Fishnetted

At a recent milonga, I remarked to N how nice B was looking that evening. A moment's appreciative inspection, then he shook his head. "Yes, but she's too young for fishnets."
I thought I must have misunderstood. "You mean ... there really are some great things that should be reserved for older women?"
"Yup. Fishnets have to be earned. You gotta get your stripes."
Wonderful! And I'd like to know if there are any other items of apparel or personal decoration this applies to.
In the meantime, men who appreciate fishnets but don't, for one reason or another, want to wear them on their own legs, can buy this tie here.

I dare you!
The image at the top, by the way, comes from a lovely site called Fishnets and Fedoras. As does this one, taken in a Florida shopping mall.

More advanced style

I've lifted pictures of this beautiful woman from Ari Seth Cohen's Advanced Style before. She looks even more fabulous in his latest post. Here are her life and style tips. By the way, she's 100.

1."I never go to bed with my makeup on. that is number one.At night you must let your skin breathe."
2."I use a lipstick brush to paint on my lipstick--It stays on longer that way. I can also use a lipstick longer than anyone else because I can dig into it."
3."Every night before I got to bed I use Elizabeth Arden's 8 hour beauty cream on my lips. You must keep your lips moisturized."
4."When it comes to fashion you must be aware of your skin tone. You don't wear orange lipstick with a red dress."

5."I make myself go out everyday, even if its only to walk around the block. The Key to staying young is to keep moving. You are never too old to exercise."

6."Invest in Quality pieces, they never go out of style."

7."Don't look at the calendar, just keep celebrating everyday."
8."I dress up everyday and I don't wear blue jeans. I dress up even to mail a letter, you never know who you will meet along the way."
9.I have been active my whole life. An old Elizabeth Arden Ad said,"If you want to look like this when you are 40 start when you are 20."
10.I wake up every morning and say, "This is the day the lord has made."

More advanced style

Here, courtesy of  Ari Seth Cohen's wonderful site, is a beautiful woman on the eve of her 100th birthday, and, so she told him, about to go off on a Bermudan cruise with her boyfriend. Allelujah!

Advanced style in advanced years

This great picture is among the latest posted by New Yorker Ari Seth Cohen on his Advanced Style blog. He roams the streets "looking for the most stylish and creative older folks".  "Respect your elders," he urges. "Let these ladies and gents teach you a thing or two about living life to the fullest. Advanced Style offers proof from the wise and silver-haired set that personal style advances with age."
His photographs prove the claim. Look at those boots, that brolly, that pose.
"Style," he told a BBC interviewer, "is a reflection of personal vitality." Older women, unlike younger, dress to please themselves, he said; they throw away the rules. He's working on a book of his photos and subject's comments to be published next year.
Thanks to Cheryl for bringing Cohen and his blog to my attention. And thanks to him for being smart enough to shun the "youth is best" obsession.

Ari Seth Cohen

Young and older

Here's Astrid, mentioned in my last blog as recipient of the age-inappropriate red skirt. She was photographed on Cuba Street in January by New Zealand's equivalent of The Sartorialist.
Street and City Photos is worth checking out for its images, mainly of stylish younger women.
What I love about The Sartorialist, though, is his wide-ranging eye for men and women of all ages. Here, for instance, is a lovely counterpoint to the picture of Astrid.

This garnered 197 positive comments. One of them was, "[T]his looks like a woman who has lived life." I know Anon meant well but did it not cross his or her mind that this woman still is living life, that she doesn't exist entirely in the past tense?