Health, Food & Beauty
The author of the successful The Pocket Stylist follows up with a book that addresses the specific fashion needs of the over–forty crowd
Even though women in their forties, fifties, sixties, and beyond have never looked better, healthier, or younger, their fashion needs have changed. Unless you have the body and lifestyle of an eighteen–year–old, shopping probably isn't much fun anymore. The fashion industry seems to have turned its back on women who are forty and older, churning out collections that have nothing to do with careers or sophisticated living. Kendall Farr to the rescue! With Style Evolution, she shows readers how to create a hip, ageless, individual sense of personal style without feeding into the culture's deep obsession with looking "young."
Naming names, Farr shares the results of her extensive analysis of designers and brands—from high–end to budget–conscious—best–suited for women over forty. She also delivers ideas that suit every budget, from high–end lines to good buys. Packed with more than one hundred full–color illustrations, Style Evolution guides readers through discovering their own style profiles, with six basic shapes designed to match realistic body types. Farr also puts the spotlight on trends, illustrating the ageless approach to wearing what's "new." An ageless shopping checklist and thorough details on accessories (from bags to shoes to eyewear) complete the book.
With hundreds of tips that bestow grace and class, Farr leads the way for the woman who is ready for her wardrobe to catch up with the rest of her life.
Read the introduction of Style Evolution:
introduction
What does it mean to have reached middle age in a time of celebrity adulation, youth obsession, stripper culture, and the Real Housewives franchise? For starters, it means you are likely to be confused and frustrated when you shop for new clothes—at a time when your personal style has never been more important. Dressing well and looking current and grown–up in middle age is not only a vital reflection of self–regard but of the attitude we wish to project to the world.
Let me share a story, A Tale of Two Middle–Aged Women and Their Jeans: Not long ago, my assistant and I watched two women ordering coffee at the bar of a fashionable French boîte in SoHo. The first woman was dressed in Levi's. They were simple, dark indigo, and the straight cut was neither loose nor tight and skimmed her curves in a flattering way. A white cotton shirt, sleeves rolled casually to her elbows (again, skimming), a colorful leather tote of no visible pedigree and flat sandals accented her look. Her collarbone–length hair was loose and unfussy and warm, natural–looking highlights framed her simple makeup. Most striking of all, she radiated a self–confidence that was irresistible. Her age was difficult to pin down. She might have been 40 or 55. It hardly mattered. "I want to be her when I grow up," said my 24–year–old assistant.
"She looks absolutely great," I added. "But yipes, look at her!"
A few feet away I'd clocked the backside of a woman in black, tourniquet–tight "premium denim." The matchstick cut, along with high platform pumps, gave her the requisite licorice stick legs–of–the–minute. The rhinestones on her back pockets drew my eye to a tortilla flat bum. A skin–tight, cap–sleeved T–shirt (revealing considerable bra bulge and dimpled upper arms) and an of–the–second bag with multiple zippers and charms hanging from the strap punctuated her look. Flat–ironed, platinum–blond hair reached the middle of her back with the help of obvious–looking extensions. When she turned to leave, coffee in hand, I saw she was at least 50 or perhaps a bit older. It wasn't her age that mattered but rather the way her "look" (the same "uniform"" of many a millennial girl standing at the coffee bar, by the way) turned a floodlight on the very thing she was trying to hide. Her kohlrimmed eyes and oversized glossy lips further exposed an age anxiety that was uncomfortable to watch.
Numerical age—particularly "middle age"—means less and less these days. One's sensibility is a far more relevant and meaningful term for defining a modern woman's fashion choices in her 40s, 50s, 60s, and beyond. The styles we chose in our 20s or 30s have (or should have) evolved as we matured. What all women of a certain age should now go for, I believe, is a wardrobe that is essentially ageless and timeless, that reflects being grown–up while it visually asserts self confidence, individuality, and ease.
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