excessively or affectedly quaint, pretty, or sentimental, or, to some might be considered “frumpy” (dowdy and old-fashioned typically used of a woman or her clothes). Any form of style is subjective.
When younger, I followed trends, such as platform shoes, but I never strayed from my uniform style.
Ahh. The iconic Kork Ease platform sandal of the 1970’s. This was as trendy as I got back then….
Alright. This is my 2023 trendy moment. Barrel leg jeans. But I wear them rather conservatively!
At home, I am an absolute slob. My style is “lazy ambition” and I use that style because that’s how I dress to cook and clean. I’m ambitious in the kitchen. I’m incredibly ambitious in my ability to bake and lest we not ignore my over-the-top Christmas decorating. I am sure there are influencers all over Instagram of the “mature” age who would have everyone believe they are dressed to the nines daily. Not me. Not Sandy; and that is what I respect about her. She keeps it real. And so do I.
My lazy ambitious style. And now that the cold weather is creeping in, I live for this.
My “at-home-frumpy” wardrobe is at the ready..
And are old tee and sweatshirts.
But let us be honest here. You are home. You have nowhere in particular to be. Its Autumn-into-Winter. The cooler-to-cold weather has settled in. You have your groceries so there is no need to even run to the supermarket. Days are shorter. Do you really need to get dressed up?
Obviously, you don’t have to dress like this to loll the days away when at home. I love this outfit for a night out to dinner with my husband but I cannot imagine wearing this to clean the house or to sit at the laptop writing a blog post!
There’s a yes and a no here. Yes, because if you are currently working from home, or had a job loss and your “job” is looking for another one, or if you are retired and home every day—then a good suggestion to keep the self-esteem up is to get nicely dressed a few times a week.
One of my all-time favorite and comfy looks. I have worn this with ballet flats, heels and Weejun loafers. It goes through fall, winter and early spring. Being unemployed, I can wear this running errands. Or, on some days, writing blog posts or applying for jobs. It’s not frumpy, thank God it isn’t Chico’s style. It’s just “me”!
Then the “no” comes in. Take a day of relaxation from cleaning the baseboards, vacuuming, or doing laundry. Do not bother to dust. Wear those pajamas! Wear those lounge outfits. Wear the mismatched pj bottoms with that sweatshirt you love so much. Sit on the sofa and read a book.
And for extra pajama style, wear matching sets!
If your day needs to be spent preparing meals or baking (and as we enter this mid-October phase, we have approximately 9 weeks until the Holiday season), freaking wear the sloppiest, messiest clothing you own because a day of baking or food prep is ridiculously messy. (At least for people like me it is). Batter drips on your clothing. Flour gets drawn into the hair and lands on you and your clothes. Little bits of caramel splash onto your shirt as do little drops of sauces. Do not wear your fancy clothing.
There is no way I will dress up to make a dinner like this..
..or take three days of wearing good clothing to make croissants.
However, after everything is cooked and baked, I’ll wear one of my Velcro-waisted kilts because I can expand the waistband as I eat. This is my Christmas skirt 2023!
Forgive me for jumping around on this but the “old, frumpy, lady’ stereotype bothers me. We all don’t run around with a frown on our bare faces nor do our tits sag down to our ankles.
This is so disgusting on every level–especially the “smell”. It’s a disgrace but people continue to think of old ladies–and old people in general this way.
On the other hand, we all aren’t Carmen the model or Iris Apfel. And I am not disrespecting both these women but there needs to be a happy medium.
Supermodel through the ages, Carmen, is 92 years. She’s beautiful. She is chic. She is stunning. But the majority of our age demographic kind of don’t look like this. I’ll bet at home, she dresses like a slob. Actually she probably doesn’t.
The wonderful Iris Apfel. at 100 years, she isn’t slowing down. However, there’s the other side of the coin and that’s the “essentric” old lady. She can get away with it. It’s her “thing” but I’ve seen older women looking like clowns when they attempt the essentric look. It isn’t for everyone.
I’m tired of influencers and their “dress-like-me-by-going-to-Chicos” commissions. None of these women post honest feeds where they are dressed down. None wear dirty clothes. None are pictured cleaning a messy sink. It’s all an illusion of being perfect. And aren’t we at the age where we have gained enough wisdom to realize nothing is perfect?
Honestly, Chico’s clothing is so not my style. The clothing is total “real estate lady” meets “lady-who-thinks-she’s-chic.” The marketing to the over 50 demographic is incredible. I cannot stand the brand. But hey, that’s just me being opinionated!
I’m not perfect nor do I ever attest to be. My lazy ambition has a second Christmas tree in our sunroom that I’ve never taken down. It has been up since last November. There are no excuses as to why this tree is still standing in it’s holiday splendor. But now, a little more than the official start of the 2023 Holiday Season, it is going to stand there. Since we will be going to Cincinnati for Christmas this year, we will not get the “real tree.” I won’t be decorating the bannisters. The Christmas décor will be minimalist. But my frumpy slob clothing will be packed so I can relax and help my daughter cook for the big day.
Truth be told. I’m enjoying sitting on the loveseat in the sunroom and looking at this tree.
On another note, I have a job interview later this week. I won’t dress frumpy, but will dress on the conservative side. And if I get the job, there is a plethora of office clothing I have amassed over the years. If I do not get the job, I’m sure there will be other interviews.
As the weather is finally cooling down, I might wear this to my job interview. Office casual is such a thing now that I’m unsure of..
…wearing this skirt and blouse with a blazer and heels instead.
In the meantime, I’ve taken my winter clothing out of garage storage and will wear them well. Whether to more job interviews. Or to the grocery store. Or to run errands. Or to go to the doctor. Or to go out to dinner. Or just because it might be time to get out of my frumpy clothing.
And when I went into the garage to retrieve winter clothing, you can best believe I wore pajama bottoms and an old tee shirt.