It’s Not Betty White?

I have to confess. As a blogger, I’m an absolutely terrible news outlet. When I come across a new, exciting piece of information, ripe for posting, I immediately make sure to do nothing about it. I nod to myself, “Wow, that’s great. People need to know about this.” I spend a week thinking about it, arguing that I’m trying to organize the information, and wade through all my homework before I take the time to blog. For these reasons, it may come as no surprise to some of you that a few weeks ago, Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen’s fashion line, The Row, published their Fall 2014 lookbook. Ordinarily at this time of year, that would be no surprise and merely signal that the company hadn’t gone under in the past three months. However, this time, making a statement beyond its delicious fabrics and utilitarian designs, The Row stunned fashion followers when they employed the modeling talents a famous 60-something: Linda Rodin. Ursula Wallis, 39, and Esther de Jong (whose agency wouldn’t release her age) also modeled for the collection. None of these ladies are strangers to the fashion scene, let alone the runway (Wallis was in Prada’s 2013 Fall show). Linda Rodin, in particular, has a resume that begins with her modeling alongside Twiggy in the 1960s, going on to edit Harper’s Bazaar, and spans to her skincare and perfume line, Rodin Olio Lusso, today.

Ursula Wallis:

Esther de Jong Comparison:

Now, I don’t know about you, but however fabulous each of these ladies may be, until seeing The Row’s lookbook, I had never heard of any of them. Maybe I’m just too young, but I don’t think that’s the answer. To be honest, when it comes to older women in the limelight, few come to mind. Except one. How could anyone overlook Betty White?

Admittedly, I am also partial to the Dames Julie and Maggie.

But for whatever reason in my mind, Betty White seems like the sole vocal representative of older women in entertainment (yes, I know she’s not in fashion). While I know this is an exaggeration, I would be interested to see what others think of when they think of older women in entertainment/ fashion. I’m fascinated by The Row’s step in this direction, and only want to know why aren’t others already diversifying the ages of their models? I can think of three reasons (let me know your thoughts!):

1. I would think that the main concern of using older models is that you might lose a younger consumer audience (do they even have money anyway?).

2. Advertising 101: Sex sells. While we aren’t selling sex to women per se when they are looking at others, the people we see modeling on any other runway are what we WANT to look like. There’s the lust to look sexy like them and so we buy the product. While I am not proposing that 60-year-olds are not or cannot be sexy, I just think that fewer 20-year-olds think “sexy” when they see an older woman.

Whether or not those are apt reasons, I’ll be interested to see how The Row does financially this Fall. Furthermore, I think it’s refreshing to see a high fashion line channel a look other than an exotic infanta, rolling in newfound libido (which explains why none of them have grown breasts yet — now I’m just ranting irrationally). The point is, old women are fabulous, and I think that we forget that because we don’t see them in that station. Men get their leather libraries and persian slippers, but where are our grandmothers? I only see Betty.

Quite Right.

As I’ve mentioned before, I love Ari Seth Cohen’s blog, Advanced Style because he photos breathtaking women who aren’t juggling college, a fixie, and a skinny vanilla latte. I like women with businesses, grandchildren, and the perm you never thought to try. It’s not that I don’t like the first group, rather, it’s like someone’s put too much water in my apple juice, the media has diluted their poignance. Why does high fashion, the most creative industry in the market, pander to the same tired age group? I love Karlie Kloss just as much as the next girl, but I’d like to see more marketing where in this direction.

I’ll help the practice along with one of the most beautiful women I know.

For more information on other older models still working out there, check out this Huffington Post article.

Sunglasses Wear and Care

• Sunglasses

I stalk Ebay like a lion on an antelope. When the odd deal comes along, you better believe I am crouched in the shady brush just out of the periphery ready to pounce. This story is no exception. This is a story about pouncing too fast in the face of Chloe sunglasses (I believe they call it leaping before you look). But it turns out okay, and I’m here to tell you how.

• Wear

I have never spent over $5.00 on sunglasses. I always lose or break my sunglasses so I have been afraid to invest, but after borrowing a pair of my friend’s Ray Bans for a day, I decided that I might do better if I actually valued the sunglasses. Since I pretty love everything that is the French Design house Chloé, I started watching the market, determined not to pay anymore than $20.00 total on glasses (yes, I realize it wasn’t much more of an investment but baby steps :P). Before long I found my opportunity. A pair of glasses with all the fixings (except a missing screw) was listed at 25.00 buy-it-now price.  It also offered the “Best offer” option. This allows potential buyers to submit an offer which the they commit to pay should the seller accept the offer. I whimsically submitted like 16.00 that with shipping, would put me just under $20.00. Before I had time to refresh the page, the seller accepted.

They looked so good…

There was only one hitch upon receiving them. I hadn’t bothered to figure out where the missing screw was, and it was kind of important. Not to mention, the “screw” that was missing looks more like a stylish, non-functioning gold peg.

Pretty visible if you are’t taking a picture from 5 feet away.

• Care

I did the only thing I could do in this situation. I called my Mimi. Together we came up with a list of home solutions. First, I went to Joanne’s fabrics, thinking I could use the top of a stick pin to put in the empty hole and smooth down in the back.

Like looking for hay in a stack of needles.

Turns out, Joanne’s has EVERY type of needle you could ever imagine, as long as it’s silver. From there, Mimi suggested that we go to the jewelry store. They said they didn’t have anything like it, but Mimi got her bracelet fixed for free.

When we got back in the car, she sat thinking for a second before announcing, “You just sit tight,” and we were off… to her ophthalmologist. When we walked in, it was about a quarter to five. We had no appointment, and I knew no one in the building, but Mimi just waltzed up to the counter and asked if they had the stuff to fix “her granddaughter’s favorite glasses.” A tall man with stern lips and ominous eyebrows, signaled us to walk back into the hallway with a casual hand motion. The complicit receptionist, opened the door for us.

While Mimi styled sample frames, I nervously watched the eyeglass man invent a makeshift screw for my glasses. My two favorite questions were: “Where did you get these?” and “how long have you had them.” Rest assured, “on ebay” and “three days” were NOT my responses.

Midway through the interview, Mimi saw her doctor. He stopped and talked to us for 15 minutes (during which Mimi managed to slip in my whole academic biography). I don’t know what did it exactly, but the repairman gave me back the frames for free.

You’d never know the difference, unless of course you knew the difference.

• Share

Living Room Selfie Attempt #27

• Lessons Learned:

— Get your sunglasses fixed at an eyewear place.

— Always bring Mimi.