Have some dignity

This post is going to sound rather curmudgeonly, but I am sick of seeing flesh everywhere I go. Way too much flesh. Whatever happened to leaving something to the imagination?

Last week my friend Polly sent me a link to this site about shorts. Last night Bethany and I kept seeing women who needed to see this site. Or a mirror. Seriously.

I don't wear shorts unless I'm playing tennis or--maybe--working outside. I am also one of those people who is always hot. I am living, breathing, walking, shopping, dining-out proof that a woman can dress comfortably in the summer without wearing shorts. I wish more of them would try it!

I don't have anything against shorts. Really. Slender young women with toned legs should definitely wear shorts if they want to. Fat fifty year olds should not, especially not short shorts with a tank top to the restaurant where I am paying over $20 a person for dinner. (Such a woman also should not eat her salad with her fork and the fingers of her other hand while chewing with her mouth open, but I digress.)

I also don't have anything against legs. But I do have something against fat thighs making shorts ride up until everyone can see way more of those legs--and other things-- than they ever wanted to.

There are several other posts coming on this topic and others related.

ADDENDUM: I do realize that there are some times and places for shorts: parks, beaches, amusement parks, etc. I don't even care if people want to wear them to the grocery store. Or the mall. Or Steak and Shake. Seeing women in nice shorts that come to somewhere between mid-thigh and above the knee is fine. But with very very few exceptions shorts don't belong in nice restaurants. And most women should never, ever wear shorts that hit higher than mid-thigh.

Thinking about style

I have always liked clothes and have been interested in fashion. I had a grandmother who taught me to shop for quality and to look at lines. When I was a child my mother and grandmother kept me in sweet little dresses with their sewing skills. I suffered in elementary school from being an early bloomer with unfashionable curves in the oh-so-flat '70's. In high school it was all about the fads. And in college I wished that I had the money to dress like the sorority girls in the oh-so-preppy '80s.

My taste has always outstripped my budget and it seems that when I do find clothes that fit me relatively well they are in pricey stores. I have started to collect some pieces that work well and have staying power, but I haven't had a plan.

Now I'm making a plan, thanks to two books suggested by my friend Polly: The Pocket Stylist: Behind-the-Scenes Expertise from a Fashion Pro on Creating Your Own Look and 40 Over 40: 40 Things Every Women over 40 Needs to Know About Getting Dressed. I'm discovering that there are some things that I've been doing right, but there are other things that I can do that will help me feel better about my wardrobe and the way I look.

The pocket stylist, particularly, has great tips about finding clothes that suit the shape that you are, not the shape you would like to be or the shape that the models are. It has great advice about cuts, fabrics, & patterns that flatter and why. There are suggestions on how to shop to find what you want and about what to get rid of and what to hang on to.

Saturday I'm cleaning out my closet and taking my measurements. (Ugh!) Wish me luck!

To gray or not to gray

Polly's reply to my last post made me think about something.

I have stopped coloring my hair. It has been five months since I last used semi-permanent coloring and I think that what I have now is pretty close to my natural color. I've definitely got some gray, but I don't think it looks bad. I've been noticing how few gray-haired women I see when I am out running around. Is this a baby boomer thing?