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| Karen Bigelow: A Peer |
They were all born in 1951, so they will all be 68 years old by the end of this year, just like me.
Cool cats occasionally scold me that I dress too young. My hair is too long, my skirts too short, my heels too high and my makeup too too for a 68-year-old woman. They whine that I should "dress my age!"
OK — so how do I dress my age?
I know how my grandmothers dressed when they were in their 60s (back in the 1960s coincidentally), but no one of any age dresses like that today.
Looking around to see how my peers dress does not work because I am bad at guessing peoples' ages, so I am never sure who are my peers age-wise.
So I resorted to the Internet.
I searched "women born 1951" and Google came back with a variety of lists of famous people born that year. After checking to see if I made the list (I did not), I checked to see who did.
I culled the females from the top of the lists, searched the Internet for any of their photos taken during the past 12 months and I found recent photos of the females mentioned above. (By the way, four of them also appear on my Famous Females of Height List: 5'8" Kirstie Alley, 5'9" Lynda Carter, 5'10" Angelica Huston and 6' Kathryn Bigelow.)
First I looked at the hair. None had hairdos shorter than mine. Two wore pageboys and the rest wore shoulder-length or longer hairdos. Therefore, based on my peers, my hair is too short for a 68-year-old woman!
Next I looked at the shoes. All wore heels of various heights. Hard to be exact, but I estimate that the average heel height was in the 3 to 4 inch range. (Hands down, the tallest female, Kathryn Bigelow, wore the highest heels.) So I conclude that my choice in footwear, that is, heels in the 2 to 5 inch range fit right in with my peers.
To determine how much makeup a person wears, you need a photo of that person without makeup to compare it with a photo of that person with makeup. I had no photos without makeup, so determining how much makeup my peers wear was difficult.
Nearly all of them wear eye makeup, probably no more or less than I do. Nearly all also wear lip color, but here is where I need to make an adjustment. No dark reds, so if I want my lip coloring to match my peers, a more natural lip color should be my goal.
I knew going in that skirt length might be my downfall and I was correct. Most of the hemlines were in the neighborhood of the knee, either at the knee or slightly above or below the knee. None wore a thigh-high hemline like I occasionally find myself wearing.
In conclusion, all I have to do is wear a more natural lip color and lower my hemlines, then I will be dressing my age. On the other hand, life is too short, so maybe I will wear whatever I damn well please!
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| Wearing Wholesale 7 |
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| Carollyn Olson wearing Venus |
What a great idea! I looked up Famous Women born in 1958 (my birth year) and now have a set of peers to emulate, too! Michelle Pfeiffer, Holly Hunter, Jamie Lee Curtis and Madonna - to name but few beauties!
ReplyDeleteSome women can dress younger than they are
ReplyDeleteA full length mirror will tell you if you are one of them
Lucy
Let's start with the hair. As any woman will tell you, they wear their hair not only for comfort but to frame their faces.
ReplyDeleteNow for the shoes. We have all been told that wearing heels helps our legs look good so why not show them off.
As for makeup, it's up to the individual as to how much or little to wear. Some women think they look good with pounds of makeup when if you as a beautician they will tell you to wear just enough to high lite your features.
And now for the biggie, the length of the skirt. One should wear the length that they are comfortable with. The styles today dictate that most women should wear lengths just above or just below the knee. I think that it all depends on where you will be going, how comfortable you feel about someone possibly getting a quick peek under the skirt, if you like how your legs look especially you thighs and one consideration that many of us don't really think consciously about is the weather.
But most of all, your statement of " Whatever I damn well please" is the best reason of all.
Searching on 1941 turns out to be stretching it a bit. Martha Stewart was never a fashion icon, nor was Anne Rice, but the latter still looks nice (but if she's a vampire, of course she looks good -- at night). But put me in a dress with nice makeup and I look a lot prettier than Bernie Sanders!
ReplyDeleteSo I'll compare myself to my fellow Class of 1959 graduates that aren't pushing up daisies. The women in dresses or skirts were wearing them around or barely above the knees -- except the ones wearing 1959 vintage poodle skirts which were midis. They wore mid-to-short heels and modest makeup. Those with nice figures sort of showed them off while the rest dressed nicely, but modestly.
When I look in the mirror I usually see an aging man who still looks "younger than his age", whatever that means. When Mikki looks in the mirror she looks younger than her alter ego, much like you, Stana. So I dress "younger", but when I try on a short skirt or dress I always think, "I'm a bit old for this". I'd still be wearing 3-4 inch heels if my foot hadn't gone kaput. I LOVED wearing high heels! I still have a full head of hair, which I wear long and in a female cut. The length varies, as I donate a foot to "the cancer kids" every two years, but even after the donation, I keep my hair brushing over my shoulders. My alter ego seems to always pull his hair into a pony tail.
So I'm with Stana, and wear whatever I choose, but don't dress to draw attention. I'm a little large to not draw some attention, so I don't need to embellish. If the lady I see in the mirror looks like she'd be in the same ballpark with hery peers, I'm good with that. I save "over the top" for drag events, Mardi Gras and Hallowe'en. And finally, my experience with playing the "women born in...." game tells me it should be capped at 1951.
Great post and very affirming for our particular choice of styles. Well done.
ReplyDeleteGreat photo of the babe wearing wholesale7. Click on the site, unbelievable prices! Too good to be true? Several complaints on various sites.
ReplyDeleteCaveat Emptor?