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Original poster

Am I too old to wear that? Triumph of fashion over dignity etc

48 replies

MandyD · 27/04/2003 09:56

Well now, I am nearing the Big Four Zero. Most days I'm told I can pass for around ten years younger, and exceptionally my builder's wife (in her fifties) told DP she thought I was around 21.

I have shoulder length hair because IMHO it hasn't started to make me look like a mad old bag lady yet...

But I have a real craving to buy a pair of those really baggy combats with all the pockets and straps and hangy bits and hoojamiflips. I normally wear jeans, black joggers, Adidas pants or fake Maharishis (embroidered but not very baggy).

So to buy or not to buy? And what was your "crisis" garment, your real moment of truth?

OP posts:
whymummy · 27/04/2003 10:06

hi mandy,im 35 and a few weeks ago i saw those pink camouflage combats that i really liked but i thought i was too old for that i went 3 times to the shop and at the end i thought oh dod it! im going to get them,i absolutely love them and i wear them with my white doc martens!!!just wear what you want girl,just be you and who cares what others think,ive got a friend thats been dressing like an old woman since the age of 30 i refused going shopping with her as i found myself buying granny`s clothes too,just go for it!!!

Original poster
MandyD · 27/04/2003 10:12

Thanks for the vote of confidence! I wasn't thinking of a bright pair (well done you!) - just plain black, as is everything else in my wardrobe!

OP posts:
doormat · 27/04/2003 10:13

Go ahead and buy them. I am nearly your age and I walk around dressed like a teenager.I have been lucky to keep my figure(except for a few stretchies)after having kids. My teenage daughters always pinch my clothes and vice versa.

Chinchilla · 27/04/2003 10:17

I agree with whymummy - 'dod it'

Seriously though...I think that you have to take the usual rules of fashion into account. I see huge girls around town, wearing those low waist jeans and cropped t-shirts, with their fat bulging out inbetween. Yuk. My advice is to wear what suits your shape and colouring, no matter what the fashion is. If the latest fashion suits you, then wear it. If it doesn't, leave it alone. 40 is not old, but just don't wear those bum hugger skirts, because you might get a few comments in town!

I tend to wear clothes (bottom half) from Next/Wallis and Principles, because you know that they will be the latest cuts and styles, without being too 'Top Shop' IYKWIM. However, I buy tops from Top Shop/Dotty P's/Matalan/Tesco etc etc, because they are fun and cheaper.

You know what suits you, so go for it!

ninja · 27/04/2003 10:52

My mum (mid 50's) bought a pair and looks great. I think it's the skimpy teenage clothes you have to be more careful about - but then again ...

whymummy · 27/04/2003 11:01

ha,ha, chinchilla i thought you were the one to make the mistake until i read my message again
sod it !!

lou33 · 27/04/2003 11:43

I'd buy them if they suit you. However if you look in the mirror after trying them on, and you are reminded of Kat Slater or Lesley Joseph don't do it! I'm 36 and have these crisis moments myself on a regular basis, but still spent £150 quid in Topshop the other day, I just avoided the neon string vests and micro skirts.

edgarcat · 27/04/2003 11:46

Message withdrawn

whymummy · 27/04/2003 11:51

yes edgarcat that could be our secret phrase,i can just see myself muttering that to every mum i find

mammya · 27/04/2003 14:06

Whymummy, that would be a great way to recognise other mumsnetters in the park...

doormat · 27/04/2003 14:07

Lou33 I bought a string vest the other day (white) Just waiting for the warmer weather to come so I can wear it. Dp was horrified.

Furball · 27/04/2003 14:16

Doormat - Surely it should be colder weather with a string vest Oh dear, I'm showing my age again.

Hughsie · 27/04/2003 14:42

I say go for it! I felt woefully out of fashion watching the SALON and seeing those young girls in their strange get ups! I dont want to go that far but do intend to treat myself to a few trendy numbers now that my body is remotely back to normal. However after the second baby (8 wks) it does not seem as keen to spring back to it's previous shape and I fear the loose tyre is here to stay so no crop tops for me.

I dont feel that I can go too mad with babies though - kind of brings a sense of being past it! + I dont go anywhere to wear trendy stuff - I need to get my life back!

whymummy · 27/04/2003 15:43

hughsy just buy and wear it even if is to go to the park youll feel ten times better!! mammya we could use it at the end of a sentence like how old is your child,dod it? and if they look at you and run a mile you know theyre not mumsnetters

lou33 · 27/04/2003 15:45

Doormat as long as you have a sensible clean bra under it, then white is ok . I just objected to the neon ones matched with neon fishnet ankle socks - bleurgh.

layla · 27/04/2003 16:13

Mandy,I'm going to be a real kiljoy here and disagree with the majority.I'm 36 and I would feel too old to wear them.They're just so ultra trendy.I think you can still be fashionable at our age it just needs toning down a little.I have just got rid of my adidas trousers as I feel a bit too old for them now.But then I do look my age.If you look a lot younger than your age though you could get away with it.Ducking my head down now.

doormat · 27/04/2003 18:24

Lou33 I was thinking of not wearing a bra underneath only joking dp would hit the roof.
Just a nice strappy top and bra underneath coz

  1. strappy top hides the stretchies that us mumsnetters know all about.Hmm 2.Bra to push up the cleavage.Will not go into that one. Aaargh.

P.S I wouln't walk around in the bellbottoms that they wear or those dirty jeans that look like you haven't washed them in weeks. They are horrid. I use to scream when my mum put us in bellbottoms. YUCK.

SoupDragon · 27/04/2003 19:13

I wouldn't wear those trousers not because I feel too old for them but because I hate them! I wouldn't let age put me off wearing anything really if it suited me.

Sring vests though... does anyone else remember the '80's and wearing string vests over T shirts??

Lara2 · 27/04/2003 20:09

Buy!!!! I think I'm still stuck in my punkish stage - oh dear!!! Still wear my Docs and had a mid-life crisis belly piercing a few weeks ago (I'm 40). Hadn't told dh( made my oldest friend come and hold my hand ), who was a tad horrified!! I did it for me, don't wear skimpy, too short tops and I'm really glad I did. Now I'm older and have more money, I probably buy things that I would have done when I was younger and broke! The fashion this summer seems to be leaning towards punk and Vivien Westwood type stuff anyway. No, I don't think I'll be doing the short tartan skirt thing again though ! I've always had this thing about not wearing exactly the same as everyone else anyway - a hangover from my teens when we went out of our way to be completely different by getting all our stuff in charity shops and at jumble sales. I'm sure we did end up looking pretty similar though.

WideWebWitch · 27/04/2003 20:39

I'm so hopeless about what's fashionable that I don't even quite know the trousers you mean! I know what combats are but don't understand the other bits. I'm 36 and I wouldn't do it but that doesn't mean you shouldn't, especially if they suit you. I saw a woman in the supermarket the other day with long hair and she was dressed in orange tie dye hippyish studenty stuff. It looked fine until she turned around and was obviously pushing 50. It looked wrong and was suprising. It also made me swear I won't dress too young for my age. In the same vein I've been wondering when long hair becomes too much - any views? Or is it always OK if it's cut well a la Madonna?

Tinker · 27/04/2003 20:42

I worry about the long hair thing too because I just don't suit short hair plus am far too lazy to get it cut regularly. As for the pants, whatever lights your candle but, personally, I think they're horrid!! String vests make me think of Limahl.

emsiewill · 27/04/2003 20:57

Saw loads of these trousers yesterday, and I think they're awful. But if anyone wants to wear them, whatever their age, then it's up to them. I remember the string vests from the '80s, too.

Chinchilla · 27/04/2003 21:40

www - the hair issue is hard isn't it? Until November, I had long hair, and now it is shortish. I had it cut because it needed curling every day to make it nice, and I never had time. Now it is short, it is so easy to do each day, but still looks good (or so I am told by friends). I think that really old women look bad with long hair hanging down. A woman that I used to work with had long bleached blonde hair, and she was 50. It looked awful. However, she had it cut short, in a really trendy style, and it looked great, because she always had nice clothes.

Personally, I would have a hair style that suits your face, whatever length. Then, when it is totally grey, go shorter to avoid that warty hag hairstyle! No offence to any warty hags on here

judetheobscure · 27/04/2003 21:40

I've got two pairs of combats, one black, one pale pink, and I love them both, so comfortable. They've got a few hangy bits (what are hoojamiflaps?) but I never thought of them as being too trendy to wear (I'm 38 btw). I do make sure they fit properly though (ie no low-waisted stuff) because I don't want ANY stomach showing. Find it very difficult to find to find a) long enough tops and b) high enough bottoms. The fashion industry doesn't seem to realise that the majority of women haven't got nice looking stomachs.

Used to wear Doc Martens all the time, but now I have no time to tie up the shoe laces, so wear the slip-on trainer type things, also favoured by teenagers. Makes me sound very trendy but I assure you I'm not, just comfortable and practical.

mammya · 27/04/2003 22:16

I'm not too sure if I like these combats with the dangly bits. The first time I saw someone wearing them I thought they looked original, but then the next day I saw 2 people wearing them and before I knew it they were everywhere! Which is why I wouldn't wear them...

HOwever I think if you like them and they suit you, then go for it.

whymummy