Grown-up glamour
 |
| Grown-up glamour |
Commenters admired her red lips, black ensemble, gold jewelry. Several said, "I hope I look like that when I get old." Well, "old" is relative, but she is a mature woman; I find her glamorous.
I'd like to be more glamourous at 65 than I was at 35, though perhaps not this fully.
If we wish to gaze into our cameras when old–tongue in chic, mesdames– with a little half-smile, we might start now.
Confidence with big jewelery begins before fifty but blooms with that milestone. Start buying real, grown-up pieces slowly, surely– or scout for high-quality vintage costume.
Buy the striking, then wear it all day long. Her brooch would look as stunning on a blazer lapel as in her décollétage.
Makeup: Her assertive lips and eyes decry the "older women should wear soft makeup" dictum, which I always thought carried a subtext: just go and sit in the corner, dearie. One needs that strength when wearing all black.
Hair: Long and loose on this siren, but whatever the length, neither wash-and-wear practical nor strenuously blown-out, its character erased. The blowout is the Botox of hair.
And speaking of Botox, a commenter on The Sartorialist said "How refreshing to see a mature woman without Botox". More surprisingly, Schuman's subject shows her neck, a reveal that puts many 50+ women straight into shock.
I'm going to show my neck when I feel like it– and I do.
Her clothes: Even if we don't muster such drama daily, we can consider the occasional foray. Just like cooking, if you want to pull out the stops sometimes, you need a repertoire, from low-key to vavoom.
That's a skirt, which may not be evident at first because it isn't mid-thigh. At the age of maturity, anything higher than grazing the top of the knee is inelegant no matter how divine your legs. See the velvet detail?
 |
| Beaded demin twill |
Try a luxurious touch for day, see how that feels. Shown, Lafayette 148 denim twill beaded high-waist skirt with gunmetal and jet stones; price, $296.
Even when I'm in my black-pants-and-sweater, she reminds me to slip on an interesting bracelet, like Aurelie Bidermann's cuff of vintage lace dipped in 18k gold.
Don't save the prettiest piece for a party.
 |
| Cuff: Vintage lace dipped in gold |
Want to bet she's wearing perfume?"Mmmm", a brown wren said to me at a recent party, "all the women here smell so good, maybe I'll start wearing perfume." Fragrance changes one's entire aura.
Recommended: Coup de Foudre, by Parfums DelRae, an intoxicating but refined rose.
Youth may be, as they say, may be wasted on the young, but sophistication can be inhabited by the mature woman (or man) like no one else.
Comments
At the same time, I have difficulty embracing a really bright/strong lipstick color. For me, it seems to add a certain harshness---just as really dark hair on a woman 50+ seems to be too harsh on some.
At the same time, I appreciate confidence--and the woman pictures definitely has that.
Genuine Lustre: Yes,there is something retro about her; I at first thought the phone was a compact.
Susan: If I imagine her with pinky-brown lips and minimal eye makeup-the Bobbi Brown palette- she changes entirely. I think makeup also depends on the setting ,not only city vs country but the quality of light where you are.
Now that I've gone darker again with my hair color, I'm finding I'm able to wear more intense lip color. Yippee!
I agree about perfume. My tastes are probably narrow and classical, but Shalimar and Mitsouko parfum both do give me a lift and make me feel stronger and more elegant. No fruity florals for this gal (though in winter, by the holidays, Cinnabar/Opium does just as well - I feel like a human clove/orange potpourri ball).
Elegant and sophisticated, nothing wrong with striving for those. :)
I am somewhat surprised by the amount of jewelry that she is wearing...but it works.
I aspire to look better as I age...it is more difficult than it was when I was younger...having said that I am not giving up...still working at it!
More inspiration for those of us who refuse to be invisible. . . we might not achieve her level of glamour, but we can try. I agree with Nancy K -- you can clearly tell this woman likes herself -- I love that little smile.
(And I'm not hiding my neck away either.)
Pseu: Trophy WIfeBots, LOL! I love seeing people who are not cookie cuttered,
Artful: Oh, are you one of the under 50 readers sneaking into the Passage? You are most welcome here.
Fuji: I remember Germaine Greer writing years ago that beautiful fabrics were what one gets to wear past 50, "like Italian women", she said.
hostess: When I'm in Paris I notice bigger (and more) jewelry worn than in most North American cities, and try not to stare... sunglasses keep me from being too obvious.
LPC and materfamilias: Ths Sisterhood of Visible Necks rises!
Perfume is crucial to being fully dressed, as far as I'm concerned. I like wearing scents that I don't smell on the multitude, and have had oodles of complements on my "winter signature," L'Occitane's Cedar. It's quite androgenous, warm and alluring without cloying.
Someday when I'm rich and famous, I'm going to have Christopher Brosius of "CB I Hate Perfume" design me a scent. I can't think of a greater luxury!
I like the big, old-school opulent scents for evening and something lighter, usually by L'Artisan Parfumeur or Eau d'Italie by day.
When he does show us someone older, it is wonderful, in many different registers.
She is indeed very striking - and a former model, Andrea Dellal - according to pictures on blogs L'Age Moyen and RduJour. No wonder she is so confident. No doubt the experience of modelling - and her wealth - have nurtured her self-esteem.
- Louise
Read article this week in NYT about a socialite's b'day party; she looked everywhere for a dress- and has a biiiig budget-finally found one at Ann Taylor, marked down to $50- which she wore with silver Loubotins.)
Only way I can get dress long enough is to go to several designers, find current model and have it cut longer.
The right undergarments are key. For me it's a supportive but pretty bra.
What a lot of work to get a reasonable length of skirt--I sympathize! I spent many years cutting 4-6 inches off the hems of everything I bought. Now most of the dresses out there look like shirts. My dress, too, came from Ann Taylor's sale rack. No Louboutins, alas, though the dress could stand up to them.
I did string the beads myself, when stuck at home with a miserable cold--just dumped them all on a tray along with some vintage crystal seed beads, and plopped them on a length of fishing line, nursery school style. The string got longer and longer--I ended up wearing it looped 4 times around my neck--and I think the randomness of the big and little beads gave it a more modern, airy look.
I have a deep, unwavering bias, for knots, even when told tiny beads look "just like". Should have seen me at my pearl stringing class (another one, different shop), tiny gnarled string and bleeding fingers. For this reason I am a regular patron of jewelers and stringers :)
That said, I bare my throat more often than I did even last winter and I find I need eyeliner and lipstick unless I just want to fade into the woodwork, which is most definitely not the goal! Still I would wear more makeup in the city than I do here.
I have been dressing more the past two months than in the years before, including heels, makeup, and jewelry. Especially jewelry. Why? Just because I want to.