Classic Style
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Dressing My Age.

By: Jen Shoop

I don’t think I can wear anything that falls too far above the knee anymore.

It’s not that I hate my legs or feel that my knees look wrinkly or old.  (Yet.)  It’s not that I don’t occasionally gravitate towards minis as a style.  It’s that I was walking down Broadway the other day behind a fairly well-preserved woman who might have been in her 70s, and I looked down and noticed she was wearing a romper.  Part of me wanted to throw her a ticker tape parade or honk a phantom horn in approval.

“You do you!  You go on with your bad self!”

But the other part of me thought: “Please don’t let me dress like I’m 25 when I’m 75.”

Hence the recent ban on above-the-knee styles.  And though I’ll dabble in trends like Golden Goose sneakers and frayed sweaters, by and large, I am now fairly firmly in the camp of dressing my age, which, for me, typically means dresses paired with elegant sandals and flats — something like my new shirtdress (in the navy?) with these elegant mules or these Chanel lookalikes (on sale for $59 in select sizes!!!)

I’m also taking major cues from the black-and-white-clad street style babes shown above and below:

The Fashion Magpie Dressing My Age 2 The Fashion Magpie Dressing My Age 3

Interesting shapes and silhouettes, clean lines, and all in high contrast colors.

Below, a couple of pieces that make me feel like a woman of thirty four.  Note that while there are some high-end pieces in there, many are under $150 or are seriously discounted!

+Chanel-esque Blazer for $120!

+Still my very favorite pair of shades — $69!

+Chanel button earrings

+TB button-shouldered dress

+The holy grail: The Hermes Constance

+Bell-sleeved blouse (on serious sale!)

+Ganni slingback

+Cuyana saddle bag

+Lele Sadoughi earrings (I own these and adore them!)

+IN LOVE with this $65 dress!

+Chanel lip color

+Hermes H Heure watch (vintage — I own this in brown and wear it daily)

+Eleanor Balfour blouse

+TDE box bag (monogrammed!  reminds me of a Mark Cross bag, but far less expensive)

NOT SHOWN: Also think this blouse ($65!) and this tee ($45) should make the cut.

P.S.  Ambient style and kismet.

P.P.S.  I’ve been collecting questions I’ve answered over direct message and email for another Q+A like this one, so email me or leave a comment if you have a fashion/shopping inquiry!

P.P.P.S.  This post still makes me weepy.

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13 thoughts on “Dressing My Age.

  1. I have been thinking about this topic a LOT lately, now that I have also turned thirty-four. I actually bought a floral minidress that you showed on here a couple of times — re:named, from Shopbop? — and decided after one wear that it’s too young for me, mostly because of how short it is on me. I’ve become more accustomed to knee-length or midi-length skirts & dresses! I am generally happy with my figure and how it appears in clothes of any sort, but there are definitely silhouettes that are best left to the (young) millennials, in my opinion.

    That Topshop dress is an amazing find, and I LOVE those Ganni slingbacks! #bookmarked

    1. Oooo I know the dress you’re talking about and can completely relate to your internal dialogue. I think sometimes we just cross these thresholds and decide it’s time to move on. Not a bad thing! And not irrevocable, too. I can imagine wearing certain types of shorter dresses (like a simple shift that hits above the knee) without feeling weird…

      xo

    2. Totally agreed that it depends on the silhouette — for the dress I was talking about, the one-shoulder aspect and young-ish print definitely contribute to my overall feeling about it. I still wear mini silhouettes when they’re simpler, like a shift, or like the pair of shorts I have in 3 colors — slightly high-waisted but with a fuller (and more flattering) leg that is also on the short side!

  2. At 56 I try to adhere to dressing my age, but with being a mother of teenagers I don’t want to look like the oldest mom on the sidelines. That being said I balance between frayed jeans and linens shifts. But I have to say my greatest lesson was at a recent country concert in which way to many 50 plus ladies found it necessary to don daisy duke cut-offs, macrame halter tops, flannel shirts as butt wraps, straw hats and cowgirl boots. Ladies….this is a costume…a comic con cosplay outfit….not a comfy concert age appropriate ensemble! I now consciously practice rethinking my wardrobe choices for my age and body type before I leave the house.

    1. I totally relate to this! I think it’s a delicate balance, finding what is fashion-forward but also age-appropriate…xo

  3. Q/A question! Did you give your husband/parents/MIL/FIL gifts on your wedding day? If so, what did you get them?

    1. Hi! I bought my husband a watch and my mother a necklace, and then arranged to have a huge floral arrangement delivered to both my parents the day after as a big thank you. I also gave my best friend a monogrammed handkerchief with a special little inside joke embroidered on it — I think that could be a sweet gift for a parent, too, especially one prone to waterworks 🙂 I did not give my parents in law anything — I’m wondering if I should have! Their rehearsal dinner was basically a second wedding! xoxo

  4. At 38, I feel like I’ve gone through several of these wardrobe declarations. Like about 10 years ago when I bought several one-piece swimsuits thinking I was “too old” for bikinis. (Insert eye roll here…). Needless to say I now own a mix of one- and two- pieces. And the time I decided I’d wear skirts and dresses all summer instead of shorts…that one didn’t last either! I’d like to land somewhere in the neighborhood of dressing my age, being true to my jeans/tee comfort zone and being one of those ladies who has a look that just works for them regardless of trends. A lot of food for thought!

    1. Yes, a lot of food for thought. How to balance the desire to stay on-trend and to have a signature look, I wonder? As with many things, best, probably, not too overthink it? xo

  5. Love the dresses! And I have been giving this subject a lot of thought lately as I guess I’ve been feeling my age a little more? I’m on the fence on the skirt length, though. I still think you can pull off a mini tastefully (I just saw a pic of Amal Clooney in one and she looked adorable), but I find that I will not wear anything strapless. It can be sleeveless, but no tube tops (or the like) or strapless dresses. I also think rompers will have an expiration, but I haven’t gotten quite there yet. It’s coming, though 😉

    1. I know, there aren’t any hard and fast rules to follow. It’s just a sort of “OK, I’m done with that, now.” Amal Clooney could wear anything on God’s green earth — a tarp, a zoot suit, etc — and make it look fabulous!

      xo

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