Are You Dating Yourself?

And I Don’t Mean for Dinner!

Happy day, reader dearest!

Does 3 Tips to Look Older sound creepy? It’s not meant to! I´m feeling a little facetious lately, and still grooving with the Halloween feeling, so rather than the How to Look 5/10/15 Years Younger post, I present How to Look Older… Caveat: I am not one to grab for looking “young”. Not interested, thank you. Women and men who cling to their 20’s scare me. I wouldn’t want to go back there. (For so many reasons.) One would be: I love my grey hair! (Hair color is regularly the #1 tip on the Look 5/10/15 Years Younger list.) Youthful? Sure! I’ll take youthful any day! But… Youthful is more about attitude than about looks.

If You Want to Look Older:

1. Wear your hair style (and color) the same way you have for the past 5 years.

If you have a signature ‘do, AWESOME! But not tweaking your hairstyle is a sure way to look dated. I’m not suggesting a chop! (That women over 40 should have short hair myth.) You should wear your hair in a length you like and in style that works for your hair’s texture and your personality and lifestyle. But make sure to freshen up that style! Even a classic bob can be cut using different techniques to give it movement, or more or less fullness. As for color, the pigments in our hair and skin soften as we age, so the hair color we had at 20 looks harsh and artificial on us at 40. Note: Often a colorist will talk about “warming you up” as you age. This can be a great way to soften your hair color and flatter your complexion if you are warm complexioned. If your complexion is cool, warming up your hair color is going to make you look unwell!

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If you are interested in growing out your grey, there are oodles of fabulous groups to join and blogs to read… Here’s a bit of my journey!

2. Wear the same makeup (and the same way) you have for the past 5 years.

I am not recommending slavish trend following here, or creating the sculpted Instagram face! As our skin ages, the colors (see above) and products we use need to change! As lines develop, a lighter hand can help prevent products from settling into lines and making them more pronounced. Also, as the fat deposits in our face thin, how and where we put color needs to change. That’s a lot to take in! No worries! There are makeup artists at salons and at your local department store counter who are more than happy to teach you about the newest products, looks, and application techniques. Make sure to specify what kind of look you want: Office, Everyday, No-Makeup Look, Evening or Special Event. You don’t have to buy anything! And just because the makeup artist’s idea of an Everyday look feels to you like Special Event, you still come away with new tips and tricks. It’s time for me to schedule a visit!

PS: It’s never too early to start taking good care of your skin! I regret that I didn’t start moisturizing and paying attention to my skin until I was in my 50’s. I wish I’d begun MUCH earlier…

I’m sure you’re starting to see a pattern here! We get used to doing something the way we did when we were “young,” and associate that look with our youth. Even when that day is long past and not doing our new and improved self any favors…

3. Wear the same outfits you wore 10+ years ago.

NOTE: I didn’t say pieces!

Every season, we see narrow trousers, wide trousers, button front shirts, tees, oversized sweaters, jeans, skirts, dresses, etc… But the silhouettes, combinations, and color palettes change over time. Not overnight, mind you, but the blue blazer from the 80’s doesn’t look like the blue blazer from the 90’s. The boyfriend blazer of 2019 is slimmer than the boyfriend blazer of the 80’s. I’m not telling you to throw out your wardrobe and start all over, but mixing and matching your older pieces with modernized staples tells the world that you know what’s current but aren’t a slave to fashion! Be selective. About what you keep AND about what you add.

Exception: If your sartorial lane is retro/vintage maven, and you go head to toe era: clothing, accessories, AND grooming, ignore the previous paragraph! Rock your retro look with pride!

Recent Retro like the 80’s and 90’s looks “ironic” on cute young things, but if you wore it the first time around and it’s still hanging in your closet, you might want to think twice! Save those pieces to mix and match…

So how about you? When was the last time you added something new to your routine or updated your look? Are you conscientious about skin care? When did you start? Who taught you? Do let me know in the comments below. I love to hear from you…

Stylishly yours,