On Being Age Appropriate

[Guest Ot**w***og****n]

When posting some videos on the 80's Vibe Thread, I got to thinking about being "age appropriate" and I thought I would start this thread just for fun. I am an aging "baby boomer" in my mid-60's. I am also and guitar playing rock 'n' roller and a blues player. When I was a teenager in the 60's I wore my hair long to my shoulders which was considered quite long in those days and I played in a band. I have owned and ridden motorcycles for decades. Over the years, I have worn my hair very long and have sported a beard of various styles and lengths. Nowadays, my once thick, dirty blonde hair is greying and has thinned. I no longer wear my hair long nor do I wear a beard as it is almost white so I am now clean shaven which makes me look much younger. I made this change just before my wife died which made her very happy as I no longer looked like I just jumped off a Harley and grabbed one of my guitars to go play some tunes. I guess you can say I am now "age appropriate." Many of my biker and musician friends around my age still wear their hair long albeit almost gone except for a pony tail and their beards long, some trimmed and some not resembling one of the Robertsons from "Duck Commander." I am comfortable with my new appearance as such and will likely stay that way for the time being even though I still play guitar and ride motorcycles. I do have fond memories of the old days and I can see how people will cling to styles of the past and are content to not be "age appropriate."

 

Any fun or interesting personal stories or experiences ladies and gents?

[Guest *l**e]

I can totally relate to this thread. I used to be a lead singer in a band in the 90's. I had looong hair!! Somewhere around 97 I realized that other than bikers, I was pretty much the last long haired guy. I am not one for fashion; couldn't care less to be honest, but for some reason I started to feel like my hair needed to change.

Over the next years my hair got shorter and shorter till i finally arrived at the quite short style i wear today. One of the biggest issues was maintenance. With long hair it was a quick brush and go...maybe a pony tail. Short har required much more daily work and I hated it. My hair now is basically wash an go. I don't even own a brush, never mind any hair products and I love it.

Now if I would stop getting grey, that would be nice!! That's one form of age appropriateness I am not enjoying...lol

[Guest M****ella's C****s (retire]

Well, I am facing this as well. What is age appropriate? How should I dress?

And can women get away with it for longer? Who knows.

 

All I know is next year I will be 30, man time flies! But I started thinking if I was dressing too young. Granted I'm not "old" I believe age is a state of mind personally, but does the way we dress impact how we will be perceived? Sadly most of the time the answer is yes. So here is my dilemma I dress closer to someone in their early 20's to mid 20's, but should I start dressing more conservative or like a soccer mom? I don't think I should for the time being, but I think it's sad that we feel a need to fit the constraints of what other people consider appropriate...Maybe I will break all the rules when I'm older and dress younger because it's how I feel. Who knows! But the journey should be fun till I get there. ^_^

 

I guess there are exceptions to every, but I think the best thing is to do what makes you feel good and what you are comfortable with.

[Gabriella Laurence 301887]

Now if I would stop getting grey, that would be nice!! That's one form of age appropriateness I am not enjoying...lol

 

I find it unfortunate you feel this way as a man with some grey hair, salt and pepper or a totally white head is damn sexy!!! I know a lot of ladies who love this, including myself :)

[Meg O'Ryan 266444]

A this point in my life I really don't care what others think. I dress how I want, I act how I wish and defy anyone to make me feel differently! Life is too short to conform to the trappings of society's perceived notions of maturity!

 

In short, do and be what makes you happy!

[Guest ***nno**n***]

Now if I would stop getting grey, that would be nice!! That's one form of age appropriateness I am not enjoying...lol

 

Oh I so love a guy with grey hair from a little to a lot. It looks hot on men.

[Meg O'Ryan 266444]

Ever since my early twenties I was attracted to a man with s&p or completely grey hair!

[Andee 220524]

A this point in my life I really don't care what others think. I dress how I want, I act how I wish and defy anyone to make me feel differently! Life is too short to conform to the trappings of society's perceived notions of maturity!

 

In short, do and be what makes you happy!

 

I couldn't have said it better.

 

I'm a 50+ chick and I am nothing like my mother and her friends were. I didn't cut my hair short and start wearing a girdle because "that's what you're supposed to do when you turn 50".

 

I ride a motorcycle and sport a leather/suede jacket with fringes (yes fringes!!) and a helmet with skulls on it. I wear jeans and cowboy boots.

 

I prefer to date men in who are younger than me and do not discriminate when it comes to age concerning my friends.

 

My radio stations are chez 106 and the Dawg

 

My nieces say I'm stuck in the 70's, but also praise me as "being cool".

[Cleo Catra 178382]

A this point in my life I really don't care what others think. I dress how I want, I act how I wish and defy anyone to make me feel differently! Life is too short to conform to the trappings of society's perceived notions of maturity!

 

In short, do and be what makes you happy!

 

Took the words right out of my mouth :) What she said!

[cat 262460]

This is something I am keenly aware of. As a woman in her 40's, I don't want to wander around out in the world giving off the impression I forgot my age when I dressed that morning. At the same time, I refuse to wear the shapeless uniform of the maturing woman. I love timeless looks, attire that would "wow" on a 20 year old as well as a 60 year old. Remaining current doesn't mean not being age appropriate, it just means utilizing the age acquired wisdom of making good choices. Do I wear over the knee boots? Absolutely! But not with a mini skirt or hot pants! Do I wear form fitting clothes? Yes! But not in styles or lengths that display skin or are unflattering and I always pair it with a piece that adds a touch of modesty. If I have to wear something that is ultra conservative, I punch it up with killer shoes and knock out accessories to express my inner age.

 

The greatest challenge is my work "look". I love the sexy outfits that accentuate my shape but the spandex club dresses are simply not me anymore so I find myself drawn to great classic outfits and spice them up with a shortened hemline and perhaps lower the neckline or the back for visual impact. Taking a classic business suit and making it a little more sexy is a fun way to add umph to my work wardrobe. Being age appropriate doesn't mean loosing your individuality, it just means recognizing what works and what doesn't...

 

cat

[Guest realnicehat]

Do I wear over the knee boots? Absolutely! But not with a mini skirt or hot pants!

 

What if I asked nicely? ;)

[Guest M****ella's C****s (retire]

Like some of the other ladies have stated salt and pepper hair can be quite sexy...I myself find it quite sexy and well for those of you who have a full head of white hair I like to dub the nick name silver foxes ;) Makes a man look very distinguished and sexy...Slat and pepper or totally white, embrace it and rock your locks ;) Yum Yum Yum!!

 

I can totally relate to this thread. I used to be a lead singer in a band in the 90's. I had looong hair!! Somewhere around 97 I realized that other than bikers, I was pretty much the last long haired guy. I am not one for fashion; couldn't care less to be honest, but for some reason I started to feel like my hair needed to change.

Over the next years my hair got shorter and shorter till i finally arrived at the quite short style i wear today. One of the biggest issues was maintenance. With long hair it was a quick brush and go...maybe a pony tail. Short har required much more daily work and I hated it. My hair now is basically wash an go. I don't even own a brush, never mind any hair products and I love it.

Now if I would stop getting grey, that would be nice!! That's one form of age appropriateness I am not enjoying...lol

[renegade 11027]

I dressed "for success" when I was in my thirties and forties and thought it was required, now I dress for me, I,ll give up my bike when I can no longer pick it up, I,ll quit skydiving when I can,t get in the plane, I,ll quit wakeboarding when I can no longer cross the wake, scuba when I can,t carry my own gear, golf when my handicap gets to double digits and I,ll quit visiting sp,s when I,m so senile I can,t find their incall -- if people arn,t comfortable with what I do at any age or consider it not appropriate that's their problem its not something I even stop and think about anymore.

[Guest N***he**Ont**y]

I gave up the beard and the long hair,(the beard Last November will be back for Movember) my bike and now I drive an SUV. Hair is shorter and and greyer but now I am being me!

[Malika Fantasy 144625]

I am in my mid 20's...and my style of clothing hasn't really change in the past 5-7 years. I do love my short short and small tank top

 

My wardrobe is such a mix of everything...I (literally) have a short maxi dress that barely cover my butt, next to a long sleeve /knee length conservative dress , next to a a goth dress, next to a mediaeval dress with a train , next to a Middle Earth map dress.

[Guest webothscore]

Teens was the easiest era to buy clothes, although more peer pressured than other decades, it was easy to pick stuff out, imo, so much available. 20s was interesting because sometimes people tried sooo hard to look older that it fell out of place a little. Fine, look mature if you want to but relax on the 9 piece suit, or so it seemed with all the available suit accessories (three pieces are enough for a 20s man, take it easy on the scarf, links, suspenders, cock wipe and whatever else is available). Being in my 30s, I find it easy to have well fitted clothing. As for being age appropriate and knowing myself, I have a feeling I will always dress just a handful of years younger than my actual self, especially as time moves forward.

[Guest *Ste***cque**]

I've recently decided to embrace my greying locks at 54 so it's nice to hear the positive comments.

 

Men can look good as they age if they follow a few tips. Grooming is important, especially the older you are. Stay fit if possible, choose a style and stay away from super trendy stuff, stick with quality and well tailored and be confident. When you go out, dress for the other person. You'll be beating the women off with a cane!

[McGuinessDraft 2240]

Im pretty stubborn, and comfortable with how I look. Ill more than likely be wearing bike or bar t-shirts, jeans and chuck taylors until the day I die. Except for winter, that's when the plaid flannel shirts come out :)

[roamingguy 300292]

Meg is right. I don't care what others think, I dress what is comfortable for me. I also must be a constant in an ever changing universe LOL. In my high school days I wore jeans, and t shirts, sweattops/hoodies, or flannel button front shirts. Guess what I wear now, 99% of the time the same thing (I do scrub up a bit nicer for encounters though ;-) )

RG

[piano8950 32577]

I've always been around older people, so I was always trying to dress like an adult. I bought my first suit (with my own income) at the age of 13 that I outgrew in 4 months. I've started to dress more age appropriately, but in my case, it's rolling back the years.

[olderguy 5797]

At 58 my hair is now quite white (I had been a ginger). I can't tell you how thrilled I am to hear that some woman (actually seems like quite a few) actually like gray or salt and pepper or white hair!!

I tried to push back my advancing age in my early 50's but it proved to be rather foolish when I look back on it now. I'm self employed so I can dress pretty much how ever I please (within reason) and that tends to lean to the comfortable side - not too old of styles but not too young either. My taste in music, literature, movies and art often seems to be more appropriate for a much younger man, but I really think that's just a taste thing. I tend to prefer mature woman or at least a woman that acts mature. Again, I suspect that's a taste thing.

[Phaedrus 209521]

I've noticed that I'm becoming ever more inappropriate as I get older...

 

BAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!