Dress Your Age? Of Course.

By Karen and Erica

We have seen several articles in the last months holding forth on the pressing issue of dressing—or not dressing—one’s age.

This topic is, in our view, pretty silly. Especially for Lustre ladies. We wear whatever we want to. But sdtill—is there an age/style connection? We think so—but it is not exactly how it is often described.

The first article we saw was in the FT, entitled Why I Won’t Dress My Age, by Annachiara Biondi (paywall). She’s 33 and agrees age should not be a factor in making style decisions. She thinks she is dressing like a teenager (we cannot confirm) (and we are not sure what that means) but her article includes a picture of the founders of Chopova Lowena, a brand apparently based on teenage clothing. We’ve never seen anything for sale quite like these clothes. Teenage? Maybe. We would have other words. Ms. Biondi does recognize that in a work context it is sometimes wise to dress for success. Why, we wonder, does she not realize that approach applies any time you want to achieve a goal?

Martha Stewart views dressing in a somewhat similar manner. She says she has dressed the same way since she was a teen, relying on big jackets and short skirts. (Her idea of teen dressing is not like that of Chopova Lowena, which just goes to show the link, if any, between age and style is extremely tenuous.) She is now 80, and thinks dressing sexy is fun.

And frankly, when it comes to how she dresses, Stewart tells Page Six Style that age doesn’t even factor into the equation.

“I don’t think about age,” she said. ” I think people are more and more and more (fabulous) than they’re ever been in their senior years, and I applaud every one of them.”

Stewart recently made history as the oldest model to land on the coveted cover of Sports Illustrated’s annual Swimsuit Issue. On shooting the groundbreaking cover, Stewart previously told TODAY.com that she requested she not be photographed wearing “any old-lady bathing suits,” “little bows” or cover-ups.

“I did not go for that look,” Stewart said to TODAY.com. “I went for a nice, healthy, energized and, if you want to call it ‘sexy,’ sort of sexy look.”

We agree. We like healthy, though we have a different view of sexy, perhaps, but go Martha. And thanks for explaining what a thirst trap is

But it is Vanessa Friedman, at the NYT, who puts the connection between age and style in the right light. When asked What does it mean to dress your age, she replied just as we might (which of course means she is very smart.) We do not feel confined to any particular genre, but we do prefer to demonstrate that we have lived a few decades and have the confidence to show for it.

Personally, I feel like my years have been hard won, and experience is worth wearing. Which means I have said goodbye to clothes I generally associate with my youth: hemlines above my knees (especially attached to skater and rah-rah skirts), tops that show off my belly button, ruffles, slip dresses. Anything, really, that takes me sliding down a wormhole into an era when I was a much less formed person, or one that I lived through once already. That has as much to do with personal associations as it does with actual years.

We also like the way An Unapologetic Woman thinks. She describes herself thusly:

Sequins on a Sunday. Speaking your truth. Living on your terms, in a leopard print. That’s the art of unapologetic living. And that’s what this woman is all about.

Anyone who starts a personal description with sequins is good with us. Here’s a taste or a recent commentary. We would not adopt all of her choices, but we do like her enthusiasm:

A reassessment of my wardrobe brought the jumpsuit back into the spotlight, defying my expectations of a decline in wear. Credit goes to a UK brand and its enticing “boilers and bottoms” section, offering a jumpsuit with the ideal stretch, effortlessly paired with anything from chunky Chelsea boots to suede pumps for instant cool. I know I’ve shared this brand before, and this one may be sold out, but I love it so much, and it’s still available in olive.

Each of us approaches dressing differently, and personally. (We two dress very differently.) We love the freedom to exercise personal taste that has developed as we have added years of experience of life—though we did create our styles early, and simply amplified those styles over time. After the first few years of practice, when we were finding our way, we never felt constrained by the need to look like lawyers—we changed the way lawyers looked, and had a lot of fun with it. And we never believed in a link between age and style—though we did perceive a link between maturity and style.

We no longer live in that world, but we live in a world where we expect to be seen and taken seriously as women who continue to play a role. We dress accordingly, whenever anyone can see us—i.e. whenever we leave our closets. And we still have fun with style. It’s one of life’s pleasures.

How do you see the relationship between age and style?