Does vintage make you look.... *older*?

[Flicka]

I'm just a baby-face. Always was. My personal lowest (un-vintage-related, though) was probably the summer I turned 18 and the lady in the booth in the subway asked me if I had turned 12 yet... :eeek:

 

[Edward]

Ha. Loving the responses this is getting (I'd forgotten all about this thread until it got revived a few days ago). I've not had the old man reaction in a long time, fwiw.... maybe the Mad Men effect has fully taken hold?

 

[LizzieMaine]

We serve alcohol at concerts, and the state liquor commission requires us to be very strict about carding -- basically, anybody who looks like they're under 30 is supposed to be carded, no matter what they look like. I actually had to take a course and get certified by the Department of Public Safety so there'd be someone on the premises who was fully trained in recognizing fake ID and such.

I've gotten some pretty hilarious reactions from people I've had to turn away -- like the obvious college boy who drew himself up to full height and said "young lady, you must be mistaken," when I pointed out that he'd forgotten to erase the "For Novelty Purposes Only" disclaimer on the back of his card.

 

[Undertow]

We serve alcohol at concerts, and the state liquor commission requires us to be very strict about carding -- basically, anybody who looks like they're under 30 is supposed to be carded, no matter what they look like. I actually had to take a course and get certified by the Department of Public Safety so there'd be someone on the premises who was fully trained in recognizing fake ID and such.

I've gotten some pretty hilarious reactions from people I've had to turn away -- like the obvious college boy who drew himself up to full height and said "young lady, you must be mistaken," when I pointed out that he'd forgotten to erase the "For Novelty Purposes Only" disclaimer on the back of his card.

Oh lord, I used to get this all the time when I worked in Wine&Spirits.

There would be the typical college boy who produced an obviously bogus "donor card" that he'd spent a hundred bucks on, and he'd get mighty idignant when we'd refuse him. Then he'd get REALLY mad when we'd take the card. He'd leave real nice and quick, though, when we offered to contact the police to sort the matter out. lol

 

[Edward]

We serve alcohol at concerts, and the state liquor commission requires us to be very strict about carding -- basically, anybody who looks like they're under 30 is supposed to be carded, no matter what they look like. I actually had to take a course and get certified by the Department of Public Safety so there'd be someone on the premises who was fully trained in recognizing fake ID and such.

I've gotten some pretty hilarious reactions from people I've had to turn away -- like the obvious college boy who drew himself up to full height and said "young lady, you must be mistaken," when I pointed out that he'd forgotten to erase the "For Novelty Purposes Only" disclaimer on the back of his card.

Ah, over here the carding initiative I've seen have varied between carding everyone who looks under 21 and 25. Drinking age is, of course, eighteen.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

A guy at the shop thought I was my dad's brother. I'm 21, and he's 52. That hurt lol

 

[tealseal]

I rather get a kick out of how this thread has turned to a discussion about being carded for alcohol.
Regarding the OT of looking older while dressing vintage, I have an amusing anecdote:
I'm 25, and I don't consider that I dress vintage. I'm currently undertaking a project in which I refuse to buy new trousers until I get to my target weight (this is supposed to be motivation, since I REALLY need new trousers lol). Since my current trousers no longer fit, I've had to use braces to keep them up since my belts make everything uncomfortable and look wrong. I also have my Open Road or another fedora or homburg hat on.
A fellow in my office said to me: "I'd never thought I'd see such a young man looking like an Old Republican!" A bit nonplussed, I asked for an explanation, and he provided that "The suspenders and the hat -- you seem like one of those voracious GOP orators of the 50s and 60s."
I'm still trying to figure out how to process that one .....
(My personal politics have nothing to do with this!)

 

[Edward]

I rather get a kick out of how this thread has turned to a discussion about being carded for alcohol.
Regarding the OT of looking older while dressing vintage, I have an amusing anecdote:
I'm 25, and I don't consider that I dress vintage. I'm currently undertaking a project in which I refuse to buy new trousers until I get to my target weight (this is supposed to be motivation, since I REALLY need new trousers lol). Since my current trousers no longer fit, I've had to use braces to keep them up since my belts make everything uncomfortable and look wrong. I also have my Open Road or another fedora or homburg hat on.
A fellow in my office said to me: "I'd never thought I'd see such a young man looking like an Old Republican!" A bit nonplussed, I asked for an explanation, and he provided that "The suspenders and the hat -- you seem like one of those voracious GOP orators of the 50s and 60s."
I'm still trying to figure out how to process that one .....
(My personal politics have nothing to do with this!)

Ha, it's funny how people's stereotypes play into that. I remember a few years ago someone on here taking issue with the consensus on something or other, and saying "I always thought this was a site for conservative-minded people" - so clearly these stereotypes come from within and without the vintage community. Often non-vintage folks here in the UK assume we're all very conservative, only to discover that actually a very significant majority are very radical... I love that. Why should any one political persuasion have a monopoly on dress style? It's as ridiculous as blue for boys / pink for girls, or 'only men may wear trousers', or whatever.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Who says you have to be a conservative to dress well?

Norman Thomas

A. Philip Randolph

Walter Reuther

Sidney Hillman

Malcolm X

 

[Fletch]

You don't anymore. Just to afford it.

 

[Edward]

Who says you have to be a conservative to dress well?

My point entirely.

"If yo're going to say something really radical: wear a suit."

Alex Salmond, Scottish National Party.

 

[green papaya]

I notice vintage clothing does make some people look old, especially if they already have that frail old person body type, some people show their age much earlier than others , going grey prematurely, hair loss, wrinkles, sunken eyes, dark rings or bags under the eyes, smokers, etc and combine that with vintage clothing and it will make you appear older

also poor complexion from too much sun & stained teeth or poor dental hygiene will make a person look older especially in vintage style clothing

 

[Flicka]

Another example of misleading exteriors:

Elise Ottesen-Jensen

 

[John in Covina]

Does a 60 yeaar old man in shorts and backwards baseball cap appear younger or just hip?

 

[Drappa]

Does a 60 yeaar old man in shorts and backwards baseball cap appear younger or just hip?

Neither - he'll appear like a fool.

 

[Undertow]

Does a 60 yeaar old man in shorts and backwards baseball cap appear younger or just hip?

In all honesty, I think society would see him as "hip", for better or worse.

I think a younger crowd, myself included, tends to read clothing as messages, rather than just things we wear. That said, I would tend to read an older fellow in shorts and a backwards cap as someone who not only accepts my generation, but wants to be a part of it. Thus, I would think he's a good person, an alright person, someone I can slap on the back and laugh with. He's one of "us". He's the kind of guy that is "bridging the gap" between generations. Some kids would call him "cool" and not in the popularity sense of the word, but more of a "laid back" and "alright" meaning.

Obviously, that thought process doesn't take place in so many words, but that's the idea that would cross young minds. And yes, I've seen 60+ year olds in shorts and backwards hats downtown. Granted...I do live in Des Moines...

 

[LizzieMaine]

We see them all the time here during tourist season. Usually they don't tip very well, either.

 

[Angus Forbes]

Does a 60 yeaar old man in shorts and backwards baseball cap appear younger or just hip?

May I use a naughty word that I learned from watching "The Wire"? Guys like this look like "shitbirds."

 

[Noirblack]

Does a 60 yeaar old man in shorts and backwards baseball cap appear younger or just hip?

It would really depend on the person. If it was a fairly well-preserved 60 year old, it might be younger. If it was someone who was not well-preserved I'd say it would look inappropriate. I can't see it ever looking hip. But I'm a guy in his late 40s who has never worn a baseball cap except to play baseball. And then it was always forward.

 

[Espee]

Even Jimmy Buffett wears the cap frontwards, doesn't he?