Too Old to Have an Opinion on Fashion?

At what point are we "expected" to give up on how we look?

While I get a little nervous at the prospect of endless maintenance well into my senior years, I can't ever see a point where I'll stop caring about how I dress.

My grandmother, well into her 80s, used to put on her "face" every day (especially eyes and lips), dress in flattering clothes (she even had a signature color, royal blue) and had her hair done regularly. I'd like to be just like that.

I think that older people have lots to say about style (as well as substance) because they've lived through so many fads and trends through the years. Just because someone no longer has the body confidence (or desire) to wear a microminiskirt doesn't mean they don't have an opinion on it.

Which is why I was so surprised, in a recent blog comment, when a poster (who disagreed with what I had written about pop stars who dressed too young) told me  I was too elderly to have an opinion on fashion. Say what?

I actually laughed when I read this because, at 47, I'd hardly say I'm elderly. Neither would I say I'm young. I'm just plain, ole, middle-aged and fine with that.

But let's say I was a senior at 75 or 80. Would that mean I'm too old to have an opinion on fashion? Uh, no! I think we'd probably all be a lot better off if we listened more to women who have been in the style game a lot longer than we have.

I received a nice email from a 77-year-old reader this week who said she was a little confused as to what she should wear because, as she put it, when she was younger, "old ladies used to dress like old ladies."

Now, older women tend to dress in much the same way the younger women dress. We all wear the same scarves, jeans, jackets, shoes and bags. How we wear each item may differ – the 17-year-old may wear my sequined bomber jacket with leggings and high-tops while I'll pair it with dark bootleg jeans – but so many of our items are the same.

While I value the younger voices in fashion (like the throngs of fashion bloggers who have eclipsed traditional media at the fashion shows) I really do appreciate and respect the older voices in fashion. Somehow it feels a little edgier and more modern now to see a well-turned-out 80-year-old than a well-dressed 21-year-old (I highly recommend you check out the senior street style in Advanced Style. Inspiring!) 

I look forward to having fun with fashion for the rest of my life. The youngsters may not love the fact that we're still going strong in the style world (and being vocal about it) but I think they should be grateful that women before them paved the way so old ladies no longer have to dress like old ladies.