For all you true blue fashionista’s out there…we had to share this wonderful video by one of our favorite bloggers, Susan Tabak. This Age-mazing™ woman certainly lives life in the fashion fast lane…always off to Paris fashion shows, hobnobbing with the designers and shopping in NYC.
Here is her latest adventure:
The Dior, Spring 2010 Haute Couture fashion show… pure fantasy, but fun to see!
Here at Fabulous After 40, we’ve been reporting about upcoming Fall fashions for the last few weeks. What if you want little bit of something in every category, and don’t have the time to shop around? We’ve found one designed that has it all!
Tory Burch’s new Fall collection includes pieces that are so trendy and age appropriate, you can’t go wrong. Here is a re-cap of our the Fall trends reviews in the last few weeks, and Tory’s take on them.
I am so glad I found your wonderful website. I have a question that relates to what is “age-appropriate”. I am 43 and very petite. I am in love with a trend jacket that is big for the Fall, although I usually stay away from trends. The jacket I am talking about is the Alice + Olivia shrunken military jacket, a picture of which is attached.
My only concern is the age-appropriate perception of this jacket due to the adornment? My idea would be to wear it with some nice fitting jeans, a simple white top underneath and simple sleek black or metallic heels. No excessive accessories. I have tried the jacket on and it fits beautifully.
Your thoughts on the age-appropriateness of this ensemble is greatly appreciated!
Sincerely,
Gail
Hi Gail,
We have been seeing this look around and we agree it is so FUN!… but here it the thing… this is definitely a trend and what we call a “statement piece”. That means that you really will not wear it all the time and if you do, people will definitely remember that specific jacket.
Also, we know that this piece is rather expensive and is in the price range that we would call an “investment piece”. We suggest that you keep looking and find one that is similar with the military look, but perhaps not so dramatic as this one.
Moreover, if you buy it, because it is so trendy you might get tired of it soon and wish you had put your money in a high quality coat that is still fun, but one that you feel good in and can enjoy for a long time. An example of this would be this one we’re showing by Tory Burch.
To answer your question if it is age appropriate, we say that yes, someone over 40 can pull this off, but it is almost “costume-like”… so you would really have to be in a funky, fun job or live in a very cosmopolitan city or environment to wear it enough to get your moneys worth.
BTW… we think it would great left open with a red plaid flannel shirt under it with blue jeans.
Would you go to NYC and buy a “knock off” designer handbag?
We don’t think it’s a good thing to do, but we have friends who couldn’t resist the temptation and ended up buying a knock-off or two for themselves, or their teenage daughter who was dying to own a Coach or Gucci bag. These brands are being copied and sold on the “infamous” Cannal Street in New York City . Recently, the NYC cops have been cracking down on these “knock off” vendors.
To read about a first hand experience on of our Blogging Boomer friends had, and to readother Boomer related lifestyle stories, check out the Midlife Crisis Queen. She’s the host of this week’s Blogging Boomers Carnival!
Have you updated your handbag lately? Are you ready to step up your game and have a gorgeous designer bag?
Want something that if you invest in it, can be updated?
Well, you can do it right here!
We love this leather handbag by Kara James. The cool thing about this bag, is that the straps can be updated and changed.
We featured these bags a few months ago and got so many letters of women wanting to find out where to buy it that we are super excited to bring you our first Sample Sale!
First of all, Kara James is a hot new designer out of Canada who is taking the states by storm. Already seen on the arm of several celebrities,now you can get one for a fraction of the original price.
You will love this well made all leather bag and get lots of compliments on it!
We only have a limited supply of them, so hurry and don’t miss out!
Well, as you might have heard, I, (JoJami) was in NYC last week when the rain totally blew my plans to visit the Botanical Gardens, however… not one to complain, I decided to check out the shopping!
When in NYC I always love to check out Bergdorf Goodman for just the plain decadence and to check in on what the creme de la creme of society is buying. With classic labels such as Chanel and Armani surrounding you on one side and the hottest newcomers on the other, the entire experience can really get your creative juices flowing and have you seriously contemplating getting a second job!
Anyway….I digress… what I wanted to share with you was the highlight of my BG experience was chatting with one their sales associates. She was super friendly and looked so gorgeous I had to ask her if her dress was a Missoni!
How old do you think she is?
YES it was but she got it last year! (BTW, She is 52 and a grandmother). She had updated it with a big chunky necklace from Anthropology and the shoes are from Zara.
Did you happen to read our recent blog on where Sigrid Olsen is now?
I (JoJami) recently interviewed the beautiful fashion designer so you can hear her story on how she has re-invented herself now that she no longer designs for her namesake label.
After 25 years of working “like a mouse in a cage” and never having time to take a vacation or a yoga class, Sigrid now runs her boutique/art studio only a few steps from her home in Massachusetts.
Moreover, not to be missed is her upcoming Yoga/Art retreat that she will be teaching with her Yogini sister in Tuscany. We have heard that her retreats are first class and life-changing!
She had read our post about age appropriate shoes with cutouts wanted to share with us shoe trends on display in Venice. Nicki said the Italian women looked fabulous! “Some of the Venetian women and an older blond gal in Lake Como looked beyond wonderful. You would have loved them and their outfits.”
Thanks for thinking of us Nicki and sending the photo! Looks like patent leather is going to be big this Spring!
Love the patent green half bootie heels, behind the green pumps on the bottom shelf…how stylish!
We love watching these beautiful photos from the Paris Spring Haute Couture shows roll in.
Sure, these gowns are pure fantasy for 99% of us who could never afford such outlandishly priced creation… but what wonderful eye candy to inspire and uplift us during this cold, drab winter!
These dresses are from the Christian Dior Spring Haute Couture Collection. The detailing and colors are exquisite!
Chic in Paris has a great post that takes you up close and front row to some of the top shows in Paris.
Michelle Obama wore a white ballgown by Jason Wu on Inauguration day. Now we’ll probably see other high profile women and celebrities turning out in white too thanks to the new Chanel Spring Couture collection by Karl Lagerfeld. His mostly all white (with some black) paper theme was designed to show you that you can have luxury without the bling; that luxury is in the details, and that this collection expresses a “new modesty.”
There were a lot of A-line dreses, classic cropped Chanel jackets,detailed beading, applique floral detail , lace and frills. It’s a very fresh and feminine collection but created for “the very rich,” not the “nouveau riche.” Still, the idea of white with gorgeous detailing is bound to trickle down to more affordable styles.
White is a beautiful option, but after 40, can look a little stark against aging skin, so be sure to choose a soft white, or even something slightly creamy if you have yellow undertones. Aren’t the headpieces wild? Works of art! To see more of the collection click here.
Karl Lagerfeld’s new “white” couture collection for spring 2009 left us wondering what’s in the stores in white for us regular gals. Here’s some cute things we found that are modern and age appropriate.
Liked this simple shift from Caroline Hererra.
Milly (one of our favourites) is showing this cute dress. This dress looks a little short in the photo, but it may be that the model is so tall. Nevertheless, you’d want to have good legs to wear this one.
Lida Baday is a Canadian designer. This spectator dress would look great on a number of body types, except for gals who are big busted. You need something more open at the neck.
David Meister is another favorite of ours. He’s showing a classy one shoulder Grecian inspired dress.
Finally, Here’s one from Kay Unger for those who prefer black with white.
Well, as much as we have enjoyed the first lady’s fresh approach to dressing, the Glam Gals are both disappointed in Michelle Obama’s dress for the “BIG DAY”!
Jo Jami’s take… “Actually from the waist up, I think the outfit photographed very well. She looks absolutely royal and very pretty….but when I saw her in full length, the fabric was so bulky that it certainly was not figure flattering and oh boy, the shoes absolutely did not fit with the dress… just too plain and (were they really green???? YUK!)”
Deb’s take… “My heart sank when I saw her. I adore Michelle’s style and was expecting something exciting and modern. She made a bold, confident choice, however, I thought this heavy sparkly dress made her look rather matronly and old. The dress may have been gold, but it read pukey green , and the jacket wasn’t as flattering as it could have been considering her lovely figure. She’s a beautiful woman, yet all I could think was the only thing missing was a big fluffy hat, and she would have looked like she was channeling Queen Elizabeth.”
O_n a more positive note, her girls look absolutely delightful in their outfits from J. Crew.
One recent outfit of Michelle’s we did love was this Narciso Rodriguez camel/black number. Very chic! She wears his clothes well.
Also several of non-designer dresses she has worn have been her best picks to date!
Look how lovely she looks here!!! This dress was only $34.00 from H&M!!! It just goes to show, that its not about how much money you spend, its all about, how it fits your body, the fabric and how you put an outfit together from top to bottom.
Michelle Obama has the potential to be a Style Icon. She’s under a lot of pressure, but as Lucinda O’Sullivan from the Independent points out, it’s just going to take a little time for her to find her own way. To see more pictures of our new first lady, go to Yahoo Lifestyle.
Talk about keeping hip and chic after 40, fashion designer, Donna Karan is still fabulous, now that she is turning 60, according to this weeks Blogging Boomers Carnival #91. Her line of DKNY clothes have always been one of my (JoJami’s) favorites, in that they are comfortable, chic and age appropriate.
Wondering where can you find them? First check out her string of DKNY stores across the country. They can also be found in the top retail chains such as Neiman Marcus, Sacs, Bloomingdales, and Nordstrom’s to name a few.
To find out who else is having a birthday in Oct., go to this week’s Blogging Boomer’s Carnival, hosted over at
We got a a chance to meet Isaac Mizrahi, best known as the designer who revolutionized the fashion industry by teaming up with Target to launch a collection of chic, but reasonably priced clothing and accessories.
Isaac (who is pretty cute in person!) was on stage at at the MORE magazine Reinvention Convention and was the hit of the day!
He was frank, funny and full of great advice. When asked…….he said…..
Q. How do you know when You are dressing too Old?
A. ” The minute you no longer feel sexy”
Q. How do you know when you are dressing too Young?
A. “When people start looking at you funny like something smells bad.”
………..Doesn’t that just sum it all up?
Isaac was at the MORE convention to promote his new bookHow to Have Style. He says having great style starts with inspiration and the way to do that is to collect pictures of things you love, put them up on a corkboard and suddenly a picture will emerge of who you are and how you should dress.
It’s a great idea. Kind of reminds us of what you you do when you want to decorate your home.
What other tidbits of wisdom did the Style guru dish out?
Style is 70% confidence! Have the confidence to make yourself the authority of your style.
Style starts with a passion. Then add tailoring and high heels.
Don’t buy on sale. Only a very trained eye can find a bargain. (wholesale is different)
You can check out Issac’s new web show coming soon at www.watchisaac.com
Saw some great sexy, very wearable Anne Klein clothes at a recent fashion show at Verity in Toronto and wanted to share the pictures with you for inspiration.
Here’s what was coming down the runway for Fall/Winter 2008. << Isn’t this sweater darling?
Grey definitely seems to be the color of the season! Notice the hat>>
We wrote about this kind of hat in our last newsletter>
Always love a simple sheath! Also, gloves everywhere.
Grey can be hard to wear if you are warm skin toned, but you could pair grey pants or a grey skirt with a purple jacket like this. >>
I (Deb) bought this purple jacket>>>
Brown was also hot and we love this coppery shade of brown, below. Big jewels are also in.
Here’s a trench with a similar finish. Nice for the holidays.
These are beautiful, no nonsense clothes that make you look look fab.As the late Anne Klein, herself, neatly put it, “Clothes won’t change the world. The women who wear them will”.
Tibi is a fabulous contemporary line we discovered when we were on the lookout for a couple of dresses for a recent TV interview.
JoJami found this smart pumpkin military style dress, and I picked up a chic Kelly green shift. These dresses are super comfortable knits and look perfect with dark tights and boots, or platform pumps.
Amy Smilovic is the designer behind Tibi. Her motto is “casual chic”. Amy’s influences comes from childhood. Her father was an artist and that comes through in her clothing, as she is know for her brilliant use of colour.
Tibi is showing at New York Fashion Week. Check out what they’re showing for Spring 2009.
drapy lines, lots of fabric and balloon-like harem pants
high waisted pleated pants and bubble skirts
This is what they’re showing for Spring 2009 at New York Fashion Week.
Doesn’t sound too wearable for us gals after 40!
Just finished listening to a great report from two AICI colleagues who are covering the shows, including this (at Catherine Malandrino, and we agree with their take on it all).
They’re saying that if these voluminous styles make a six feet tall, 100 pounds model look big in these can you imagine what the average woman would look like in them?
Last night’s Oscars, were a thumbs up for women over 40. Overall, we think the ladies looked Fabulous! Red was the color of the evening, with most mature stars, choosing very simple, styles and luxurious fabrics.
Here are our picks for Best Dressed Celebrities, who have passed the over 40 mark:
Once again, Helen Mirren, really sparkled with class and flash in her gorgeous red satin gown with 3/4 glittering crystal, openwork sleeves, by Georges Chakra.
Helen Mirren
She mentioned that since she her most recent film is another period piece, she liked that her dress was powerful and attention grabbing! Her hair style was classic and simple and complemented the dress perfectly. No old lady up do for her!
Wearing her namesake color, Ruby Dee certainly looked Red Hot. Like Helen she wore red satin and looked very sleek and elegant. Here’s one example of where grey hair looks great because of the chic cut.
Ruby Dee
Kelly Preston, wore this wonderful saffron gown that stood out nicely from the crowd. We like that she kept this hard to wear stapless look free of a necklace and instead wore just a touch of sparkle …those beautiful earrings.
Kelly Preston, wife of John Travolta
With this Grecian-inspired gown, we think Calista Flockhart looked very pretty. (Has she gained a little weight? A little meat has made her look much more attractive!) Calista’s soft updo, was just the right thing to complement this soft,flowy, godess look! Love the interesting color combination.
Calista Flockhart
We had to put this one in of Rebecca Miller. Here is someone trying to be different and show her creative side, but just not pulling it off.
Rebecca Miller
If she had just worn the dress with the red bows and NOTHING else, it might have worked.
However, your eye does not know what to look at first. We are just so confused….should we look at the bows, the giant pins or the dangling earrings? And what was she thinking trying to pull it all together with those wicked witch of the west, black and white closed toes shoes????
This is a good lesson to show what can happen when you over do it.
When dressing up, if you think it might be too much, it probably is! To hear us talk more about the Oscar fashions tune into our conversation with Radio Talk Show host, Shannon Conner from WTBQ.91.1 FM.
On a recent trip down to Florida, we were thrilled to see women on the street decked out and looking absolutely hip and gorgeous.
Here are some great looks that we hope will inspire you if you are planning a trip down south.
At Saks we were greeted by this chic saleswoman. Look how she took a classic silver shift and really made it her own. What a great way to wear a scarf, and she sure pulled off wearing those leggings! Love the silver cuff, and the way the mules pull it all together. WOW! She sure has style.
Next, we managed to pull some strings and get a table for lunch at Taboo. While we were there, we were treated to some informal modeling by these lovely ladies (both over 40!)
This spectacular model, in her electric blue shirt from the Jackie Robbins boutique, looked crisp and cool.
This gal was showing a frilly frock from Luca Luca. Not a look for everyone, but it looked great on her. The wider straps made the outfit not feel so bare.
After lunch it was time for some more shopping. Right away we spotted this hottie in a jacket from Saks. Great shoes- we had to get a close up!
Isn’t she a great example of how you can wear fun sexy shoes at any age!
Here is etiquette coach, Lisa Richey (Founder of The American Academy of Etiquette) and JoJami, in front of Chanel. We saw so many bright prints in Florida and Lisa really fit right in, wearing her new Elie Tahari dress. JoJami paired her comfy J. McLaughlin Safari dress with a wide belt and Donald Pliner wedges.
This is the headline at Elle.com where at least one Spring trend has us shaking our heads. An endless stream of oversized bows appears to have taken over the runway! Although a bow can be a fun accent on a cute sandal or top, a gigantic, floppy bow on a grown up gal can make you look like Bozo the clown.
Seems that we are not alone in our nick pickyness about what truly is wearable this season… Over at the blog, Omiru, you’ll find a list of trends that are also hard to swallow. For instance, feathers:
Here’s a good example of how feathers can look silly, even on a skinny model!
Aren’t the headpieces wild? Works of art! To see more of the collection 
Tibi 
This is what they’re showing for Spring 2009 at New York Fashion Week.
To hear their behind the scenes N.Y. fashion week report, check out their 
