This is not about crepe.

[GarlicCake]

I have no idea whether the MN S&B board wants a thread by and for those of us who have, perforce, come to terms with our crêpe. And with our fulsome post-menopausal bellies, inability to maintain posture for long or our fucking chin hairs.

I'm embarking on yet another style rethink: I find I'm having to do it every couple of years at least, as my appearance keeps changing. I found this! advancedstyle.blogspot.co.uk :)

Anybody fancy joining me in a creative approach to the adventures of becoming an old woman?

Here are some pictures from the blog.

Me.

Happy new year, Flo!

I'm not sure I'm going to go full-on Arty (yet) but am already wearing things like tiered skirts - and have started dyeing my hair "interesting" colours. I wouldn't have considered either five years ago - but would, and did, thirty-five years ago.

In an off-the-cuff analysis, I reckon there are opposing dynamics at work with similar outcomes. I could wear cutting-edge and over-the-edge fashion back then because I was young & pretty, and that gave me 'permission' because folks were going to stare anyway. Now I'm old & invisible, that gives me permission because nobody's going to stare anyway!

I went to my last Jobcentre meeting with royal blue hair. I fully expected to be told off but not a word was said. I'm so invisible, people don't even notice alien hair.

Or maybe I'm so gorgeous it doesn't matter? - No, that definitely is not it.

It might be post-menopausal 'fuck the world' confidence, though! The people featured in Advanced Style seem to have that in spades

Found this last night, as well. Less post-punk and more chic wit: www.fannykarst.com

So just you and me getting older, Garlic

I am soooo bored with being told less is more at my age. Please come and save me.

I like the slogan T shirt with fake fur look although it's probly quite similar to what I wore at 19 or 20 so a bit of a safe option. I'd def like to explore ways of adding a bit of spike to my style and as you say, if I get it wrong, who cares, no-one's looking!

I'm increasingly drawn to interesting shapes but I'm small so have to be careful they don't drown me.

I have sort of begged for contributions by Gransnetters.

I hope the extreme intimacy of our thread reflects people being stylishly busy with the bank holiday weekend, rather than a universal addiction to beige!

Hellooo
I never was a confident dresser so very unsure how to dress differently now I'm old(er), so I stick to safe colours/styles etc.
I'd love the courage to dye my silver hair purple!

Does mid-fifties count? Am I old enough to join?

I'm not really interested any more in safe and flattering. I'm more interested in clothes as creativity. And I've loved Advanced Style for years - have linked to it on here several times.

And more about Fanny Karst on That's not my Age a blog I quite like.

I love those silk screen print shifts but £500 a pop!

How do you feel about approaching it gradually, PInk? Schwarzkopf Live is a temporary/semi that you can use either fiercely or gently. Basically, you mix the dye with the conditioner that comes in the box - you can put just a dab of colour in it for a very pastel shade. Then you apply it to damp hair - the wetter the hair, the softer your result. There are some good how-to videos on their site.

Personal observations:

1. This colour does wash out quickly - and comes off on your pillow if your hair's damp! I find I'm using a lot of laundry bleach these days.
2. There's no peroxide in this product, which is why it doesn't 'stick'. The conditioner's great. Hair always super-shiny after colouring.
3. It's dead easy to mix shades (once you get braver!)

I tend to apply the stuff straight from the tube on dry hair, for maximum pigment. I have tried the pastel method, too. It's easy and it works.

Another gentle option is to use a blonde toner like Wella Color Fresh (also applied to damp hair) and leave it on for hours before rinsing. This will give you more of a violet tone than a colour, but is a nice safe option. It also makes your hair shiny.

Niminy, I'm sorry I missed your links to Advanced Style! I love it.

Garlic Garlic Garlic ... I'm not sure you're allowed to lead a style revolution if you've only just discovered Advanced Style. It's been around for years dahling ...

But of course the over 25s (...) shouldn't be invisible. Advanced Style is universes away from how I want to dress but, in the interests of solidarity may I whisper a few names?

Dover Street Market (Not a market for the non London centric.)
LNCC
Hostem (admittedly eye poppingly extortionate but fabulously interesting.)
Envoy (Belfast)

I'm tempted to ask for this post to be deleted - I never, never mention these places here. I do sometimes mention Acne Studios and get this face. (I also almost never step into the shops repeatedly cited as suitable for the irredeemably ancient.)

I love getting dressed more every day. It's utterly stupendous having an entire world of clothing opportunities in the palm of my hand. And really, I'm not sure that people outside the UK subscribe so enthusiastically to the view that mature women ought to curl up and die. So I generally try to ignore MN on this subject.

I'd love to but this kind of style looks as though it will be expensive if it is going to be done well.

I don't think I have the right kind of life. NHS worker = lowish wages and wears a uniform to work. 😢

Thanks Garlic!
Definitely off to buy and try the Wella one tomorrow , keep your fingers crossed!

Lion you need the patience to wait for the sales. Just one thing will make a difference. A once in a lifetime belt with a Top Shop knitted dress (though that's unlikely to be in a natural fabric these days). Or saving for an outstanding jacket that makes everything in your wardrobe look amazing. (Trust me; I've shopped well at every extreme of financial capability.)

One thing is to largely ignore the big names. Great clothes, but the bloated prices often have little relation to absolute quality. If you have the time to pay attention and seek out newer designers just before they achieve global stardom you really can find things that make you glad to open your wardrobe in the morning.

Oh, Gruach! LMCC stocks all the stuff I used to wear back in my designery yoof It might be a tiny bit out of reach for a fat old bird on benefits. I shall have to carry on being eclectic with sale-rail finds and random second-hand objects.

Speaking of days gone by and second-hand things, I've made an unexpected resolution to rediscover my pattern cutting skills (unused since 1990 and almost as rusty as my sewing machine.) I've ordered an out-of-print book about patterning for people with disabilities, as it reportedly has a brilliant section on kyphosis. I'm going to practise on my mum: she has quite a hump now, and my shoulders have started to rotate. Nothing that was made for a straight-backed, flat-bellied customer with a waist will look great on me again. I can just about make that shape when I first get out of bed ... for five minutes!

Rock-hard elastic knickers help, though The last time I was chatted up by someone attractive, all I could think was "Mustn't let him find out about my control pants!"
Turned out he was married, anyway, so zero risk on that occasion.

Send us a photo, P1nk :)

Really didn't think I'd spend this evening looking up rotated shoulder ...

Sorry!

Ooh more people, hurray!

I've never been as out there as some of the the Advanced Style women but I do feel I've lost some individuality as I've got older. And playfulness. Much as I like Style & Beauty there's so much fear and loathing of age on here that it can sap your confidence if you're not careful.

I may start by joining you in a purple rinse, P1nk though it would need to be fairly subtle; they're a reasonably tolerant lot at work but I don't want to push my luck - although as we've already said, the chances are no-one will even notice!

I'm not at all as out there as the Advanced Style ladies. But I love the fact that they are. I love the fact that Iris Apfel is in the world even if I could never dress like that myself.

I've had a grey crop for years and recently bleached it white, which has been fantastically energising. I love having bold hair!

I've also decided that the way forward may be making my own clothes. If shops won't give me dresses with sleeves, I will make them. They won't be complicated styles, but at least then I could have really lovely material.

Are we going to become the new (old) generation of designers for the baby boom?

On a less recherché note, I've had some very successful dresses from good old Dorothy Perkins. Their fabrics are OK - not brilliant at this price level, but much better than Asos, for example - the sizing's reliable, and their 'tall' fits my irritatingly long torso. And there are sleeves. The website seems to be down atm, though.

My favourite designer's released her SS16 collection: www.chloe.com/en/runway I love it.

Even better, there's a lot here that a fat old bird can adapt & wear.

Hm, too boho for me though I liked the sporty trousers with the stripes down the sides.

I'm more of a Celine woman myself (in my dreams that is). I must say I envy you you pattern-cutting skills!

Just looked at the Celine web site - there's almost nothing there I wouldn't wear...

Just had a look at Celine. Loads of fascinating, lovely stuff that I couldn't wear! It would all be wearing me. I love these baggy trousers - I'd definitely have worn this look a few years ago. But gathered & tied round the waist might not go terribly well with the Belly Of Age

I have noticed nearly all the designers had a new trouser shape. The second picture (jeans) is from Joseph and I've used it because he shows the garment flat. That bulge is what gives the legs their fluid shape, while keeping the tops neat. The Joseph ones look balloon-like when flat because they narrow at the bottom: if the width is kept all the way down, they will pool like the Celine ones.

You know, I might even be working up some enthusiasm for dressmaking! The last design I made was my wedding dress, eight years ago.