When asked, a best friend will always be honest about the appropriateness of, say, a twat revealing mini-skirt, cropped T or lingerie as outwear.
Getting old is not for sissies. While it certainly beats the alternative, age appropriate dressing is a constantly evolving art form. I mean, for starters, what is age appropriate? Is a mini skirt ok at 20 or 30, but not at 40? For me, it really comes down to whether or not a piece of clothing makes me feel good in my skin or makes me feel like I’m trying too hard. When I was 27, I wore a silver sequined mini-dress to be best friend’s rehearsal dinner. It hit right at the very top of my thighs, and made me feel fantastic even though every time I leaned over in my oh so lady like fashion, I came damn close to flashing my bikini wax (Note to the wise: Bend at your knees, not at your waist, when wearing a short skirt). Now, would I wear that dress today? God no. I don’t have the legs for it anymore, but if I did….
The actress Ellen Barkin was once asked about the revolving nature of fashion trends and she said something along lines of: “If I wore it the first time, I don’t wear it the second time.” For me, this was leggings. I wore the hell out of leggings in the ’80’s, but when they came back in vogue a few years ago, they just made me feel stupid. I made one exception to this and in retrospect, I’d wish I’d had a best friend around to stop me before I went out the door.
Bottom line, it’s a best friend’s job to always be honest. To be the voice of reason when you just can’t resist the lacy skirt like the one Madonna wore in her “Like a Virgin” video. But, again, only when asked. Because unsolicited honesty is really just judgment. And we could all do with a lot less of that.
Great blog. Love it ! Congratulations !!!