‘Dress For Your Age’ – Sound Advice Or Sexist Nonsense?

Women are all too familiar with phrases like ‘mutton dressed as lamb’. While men may be expected to relax their style as they age, they’re rarely subject to this brutal form of criticism. They’re also considered ‘wise’ and ‘rugged’ well into their eighties, while women are described as ‘past it’ and ‘haggard’ the minute a laughter line surfaces (thanks, misogyny). But is there anything in the idea that certain clothes are inherently suited to particular age groups, or is ‘age appropriate’ simply a myth born from an archaic agenda?

Listen, I get it – sometimes it’s just not that deep. Priorities shift as we age (hell, I’m only thirty and I’m a sucker for loungewear), which can mean choosing comfort over style, and that doesn’t necessarily stem from a societal expectation.

But women’s fashion has transformed over the last fifteen years or so, reflecting both a positive change in attitudes towards aging and the recent wave of feminism. A typical eighty-year-old’s wardrobe looks like that of someone decades younger, and it doesn’t look incongruous on an older body, suggesting the purpose we ascribe to certain designs or fabrics is largely due to conditioning. Literally, who’s to say your grandma can’t rock jeans, after all?!

Sure, you may find yourself gravitating towards more conservative outfits, and this could stem from the insecurities that can come with aging. Feeling confident in your style is vital, so if you feel more comfortable covering up, go for it. But, if it stems from societal notions of how an older woman should present, perhaps it’s time to re-evaluate your approach. In a society that’s increasingly lifting the restrictions around fashion, the people who actually think this way are mostly trolls behind a keyboard.

Not everyone needs to feel confident in the same way they did at twenty – it’s a different, typically more settled life stage, and our clothes can beautifully reflect that. But equally, if you want to show off your cleavage or shoulders, don’t let perceived judgment from others hold you back. Take the backlash Pamela Anderson received, for example, for going makeup-free as a woman in her late fifties. Had she continued to wear the heavy make-up, the likes of Barry in his parents’ spare room would have been equally affronted. We stand to gain nothing from vying for public approval.

Ultimately, it comes down to whatever you want to do, and haters gonna hate regardless. Are you happy with your current style, or have you been limiting yourself based on tired stereotypes?