Quality dresses for older women.

[sunshineonmonday]

Hi, can anyone recommend somewhere I can buy dresses for an older woman please? Just everyday wear, good quality, natural fabric, simple but not old fashioned, maybe plain colours, maybe not, but nothing ditsy floral, flouncey or revealing. I'm well into middle age, have a nice figure, I need new clothes for Spring/Summer.

That's all true - but I would also count age as a contributing factor to one's style at any point in our lives.

We only have Seasalt as a benchmark label from the OP - no other shops mentioned (or a budget). And she quite liked some of it, but not the flowery stuff & not the easily identifiable stuff - at least that's what I took from her comments.

So I'm thinking that sort of price range or a bit higher - but more Jigsaw/Me & Em probably, rather than the Stella McCartney on The Outnet level ...

Mid 60s as of a few weeks time. I used to like Seasalt but everyone wears it now, last 2 have been Unfolded.

I have this style (different fabric) and it’s so easy to wear and v flattering-
https://www.toa.st/products/bryn-twill-dress-indigo

I ordered a dress from Unfolded last year, it is lovely but it took months to arrive and that's put me off ever ordering from them again. Think I ordered it in April and did not get it until well into the summer so missed out on several months of wear.

Agree with all of these. I love Me & Em.

Would also add Massimo Dutti, Hobbs and Phase eight but I do think you need to choose carefully from the latter two.

I would never wear Seasalt, not a fan at all.

The fold for work

Ditto. I have a couple, & now want this one ...

You can't assume that everyone experiences 'discombobulating bodily changes' in late middle age or older.

The majority of my 60+ friends are trim and the same size as they were 20 years ago. And some are on HRT so they don't need to worry about only wearing natural fabrics like cotton.

Again, another stereotypical comment about 'the elderly'.

I can't get my head around not being interested in clothes that fit and the best colour , at any age. In my late 30s I went for a colour consultation and that changed how I stopped buying colours I 'liked' but which did nothing for me, either were too harsh or too draining.

Did you miss that I wrote ‘can’? I did that deliberately because I acknowledge it doesn’t happen to all women, but it’s a very common theme on this board, it certainly happened to me as well as a lot of my friends and family and I think it’s silly to pretend it doesn’t. I don’t regard that as stereotyping, I regard it as acknowledging women’s biology.

I really couldn’t care less that you can’t get your head around how I like to dress. I tried dressing for my shape / colouring and it made me miserable. (Fit is different as far as I’m concerned.) I still acknowledge that it works for a lot of women but I do get a bit impatient when I see it preached on here as though it’s some kind of universal truth that we all should believe in

I find TU at Sainsburys can be surprisingly good

https://tuclothing.sainsburys.co.uk/product/tuc147401925

https://tuclothing.sainsburys.co.uk/product/tuc145081690

You do need to watch the fabrics though

I can't get my heard round the obsession of some posters about wearing "your colours". My colours are the colours I like. I have never noticed this draining etc phenomenon on me or anyone else.

I'm not interested in "my colour" or "what suits my shape" or even worse "shows off my best features"

I'm interested in shape, texture, fabric, how a piece of clothing is constructed, how it moves when worn.

Goodness that is surprising - especially the navy one.

Interesting, because as soon as I had my colours done in about 1990, I immediately u derstood why I didn't feel my best or turn heads in: cream, yellow, khaki, beige/brown, etc. It was one of the key reasons why my wedding dress was white (not persil white) rather than the more fashionable cream.

Very blue and cool undertones despite brown eyes and an easy tan. Deep summer.

Maybe the colours you like to wear ARE the colours that suit you - & that's subconsciously why you like them ...??!! Surely there are some colours that you dislike/avoid wearing?

For some people, I think understanding how colours work is just innate - they don't need any explanation for what works best for them. And they're probably the same people who understand proportion & form, & how to apply that to clothing that suits their body.

Others just don't have that knack, so I think getting your colours analysed could be a helpful exercise for those who lack confidence in wearing/mixing colours? (If it's done well & objectively, that is - not to sell you clothing/make-up etc.) Similarly a good stylist/personal shopper could help guide someone find the right shapes/lengths/proportions in clothing too?

I like Whistles and Mint Velvet at the moment. There is loads on Vinted if you want to try without paying full price. If you’ve got a Blue Light Card both have 15% off online

Btw I've never had a colour consultation - but I did learn about how to use them in design during my time at art college. IMO the same principles apply whether it's plants, wallpaper & paints, or clothes that are being combined.

"My" colours fall into two distinct groups. The first are the colours I love wearing - because they suit me. Mostly neutral-to-warm colours - emerald to sage green, coral pink to rust/burgundy red, amber to mustard - paired with navy/black/off-white.

The second group of colours are colours I love but that don't suit me ... cool chalky tones that, if I wore them, would jar noticeably with my fair, warm-toned skin & red-blonde hair.

So, I decorate with them instead. Hence my cyclamen pink & duck egg blue linen sofas ... & teal green bedding & yellow coffee cups & fuchsia velvet cushions ...!!

Paint charts are a thing of joy & beauty to me - I have a whole drawer full of them ... 😊!!

Surely there are some colours that you dislike/avoid wearing?

There are colours I don't like, but not because they "drain me" /"make me look like a corpse" - I just don't like them.

On other people, I don't notice this phenomenon at all because it's the item of clothing which will draw my attention, (if to admire, in which case I would say "fabulous dress/jacket") not whether it makes someone glow/look dead.

I don't deny that colour analysis and dressing for your shape can work for some women. It worked for me for a while when my confidence was low. (Edit - I never visited a colour or style consultant but Oh man did I read the books.) However I dispute that it's the only way to dress well.

So Seasalt - and then I'm taking a break from this thread before it's totally derailed. It's not really my thing but I do have the odd piece from there that's quite good and I don't think it's anything like as bad as it's sometimes painted. Also I can't deny that a lot of my age 65+ friends like it - in fact they tease me because I'd rather go to a kilo sale. So while not being a huge fan, I'm not comfortable with the level of disdain it seems to attract on here.

Oska and Cos.

I don't understand the vituperation dished out for Seasalt. They're in the same ballpark as Toast, Plumo, Boden occasionally Oska but much cheaper. The pink linen and the blue check wouldn't look out of place on their sites.

https://www.seasaltcornwall.com/fen-violet-linen-midi-dress

https://www.seasaltcornwall.com/haneth-waisted-dress

The shape of the one below is similar to dresses being raved about on the Me +Em thread.

https://www.seasaltcornwall.com/carved-wood-linen-midi-dress

I don't like the jersey dresses but there's other dresses I'd wear.

White company?

Finery - I'm early 60's and find them comfortable and reasonably priced

I’m mid sixties and love Wyse London and ME + Em. They sometimes need some tailoring as I’m only 5’ tall though. I’ve had some great petite basics from Lands End too, certainly last year, although this year’s selection doesn’t wow me so far.

I’ve been in Reiss today and love lots of their clothes especially www.reiss.com/style/su943972/g54881

I think no one's mentioned White Stuff yet. I'm an older lady and I often really like their stuff. Also M & S often come up trumps.