A popular blog is proving fashion doesn’t quit when you hit 60.
Have you checked out Ari Seth Cohen’s Advanced Style blog yet? Since its launch in 2009 the site has been a hit with stylistas young and mature, but ever since fall fashion’s foresighted focus on throwback looks like turbans, furs, pearls and gloves, the blog documenting septuagenarians’ sense of style is emerging as fashion’s freshest perspective.
Is this the beginning of a reversal in only young people being represented as beautiful in magazine media?
Gorgeous-granny-get-up appeal isn’t difficult to understand. The familiar tale of an inspirationally elegant grandmother who was artfully put together and never went out of the house without “putting her face on,” is a common refrain among fashion followers.
So much of the sustainability movement is about old ideas that seem new again – victory gardens, canning and sewing circles – it’s not a surprise that the blog is rich in green philosophy.
Because when you take away the idealized forms and faces we’re used to seeing in fashion imagery – the bondage of self-limiting beliefs designed to induce consumer craving – a true sense of what personal style is, comes into sharp relief.
As Cohen’s subjects demonstrate, it’s not about buying the latest or greatest new thing that makes someone look good, it’s the humor, enthusiasm and joy that goes into putting an outfit together that renders them striking.
Reminding us that bodies will age but minds can choose not to.
These women’s taste for life and joy in their clothes are deeply empowering. While bodies will age, minds can choose not to. When you start dressing purely for yourself, every new item is purchased with the intent you’ll have it forever. Of all the eco-friendly fashion approaches, it’s clear that developing a signature style is the happiest path to a sustainable wardrobe.
