Am I Too Old?

[Foofoogal]

:eusa_clap fabulous Fleur. What a great photo. I plan on living till 109 so I have a lot of living to do.

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[ladybrettashley]

I blame my dad for my views on aging and beauty.

I remember when he explained to me that young does not equal beautiful. You can, of course, be young and beautiful, but also older and beautiful, and those are two different "beautifuls". And that trying to look like something you're not is so much less attractive than simply being who you are. I think there was a comment about how my mother was much more attractive than most movie stars her age, because unlike them she wasn't trying to look 25 at 50 - she was trying to look 50 (or possibly 40) at 50, and doing it well.

It's one of the few times in my life i've seen my dad be serious about something =D And, if i look half as good as my mom at 60 i'll be a happy girl!

 

[Story]

Jamie Lee Curtis at 50

That'll work.

 

[Foofoogal]

It truly is amazing how styles have changed. I saw a woman in her 70s yesterday in shorts at the pool. It was funny really as I flashbacked to when I was a child and could just imagine how the woman would of looked back then. Bonnet and long dress I imagine.


Jamie Lee is the only woman in 34 years of marriage my honey mentioned was pretty when I pressed him hard on it. It says volumes to me.

 

[kamikat]

A little bit fftopic: I don't know much about this subject so please forgive me.... but it seems to me that nowadays people seem to look the same for a longer time.

A lot of that has to do with the fact that people aren't smoking and sunbathing as much as 50 years ago. My mom has a twin sister. My mom has lived up north since she was 25 and the twin has lived in Orlando, Fl since 25. They are now 61. My mom doesn't look over 50, while my aunt looks every bit of 61 because before the skin cancer info came out, she never wore sunscreen and was out in the sun every day of her life.

 

[Paisley]

....Society says I should be At Home, getting Tired, helping my [nonexistent] teenage kids pass their school exams....

This sounds more like growing bored than growing old. That can happen at any age.

 

[Lillemor]

Fleur, first of all you're both stunning. I don't know which one of you I'm most envious of. My mother is 62 and she's also one of those who ages beautifully perhaps because she's so tall and lean, she's never really had figure problems. Unfortunately, I'm adopted so there's no chance of me having inherited such luck.

 

[pretty faythe]

Very well said. One of the joys of being middle-aged is that it's socially acceptable to be crotchety. It's very hard to be a curmudgienne (a gal curmudgeon, that is) when you're 25, but when you're 46 it's practically expected of you.

lol, i've been ahead of my time all my life then. I've always been crotchety, even in my teens. Well, actually, when your in your teens and twenties, they call it another word... But I guess I am getting closer to being acceptedly crotchedy with 35.

 

[Miss 1929]

Too old for what?

I think this thread started out as "am I too old to do the vintage look" and then immediately went the way all threads on this subject go, into generalities about aging. So, back on topic.

No, you are not too old, too young, too thin, too fat, too anything to ever look the way you want to look! WHO CARES what the masses of unappreciative uneducated morons think?

We have all had the experiences of people hating our look or loving it. If you are dressing to please everyone, you will fail. Please yourself and enjoy it!

If you stay in the limits of timeless good taste (appropriate day versus evening looks, nothing to extreme for work, etc) then you can't go wrong.

 

[Viola]

No, you are not too old, too young, too thin, too fat, too anything to ever look the way you want to look! WHO CARES what the masses of unappreciative uneducated morons think?

I wish this was true, but I don't believe it. The part of looking the way I want is not just buying the clothes as a big in-your-face to the world, it's also, you know, looking good in them once I have it on, and honestly not everything works on everybody.

I don't know about everybody but I can't wear some colours I like. I can't wear some styles of clothes I like.

If you stay in the limits of timeless good taste (appropriate day versus evening looks, nothing to extreme for work, etc) then you can't go wrong.

Maybe that is true for you, if so, Godspeed. I still can't wear flapper dresses or pastels. I don't think its because pastels violate timeless good taste in a way kelly green does not. lol

 

[chanteuseCarey]

I think that especially for vintage one needs to find what decade or decades works perhaps is best for them with their coloring and figure type. I can't wear 20s stuff cuz' I'm way too curvy, and the 50s stuff looks too young and cutesy for me so I don't even look at it. But I CAN do 40s real weel, and most 30s looks too! I can't wear every color, but I can look great in plenty!

Of course not everything is going to work for everyone. But then again I've gone to many Art Deco Society events (basically 20s to WWII era) and see gals of ALL ages and figures look gorgeously turned out. It takes time, experience and experimentation to discover what looks good on oneself.

btw, all gals can usually wear some pastels, they just need the right pastels. Many gals can't wear kelley green tho... I'm a Spring so I can and I do!

I wish this was true, but I don't believe it. The part of looking the way I want is not just buying the clothes as a big in-your-face to the world, it's also, you know, looking good in them once I have it on, and honestly not everything works on everybody.

I don't know about everybody but I can't wear some colours I like. I can't wear some styles of clothes I like.

Maybe that is true for you, if so, Godspeed. I still can't wear flapper dresses or pastels. I don't think its because pastels violate timeless good taste in a way kelly green does not. lol

 

[chanteuseCarey]

AMEN SISTER!! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

I agree with you here Miss1929, that if one follows guidelines of good taste, you can't go wrong. Anyone can look trashy with very little effort, its another thing altogether to look stylish and well dressed.

No, you are not too old, too young, too thin, too fat, too anything to ever look the way you want to look! WHO CARES what the masses of unappreciative uneducated morons think?

 

[chanteuseCarey]

Annyth, with being almost 51 now, I'm working on the elegant, rich heiress of the late 30s and early 40s look myself for my vintage look. For our almost 15 yo daughter she's can be a 20s style gal or a early 40s young lithe, ingenue type.

Take a look at the 1941 film "You Were Never Lovelier" with Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth. BUT don't focus on just Rita, look at all the other females in the film of different ages and figures. Not everybody is a Rita or should try to be or wish to be. Me, I want to be like Rita's Godmother (actress Isobel Elsom) in this film. She looks terrific in every scene! She was my age when the film was made, and also my height!

I'm not just collecting statistics. But I do look at some of the wonderful pics and accounts of vintage clothes and accessories posted in here and think, Hmmmm... But maybe I'm just too old for that...........


- annyth

 

[Miss 1929]

I wish this was true, but I don't believe it. The part of looking the way I want is not just buying the clothes as a big in-your-face to the world, it's also, you know, looking good in them once I have it on, and honestly not everything works on everybody.

I don't know about everybody but I can't wear some colours I like. I can't wear some styles of clothes I like.



Maybe that is true for you, if so, Godspeed. I still can't wear flapper dresses or pastels. I don't think its because pastels violate timeless good taste in a way kelly green does not. lol

Well, of course we are all limited by what looks good on us! And that IS part of good taste, to know where to draw the line. Certainly not everyone can wear every look - I can't do flapper with my hips either, as much as I like it - but there is a vast variety of vintage looks so anyone can find a look that works with their coloring shape, etc.

It is not so much about being "In your face, world!" as that there is always a way to express your personality. And age has absolutely nothing to do with it. However, self-confidence does.

 

[Brooksie]

Well, of course we are all limited by what looks good on us! And that IS part of good taste, to know where to draw the line. Certainly not everyone can wear every look - I can't do flapper with my hips either, as much as I like it - but there is a vast variety of vintage looks so anyone can find a look that works with their coloring shape, etc.

It is not so much about being "In your face, world!" as that there is always a way to express your personality. And age has absolutely nothing to do with it. However, self-confidence does.

You nailed it exactly Miss 1929 with the comments above.

Brooksie

 

[K.D. Lightner]

Vintage!

I am not the oldest person on the Fedora Lounge, but I might be the oldest woman here.

I was born in the summer of '42 -- you do the math.

As for vintage, I have some old Borsalino fedoras and I like to wear newsboy caps.

I am losing weight to fit in to a vintage black cashmere coat that may be older than I am. It is custom made and belonged to my Uncle Jack, who died in 1949. It has been ensconced in a closet for all these years just waiting for me to come along and discover it.

karol

 

[Annyth]

"I can't wear 20s stuff cuz' I'm way too curvy, and the 50s stuff looks too young and cutesy for me .."

Exactly, ChanteuseCarey...Me too! Which is one of many reasons I love the 30s/40s look. Thanks everyone for all your wise comments -- many of which I have actually written down!

I suppose on some level my worry was that I'm Too Old to take an interest in my appearance at all. And that if it is permitted, it should be about Dressing Modestly, in the spirit of a Jane Austen chaperone, and not about having fun with the era I love, or experimenting, or -- dare I say -- looking pretty.

I'm sooo cheered by your responses... And the fond references to Jamie Lee Curtis (poor, poor old hag... ) remind me of the response of the UK's own Anita Roddick (founder of The Body Shop) when, at the age of 47, people told her she looked young for her age... "No I don't," she said, "This is what 47 looks like."

 

[chanteuseCarey]

I'm turning 55 this August, so I'm probably the oldest lady at present on FL.
My bf turns 57 in May.

Here we are decked out in our vintage 40s garb and finery, at a dance in October 2012:

pictures taken last night at a 20-30s theme dance event:

 

[Sharpsburg]

You both look FANTASTIC! Keep it up!

 

[Idledame]

Got you beat chanteuseCarey. I just did the math and I turn 64 this year!