How not to look old at the wedding

[Abotitbotinot]

My younger DB is getting married to someone 20 years younger. Yes, let’s not go there. They are both adults and are happy.

I know it’s not about me but I’m in my early 50s and the bride’s friends will all be in their twenties. How do I look more like the bride’s husband’s sister without looking like a) mutton dresses as lamb b) the bride’s husband’s aged aunt?

I take care of myself but I don’t dress from fashion outlets which probably does lump me in the middle aged mum category. I don’t have grey hair but my hairstyle might need updating but I cannot get to grips with curling my hair, I’m useless with tongs/irons/whatever.

It’s a December wedding so I need both a good coat, something for the reception and something for the evening as well.

Posting this now while there’s still time for an intervention.

Max Mara at the moment has some extremely good dresses in its sale. I nearly posted links to them yesterday, but wasn’t sure you’d be receptive …

Do you wear glasses? If so, find out what style of frames that age are currently wearing. That can make a big difference. But does it matter? Surely everyone would expect the groom's family to be older.

Come on, Castle, you have to be trolling the OP and that's a bit mean...

Jesus Christ, some of the sheer ignorance and narrow mindedness on a Style & Beauty board absolutely beggars belief …

Ignorance and narrow-mindedness? I see wannabe elitism and disingenuity from posters such as yourself and Castle.

OI! <snaps fingers>

This is not AIBU. No one needs a flaming, Barbara Cartland dress recs or something equally as mad.

I’m happy to see everyone’s taste even if it is a bit quirky.

And also no need to be retaliatory.

No, I don’t wear glasses.

There’s older and there’s older.

Don't worry about looking young, worry about looking your best self. If you have good legs, flaunt them, etc

Wearing glasses has almost nothing to do with age.

@BlueEyedBogWitch Nothing wrong with being a bridesmaid at any age. When I got married, aged 23, my sisters refused to be bridesmaids because they thought they were too old. They were 34 and 36. I had a favourite cousin, but she lives too far away, and so I really struggled to find someone. Enjoy the wedding.

Oops, wedding already taken place. Hope you enjoyed it.

But the styles young people wear are often different, as with clothes. However, wearing 'young' glasses can never make you look like 'mutton dressed as lamb' which is what the OP is trying to avoid.

I know. I was responding to two separate posts. The older bit referred to the groom’s family usually being older.

But since the groom is older than bride, wouldn't everyone expect the groom's relatives to look older. You''ll look quite sensible age to be his sister, not a great aunt.

Why on earth would I be trolling? I love those dresses. I own stuff from Kindred. I think the 2 older women in the videos on their website look fabulous.

It does have something to do with age. DS very concerned not to have glasses like his dad's

One Hundred Stars has a sale on at the moment.

I wear the stork clothing in various formats and always feel fabulous and get lovely compliments:

onehundredstars.co.uk/products/stork-black-crepe-dress?_pos=1&_sid=64b7cbc7b&_ss=r

I'd like to thank you for posting that Kindred link. I can now flatter myself that I vaguely resemble Caren, and she looks fabulous!

Different, but in a weird way…

OP - these are really nice, and certainly not frumpy!

THIS is why we need the smiley emoji back!!!

This is where the disingenuousness comes in. You know that this isn’t what OP, or the vast majority of other OPs asking for style advice, is looking for.

Threads where the OP just wants to look stylish - and is clearly not looking for these ultra niche outfits - are continually spammed with these brands, regardless of budget. It seems that a group of S&B posters have a constant need to attempt to elevate themselves above the “sheer ignorance and narrow mindedness” of the “silly” hoi polloi.

It’s crass.

Hobbs for the outfit, and as for the hair, a French twist never goes a miss. Buy a French pin off amazon and watch a tutorial - takes a couple of goes but once you've got it, you've got it. It's my go to hairstyle for any event - classy as owt. If you like you can curl your hair (or do easy heatless curls - tutorials aplenty online) beforehand for a bit of volume and boost. Also a spray of dry shampoo for extra volume sometimes too. Look into colour analysis theory and try buy a dress in your 'colour season'. This will make you glow even before you've put makeup on. I used to always dress bright and bold, when I swapped it for grey and slate blues (I'm a summer) though they looked boring on the clothes hanger, I looked much better! And last but not least, don't even start comparing yourself to anyone there. Youth isn't always beauty, no matter what's shoved down our throats. Knock em dead