Yesterday on one of the social media that I skim every day, there was a link to an article about what you should and should not wear if you are over the age of fifty. With my birthday coming up and growing closer to seventy I read the article. It basically said wear what ever you damn well please, as you are old enough not to care what other people think.

I disagree with the premise of the article, as I think you should wear whatever pleases you ALL your life. Work may give you some restrictions, but when you are not in your work environment, dress to make your heart sing. I have always dressed how I wanted, not how I should. I am short and told not to wear long flowing clothes or big jewelry. I have done both all my adult life. Aging I find I want more comfortably stylish clothes and I find some fitted items, just don’t look quite as good, now that I no longer have that twenty-two inch waist.

The other thing I found very humorous was an article on what to wear in summer if you are over fifty and not one of the models featured in this article was over twenty. Like a fifty year-old is going to look the same after the estrogen has gone and middle has widened a little.

Below, the first photos show a series of women wearing exactly what they want. I am certainly not saying I would wear most of these, but they are comfortable in their own skin. I do like that!

What I did find after looking a while were photos of women looking fabulous over fifty and an inspiration of guidelines to follow.  Dress simply and elegantly. This has always been my attempt at fashion.  If you look in my closet, I don’t have a lot of color and I have mostly non-patterned clothing.

I think the following women look fashionably fabulous.

Having shared that, I think you can find what not to wear at anywhere the best at Walmart. The things I think should be taken out of your closet at any time is anything that you do not feel good in or look wonderful in.

In my case the short shorts and mini skirts left a couple of decades ago, but can look bad at any age as you might notice in this lovely photo?

Showing off your mid-section unless you are in perfect shape should not be an option.

See-through clothing just doesn’t look good on most people. Showing everything is really showing nothing.

Short shorts do not look good on 90% of our population.  Please look in the mirror before you embarrass yourself by going out.

The most important thing to remember is that other people do not see you as you see yourself.  I once had a hairdresser say to me: “We look in the mirror and we see ourselves as we looked when we were twenty.” Personally that twenty year-old is a fond memory. Every gray hair was earned and every line on my face is from smiling at what life has to offer.

There are a few things I think don’t work on an aging body:

1. Mini-skirts or short shorts
2. Low rise pants that exhibit that mid-life roll
3. T-shirts with “Sexy Grandma”
4. Plunging necklines or waist high slits
5. See through anything
6. Pajama bottoms anywhere but home
7. I hear hoop earrings should be on the list, but I still wear mine (dang)
8. Thigh high boots, especially stilettos (do you want to kill yourself

What I do think is good, is anything that looks good on your body and feels comfortable enough to wear for several hours.  Know a good seamstress and alter your clothes so they actually fit.  Remember loser always looks better than tighter, at any age.

Let’s get dressed and hit the town.